Omneity® Pellets
All-In-One Vitamin & Mineral Pellet
Topic:Animal Health
Animal Health encompasses a broad range of topics focused on maintaining and improving the well-being of equine species. This field addresses various aspects of horse care, including disease prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and management of health conditions. Key areas of interest include equine nutrition, vaccination protocols, parasite control, dental care, and the management of chronic conditions such as laminitis and colic. Additionally, animal health research in horses investigates the impact of exercise and training on physical health, the role of genetics in disease susceptibility, and the development of new therapeutic approaches. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the latest advancements, challenges, and best practices in preserving and enhancing the health of horses.
Identification of levers for improving dead equine traceability: A survey of French equine owners’ perception of regulatory procedures following their animal’s death. The core of the French equine traceability system is the census database (SIRE) managed by the French horse and riding institute (IFCE). Following the death of an equine, owners are legally obliged to take charge of cadaver removal by contacting a rendering company directly or after registration on the national ATM-équidés ANGEE association (ATM) website, which proposes negotiated prices for removal and recording of the death in the SIRE database. Despite these offers, ATM notes few users. Owners are also legally obliged to return the equine's passport to the IFCE, but only 30-40 % of owners...
Cross-protective immune responses against African horse sickness virus after vaccination with protein NS1 delivered by avian reovirus muNS microspheres and modified vaccinia virus Ankara. African horse sickness virus (AHSV) is an insect-borne pathogen that causes acute disease in horses and other equids. In an effort to improve the safety of currently available vaccines and to acquire new knowledge about the determinants of AHSV immunogenicity, new generation vaccines are being developed. In this work we have generated and tested a novel immunization approach comprised of nonstructural protein 1 (NS1) of AHSV serotype 4 (AHSV-4) incorporated into avian reovirus muNS protein microspheres (MS-NS1) and/or expressed using recombinant modified vaccinia virus Ankara vector (MVA-NS1)....
Establishment and application of a 10-plex liquid bead array for the simultaneous rapid detection of animal species. Meat fraud and adulteration incidents occur frequently in almost all regions of the globe, especially with the increase in the world's population. To ensure the authenticity of meat products, we developed a 10-plex xMAP assay to simultaneously detect ten animal materials: bovine, caprine, poultry, swine, donkey, deer, horse, dog, fox and mink. Results: This method was investigated by analyzing DNA extracts from raw muscle, muscle mixtures, meat products and animal feeds. Our results indicated that the species of interest can be identified, differentiated and detected down to 1 g kg in bina...
Silent Circulation of the Saint Louis Encephalitis Virus among Humans and Equids, Southeast Brazil. Saint Louis encephalitis virus (SLEV) is a mosquito-borne flavivirus that occurs throughout the Americas, and is considered a public health threat. In Brazil, SLEV has been detected from human cases associated with dengue-like disease, but no neurological symptoms were reported. Furthermore, the epidemiology of SLEV in human populations is still poorly explored in the country. We reported serological and molecular detection of SLEV in a healthy population of equids and humans from rural areas in Southeast Brazil. A plaque reduction neutralization test was applied, and neutralizing antibodies w...
Pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of hydromorphone after intravenous and intramuscular administration in horses. To compare the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of hydromorphone in horses after intravenous (IV) and intramuscular (IM) administration. Methods: Randomized, masked, crossover design. Methods: A total of six adult horses weighing [mean ± standard deviation (SD))] 447 ± 61 kg. Methods: Horses were administered three treatments with a 7 day washout. Treatments were hydromorphone 0.04 mg kg IV with saline administered IM (H-IV), hydromorphone 0.04 mg kg IM with saline IV (H-IM), or saline IV and IM (P). Blood was collected for hydromorphone plasma concentration at multiple time points for ...
Stallion Sperm Integrity After Centrifugation to Reduce Seminal Plasma Concentration and Cool Storage for 4 days. The objective of the study was to investigate if reducing the seminal plasma of stallion extended semen by centrifugation once will suffice to maintain acceptable semen quality for insemination after 4 days of cool storage. Collected semen was extended to 25 × 106 sperm/mL and subjected to one of the following treatments: noncentrifuged (control), centrifuged for 10 minutes at 900 × g and 1800 × g. The supernatant was partially removed, and the sperm pellet, reconstituted and re-extended. It was then placed in a passive cooling device overnight and then transferred to a refrigerator fo...
