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.
Effects of ketoprofen and phenylbutazone on chronic hoof pain and lameness in the horse. The analgesic effects of the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, ketoprofen (2.2 and 3.63 mg/kg bwt) and phenylbutazone (4.4 mg/kg bwt) were compared in 7 horses with chronic laminitis. Hoof pain was quantified objectively by means of an electronic hoof tester and lameness was subjectively graded on a modified Obel scale. Ketoprofen at a dose of 3.63 mg/kg bwt (phenylbutazone equimolar dose) reduced hoof pain and lameness to a greater extent than the 2.2 mg/kg dose and phenylbutazone. These effects were still present at 24 h in 3 of the 4 pain tests, including lameness grade. These data sugg...
Comparison of the anti-inflammatory actions of flunixin and ketoprofen in horses applying PK/PD modelling. A comparative study in horses of the pharmacokinetics (PK) and pharmacodynamics (PD) of 2 extensively used nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), flunixin (FXN) and ketoprofen (KTP), was carried out applying PK/PD modelling. To evaluate the anti-inflammatory properties of these drugs a model of acute inflammation, comprising surgically implanted subcutaneous tissue cages stimulated by intracaveal injection of carrageenan, was used. FXN elimination half-life (T1/2 beta) in plasma was 3.37 +/- 1.09 h. However, in exudate a much longer T1/2 beta was obtained (15.99 +/- 3.80 h). Apparent v...
Changes in breathing pattern in the normal horse at rest up to age one year. Changes in pattern of airflow, sequence of respiratory muscle activation and generated pressures were measured serially in a group of foals during the first year post partum, in order to describe the maturation of the equine breathing pattern. In neonatal foals, inspiration and expiration were both primarily active and airflow pattern was essentially monophasic. By age 1 year, foals displayed essentially the same breathing pattern previously described in adult horses, utilising a combination of active and passive inspiration and expiration to breathe around, rather than from, the relaxation vo...
Evaluation of tissue adhesive to contain axonal regeneration in horses. Bilateral palmar and plantar digital neurectomies were completed in 10 horses (a total of 80 neurectomies) using one of three methods: (1) simple transection (guillotine method); (2) epineural capping; (3) n-butyl cyanoacrylate injected into the epineural sheath to act as a nerve sealant. Horses were regularly evaluated clinically for tenderness in and around the surgical site, as well as skin sensation at the coronary band in the heel region, during the 12-week course of the study. None of the surgical sites exhibited any signs of drainage or infection. Horses were then euthanatized, the nerv...
The morphology and pathology of Besnoitia sp. in reindeer (Rangifer tarandus tarandus). Four of five reindeer (Rangifer tarandus tarandus) obtained from a Besnoitia sp.- infected herd at the Assiniboine Park Zoo in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, in October 1989, had evidence of mild dermatitis over the articular surfaces of carpal and tarsal joints. Cysts of Besnoitia sp., either surrounded by inflammatory reactions or without evident host response, were present within the dermis, submucosa of the nasal turbinates, periosteum, tendons, testes and hooves. The light microscopic and histochemical features of Besnoitia sp. from reindeer were indistinguishable from those of other Besnoit...
Ventilatory and timing parameters in normal horses at rest up to age one year. The purpose of the study was to document the developmental changes in the ventilatory and timing parameters associated with quiet breathing at rest in awake, standing horses during the first year post partum. Tidal volume (VT), breathing frequency, airflow, mechanical timing intervals and minute ventilation (VE) were measured serially in foals age 24 h-1 year. In the growing foal, VE increased due to a progressive rise in VT, in spite of a pronounced decrease in respiratory frequency. When normalised to body weight (bwt), VE/kg declined with maturation in a curvilinear fashion, from mean +/- s...
A mouse model for testing the pathogenicity of equine herpes virus-1 strains. A mouse model was developed for testing the pathogenicity of equine herpes virus-1 (EHV-1) strains. The model was validated with EHV-1 strains that are known to be of a low or high pathogenicity in horses. From all parameters tested, the safety index, which was calculated from the body weights of the mice after infection, proved to be the best predictive parameter. When this parameter was used, good and reliable correlations were found with the pathogenicity of the EHV-1 strains in horses. This method enabled the differentiation between the two experimental EHV-1 strains whose genetic backgrou...
