The type of footing on which a horse performs strongly influences whether the animal has a long and productive career, or whether it has that career cut short because of unsoundness or injury. Footing also influences how well the horse performs.
Most will agree that thorough preparation of a horse is key to success in athletic competition. With spring hopefully just around the corner, this is an opportune time to discuss conditioning. Of course, the nature of a conditioning program will
It takes nearly a year for the hoof to grow down from the coronary band to the ground. Therefore, anything that happens to the horse — whether specific trauma to the foot or a systemic problem — can affect the health of the hoof for a long time.
If you have a veterinary textbook somewhere on your shelves, chances are you’ve seen one of those photos of a sick horse’s innards-miles and miles of wet, purplish loops of intestine, spilling out in all directions. The poor equine posing for
Equines are obligate herbivores, meaning they are designed to eat plants and only plants; they’re not equipped to eat or to digest animal flesh. Humans, on the other hand, are true omnivores, meaning we’ll eat practically anything.
Stomach ulcers and lesions can be an affliction in horses young and old.
Osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) is an affliction, if left untreated, that can have long-term harmful effects on the young, growing horse as well as the performing or racing horse. OCD actually is a disease subset of osteochondrosis and
On the surface, cattle feeds might look like an appropriate choice for your horses, but nutritionally, there are a number of important differences. They have major digestive and metabolic differences that make their dietary needs quite diverse.
Ever since the 1880s, when Edweard Muybridge set up a series of cameras to capture the character of footfalls of a racehorse, we’ve been fascinated by how horses move. No doubt you’ve seen that early sequence of photos, which demonstrated that
Strong bones are essential if a horse is to perform successfully and still remain sound.
A newborn foal, teetering on spidery legs, has a knock-kneed, awkward charm that can melt hearts.
Lush pasture is the arch enemy of horses susceptible to laminitis and founder.
The American Horse Council (AHC) reports that before adjourning Congress passed a giant Omnibus Appropriations Bill, which included federal funding for several equine programs the AHC has been working for on behalf of the
The more you read about white line disease, and the more you talk to farriers and veterinarians about it, the more you think there might be some wisdom to those who shrug and say, White line disease? Never see it. Not in any of my clients’ horses. “he more you read about white line disease, and the more you talk to f
But because forages are not high-energy feeds, the athletic horse’s diet needs to be supplemented in order to provide enough energy for him to perform at peak capacity. Traditionally, this is done by feeding grains, which are rich in carbohydrates
Hoof cracks can be as simple as something that merely irritates the observer from an aesthetic point of view to something so serious that the horse is dead lame and unable to perform. Hoof cracks come in a variety of types and sizes, and they
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