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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.
Detecting fatigue of sport horses with biomechanical gait features using inertial sensors. Detection of fatigue helps prevent injuries and optimize the performance of horses. Previous studies tried to determine fatigue using physiological parameters. However, measuring the physiological parameters, e.g., plasma lactate, is invasive and can be affected by different factors. In addition, the measurement cannot be done automatically and requires a veterinarian for sample collection. This study investigated the possibility of detecting fatigue non-invasively using a minimum number of body-mounted inertial sensors. Using the inertial sensors, sixty sport horses were measured during walk ...
Factors Affecting Weigh Tape Reading in the Measurement of Equine Body Weight. Accurate measurement of equine body weight is important for evaluating medication dosages and feed quantities. Different methods exist for measuring body weight, including weigh tapes (WT), though accuracy varies. Measurements could be affected by external variables, such as time of day, human error, or uneven surfaces, and also horse-based variables, such as height and body condition score (BCS). The aim of this study was to investigate how different horse-based variables affect WT reading. A retrospective analysis was performed using anonymised data from feed company nutrition consultations ...
Biofilm Production by Critical Antibiotic-Resistant Pathogens from an Equine Wound. As in human medicine, in veterinary medicine, chronic wounds are often related to polymicrobial infections and the presence of a biofilm, which compromises the effectiveness of therapeutic approaches. In this study, a Lusitano mare presented a 21-day-old chronic wound that was only being treated with an antiseptic. A swab sample was collected, and three isolates of Staphylococcus aureus and one of Pseudomonas aeruginosa were isolated. S. aureus did not show resistance to a panel of antibiotics. However, the P. aeruginosa isolate showed a resistance profile to carbapenems and fluoroquinolones, ...
Homocysteine-Potential Novel Diagnostic Indicator of Health and Disease in Horses. Homocysteine is an endogenous, non-protein sulfuric amino acid, an intermediate metabolite formed by the methionine transmethylation reaction. Its elevated serum concentration in humans, hyperhomocysteinemia, is a sensitive indicator and a risk factor for coagulation disorders, cardiovascular diseases and dementia. However, the role of homocysteine in veterinary species has not been unequivocally established. Although some research has been conducted in dogs, cats, cattle and pigs, relatively few studies on homocysteine have been conducted in horses. So far, it has been established in this spe...
Comparison of Trap and Equine Attraction to Mosquitoes. Mosquitoes are pests of horses, but mosquito trap efficacy data, especially the ability of traps to protect horses, are lacking. Studies were conducted to investigate the comparative attraction between traps and horses, increase trap attraction by adding horse odors to the airstream of a trap, determine the spatial distribution of adult mosquitoes, estimate the numbers of mosquitoes feeding on horses, determine the relative attraction of horses to mosquitoes, and estimate the range of mosquitoes' attraction between two horses. When a horse and a mosquito trap were placed 3.5 m apart, there was...
Effect of dietary iron supplementation on the equine fecal microbiome. Iron is an essential element for all living organisms, including bacteria, as several virulence factors and replication components are influenced by iron concentration. The objective of this study was to determine whether the composition and diversity of the fecal microbiota of adult horses are affected by supplemental dietary iron. Ten clinically healthy horses were randomly divided into a control and an iron-supplemented group ( = 5). The treated group was supplemented with oral ferrous sulphate monohydrate (720 ppm of iron), whereas the control group received 320 ppm of iron daily for 15 d....
Corynebacteria of the diphtheriae Species Complex in Companion Animals: Clinical and Microbiological Characterization of 64 Cases from France. Corynebacteria of the diphtheriae species complex (CdSC) can cause diphtheria in humans and have been reported from companion animals. We aimed to describe animal infection cases caused by CdSC isolates. A total of 18,308 animals (dogs, cats, horses, and small mammals) with rhinitis, dermatitis, nonhealing wounds, and otitis were sampled in metropolitan France (August 2019 to August 2021). Data on symptoms, age, breed, and the administrative region of origin were collected. Cultured bacteria were analyzed for tox gene presence, production of the diphtheria toxin, and antimicrobial susceptibili...
Pharmacokinetics and effects of codeine in combination with acetaminophen on thermal nociception in horses. Codeine and acetaminophen in combination have proven to be an effective analgesic treatment for moderate-to-severe and postoperative pain in humans. Studies have demonstrated that codeine and acetaminophen, when administered as sole agents, are well tolerated by horses. In the current study, we hypothesized that administration of the combination of codeine and acetaminophen would result in a significant thermal antinociceptive effect compared with administration of either alone. Six horses were administered oral doses of codeine (1.2 mg/kg), acetaminophen (20 mg/kg), and codeine plus aceta...