[Off-label use of lincomycin hydrochloride in 2 horses. Dysbacteriosis and fatal complications due to inadequate symptomatic therapy]. A lawyer inquired about the possible harmful effects of 'off-label use' of lincomycin in two trotting horses. From information in the relevant dossier it could be concluded that there was no direct indication to use antibiotics. In addition, mistakes were made in the medicinal treatment of horses, namely, the off-label use of lincomycin without prior consultation with the manufacturer, fluid and electrolyte replacement therapy not continued for long enough, and incorrect use of antipyretic analgesics. The intravenous administration of gentamicin to dehydrated patients is permissible only in co...
Emergence of a new epidemic/epizootic Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus in South America. One of the most important questions in arbovirology concerns the origin of epidemic Venezuelan equine encephalitis (VEE) viruses; these viruses caused periodic, extensive epidemics/epizootics in the Americas from 1938-1973 (reaching the United States in 1971) but had recently been presumed extinct. We have documented the 1992 emergence of a new epidemic/epizootic VEE virus in Venezuela. Phylogenetic analysis of strains isolated during two outbreaks indicated that the new epidemic/epizootic virus(es) evolved recently from an enzootic VEE virus in northern South America. These results suggest co...
Assessment of the sedative effect of medetomidine and determination of its optimal dose in thoroughbred horses. The present study was carried out to assessing the sedative effect of medetomidine and determining its optimal dose in thoroughbred horses. Excessive ataxia after sedative treatment is dangerous for horses. Therefore three doses which may cause sufficient sedation with only mild ataxia were examined. Response to stimulation and the severity of ataxia suggested that 7.5 micrograms/kg BW, i.v., is optimal.
Comparative ribotyping of Staphylococcus intermedius from dogs, pigeons, horses and mink. Strains of Staphylococcus (S.) intermedius from dogs, pigeons, horses and mink were typed by comparison of rRNA gene restriction fragment length polymorphisms (ribotyping) and the resulting ribotypes examined by cluster-analysis. Digestion of whole-cell DNA with HindIII resulted in 9 ribotypes with 3 to 4 bands. Separation of isolates from different host animal species was not possible. EcoRI yielded 11 different patterns with 4 to 9 fragments. The EcoRI-ribotypes of all canine strains grouped in one cluster encompassing four closely related ribotypes. Isolates were indistinguishable with resp...
Hypoxic helium breathing does not reduce alveolar-arterial PO2 difference in the horse. In a previous study we evaluated the mechanism of alveolar-arterial PO2 (AaPO2) reduction when nitrogen is replaced with helium in normoxia (FIO2 = 0.21). The reduction in AaPO2 was not due to changes in VA/Q inequality, pulmonary O2 diffusing capacity, or cardiac output, but to more complete diffusion equilibration as a consequence of the higher ventilation and thus PAO2 (which reduced the average slope of the hemoglobin O2 dissociation curve (ODC), and thus enhanced diffusive equilibration). We hypothesized that hypoxic He/O2 breathing in contrast would not reduce the AaPO2 because PAO2 and ...
Pharmacokinetics and metabolism of amitraz in ponies and sheep. Amitraz and its active metabolite BTS27271 were given intravenously to ponies and sheep at equimolar doses of 1 mg/kg and 0.68 mg/kg, respectively, and the plasma concentrations of amitraz and BTS27271 estimated at various times thereafter. Amitraz was hydrolysed to BTS27271 in both species. Amitraz was undetectable in sheep plasma after approximately 5 min but persisted in the plasma of ponies for at least 90 min. The persistence of unmetabolized amitraz in ponies may have implications for the toxicity of amitraz in that species. The primary and secondary disposition half-lives of amitraz in ...
