"Horses" is a broad topic that encompasses various aspects of equine biology, behavior, and management. This category includes studies on the anatomy, physiology, and genetics of horses, as well as their behavior, nutrition, and care. Research in this area may also cover the historical and cultural significance of horses, their roles in agriculture, sport, and therapy, and the challenges associated with their conservation and welfare. The page aggregates peer-reviewed research articles and scholarly studies that explore the multifaceted relationships between humans and horses, examining both scientific and socio-economic perspectives.
Engelking LR, Anwer MS, Lofstedt J.Fasting is associated with unconjugated hyperbilirubinemia in several species, including the horse. Studies in ponies showed that a 3-day fast decreased plasma clearance of bilirubin, cholic acid, and sulfobromophthalein (BSP). Since these organic anions are conjugated with different substrates, it is possible that observed differences in plasma clearance result from a general decrease in hepatic conjugating capacity during the animals' fasting. To test this hypothesis, the effects of a 3-day fast on plasma clearance of IV injected BSP (4.4 to 5.1 mg/kg), which is conjugated to glutathione, an...
Woods WE, Chay S, Houston T, Blake JW, Tobin T.The efficacy of testing for illegal drugs in race horses was surveyed by evaluating 27 questionnaires received from 28 racing jurisdictions polled. Large variations in the number of samples tested and drugs detected were reported. Some jurisdictions reported only illegal medications, whereas others also reported permitted medications. To facilitate comparison, stimulants, depressants, local anesthetics, narcotic analgesics, and tranquilizers were classified as hard drugs. Other drugs, which are legal in some jurisdictions, were classified as soft. To evaluate the efficacy of testing, positive ...
Wyn-Jones G.The value of radiology as part of an examination of the equine head is emphasised and the radiological appearances of more commonly occurring conditions are described. Even the normal anatomy of this complex site is subject to great variation and the aspiring radiologist should, therefore, have a good knowledge of the possible normal variations. A flexible approach must be used rather than a limitation to one or two ritual projections. The use of contrast media, wherever it might be useful, is advocated so that the maximum amount of information may be obtained from each examination. Finally, e...
Wagner PC, Shires GM, Watrous BJ, Kaneps AJ, Schmotzer WB, Riebold TW.Fifteen horses with flexural deformity of the metacarpophalangeal joint were evaluated and their conditions were designated as mild, moderate, or severe. Evaluations were made on the basis of clinical signs and lesions seen on radiography. Horses with mild deformities were treated with corrective trimming and shoeing; those with moderate deformities were treated with desmotomy of the accessory ligament of the deep digital flexor tendon and corrective shoeing. Desmotomies of the accessory ligaments of both deep and superficial digital flexor tendons were performed on horses severely affected, f...
Essén-Gustavsson B, Lindholm A.Muscle biopsies were taken from the middle gluteus muscle of 36 Standardbred horses. Twelve of the horses were inactive, while 24 were actively trained and raced. Twelve of the trained horses were moderate performers, with a mean racing time of 1 min 21 secs per km (741 m/min) and the other 12 were excellent performers, with a mean racing time of 1 min 16 secs per km (789 m/min). The percentage and mean area of Type I fibres were similar in all three groups of horses. Marked differences were found among the subgroups of Type II fibres. The well-trained horses had a higher proportion of Type II...
Mair TS, Lane JG, Lucke VM.The clinical and post mortem features of 11 cases of lymphosarcoma involving the thoracic cavity are reviewed. The clinical findings included inappetence, weight loss, pectoral oedema, dyspnoea, pleural effusion and distension of the jugular veins. Dysphagia was present in three cases. At post mortem examination lesions were found in the abdomen as well as the chest in eight cases; clinical signs of abdominal disease were present in two cases. The features of nine other similar cases recorded in the literature are reviewed.
