If there are any two words that can cause a foaling operation’s manager to shudder, they are probably “Rhodococcus equi,” since the bacterium is considered the most common cause of severe pneumonia in foals.

“Indications to evaluate this area include respiratory noise and a persistent cough, often along with poor performance,” he said. “When the cough is observed while the horse is eating or when bitting up, this is pathognomonic (is indicative of a specific problem; in this case, subepiglottic ulceration).

The National Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association (HBPA) has adopted a position on medication and drug testing that states any changes in policies in each jurisdiction should be enacted only after there is scientific evidence that specific therapeutic drugs shouldn’t be used in racehorses.

The National HBPA supports efforts by the national Racing Medication and Testin

More than 3,000 veterinary specialists and veterinary health care professionals will convene in Minneapolis, Minn., June 9-12, to discuss and share the most recent advances in veterinary medicine. The American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine’s (ACVIM) annual forum has become a premiere resource of information on the latest advances in veterinary research and care. The topics of the

The 5th Annual Auction of the North American Equine Ranching Information Council (NAERIC) Incentive registered yearlings will be at the Round House, Cook College, Rutgers University in New Brunswick, NJ. This year, five adult Belgian and Belgian cross PMU mares will also be sold. Horses can be viewed by appointment during Ag Field Day on April 24 and/or starting at 11 a.m. on April 25,

Will spring ever come? I don’t know about where you live, but I’m tired of cold weather, frozen water tanks, and frozen ground that then turns into a muddy quagmire the few days it gets above freezing. This hasn’t made for good training for the young police horses.

They’re growing. Fast. I’m going to try and take them this weekend to get weighed. Got a weight tape from Purina, so I’ll

The structural appearance of the foot is continually being modified by the interactions of the foot with the environment and the environment’s influences on the foot and hoof wall. The term environmental influences includes just about everything that the horse has come into contact with since birth, including the extent of movement, ground surfaces, trimming and shoeing procedures or the lack of

Samuel Johnson once said that, “Great works are performed not by strength, but by perseverance.” This old adage definitely applies to Days End Farm Horse Rescue, a 501(c)(3) non-profit equine rescue and humane education facility founded by Kathy and Allan Schwartz in 1989 and located in Lisbon, Md.
Unfortunately, Days End has outgrown its current property, which is leased to the

Tetanus, or lockjaw, is an often fatal disease caused by the anaerobic (grows in low oxygen conditions)bacterium, Clostridium tetani. The spores of C. tetani are commonly present in the soil and can contaminate puncture wounds, crushing wounds, open lacerations, surgical incisions, and the umbilici of foals. Upon gaining entrance to the body, they produce a powerful

Mad cow disease (bovine spongiform encephalopathy) in the United States highlighted the need to have all livestock–including horses–identified and easily traced. While some states have required equine identification programs in place now (such as Louisiana), there are grumblings from some horse owners about “big brother” becoming involved in the horse industry.

The identification

Cribbing, the oral stereotypic behavior in which the horse grabs an object with his teeth while flexing his neck and sometimes swallowing air, has long been suspected as a cause of colic.

Charlotte A. Lacroix, DVM, Esq. (attorney) of New Jersey, presented a session on compounding at the convention. Lacroix cautioned her veterinary audience that illegal compounding is a potential tidal wave in liability.

The FDA says a drug is any substance, food, or non-food used to treat, cure, mitigate, or prevent a disease. A drug also is any non-food substance that is intended to

While it might be easy to forget about the small accessory ligament that anchors the superficial digital flexor tendon to the upper foreleg bone (radius), acute desmitis (ligament inflammation) of this structure has now been shown to be a significant cause of pronounced, transient lameness in Thoroughbred racehorses.

EPM is a protozoal disease that causes inflammation in the brain and spinal cord of the horse. In the late 1970s to early 1980s, Morgan said there was debate whether a toxoplasma or Sarcocystis organism was the cause.