Breed-Specific Health Issues

Honor of a Lifetime

As the AAEP enters its 53rd year of protecting the health and welfare of the horse, I am extremely honored to serve as the association’s president.

The AAEP’s long-range goals and mission have been clearly defined by its board of directors and

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Stopping Steroids

Progress in racing’s war on drugs started with a report in August 2000 from the National Thoroughbred Racing Association’s Task Force on Racing Integrity and Drug Testing at The Jockey Club Round Table in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. The following

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Draft Horses Add Historic Touch to Christmas Tree Farm

Isabel and Irene are moving along at a casual pace among the Scotch pines and matted grass, as casually as 1,500-pound giants do anything. A brisk wind is blowing through a windbreak of oak trees nearby.

The sounds of brown leaves rustling

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Upper Respiratory Obstructions

United Kingdom researchers found that dorsal displacement of the soft palate and palatal instability were to blame for poor performance in 78.5% of the horses examined in a recent treadmill study of Thoroughbred racehorses. They also found that

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Bone Chips: When the Chips Are Down

In the case of bone chips, sometimes bigger is better. In a study performed in 2006, researchers from the University of Pennsylvania’s New Bolton Center theorized that bone chip characteristics in a horse’s knees were an indicator of the severity of

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An Equine Athlete’s Heart

Trainers, owners, and researchers have long pondered the effects of a large heart (one that is naturally occurring and not a result of disease), and have even attempted to use heart size as a predictor of athletic ability.

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Surgeries and Steroids

A survey of buyers of Thoroughbred weanlings, yearlings, and 2-year-olds discovered that surgeries to correct conformation defects have a significant influence on whether or not someone will buy a horse at public auction.


In fact, 28.4%

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Breeding Cents

In 2003, the horse industry directly contributed $10.7 billion to the U.S. economy; $2.2 billion of that was from the breeding industry alone, according to a study published in 2005. It’s no wonder that Karin Bosh’s July 11 graduate defense

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Failure of Racehorses to Train and Race

It’s commonly known that racehorses endure extreme physical and mental stresses preparing for a racing career, which can lead to injuries and illnesses. In a University of Cambridge study, researchers sought to quantify ailments endured by today’s

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Interval Training: A Better Option?

Musculoskeletal injury is the main cause of wastage in Thoroughbred racehorses worldwide, with nearly 30% of all fractures being pelvic and tibial stress fractures. California studies in the late 1990s suggested fast work increased the risk of

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Interval Training: A Better Option for Racehorses?

Musculoskeletal injury is the main cause of wastage in Thoroughbred racehorses worldwide, with nearly 30% of all fractures being pelvic and tibial stress fractures. Studies in California in the late 1990s suggested fast work increased the risk o

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