Horses grazing with cattle have reduced strongyle egg count due to the dilution effect and increased reliance on macrocyclic lactones in mixed farms. Strongyle infection is an important issue in horse breeding. It impairs horse health and performance, with young horses being the most sensitive. Strongyle control has long relied on the systematic use of chemical treatments. However, expanding anthelmintic resistance among strongyles calls for alternative options. Mixed grazing is assumed to reduce strongyle load on the pasture as the result of a dilution effect. This has been shown in small ruminants grazing with cattle, but the putative benefits of co-grazing between horses and cattle have not yet been evaluated. Here, we conducted field su...
Donkey and Mule Welfare. Donkeys and mules have been critical to the development of human civilization, since being domesticated some 6000 years ago. However, they suffer from being undervalued or ignored by development agencies and animal protection nongovernmental organizations. Where they are recognized as affecting agriculture and the economy it is often because they are seen as being either invasive pests or an anachronism in the developing countries of the twenty-first century. Even in the wealthier societies of the world, donkeys suffer from ignorance about their proper management or a booming industry in heal...
Skin Disorders of the Donkey and Mule. Skin disease in donkeys is less common than in horses, but is easily overlooked. Little published material exists on this important area of equine medicine. Skin tumors continue to challenge veterinarians working with donkeys. This article outlines the main disease entities that the author has encountered, although there are many other diseases and disorders that occur in different parts of the world that are not yet appreciated. When investigating a skin disease, a logical and comprehensive clinical approach should always be made; many conditions are similar in clinical presentation or are co...
Donkey and Mule Behavior. Donkeys and mules often are misunderstood because of their behavioral differences compared with horses. Working with these animals requires more patience and ability to notice the slightest changes in behavior to diagnose disease. Mules and donkeys form strong bonds and trust with familiar people and other equids. Training mules and hinnies from an early age is key to modifying behavior and acceptance of unfamiliar people. Reproductive behavior is different from that of horses and requires more patience when collecting jacks. Practitioners working with mules and donkeys should take a methodolo...
Genetics, Evolution, and Physiology of Donkeys and Mules. The genus Equus is made up of donkeys, horses, and zebras. Despite significant variation in chromosome number across these species, interspecies breeding results in healthy, although infertile, hybrid offspring. Most notable among these are the horse-donkey hybrids, the mule and hinny. Donkeys presently are used for everything from companion animals to beasts of burden. Although closely related from an evolutionary standpoint, differences in anatomy and physiology preclude the assumption that they can be treated identically to the domestic horse. Veterinarians should be aware of these differen...
Clinical Evaluation and Preventative Care in Donkeys. Clinical evaluation and preventative care in donkeys should follow similar guidelines as for horses. There are species-specific differences due to the desert-adapted physiology of the donkey. Donkeys are mainly used as pack animals, companions and for production of meat or milk - they may be kept well into old age. Diseases often present late or may go unrecognized leading to poor welfare and quality of life. Basic knowledge of nutrition, blood values, pharmacology and common disease recognition will help veterinarians improve the health and welfare of donkeys.
Inter- and Intra-Rater Reliability of Soft Tissue Palpation Scoring in the Equine Thoracic Epaxial Region. Back pain is a significant factor for horses and is challenging for professionals to diagnose, with assessment frequently using subjective tools such as manual palpation. Reliable and valid objective measures are required and use of a pressure algometer (PA) has been investigated as an assessment tool; however, it has limitations, and other more realistic methods may be better suited for the task. The aim of the study was to establish inter- and intra-rater reliability for PA, FlexiForce Sensor (FFS), and manual palpation for equine epaxial soft tissue, measuring mechanical nociception thresho...
Enteroinsular axis response to carbohydrates and fasting in healthy newborn foals. The enteroinsular axis (EIA) comprises intestinal factors (incretins) that stimulate insulin release after PO ingestion of nutrients. Glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) are the main incretins. The EIA has not been investigated in healthy neonatal foals but should be important because energy demands are high in healthy foals and dysregulation is frequent in sick foals. Objective: To evaluate the EIA response to carbohydrates or fasting in newborn foals. We hypothesized that incretin secretion would be higher after PO versus IV carbohydrate adm...