A comparative survey of veterinarians, equine owners, and equine keepers regarding the knowledge and implementation of legal requirements in Germany for the use and documentation of veterinary medicines in equines intended for slaughter. In Europe, equines destined for human consumption (hereafter called slaughter equines) are subject to the same restrictions of usage of veterinary drugs as other food-producing animals, with amendments regulated in the so-called 'positive list', Regulation (EC) No. 1950/2006. Due to the complex legal requirements for drug administration in slaughter equines, it might be that specific knowledge regarding the legislation of slaughter equines may be insufficient among veterinarians, equine owners, and equine keepers. To study this assumption, three target group-specific surveys were conducted in ...
Equine Gastric Ulcer Syndrome: An Update on Current Knowledge. Equine Gastric Ulcer Syndrome (EGUS) is a term that has been used since 1999, initially being used to describe all gastric mucosal disease in horses. Since this time, the identification of two distinct main disease entities of the equine gastric mucosa have been described under the umbrella of EGUS; these are Equine Squamous Gastric Disease (ESGD) and Equine Glandular Gastric Disease (EGGD). In 2015 the European College of Equine Internal Medicine (ECEIM) released a consensus statement defining these disease entities. This document highlighted the lack of evidence surrounding EGGD compared to ...
Effect of pentobarbital as a euthanasia agent on equine in vitro embryo production. Postmortem and pre-euthanasia oocyte retrieval provides the last opportunity to preserve the genetic material in mares. Pentobarbital (PB) is the most common euthanasia agent; however, its effect on the developmental competence of oocytes has not been determined. Here, we evaluated the concentration of PB in equine follicular fluid (FF) and investigated its effect on the developmental competence of oocytes using a bovine IVF model to overcome the low availability of equine oocytes. The concentration of PB was measured by gas-chromatography/mass-spectrometry in FF collected from mare ovaries im...
Awareness and control measures for gastrointestinal parasites in donkeys in Maseru district, Lesotho. Parasitic infection is one of the major problems in equines which negatively influence their health. It hinders working performance of equines. This study was conducted to evaluate donkey owners' knowledge and control measures on prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites (GIPs) in three agro-ecological zones (AEZs) of Maseru district. A total of 144 donkey owners were selected for individual interviews through a stratified random sampling. Descriptive statistics and chi-square tests were used to analyze data. The significance (p <0.05) of different AEZs was tested using a post-hoc cell-wise ad...
Evaluation of Three Methods of Sensory Function Testing for the Assessment of Successful Maxillary Nerve Blockade in Horses. Maxillary nerve blocks (MNBs) commonly facilitate dental surgeries in standing horses. The goal of this prospective, blinded, cross-over design trial including 15 client-owned horses was to evaluate 3 methods of sensory function testing for confirming a successful MNB. Testing was performed bilaterally before sedation, 5 min after sedation, and 15 and 30 min after MNB with 0.5% bupivacaine and involved a needle prick dorsal to each naris, hemostat clamping of each nostril, and gingival algometry (measuring sensitivity to pain). Responses to stimulation were numerically scored and scores were s...
On the trail of the Unicorn: a mythical combination of two enviable careers. Vet and owner of Unicorn Trails Wendy Hofstee explains how she developed a horse-riding holiday business alongside a successful career in emergency veterinary work.
Body Condition Score in Danish Horses Related to Type, Use, and Training Level: Patterns, Risk, and Protective Factors. Body condition in horses is a growing concern that has different patterns of development in horses that are above and below the ideal range. This study used professional and para-professional evaluators (veterinarians, farriers, trainers, Danish Equestrian Federation (DEF) officials) who were trained and certified in the use of a modified Henneke scoring system to assign a body condition score (BCS) on a scale of 1-9. Scores of 5-6 are regarded as ideal, and 78.6% of the evaluated horses were in these groups. Only 4.8% of horses were below ideal BCS but 16.5% were above ideal BCS, and this was...
Anthelmintic resistance of horse strongyle nematodes to ivermectin in São Paulo state, Brazil. The indiscriminate use of drugs to control gastrointestinal helminths in horses can lead to serious consequences for the animals, which represents a growing problem for health, animal welfare and productivity. Therefore, the present study aimed to evaluate the anthelmintic efficacy of ivermectin in naturally infected horses in the western region of the state of São Paulo. From May 2021 to April 2022, 123 naturally infected adult horses in 12 equine breeding farms (7 to 14 animals per farm) were evaluated with the fecal egg count reduction test. The horses had not been treated with anthelminti...
Case report: Long term follow-up of a large unilateral epididymal cyst in a stallion used for teaching: Is this condition associated with infertility? A 30-year-old Lusitano stallion presented with an enlarged right epididymis. The ultrasound scan revealed a cyst-like formation and the histopathological examination was compatible with epididymal cyst located at the body/tail transition, epididymal spermatocele and sperm granuloma and epididymitis. However, these conditions did not seem to affect the animal's reproductive performance, nor did the semen parameters analyzed over the 8 years after the diagnosis show significant changes. Nevertheless, since the ejaculate contains mostly sperm cells from the tail of the epididymis, where fertile s...
