Every day, veterinarians across the country see hundreds of cases of laminitis, a painful disease that affects the feet of horses. Laminitis results from the disruption of blood flow to the sensitive and insensitive laminae within the foot, which secure the coffin bone to the hoof wall. While the exact mechanisms by which the feet are damaged remain a mystery, certain precipitating events can produce laminitis. Although laminitis occurs in the feet, the underlying cause is often a disturbance elsewhere in the horse’s body.

As a horse owner, it is important to recognize the signs of laminitis and seek veterinary help immediately. Signs of acute laminitis include:

• Lameness, especially when a horse is turning in circles; shifting lameness when standing
• Heat in the feet
• Increased digital pulse in the feet
• Pain in the toe region when pressure is applied with hoof testers
• Reluctant or hesitant gait, as if “walking on eggshells”
• A “sawhorse stance,” with the front feet stretched out in front to alleviate pressure on the toes and the hind feet “camped out” or positioned farther back than normal to bear more weight

Signs of chronic laminitis may include:

• Rings in hoof wall that become wider as they are followed from toe to heel
• Bruised soles or “stone bruises”
• Widened white line, commonly called “seedy toe,” with the occurrence of blood pockets and/or abscesses
• Dropped soles or flat feet
• Thick, “cresty” neck
• Dished hooves, which are the result of unequal rates of hoof growth

If you suspect laminitis, consider it a medical emergency and notify your veterinarian immediately. The sooner treatment begins, the better the chance for recovery. For information about laminitis, ask your equine veterinarian.

Additional information can also be found on the AAEP’s website www.aaep.org/.

Reprinted with permission from the American Association of Equine Practitioners.

Advances in nutrition, management, and health care are helping, horses are living longer, more useful lives. It’s not uncommon to find horses and ponies living well into their 20s and 30s. While genetics play a role in determining life span, you too can have an impact.

You may think that turning your old-timer out to pasture is the kindest form of retirement. But horses are individuals. Some enjoy being idle; others prefer to be a part of the action. Whatever you do, don’t ignore the horse. Proper nutrition, care, and exercise will help the animal thrive.

Follow these guidelines to develop a total management plan for your older horse:

1. Observe your horse on a regular basis. Watch for changes in body condition, behavior and attitude. Address problems, even seemingly minor ones, right away.
2. Feed a high-quality diet. Avoid dusty and moldy feeds.
3. Feed your older horse away from younger, more aggressive ones so it won’t have to compete for feed.
4. Feed at more frequent intervals so as not to upset the digestive system. Two to three times daily is best.
5. Provide plenty of fresh, clean, tepid water. Excessively cold water reduces consumption, which can lead to colic and other problems.
6. Adjust and balance rations to maintain proper body conditions. A good rule of thumb is to be able to feel the ribs but not see them.
7. Provide adequate, appropriate exercise to maintain muscle tone, flexibility, and mobility.
8. Groom your horse frequently to promote circulation and skin health.
9. Be aware that older horses are prone to tumors. Look for any unusual lumps or growths from head to tail as well as beneath the tail (especially on gray horses).
10. Schedule routine checkups with your equine veterinarian. Call immediately if you suspect a problem.

A quick response to ailments, injuries or a decline in fitness can keep your older horse from having a serious or prolonged setback. That means less worry for you and a better quality of life for your old friend.

Visit the AAEP website, www.aaep.org, for additional information about caring for the older horse.

Reprinted with permission from the American Association of Equine Practitioners

A healthy foal will grow rapidly, gaining in height, weight, and strength almost before your eyes. From birth to age two, a young horse can achieve 90 percent or more of its full adult size, sometimes putting on as many as three pounds per day. Feeding young horses is a balancing act, as the nutritional start a foal gets can have a profound effect on its health and soundness for the rest of its life.

At eight to 10 weeks of age, mare’s milk alone may not adequately meet the foal’s nutritional needs, depending on the desired growth rate the owner wants for a foal. As the foal’s dietary requirements shift from milk to feed and forage, your role in providing the proper nutrition gains in importance. Following are guidelines from the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) to help you meet the young horse’s nutritional needs:

1. Provide high-quality roughage (hay and pasture) free choice.
2. Supplement with a high-quality, properly balanced grain concentrate at weaning, or earlier if more rapid rates of gain are desired.
3. Start by feeding 1 percent of a foal’s body weight per day (i.e., one pound of feed for every 100 pounds of body weight), or one pound of feed per month of age.
4. Weigh and adjust the feed ration based on growth and fitness. A weight tape can help you approximate a foal’s size.
5. Foals have small stomachs so divide the daily ration into two to three feedings.
6. Make sure feeds contain the proper balance of vitamins, minerals, energy, and protein.
7. Use a creep feeder or feed the foal separate from the mare so it can eat its own ration. Try to avoid group creep feeding situations.
8. Remove uneaten portions between feedings.
9. Do not overfeed. Overweight foals are more prone to developmental orthopedic disease.
10. Provide unlimited fresh, clean water.
11. Provide the opportunity for abundant exercise.