Superovulation, embryo recovery, and pregnancy rates from seasonally anovulatory donor mares treated with recombinant equine FSH (reFSH). The effectiveness of different treatments with recombinant equine FSH to stimulate follicular growth, multiple ovulations and embryo production in seasonally anovulatory mares was evaluated. During mid-winter season (July-August in Argentina, South America) forty light breed donor mares, presenting follicles <10 mm in diameter and no CL at ultrasound examination (deep-anestrus), were randomly assigned (n = 10/group) to one of the following treatments: Group 1: twice daily intramuscular (IM) injections of 0.65 mg reFSH (AspenBio Pharma, CO), Group 2: once daily IM injection of 1.3 mg ...
African horse sickness: a potential threat to the UK. The UK has never experienced an outbreak of African horse sickness but, as Matthew Robin of the Fyrnwy Equine Clinic explains, there is still a risk of a case occurring.
Preservation of fecal glucocorticoid metabolites and immunoglobulin A through silica gel drying for field studies in horses. Non-invasive methods enable stress evaluation through measuring fecal glucocorticoid metabolites (FGMs), and immunoglobulin A (IgA) in the feces avoiding stressful blood drawing or stressful restraining of animals in the field. However, FGMs and IgA are mostly analysed in freshly frozen samples, which is difficult when fresh samples cannot be frozen immediately or frozen samples cannot be stored or transported. Good results were also derived from air-dried fecal samples, which are hampered by unstable air humidity in the field. These difficulties may be overcome, when drying of samples could b...
Horses Categorize Human Emotions Cross-Modally Based on Facial Expression and Non-Verbal Vocalizations. Over the last few years, an increasing number of studies have aimed to gain more insight into the field of animal emotions. In particular, it is of interest to determine whether animals can cross-modally categorize the emotions of others. For domestic animals that share a close relationship with humans, we might wonder whether this cross-modal recognition of emotions extends to humans, as well. In this study, we tested whether horses could recognize human emotions and attribute the emotional valence of visual (facial expression) and vocal (non-verbal vocalization) stimuli to the same perceptua...
The contribution of domestic animals to the transmission of schistosomiasis japonica in the Lindu Subdistrict of the Central Sulawesi Province, Indonesia. Schistosomiasis is endemic in Indonesia and is found in three remote areas in Central Sulawesi Province. Non-human mammals serve as reservoir hosts, meaning the disease is zoonotic. The previous schistosomiasis studies in animals from the Lindu Subdistrict did not determine which domestic animal species can serve as the primary source of transmission. No animals have been treated in Indonesia to control the disease; therefore, the parasite's life cycle is not blocked entirely. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and identify the risk factors associated with, infection in animals, and...
Differences in microbiome and virome between cattle and horses in the same farm. The ecosystem of an animal farm is composed of various elements, such as animals, farmers, plants, feed, soil, and microorganisms. A domesticated animal's health is largely connected with the reservoir of bacteria and viruses in animal farms. Although a few studies have focused on exploring the gut microbiome of animals, communities of microbiota and viruses in feedlots have not been thoroughly investigated. Methods: Here, we collected feces and dust samples (4 groups: cattle feces, C_F; horse feces, H_F; cattle dust, C_D; and horse dust, H_D) from cattle and horse farms sharing the same housi...
Morphokinetics of early equine embryo development in vitro using time-lapse imaging, and use in selecting blastocysts for transfer. The use of time-lapse imaging (TLI) in the evaluation of morphokinetics associated with invitro developmental competence is well described for human, cattle and pig embryos. It is generally accepted that embryos that complete early cleavage sooner are more likely to form blastocysts and that timing of later events, such as blastocyst formation and expansion, are predictive of implantation potential and euploid status. In the horse, morphokinetics as a predictor of developmental competence has received little attention. In this study we evaluated the morphokinetics of early equine embryo develo...
Inter- and intra-breed genome-wide copy number diversity in a large cohort of European equine breeds. Copy Number Variation (CNV) is a common form of genetic variation underlying animal evolution and phenotypic diversity across a wide range of species. In the mammalian genome, high frequency of CNV differentiation between breeds may be candidates for population-specific selection. However, CNV differentiation, selection and its population genetics have been poorly explored in horses. Results: We investigated the patterns, population variation and gene annotation of CNV using the Axiom® Equine Genotyping Array (670,796 SNPs) from a large cohort of individuals (N = 1755) belonging to eight ...
