Maryland horses fared well during Hurricane Isabel’s sweep across the state Sept. 18-19 and in the aftermath. Rob Burk, executive director of the Maryland Horse Industry Board in Annapolis, Md., believes that due to advance warning and education on disaster planning, Maryland horse owners were well prepared for the arrival of the storm, which ended up striking the state with less intensity

An international gathering of over 2,400 veterinarians is expected to explore the latest advances in equine veterinary care and research during the American Association of Equine Practitioners’ (AAEP) 49th Annual Convention in New Orleans, La., Nov. 21 – 25.

As the world’s largest continuing education meeting devoted to equine veterinary medicine, the convention will offer scientific

The luck of a proactive passerby helped save the lives of eight horses in a burning barn early Sept. 10 at Equestrian Park in College Station, Texas. Sixteen died in the fire due to burns and/or smoke inhalation, said property owner Brazos Joe Varisco, and three more were euthanized shortly thereafter due to their injuries. Ten of the barn’s inhabitants were racing Quarter Horses (all of whic

Hurricane Isabel announced her landfall by hammering coastal North Carolina on Sept. 18. Some of the storm’s worst damage was seen in that state. However, due to meticulous disaster planning, most North Carolina horses were out of harm’s way before the storm hit.

Jodi Jackson, executive director of the State Animal Response Team (SART), said, “I’m very pleased to report that the horse

Members of the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) and other individuals are invited to submit an abstract for consideration for presentation during the 2004 Focus meeting in Louisville, Ky., July 22-24. The topic of the meeting is joint disease.

The purpose of this meeting is to being together researchers and clinicians to discuss, disseminate and enhance the current

One horse was hit and killed by a school bus after traveling onto a Bahrain highway, according to the online edition of the Gulf Daily News. The stallion and another horse appeared to have escaped from a nearby stable and run onto the road.

In Bucyrus, Ohio, an Indiana trucker hit a horse on the west end of the U.S. 20 bypass on the night of Sept. 22, according to the online edition of the Telegraph-Forum. The westbound semi reportedly hit the horse around 8:30 pm, throwing it into an eastbound car.

According to the article, “Albert R. Bell of Logansport, Ind., was driving the semi, hauling for Pasquale Truckin

Animal control officers in Tift County, Ga., responded to reports of a dead horse found floating in a creek off Wiley Branch Road on the afternoon of Sept. 23, according to the online edition of the Tifton Gazette. When the officers searched the area, they also found a dead dog. Both animals had been shot in the forehead. The area will be searched for more animals, and officers will

A couple of Przevalski’s horses arrived Sept. 23 from Switzerland to the freshly opened zoo in Dobrich, Bulgaria, which is 486km northeast of Sofia. The rare breed has not been seen in the wild since 1968, and only 500 specimens can be counted in Europe and America, according to the Bulgarian News online.

The newcomers–Igor and Kuni–had a good trip from Switzerland and are

Funding figures from the University of Kentucky and non-university sources for research on mare reproductive loss syndrome (MRLS) were recently made available. The problem is estimated to have cost the horse industry in Kentucky nearly $500 million in 2001 and 2002.

The KTA/KTOB and Ag Development Board funded $694,615; the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation funded $295,938; the

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) has approved $5,407,739.00 in low-interest loans for breeders in Central Kentucky who were negatively impacted by mare reproductive loss syndrome.

The program was developed by the Kentucky Thoroughbred Owners & Breeders and the American Horse Council. The organizations worked closely with members of Kentucky’s

The Central Kentucky Riding for the Handicapped (CKRH) is having its sixth annual Halloween Trail Ride/Ride-A-Thon. The ride is open to participants of any age, riding experience, and discipline. The marked trail (over 10 miles) will be open from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. Riders may ride as much of the trail as they would like with as many breaks as needed while the trail is open. Horses are not

In the last month, 16 of the 19 horses at Brookhill Stables in Goble, Ore., and two horses from a nearby private farm, have showed respiratory and/or neurologic signs consistent with equine herpesvirus type 1 (EHV-1), although not all have been tested for the disease. To date, three older victims have been euthanized–one from Brookhill Stables and the two horses from the private farm, which

Hair remnants, resembling Eastern tent caterpillar (ETC) setae (hair-like projections on the outside of the caterpillar), were found embedded in the submucosa of the digestive tract of one mare fed ETC larvae. Examination of this mare represents the initial step of a controlled experiment with the purpose of investigating the role of the ETC exoskeleton (cuticle) in MRLS (see also

With Hurricane Isabel poised to hit land late in the week of Sept. 15, Colonial Downs in Virginia has once again opened its barns to area horses that may have to seek safety from the storm.

“We’ve done this each of the past couple years, but not to this extent,” said Iain Woolnough, director of treasury management at Colonial Downs. “When I came into my office (Sept. 15), there were 2

Seventeen horses have been found slashed in the throat on a guest ranch in Tucson, Ariz., since early July. The latest attack happened between midnight and 4 a.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 9, on the Tanque Verde Guest Ranch, according to Pima County Sheriff’s Detective John Mawhinney. All of the horses have been slashed in the same location on the throat, resulting in jagged wounds from one inch to