The reward for providing excellent nutrition and conscientious care will be a healthy foal that grows into a sound and useful horse. For more information about providing proper nutrition for your foal, talk with your equine veterinarian. Additional information about foal nutrition can also be found on the AAEP’s website www.aaep.org/.

Reprinted with permission from the American Association of Equine Practitioners.

We are pleased to announce that we now offer Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy (ESWT) in our clinic! Shock wave therapy uses high-energy sound waves that penetrate through soft tissue at customized depths to reduce lameness, increase mobility and relieve pain in animals.

  Shock wave has been clinically-proven to treat such conditions as osteoarthritis, tendon/ligament injuries, bone fractures, back pain, and wounds. We use the ProPulse focused shock wave technology, considered the gold standard in this treatment. With 1-3 treatments, shock wave stimulates healing to return horses to sound condition.

Plus, shock wave is covered by many insurance companies – up to 3 treatments!

We will be sharing more information about this noninvasive treatment in the near future, but feel free to ask us if this option is right for your horse.

If your mare has made it through 11 months of pregnancy, you’re almost home free. Labor and delivery, while momentous, are generally uneventful. In most cases, you will simply need to be a quiet observer – if, that is, you are lucky enough to witness the birth. Mares seem to prefer to foal at night in privacy, and apparently have some control over their delivery. Because most mares foal without difficulty, it is usually best to allow the mare to foal undisturbed and unassisted.

What you can do, however, is prepare your mare for a safe and successful delivery.
Follow these suggestions from the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) to help the new mother and baby get off to a great start:

1. Program your veterinarian’s number in your phone well in advance of the birth.
2. Keep a watch or clock on hand so you can time each stage of labor. When you’re worried or anxious, your perception of time becomes distorted. The watch will help you keep accurate track of the mare’s progress during labor.
3. Wrap the mare’s tail with a clean wrap when you observe the first stage of labor. Be sure that the wrap is not applied too tightly or left on too long, as it can cut off circulation and permanently damage the tail.
4. Wash the mare’s vulva and hindquarters with a mild soap and rinse thoroughly.
5. Clean and disinfect the stall area as thoroughly as possible and provide adequate bedding.
6. Consider using test strips that measure calcium in mammary secretions to help predict when the mare will foal. Sudden increases in calcium are associated with imminent foaling.
7. If a mare is taking longer than 30 minutes to deliver the foal, call your veterinarian immediately.

For more information on labor and delivery and postpartum care for the mare and foal, ask your equine veterinarian. Additional information can be found on www.aaep.org/.

Reprinted with permission from the American Association of Equine Practitioners.

The No. 1 killer of horses is colic. Colic is not a disease, but rather a combination of signs that alert us to abdominal pain in the horse. Colic can range from mild to severe, but it should never be ignored. Many of the conditions that cause colic can become life-threatening in a relatively short period of time. Only by quickly and accurately recognizing colic – and seeking qualified veterinary help – can the chance for recovery be maximized.

While horses seem predisposed to colic due to the anatomy and function of their digestive tracts, management can play a key role in prevention. Although not every case is avoidable, the following guidelines from the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) can maximize the horse’s health and reduce the risk of colic:

1. Establish a daily routine – including feeding and exercise schedules – and stick to it.
2. Feed a high-quality diet comprised primarily of roughage.
3. Avoid feeding excessive grain and energy-dense supplements. (At least half the horse’s energy should be supplied through hay or forage. A better guide is that twice as much energy should be supplied from a roughage source than from concentrates.)
4. Divide daily concentrate rations into two or more smaller feedings rather than one large feeding to avoid overloading the horse’s digestive tract. Hay is best fed free-choice.
5. Set up a regular parasite control program with the help of your equine practitioner.
6. Provide daily exercise and/or turnout. Change the intensity and duration of an exercise regimen gradually.
7. Provide fresh, clean water at all times. (The only exception is when the horse is excessively hot, and then it should be given small sips of lukewarm water until it has recovered.)
8. Avoid putting feed on the ground, especially in sandy soils.
9. Check hay, bedding, pasture and environment for potentially toxic substances, such as blister beetles, noxious weeds and other ingestible foreign matter.
10. Reduce stress. Horses experiencing changes in environment or workloads are at high risk of intestinal dysfunction. Pay special attention to horses when transporting them or changing their surroundings such as at shows.