Primary structure determination and physicochemical characterization of DSP-3, a phosphatidylcholine binding glycoprotein of donkey seminal plasma. Major proteins of the seminal plasma in a variety of mammals such as bovine PDC-109, equine HSP-1/2, and donkey DSP-1 contain fibronectin type-II (FnII) domains and are referred to as FnII family proteins. To further our understanding on these proteins, we carried out detailed studies on DSP-3, another FnII protein of donkey seminal plasma. High-resolution mass-spectrometric studies revealed that DSP-3 contains 106 amino acid residues and is heterogeneously glycosylated with multiple acetylations on the glycans. Interestingly, high homology was observed between DSP-1 and HSP-1 (118 identical r...
Integrative genomics analysis highlights functionally relevant genes for equine behaviour. Behavioural plasticity enables horses entering an exercise training programme to adapt with reduced stress. We characterised SNPs associated with behaviour in yearling Thoroughbred horses using genomics analyses for two phenotypes: (1) handler-assessed coping with early training events [coping] (n = 96); and (2) variation in salivary cortisol concentration at the first backing event [cortisol] (n = 34). Using RNA-seq derived gene expression data for amygdala and hippocampus tissues from n = 2 Thoroughbred stallions, we refined the SNPs to those with functional relevance to behaviour by c...
The Social and Reproductive Challenges Faced by Free-Roaming Horse (Equus caballus) Stallions. In captivity, intact male horses, due to their sexual drive, are usually socially isolated from other horses. This lifestyle strongly contrasts with that experienced by horses living in free-roaming, feral, or semi-feral conditions, where adult stallions have several roles in their social group, with successful reproduction being their primary drive. Reproductive skew in wild populations is high; many stallions will fail to reproduce at all, while others achieve high levels of reproductive success, siring a large number of foals. Successful stallions are those with particular characteristics a...
Evaluation of Substance P as a New Stress Parameter in Horses in a Stress Model Involving Four Different Stress Levels. Stress has a significant impact on equine welfare. There are some studies on the stress response in horses ridden with tight nosebands, but little is known about other stress parameters than cortisol, which potentially could address an emotional component. In this study, blood samples of a total of 74 warmblood horses were used to establish reference values for plasma substance P (SP) concentrations. Moreover, 16 of these warmblood horses were included in a stress model. Four different stress levels (level 1: horses ridden with loose noseband, level 2: tight noseband, level 3: loose noseband a...
Seroprevalence and Risk Factors for Toxoplasma gondii Infection in Horses. is classified as intracellular protozoa and is one of the major zoonotic parasites. Most warm-blooded intermediate hosts, including humans, are commonly infected by this parasite. The epidemiology of infection in Egyptian horses is currently poorly understood. Methods: 420 blood samples were randomly collected from horses raised in four governorates in Northern Egypt (110 each from Giza and Kafr El Sheikh, and 100 each from Qalyubia and Gharbia) to investigate the existence of antibodies against using a commercial ELISA kit, and to ascertain the risk factors for the infection. Results: the ...
Animals Exposed to Leptospira Serogroups Not Included in Bacterins in the United States and Puerto Rico. Leptospirosis is a worldwide zoonotic disease. Pathogenic leptospires colonize the renal tubules and genital tract of animals and are excreted via urine. Transmission occurs via direct contact or through contaminated water or soil. The microscopic agglutination test (MAT) is the gold standard for the serodiagnosis of leptospirosis. The present study aims to evaluate animal exposure to Leptospira in the U.S. and Puerto Rico during the period 2018-2020. The presence of antibodies against pathogenic Leptospira spp. was assessed with the MAT according to the standards of the World Organisation for...
Seroexposure to Zoonotic Anaplasma and Borrelia in Dogs and Horses That Are in Contact with Vulnerable People in Italy. Equine and canine anaplasmosis and borreliosis are major tick-borne zoonotic diseases caused by and various species of (the most important being s.l.), respectively. This study evaluated the seroexposure to and in dogs and horses used in Animal-Assisted Interventions or living in contact with children, elderly people or immunocompromised persons. A total of 150 horses and 150 dogs living in Italy were equally divided into clinically healthy animals and animals with at least one clinical sign compatible with borreliosis and/or anaplasmosis (present at clinical examination or reported in th...
Dual use of breeding stallions is possible without affecting the sperm quality. Artificial insemination (AI) is commonly used in the equine industry to enhance the genetic value in breeding programs and to effectively utilize ejaculates. Many stallions are used as breeding stallions as well as in high-level sports competitions to improve their market value. The goal of the present study was to investigate whether this dual use of stallions influences the animals´ stress levels and/or the quality of their ejaculates. For this purpose, 18 stallions were grouped into two categories: breeding stallions with (BSC = breeding stallion competition), and breeding stallions with...