[Euthanasia in horses – Results of a survey addressing horse owners and veterinarians]. Euthanasia represents a procedure with high responsibility for veterinarians in equine practice. The procedure should avoid pain and suffering for the horse and be carried out with the least possible stress for the patient and its owner. The presented study investigated the emotional impact of a horse's euthanasia procedure on the owner in order to enable development of future recommendations in improving the management of this procedure in horses. Methods: Questionnaires concerning euthanasia of a horse for horse owners and veterinarians, respectively were developed and sent by mail or publis...
Effects of Docosahexaenoic Acid-Rich Microalgae Supplementation on Metabolic and Inflammatory Parameters in Horses With Equine Metabolic Syndrome. Much of the equine population is obese and therefore predisposed to the development of additional health concerns such as equine metabolic syndrome (EMS). However, pharmacologic treatments for EMS are limited. Omega-3 fatty acid supplementation is a therapeutic strategy in humans with metabolic dysfunction that improves insulin sensitivity and reduces inflammation, but the effects of omega-3 fatty acid supplementation in horses with EMS are unclear. Therefore, in this pilot study, 10 mixed-sex and mixed-breed horses with EMS were fed a docosahexaenoic acid (DHA)-rich microalgae containing 16 ...
[Cervical Stent for Long-term Treatment of Pyometra in Mares]. Krohn J, Ennen S, Hospes R et al. Use of a cervical stent for long-term treatment of pyometra in the mare: A report of three cases. Reprod Dom Anim 2019; 55: 1155–1159 DIE PYOMETRA DER STUTE IST EIN CHRONISCHER ENTZüNDUNGSZUSTAND DES ENDOMETRIUMS, DER HäUFIG MIT DER AKKUMULATION GROßER MENGEN AN SEKRET EINHERGEHT. PRäDISPONIERT SIND STUTEN MIT VERäNDERUNGEN DER ZERVIX, DURCH DIE DIE UTERINE CLEARANCE BEEINTRäCHTIGT WIRD. DIE HäUFIG UNSPEZIFISCHEN SYMPTOME UMFASSEN LEISTUNGSMANGEL, KONDITIONSVERLUST, SUBFEBRILE TEMPERATUR ODER KOLIKARTIGE SCHMERZEN. MANCHE TIERE PRäSENTIEREN SICH SYMP...
Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in horses: A global systematic review and meta-analysis. Toxoplasmosis, one of the most common zoonoses worldwide, is caused by Toxoplasma gondii. T. gondii can infect almost all warm-blooded animals, including humans. Horses are an intermediate host of T. gondii, representing a potential risk for humans. To determine the T. gondii seroprevalence in horses worldwide, a global meta-analysis was conducted. A total of 35 publications were obtained by searching the PubMed, ScienceDirect, Chinese Web of knowledge (CNKI) and Wanfang databases. A total of 12,354 horses were assessed, of which 1580 were positive for T. gondii. The pooled overall seroprevale...
Low-density lipoproteins and milk serum proteins improve the quality of stallion sperm after vitrification in straws. Lipids and proteins can be used for sperm vitrification to preserve the integrity of sperm membranes or to increase the viscosity of the medium. This study evaluated the effect of low-density lipoproteins (LDL) and milk serum proteins (Pronexcell) for stallion sperm vitrification. Hippex extender (Barex Biochemical Products, The Netherlands), plus 1% of bovine serum albumin and 100 mM of trehalose, was used as control for sperm vitrification. In experiment 1, different concentrations of LDL (L1 = 0.25, L2 = 0.5, L3 = 1%) and in experiment 2 of Pronexcell (P1 = 1, P2 = 5, P3 = 10%)...
Relationship between DNA fragmentation of equine granulosa cells and oocyte meiotic competence after in vitro maturation. The acquisition of equine oocyte developmental capacity is ensured by the follicular environment, such as granulosa cells, which could reflect the meiotic development potential of immature oocytes. This study evaluated the relationship between DNA fragmentation of granulosa cells, using the chromatin dispersion test, and equine oocyte meiotic development after in vitro maturation. Granulosa cells and cumulus-oocytes complexes (n = 50) were recovered from slaughterhouse-derived ovaries. Oocytes were in vitro matured, stained and evaluated under fluorescence microscopy. Maturation rates were c...