Electrocardiographic values in Spanish-bred horses of different ages. The duration of electrocardiograph wave forms and intervals were determined in 179 Spanish-bred (Andalusian) horses aged from 1 month to 17 years. The values were compared with those of other breeds, and the relationship between electrocardiographic data and age was examined. High correlation coefficients were found between PR, ST and QT intervals and the age of the horses, and an inverted relation between heart rate and age was found. A multiple range analysis was made and the results suggest that significant changes in duration values and heart rate occurred at the age of 6 months and in the...
Pharmacokinetics of ketoprofen in healthy horses and horses with acute synovitis. The pharmacokinetic properties of a single intravenous dose of ketoprofen (2.2 mg/kg) in plasma and synovial fluid were compared in four healthy animals and four horses with experimentally induced acute synovitis. Synovitis was induced by the injection of a 1% solution of sterile carrageenan into the left intercarpal joint. Ketoprofen was administered at the same time as carrageenan infection. The plasma disposition followed a biexponential equation or a two-compartment model in most horses. The plasma harmonic mean half-life in healthy horses (0.88 h) was longer than in horses with synovitis ...
Extensive mtDNA diversity in horses revealed by PCR-SSCP analysis. The hypervariable D-loop region of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) was amplified with the polymerase chain reaction using total horse DNA samples. Analysis of single strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) of denatured amplification products was carried out by native polyacrylamide (8%) gel electrophoresis followed by silver staining. As many as 15 distinct SSCP variants were revealed when screening a total of 78 maternally unrelated horses representing five different breeds. All breeds showed a high degree of polymorphism and the estimated probability (PImt) that two maternally unrelated individual...
[Pharmacological effects of hordenine]. Hordenine is an ingredient of some plants which are used as feed for animals, i.e. in sprouting barley. After ingestion of such feed hordenine may be detected in blood or urine of horses which in case of racing horses may be the facts of using prohibited compounds. Results of some experiments in pharmacological models show that hordenine is an indirectly acting adrenergic drug. It liberates norepinephrine from stores. In isolated organs and those structures with reduced epinephrine contents the hordenine-effect is only very poor. Experiments in intact animals (rats, dogs) show that hordenine h...
Outbreak of equine influenza among horses in Hong Kong during 1992. Equine-2 influenza virus A (H3N8) infection occurred among vaccinated thoroughbred horses in Hong Kong during November and December 1992. The outbreak was unique in that it occurred among a large population stabled under intensive conditions. It resulted in the postponement of seven race meetings over a period of 32 days. The outbreak originated after the importation of horses 25 to 32 days before any clinical signs were reported. Vaccination did not prevent 75 per cent of the population from becoming infected, and half the infected horses developed clinical signs. Vaccination did, however, co...
Slowing the spread of anthelmintic resistant nematodes of horses in the United Kingdom. The growing importance of anthelmintic resistance in cyathostomes (small strongyles) of horses poses a threat to the health and welfare of all types of horses. On the basis of published information on cyathostomes of horses, six recommendations are made for reducing the development and spread of anthelmintic resistant nematodes. The need for restraint in the use of anthelmintics, the application of epidemiological principles of worm control and a greater emphasis on pasture management are the principal recommendations.
Prevalence of Onchocerca species and Thelazia lacrimalis in horses examined post mortem in Normandy. The umbilical skin and ligamentum nuchae of 368 horses were examined post mortem for Onchocerca species. Only four of the horses were infected and pathological changes were observed on the skin of two of them. Thelazia lacrimalis was recovered from 38 (10.3 per cent) of the horses, and animals aged six months to two years were more frequently infected. No ocular lesions were observed. The prevalences of these two nematodes were low when compared with the infection rates reported in the United Kingdom and North America.
Serum protein concentrations in horses with severe liver disease: a retrospective study and review of the literature. The present retrospective study was undertaken to determine the frequency of hypoproteinemia and hypoalbuminemia in horses with natural occurring severe liver disease. The study represents a review of case records and laboratory data of 84 horses presented with acute or chronic liver disease to the University of California Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital between 1973 and 1991. Forty horses (48%) had serum protein concentrations above the maximum reference value (7.7 g/dL). The increase in serum protein concentration was associated with hyperglobulinemia (P = .00005, R2 = .80). Only 13% (1...