Potter KA, Leid RW, Kolattukudy PE, Espelie KE.Lipoxygenase products of arachidonic acid are important mediators of inflammation, affecting several aspects of cell function. Monohydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (mono-HETE) and 5,12-dihydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (LTB4) enhance migration of both neutrophils and eosinophils in several species. The relative ability of positional isomers of HETE and of LTB4 to affect migration of equine eosinophils was studied. The 5, 8, 9, 11, 12, and 15 isomers of HETE were prepared by autooxidation of arachidonic acid, separated by sequential normal phase and reverse phase high performance liquid chromatography...
Silberzahn P, Dehennin L, Zwain I, Reiffsteck A.Follicular fluid was obtained from equine follicles at different stages of development as determined by ultrastructural study. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry associated with stable isotope dilution permitted the demonstration of high levels of 4-estrene-3,7-dione and 17 beta-hydroxy-4-estren-3-one, 17 beta-hydroxy-4-estren-3-one levels often being about 10 times higher than those of testosterone. These findings suggest that in the mare ovary, an aromatizing pathway may proceed using these 19-norsteroids as intermediates. As a consequence of this high level of 19-norsteroids, testosterone...
McLean RG, Frier G, Parham GL, Francy DB, Monath TP, Campos EG, Therrien A, Kerschner J, Calisher CH.A study was undertaken to investigate an increase in reported cases of clinical encephalitis due to eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) virus in horses and to determine the natural vertebrate hosts of that virus. Horses, birds, and small mammals were sampled at sites in a contiguous area in St. Joseph and Kalamazoo counties, Michigan, from 25 August to 5 September 1980. Serum samples from four horses acutely ill with encephalitis and 16 of 39 pasture mates of ill horses had neutralizing (N) antibody against EEE virus (46.5%); no viruses were isolated from these 43 sera. None of 24 draft horses f...
Trim CM, Colbern GT, Martin CL.Intraocular pressure was measured with a MacKay-Marg tonometer in eight horses following auriculopalpebral nerve block and topical application of lignocaine. Measurements were recorded before and after xylazine, 1.1 mg/kg intravenously, every two minutes for 16 minutes after administration of ketamine, 2.2 mg/kg intravenously, and after recovery from anaesthesia. Before xylazine, intraocular pressure was 17.1 +/- 3.9 and 18.4 +/- 2.2 mm Hg in the left and right eyes, respectively. Intraocular pressure tended to decrease after administration of xylazine and ketamine, with a significant decrease...
Watney GC, Watkins SB, Hall LW.The pressure flow characteristics of a demand valve which has been suggested to be suitable for use in anaesthetised horses were determined at a range of flow rates commonly encountered in equine anaesthesia. The resistance of the valve was found to be very much greater than the resistance of normal large animal anaesthetic apparatus or the equine lower respiratory tract. The effects of the valve on pulmonary ventilation were investigated in seven anaesthetised, intubated horses. Respiratory rate and dynamic compliance were unaffected by connection of the valve but mean tidal and minute volume...
Colton SW, Downing DT.To observe the time-course of formation of sebaceous lipids in the horse, skin was pulse-labelled in vivo by intradermal injection of [1-14C]acetate and the injection sites were harvested at intervals for up to 12 days by skin punch biopsy. The distribution of radioactivity among the major neutral lipid classes and the phospholipids from these biopsies showed that, soon after pulse-labelling, the phospholipids were highly labelled followed by a long-term decrease in radioactivity. Over the same period, the low initial labelling of the dominant component, the equolides (giant ring omega-lactone...
Halliwell RE, Hines MT.A radioimmunoassay was developed for detection of immunoglobulin in the aqueous of normal horses and horses with intraocular diseases. Levels of albumin were detected by radial immunodiffusion. Results of assays on samples from normal eyes from which aqueous was obtained by paracentesis under anesthesia were 32.10 +/- 21.50 microgram/ml for IgG, 0.05 +/- 0.01 microgram/ml for IgM, 0.04 +/- 0.02 microgram/ml for IgA and 34.0 +/- 38.0 microgram/ml for albumin. Results in 138 normal eyes sampled post mortem were 41.56 +/- 38.65 microgram/ml for IgG, 0.18 +/- 0.43 microgram/ml for IgM, 0.46 +/- 1....
