A Louisiana man is facing an animal cruelty charge after allegedly shooting a horse in November. Workers at the Kansas City Southern railroad yard discovered a 13-year-old Appaloosa mare wandering around the railway property in Caddo Parish on Nov. 13. The mare had sustained a single gunshot wound to the abdomen. According to the Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Department, witnesses said the mare …
When it comes to the quality of cooled shipped semen for artificial insemination (AI), all semen collection centers are not equal. They’re far from it, in fact, according to a new study by Austrian researchers. The huge variation in the quality of the sperm processed by the collection center has an impact on the probability of the broodmare becoming pregnant.
Researchers at the University of Minnesota’s (UM) College of Veterinary Medicine are conducting vital research on the equine neurologic disorder shivers, and they are seeking horse owners who have animals with shivers to assist them with this effort. This disorder is characterized by excessive hind-limb flexion or extension (commonly seen after a horse backs up), muscle tremors, tail elevation …
Regardless of general feeding guidelines for breeding horses, body condition score (BCS) is the most objective assessment of a horse’s fat covering and also the best predictor of reproductive performance or efficiency. Breeding horses should be maintained at a BCS of 5-6 (on a 1-10 scale), where ribs are invisible but readily palpable.
Artificial insemination (AI) is today’s breeding standard for many types of horses. To find out how to make our readers’ artificial insemination programs more successful, The Horse went to two recognized experts in equine artificial insemination–both of them pioneers in their field.
How veterinarians and farriers manage the chronically laminitic foot can often determine whether that horse can live a useful, relatively pain-free life. During the Sept. 17-18 Laminitis West Conference in Monterey, Calif., Bob Agne, DVM, an equine podiatrist at Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Ky., discussed how the Rood & Riddle podiatry team approaches such cases.
Teasing is essential to detect when a broodmare is in estrus, but it’s no easy feat due to the size and power of the animals involved. Safety should be top priority–to avoid injury to horses and people.
It is unlikely that an investigation into Life At Ten’s participation in the Breeders’ Cup Ladies Classic will be completed in time for a report to the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) at its next meeting. Lisa Underwood, the KHRC executive director, said Nov. 30 that the regulatory body’s staff is undertaking an extensive investigation into the Life At Ten incident and that all …
Dummy foal syndrome is not a disease but, rather, a broad term that applies to foals that exhibit abnormal, often vague behaviors and/or neurologic signs during their first few days of life.
An out-of-competition testing regulation that was put into effect in Kentucky prior to the Breeders’ Cup World Championships will soon become permanent. During a meeting on Nov. 30, the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission’s (KHRC) rules committee made a few modifications before sending the regulation on to the full commission for consideration.
Live cover breeding of horses remains a popular choice. Whatever your reason for choosing this method, these 10 tips will be useful as you plan a mating. Attention to safety and behavior go a long way in making the experience positive and successful.
A New York State Supreme Court judge has ordered a Morgan horse training farm operator to pay the SPCA Serving Erie County $13,456.40 for the care of 33 horses seized by the agency earlier this year.
For horses that are sensitive to inhaled irritants, eating hay can be a problem. Even the cleanest, highest-quality hay is likely to contain a moderate amount of fine material.
Geneticists have created tools and tests that help horse breeders select for healthy foals. Furthermore, access to the equine genome means scientists can examine common diseases and conditions and find ways to prevent (and one day treat) them.
I have a 5-year-old horse that has one blue eye and one brown eye. I have been that told he is going blind in the blue eye and will proceed to go blind in the other within the next couple years. Is it common for a horse with blue eyes to lose sight?
Is it possible to hear a fetal horse’s heart rate with a high-quality stethoscope? If so, at about what stage of gestation, and what is the optimal position of the drum?
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