Veterinary care in horses encompasses the medical and preventive measures taken to maintain and improve the health and well-being of equine patients. It includes a wide range of practices such as routine health examinations, vaccinations, dental care, parasite control, and management of injuries and diseases. Veterinary care also involves diagnostic procedures, surgical interventions, and therapeutic treatments tailored to the specific needs of horses. This page gathers peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore various aspects of equine veterinary care, including advancements in diagnostic techniques, treatment protocols, and health management strategies to support the well-being and performance of horses.
Furr MO, Crisman MV, Robertson J, Barta O, Swecker WS.Immune system dysfunction and immunoglobulin deficiency was diagnosed in a 2-year-old horse with disseminated lymphosarcoma. Prolonged (35 days) parenteral nutrition was delivered to support the horse during a period in which immune function studies could be performed. Correction of nutritional compromise by use of parenteral nutrition did not correct the immunoglobulin deficiency, and results of lymphocyte phenotype testing did not indicate abnormal proportions of leukocytes. Lymphoblast transformation studies were suggestive of a circulating immunosuppressive factor in the horse's serum. Nor...
Harrison LJ, May SA.A three-month-old foal was presented with subluxation of the proximal interphalangeal joint in both forelimbs. The condition, which was considered to represent an unusual manifestation of breakdown of the suspensory apparatus, appeared to have developed as a consequence of extreme overexertion, 10 days previously. This had resulted in rupture of the palmar supporting structures of the joint; namely, the superficial distal sesamoidean ligament, the insertion of the superficial digital flexor tendon and the palmar joint capsule. Severe laxity of the flexor tendons had been present in the neonata...
Bohn A, Papageorges M, Grant BD.Ultrasonography and radiography were used to diagnose bicipital tenosynovitis and humeral osteitis in a horse with a history of lameness of 7 weeks' duration. Surgical exploration confirmed the diagnosis.
Dahlgren LA, DeBowes RM, Gift LJ, Veatch JK.Heterotopic salivary tissue was diagnosed in a 7-month-old Quarter Horse colt with a history of a draining wound in the left temporal region from time of birth. Surgical excision of the tract was performed for diagnosis and treatment. Histologically, tissues were compatible with a mixed-type salivary gland, most likely of parotid salivary gland origin. Complete resolution of the drainage was achieved after surgical removal of the ectopic tissue.
Chaffin MK, Schumacher J, Hooper N.A 5-month-old male Quarter Horse was examined because of multicentric, granulomatous, cutaneous lesions of the dorsum and prepuce. The cutaneous lesions were excised, and sodium iodide was administered orally for 2 weeks. Multicentric cutaneous pythiosis was diagnosed by histologic examination and immunoperoxidase staining of excised tissues. By 3 months after surgery, all lesions had healed.
Ross MW, Martin BB.Seven Standardbred horses, all pacers, with a mean age of 2.9 years (range, 2 to 4 years), had dorsomedial articular fracture of the proximal aspect of the third metacarpal bone. Fracture caused acute, unilateral, severe lameness after training or racing. Lameness was abolished by midcarpal joint anesthesia in 4 horses. Six horses had a palpable bony swelling, which caused signs of pain. Radiography revealed a nondisplaced, articular, oblique fracture extending distad toward the dorsomedial cortex for a mean distance of 28 mm (range, 15 to 40 mm). In all horses, chronic periosteal proliferativ...
Knottenbelt DC, Harrison LJ, Peacock PJ.Three foals under four weeks old and two under six months old with a history of oesophageal obstruction, had oesophageal strictures of different characters in the rostral cervical oesophagus. One case, which was complicated by severe inhalation pneumonia, was euthanased without any treatment and in another initial treatment by bougienage under general anaesthesia was attempted without success. The four surviving cases were provided with progressively firmer and coarser food, starting with liquid only, over a period of three to four weeks. The treatment is recommended in the early stages of str...
Geor RJ, Becker RL, Kanara EW, Hovda LR, Sweeney WH, Winter TF, Rorick JK, Ruth GR, Hope E, Murphy MJ.Fever, limb edema, and laminitis were observed in horses 18 to 36 hours after they consumed hoary alyssum (Berteroa incana) under field and experimental conditions. Clinical signs were not observed in all horses that had ingested the plant. Diagnosis in the field cases was limited to observation of clinical signs and evidence of plant ingestion in hay or on pasture. In most cases, clinical remission was observed 2 to 4 days after empirical treatment, removal of the plant source, or both.
Baxter GM, Doran RE, Allen D.Proximal open comminuted fractures of the fourth metatarsal bone (Mt IV) in eight horses were treated by complete removal of the affected bone and antimicrobial therapy. Two horses had concurrent septic arthritis of the tarsocrural or distal tarsal articulations, and five horses had radiographic evidence of osteomyelitis and sequestration of the affected bone. Five horses became athletically sound for their intended use, two horses with septic arthritis had residual lameness but were pasture sound, and one horse was lost to follow-up. Excision of the entire bone appears to be an acceptable tre...