Cremers HJ.The feet of horses, sheep, and goats of different breeds and from many different localities were examined for Chorioptes bovis. In horses, mites were mainly found in the Belgian and Frisian breeds (40% and 62% infected, respectively). In sheep and goats, respectively 63% and 86% were infected. In horses as well as in sheep and goats, mange-lesions were rarely seen. A number of sheep and goats were examined for mites and lesions quantitatively. In sheep all mites were restricted to the region close to the accessory digits and the claws. In goats the average number of mites was higher than in sh...
Liu IK, Pascoe DR, Chang LW, Zee YC.Serum antibody concentrations against influenza A-equi-1 virus and A-equi-2 virus were measured in a group of 18 foals from birth to 4 months of age. More than 50% of the foals were seronegative to A-equi-1 virus infection by 4 weeks of age, with titers of less than or equal to 1:16. For A-equi-2 virus, more than 50% of the foals were seronegative by 2 weeks of age, with titers of less than or equal to 1:8. Passively derived antibodies against influenza A-equi-1 virus and A-equi-2 virus in foals obtained from recently vaccinated mares and from mares not vaccinated within 6 months before foalin...
Tablin F, Weiss L.The equine bone marrow responds to blood loss by increased erythropoiesis, only releasing reticulocytes into the peripheral circulation in severe chronic anemia. We have used morphometric analysis based on electron microscopy of the equine marrow to examine the maturation and release of reticulocytes. Developing red cells in the bone marrows of normal and chronically anemic horses were divided into four stages: early, intermediate, late-stage erythroblasts, and reticulocytes. Morphometric analysis of each stage included volume density of mitochondria per micron3 of cytoplasm, surface area of t...
Muir WW, Robertson JT.The visceral analgesic, cardiorespiratory, and behavioral effects induced by xylazine, butorphanol, meperidine, and pentazocine were determined in 9 adult horses with colic. Colic was produced by inflating a balloon in the horses' cecum. Heart rate, respiratory rate, mean arterial blood pressure, and cardiac output increased after cecal balloon inflation. Xylazine and butorphanol decreased the hemodynamic response to cecal balloon inflation. Meperidine and pentazocine had minimal effects on the cardiorespiratory changes induced by cecal balloon inflation. Xylazine produced the most pronounced ...
McCraw BM, Slocombe JO.The development and pathological effects of Strongylus equinus were studied in 17 pony foals and one horse foal raised in isolation and examined at necropsy from seven days to 40 wk postinfection (PI). Following inoculation of 15000 +/- 6% or 16000 +/- 6% infective larvae by stomach tube foals were monitored for clinical signs and selected blood changes. Larvae penetrated the wall of the ileum, cecum and colon. The molt to the fourth stage occurred mostly in the wall of the ventral colon before 2 wk PI and larvae attained the liver mainly via the peritoneal cavity as early as eight days PI and...
Dean PW, Robertson JT, Jacobs RM.In 7 horses, 4 anastomoses were done in the small intestine in each, using the combinations of synthetic absorbable monofilament and multifilament suture materials with continuous- and interrupted-suture patterns in the serosubmucosal layer of a 2-layer inverting-suture technique. Horses were evaluated 30 days after the operation for adhesion formation, lumen diameter, evidence of chronic obstruction, and suture tract inflammation at the anastomosis. Postoperative obstruction occurred in 5 of the 7 horses, and 6 horses survived. One horse was euthanatized on postoperative day 6 after 48 hours ...
Tithof PK, Rebhun WC, Dietze AE.A linear array 5 mHz ultrasonic scanner was used to diagnose aorto-iliac thrombosis in a 3 year old Standardbred gelding. There are no reports in the literature of utilization of ultrasonography for visualization of an aortic thrombus. The technique is fairly non-invasive, requiring only a rectal examination with a linear array probe. Arteriography is the only other method described for actual visualization of a thrombus. This procedure is technically difficult and highly invasive.