Virtually any horse is susceptible to colic. Age, sex and breed differences in susceptibility seem to be relatively minor. The type of colic seen appears to relate to geographic or regional differences, probably due to environmental factors such as sandy soil or climatic stress. Importantly, this indicates that, with conscientious care and management, we have the potential to reduce and control colic, the No. 1 killer of horses.

For more information about colic prevention and treatment, ask your equine veterinarian.
Additional colic information is available by visiting the AAEP’s website at www.aaep.org/

Reprinted with permission from the American Association of Equine Practitioners.

Internal parasites are silent killers. They can cause extensive internal damage, and you may not even realize your horses are heavily infected. At the very least, parasites can lower resistance, rob the horse of valuable nutrients and cause gastrointestinal irritation and unthriftiness. At their worst, they can lead to colic, intestinal ruptures and death.

Using deworming agents on a regular schedule in combination with good management procedures is critical to relieving your horse of most parasites. Since parasites are primarily transferred through manure, good management is key. In terms of management priorities, establishing a parasite control program is probably second only to supplying the horse with clean, plentiful water and high-quality feed.

To get rid of parasites before they attack your horse, follow these suggestions from the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP):

1. Pick up and dispose of manure droppings in the pasture at least twice weekly.
2. Mow and harrow pastures regularly to break up manure piles and expose parasite eggs and larvae to the elements.
3. Rotate pastures by allowing other livestock, such as sheep or cattle, to graze them, thereby interrupting the life cycles of parasites.
4. Group horses by age to reduce exposure to certain parasites and maximize the deworming program geared to that group.
5. Keep the number of horses per acre to a minimum to prevent overgrazing and reduce the fecal contamination per acre.
6. Use a feeder for hay and grain rather than feeding on the ground.
7. Remove bot eggs quickly and regularly from the horse’s haircoat to prevent ingestion.
8. Rotate deworming agents, not just brand names, to prevent chemical resistance.
9. Consult your veterinarian to set up an effective and regular deworming schedule.

With the many safe, convenient products available today, establishing an effective deworming program is easy. Discuss a plan with your veterinarian and implement it without delay. A good parasite control program will go a long way toward maximizing your horse’s appearance, performance and comfort. The net result will be an animal that is as healthy on the inside as it appears on the outside.

For more information about waging war on equine parasites, ask your veterinarian.
Information about equine parasites also can be found on the AAEP’s website www.aaep.org/.

Reprinted with permission from the American Association of Equine Practitioners.

Owning a horse can be a big investment in time, money and emotion. Unfortunately, horses seldom come with a money-back guarantee. That’s why it is so important to investigate the horse’s overall health and condition through a purchase exam conducted by an equine veterinarian. Whether you want a horse as a family pet, a pleasure mount, a breeding animal or a high-performance athlete, you stand the best chance of getting one that meets your needs by investing in a purchase exam.

Purchase examinations may vary, depending on the intended use of the horse and the veterinarian who is doing the examination. Deciding exactly what should be included in the purchase examination requires good communication between you and your veterinarian. The following guidelines from the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) will help ensure a custom-tailored exam:

1. Choose a veterinarian who is familiar with the breed, sport or use for which the horse is being purchased.
2. Explain to your veterinarian your expectations and primary uses for the horse, including short- and long-term goals (e.g., showing, then breeding).
3. Ask your veterinarian to outline the procedures that he or she feels should be included in the exam and why.
4. Establish the costs for these procedures.
5. Be present during the purchase exam. The seller or agent should also be present.
6. Discuss with your veterinarian his or her findings in private.
7. Don’t be afraid to ask questions or request further information about your veterinarian’s findings in private.

The veterinarian’s job is neither to pass or fail an animal. Rather, it is to provide you with information regarding any existing medical problems and to discuss those problems with you so that you can make an informed purchase decision. Your veterinarian can advise you about the horse’s current physical condition, but he or she cannot predict the future. The decision to buy is yours alone to make. But your equine veterinarian can be a valuable partner in the process of providing you with objective, health-related information.

For more information about purchase exams, ask your equine veterinarian. Additional information can be found on the AAEP’s website www.aaep.org/.

Reprinted with permission from the American Association of Equine Practitioners.