Latest News – The Horse

The battle over the slaughter of horses in the United States has shifted directly to Texas, where two slaughter plants operate. At the moment, operations at the two plants continue while the issue is being decided in federal court.

The two horse slaughter plants are Beltex in Fort Worth, Texas, and Dallas Crown in nearby Kaufman.

The background that led to the current battle is this

Research has shown that it probably isn’t a virus or bacteria (a biological agent) that links the Eastern tent caterpillar (ETC) to mare reproductive loss syndrome (MRLS). Bill Bernard, DVM, Dipl. ACVIM, of Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Ky.; and Manu Sebastian, DVM, MS, a pathologist with the University of Kentucky’s Livestock Disease Diagnostic Center, conducted the experimen

Adapting to the environment, informed by genetic codes, and endeavoring to meet human demands, the horse’s hoof is like an individual fingerprint on the human hand. Decoding the process the horse uses to arrive at his ideal hoof form filled three days of lectures, discussions, and demonstrations at the May 2-4 Natural Hoofcare Conference at Tufts University College of Veterinary Medicine.

Elliott detailed evidence of a reduction in hind gut (cecal) pH following carbohydrate overload, generally believed to be the leading factor in the onset of laminitis in otherwise healthy horses. Carbohydrate overload has also been associated with an increase in amine (an organic compound containing nitrogen) production in the gut.

Veterinarians are scrambling to keep up with the Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) cases emerging in the southeastern United States. Since the beginning of June, South Carolina has had 17 confirmed equine cases, with about 25 pending confirmation. Florida’s EEE case count is up to 113 this year, and Georgia has 30.

In 2002, South Carolina had five equine cases of EEE, Florida had 25, and

The one sabotaged Saddlebred still under treatment is recovering well, according to two veterinarians who have been treating the horse at Hagyard-Davidson-McGee (HDM) Associates in Lexington, Ky. However, they cannot say the gelding is completely out of the woods yet. Six-year-old Cats Don’t Dance is currently sound and slowly responding to a combination of cutting-edge treatments

Sometimes it can be quite difficult to get a mare pregnant, especially if she has fertility problems. There are several reasons that a mare might be infertile, many of which can be treated. Two reproductive specialists from Lexington, Ky., shared their extensive knowledge of several of the problems that mares can face with attendees of the Thoroughbred International Exposition and Conference

Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) case reports have risen into the hundreds this year, with confirmation of equine cases in at least nine states as the virus seemingly moves northwest from hot spots in the Southeast. Florida has been hit hardest, with a total of 174 equine cases reported from 47 counties as of July 25. The outcome of 163 of those cases is known: About 66% of those cases died

Preventing infectious diseases and parasites from attacking our horses are primary concerns for every horse owner. James D. Smith, DVM, a practitioner at Hagyard-Davidson-McGee Associates, PLLC, in Lexington, Ky., and Craig Reinemeyer, DVM, PhD, president of East Tennessee Clinical Research in Knoxville, Tenn., provided invaluable insight into how to keep the risks of infectious diseases and

The scientists who produced the world’s first clone born to the horse family have announced that the third cloned mule foal was born yesterday (July 27).

The team includes Gordon Woods, DVM, MS, PhD, Dipl. ACT, and Dirk Vanderwall, DVM, PhD, Dipl. ACT, both UI professors of animal and veterinary science, and Ken White, PhD, a professor in Utah State’s Animal, Dairy and Veterinary

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Center for Epidemiology and
Animal Health, a part of USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection
Service’s (APHIS) Veterinary Services program (VS), recently released its
outlook for the occurrence of West Nile virus (WNV) in equids during 2003.

The outlook discusses factors that influence the viral threat to equids and
resistance of

Even horses are not immune to the changes since September 11, 2001. Florida Equine Veterinary Services prepares to address disaster preparedness in its upcoming Equine Emergency Care Seminar in Orlando in September.

“We don’t know when to expect an emergency, but we can plan for one,” said Dr. Erin Denney-Jones, president of Florida Equine Veterinary Services. “It’s our goal to get

Is it possible that the horse is a natural intermediate host in the life cycle of the parasite that causes equine protozoal myeloencephalitis (EPM), meaning the parasite can develop to a reproductive state in the horse? Are there other parasites that cause EPM? Can Strongid C 2X daily dewormer prevent infection in horses with Sarcocystis neurona? Does shipping a horse twice increase

Research and experience by veterinarians have shown that tapeworms are associated with equine spasmodic colic, ileal impaction, and intussusception (where the intestine telescopes back onto itself). It is possible that recent deworming methods have allowed tapeworms to thrive in horses where other parasites are being controlled.

Recent research shows that the prevalence of tapeworms

Tennessee animal health officials on alert for the return of West Nile virus are also on the lookout for the re-emergence of another mosquito-borne disease in the Southeast–Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE). Tennessee’s first EEE case for 2003 was confirmed last week.

“Outbreaks of viral encephalitis in horses is a seasonal occurrence due to the prevalence of mosquitoes this time of

Two novel methods of wound treatment were used on five valuable American Saddlebreds attacked and injected with an unknown caustic substance in the back of their left front pasterns on June 30. The tissue in the injected area became necrotic (died), leaving painful, difficult-to-treat lesions that has resulted in death of two of the horses. The attackers of the horses based near Lexington,