Malinowski K, Johnson AL, Scanes CG.The ability of interrupted photoperiods to induce early estrus and ovulation was examined. Horse mares were exposed to long (16 h light) or short (10 h light), noninterrupted photoperiods, ambient light, or various interrupted photoperiod treatments from December 1 to April 15 (135 d). Follicular development was assessed by rectal palpation and estrous behavior was determined by teasing with a stallion. Serum concentrations of progesterone were used as an indicator of corpus luteum function. Differences among the light treatment groups were compared for the following behavioral and ovarian cha...
Rebhun WC, Shin SJ, King JM, Baum KH, Patten V.Malignant edema (clostridial myositis) was diagnosed in 9 horses with signs of illness that included fever, depression, painful muscular swellings, and toxemia. The infection followed intramuscular injections in 8 horses and developed in a puncture wound in 1 horse. Treatment consisted of surgical fenestration of the involved muscle, high doses of penicillin, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents and analgesics, and supportive fluid therapy. Five horses recovered and 4 died. Those that died had advanced signs of the disease at admission.
Vernon SD, Webb PA.We developed an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) that was capable of detecting immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibody to vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) in the sera of experimentally and naturally infected cattle and horses. The detection of IgM in the sera of these animals permitted an estimate of the recency of infection by VSV serotype New Jersey. A VSV serotype New Jersey epizootic strain isolated from a horse and passed once in an Aedes albopictus cell line was used to infect a horse and a calf. Sera from these animals were used to standardize the ELISA. This assay was used to test ser...
McKibbin LS, Paraschak DM.Bone spavin, splint, and fractured splint bone injuries have been treated with varying methodologies at Wheatley Hall Farm Equine Clinic. Cryosurgery is the most successful. With cryosurgery the small, pain-producing afferent C fibers are destroyed, and painful neuromas do not return. Injured sites were cryosurgically treated with liquid nitrogen for a double freeze-thaw period of 45 sec. 5 sec, 45 sec. Before and after treatment comparisons were conducted on study standardbreds. In all three injury groups, results showed that the standardbreds tended to race as well or with improved times and...
Ambrisko TD, Coppens P, Kabes R, Moens Y.This study compares cardiac output (CO) measurements obtained by lithium dilution (LiDCO), pulse power analysis (PulseCO), and continuous thermodilution (CTD) with bolus thermodilution (BTD) in ponies. Methods: Eight isoflurane-anaesthetized Shetland ponies received xylazine, ketamine, and midazolam infusions (0.3, 1.2, and 0.018 mg kg(-1) h(-1), respectively). CO was measured with BTD, CTD, LiDCO, and PulseCO. Lithium was injected into the jugular vein and blood was sampled from the facial artery for lithium detection and this artery was also used for PulseCO. Measurements were obtained durin...
Drury M.Participants in the 1- and 2-day Tamworth Dressage Club (TDC) annual dressage championships arrived in Moonbi, New South Wales (NSW) as reports of the equine influenza outbreak surfaced on 25 August 2007. Three horses who had attended a competition in Maitland the weekend before had been showing flu-like symptoms and the next day the site was declared a suspect premise. On 27 August, infection was confirmed and the site was placed in total quarantine. Although most participants had travelled long distances to compete and did not have provisions for them or their horses, the quarantine was not ...
Adair S.This article serves as an introduction into integrative case management as it applies to the horse's mental health, pain management, and tissue healing. The integrative philosophy pertains to the combination of conventional Western medicine and complementary and alternative therapies to provide the best patient care possible using currently available evidence. The goal is to improve the health of the patient in a more holistic manner.
Bosken JM, Lehner AF, Hunsucker A, Harkins JD, Woods WE, Karpiesiuk W, Carter WG, Boyles J, Fisher M, Tobin T.Isoxsuprine is routinely recovered from enzymatically-hydrolyzed, post-administration urine samples as parent isoxsuprine in equine forensic science. However, the specific identity of the material in horse urine from which isoxsuprine is recovered has never been established, although it has long been assumed to be a glucuronide conjugate (or conjugates) of isoxsuprine. Using ESI/MS/MS positive mode as an analytical tool, urine samples collected 4-8 h after isoxsuprine administration yielded a major peak at m/z 554 that was absent from control samples and resisted fragmentation to daughter ions...
Sager M.The aim of this article is to emphasize the need for analgesic medication in animals in possibly painful situations, especially in the postoperative period. The two large groups of compounds used as analgesics--the opiates and the nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs)--are described with special reference to their pharmacokinetics, side-effects and toxicity, their mechanism of action, their indications and contraindications. Recommended doses of the different drugs available are given for the dog, the cat, the horse, the swine and the small and large ruminants.
Tosi I, Art T, Cassart D, Farnir F, Ceusters J, Serteyn D, Lemieux H, Votion DM.Polysaccharide storage myopathy (PSSM) is a widely described cause of exertional rhabdomyolysis in horses. Mitochondria play a central role in cellular energetics and are involved in human glycogen storage diseases but their role has been overlooked in equine PSSM. We hypothesized that the mitochondrial function is impaired in the myofibers of PSSM-affected horses. Nine horses with a history of recurrent exercise-associated rhabdomyolysis were tested for the glycogen synthase 1 gene (GYS1) mutation: 5 were tested positive (PSSM group) and 4 were tested negative (horses suffering from rhabdomyo...
Bischofberger AS, Hadidane I, Wereszka MM, Perkins NR, Jeffcott LB, Dart AJ.To determine the effect of horse age and laryngeal prosthesis location on rima glottidis area in cadaveric larynges. Methods: Experimental study. Methods: Cadaveric equine larynges (n = 40). Methods: Specimens were grouped by age: group 1, ≤5 years (n = 18); group 2, >5 to ≤10 years (n = 12); group 3, >10 years (n = 10). A cranial prosthesis was placed through the dorsal cricoid spine at 70% of the distance of the total cricoid length measured from the caudal rim. A dorsal prosthesis was placed through the caudal rim of the cricoid on the dorsal midline. A lateral prosthesis was plac...
Liu IK, Walsh EM, Bernoco M, Cheung AT.Two bronchoalveolar lavages, 24 h apart, were performed on 15 foals, ranging in age from 1 to 21 days. In the first lavage, a numerical deficiency in alveolar macrophages was demonstrated in foals up to 2 weeks of age when compared with older (2-3 years of age) horses. Alveolar macrophages obtained from the lungs of 2-3-day-old foals also demonstrated significant impaired chemotactic function. In the second lavage, although an increase of alveolar macrophages was noted, a dramatic increase of polymorphonuclear neutrophil (PMN) mobilization occurred in the foals, thus providing a phagocytic bac...
Rose PL, Hightower D, Auer JA, Hulse D, Schenk RK.In the present study, radionuclide scintigraphy and radiography were used to evaluate the rate and degree of healing that occurred in surgically created subchondral bone defects in horses. Following radionuclide scintigraphy and radiography the horses were killed, and histomorphometric analysis was performed on the defect sites. The histomorphometric results were compared to the radionuclide scintigraphic and radiographic results to determine which noninvasive technique provided the most accurate information concerning healing of the bone defects. It was concluded that radionuclide scintigraph...
De Paolis L, Armando F, Montemurro V, Petrizzi L, Straticò P, Mecocci S, Guarnieri C, Pezzolato M, Fruscione F, Passeri B, Marruchella G, Razzuoli E.Vulvar squamous cell carcinoma (VSCC) has been recently associated with Equus caballus papillomavirus type 2 (EcPV2) infection. Still, few reports concerning this disease are present in the literature. Objective: To describe a case of naturally occurring EcPV2-induced VSCC, by investigating tumour ability in undergoing the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Methods: Case report. Methods: A 13-year-old Haflinger mare was referred for a rapidly growing vulvar mass. After surgical excision, the mass was submitted to histopathology and molecular analysis. Histopathological diagnosis was c...