Ekfalck A, Rodriguez H, Obel N.LAMINITIS after abdominal surgery is a well known
complication that may occur after the horse has recovered from
colic (McIlwraith and Turner 1987). We had the opportunity to
examine a horse with post-surgical laminitis with a peracute
course whose early death made it possible to gain material from
the acute stage for histopathological investigations. We consider
that our observations may be of some value for colleagues
interested in the pathogenesis of laminitis.
Logas D, Kunkle G, Calderwood-Mays M, Frank L.An 8-year-old gelding, with a 1-year history of intense pruritus only after exercise, was diagnosed as having cholinergic pruritus. Provocative testing, using exercise and hot-water baths to increase core body temperature, assisted in the diagnosis. Cholinergic pruritus in human beings is a variant of the more common syndrome, cholinergic urticaria, which is characterized by intense pruritus and pinpoint urticaria. With cholinergic pruritus, intense itching results without urticaria. Specific diagnostic laboratory tests have not been developed.
Perkins NR, Robertson JT, Colon LA.A 15-year-old Standard-bred mare was examined because of signs of abdominal discomfort in late gestation. Palpation per rectum revealed tight broad ligaments above and below the uterus, with the right broad ligament running across the top of the uterine body down toward the left, ventral side of the abdomen. A diagnosis of counterclockwise uterine torsion was made and surgical correction was approached via a left, flank laparotomy with the horse standing. The uterus was repositioned and a uterine tear encompassing 180 degrees of the uterine surface was found in the lateral, uterine body just c...
Weaver JC, Stover SM, O'Brien TR.The sites of bony attachment of the tendons, ligaments, and fibrous portion of the joint capsules of the equine metacarpophalangeal (fetlock) joint region were determined by gross dissection. These sites were transposed to standard radiographic views of the fetlock joint to yield illustrations that can be used as an aid in the diagnosis of soft tissue pathology from radiographs. Evidence of direct attachment of the common digital extensor tendon to the proximal phalanx was not found. Branches of the superficial digital flexor tendon were found to insert only on the middle phalanx. The recently...
Oladosu LA, Olufemi BE.An investigation was carried out to study the haematology of steroid immunosuppressed horses experimentally infected with Babesia equi and Ehrlichia equi, separately or simultaneously. Horses infected with both pathogens showed less marked changes in their haematology than those inoculated with either pathogen separately. This appeared to result from early elimination of the more pathogenic Babesia as Ehrlichia spread through the granulocytes. The apparent suppression of Babesia by Ehrlichia is of field clinical importance and merits further investigation for its apparent useful potentials in ...
van Muiswinkel K.Based on three clinical cases, the history and the clinical and radiological aspects of osteochondrosis in horses are discussed. The prognosis, therapy and consequences with regard to athletic soundness and use for breeding are described.
Folz SD, Hanson BJ, Griffin AK, Dinvald LL, Swerczek TW, Walker RD, Foreman JH.Ceftiofur sodium was evaluated as a therapy for respiratory infections in horses. This cephalosporin antimicrobial was administered intramuscularly every 24 h and at a dose of 2.2 mg/kg (1.0 mg/lb) of body weight. The efficacy of ceftiofur sodium was compared with that of a positive control drug, ampicillin sodium (recommended dose of 6.6 mg/kg [3 mg/lb], given every 12 h). Both treatments were continued for 48 h after clinical symptoms were no longer evident (maximum of 10 days). Fifty-five (55) horses with naturally acquired respiratory infections were included in the study; 28 were treated ...
Dart AJ, Snyder JR.A 14-month-old Arabian colt was admitted for treatment of an articular fracture of the supraglenoid tubercle of the right forelimb. Successful repair was achieved by use of three 5.5-mm cortical screws placed in lag fashion across the fracture line. In other reports of supraglenoid tubercle fractures in horses, investigators have preferred conservative management or surgical removal of the fragment, because of limited success with internal fixation. Use of three 5.5-mm screws placed in lag fashion may offer an alternative method of treatment in selected cases of supraglenoid tubercle fractures...
Stover SM, Johnson BJ, Daft BM, Read DH, Anderson M, Barr BC, Kinde H, Moore J, Stoltz J, Ardans AA.Twenty-one horses had a complete unilateral humeral fracture during race training or racing at a California racetrack during the period 24 February 1990 to 10 July 1991. Fractures occurred approximately equally in left and right limbs, and in males and females. Most fractures occurred during training, and in 2- and 3-year-old horses. Only 5 of 16 Thoroughbred horses with known racing records had previously raced more than once, and their mean time between races was less than the time between their last race and fracture (P = 0.07). Ten of 13 humeri studied further had gross evidence of periost...
Vacek JR, Welch RD, Honnas CM.An arthroscopic approach to the palmaroproximal or plantaroproximal pouch of the distal interphalangeal joint was developed in six cadaver limbs and seven limbs of three clinically normal horses. The dorsal aspect of the proximal border and the proximal articular margin of the distal sesamoid (navicular) bone, the palmar aspect of the distal articular margin of the middle phalanx, the collateral sesamoidean ligaments of the distal sesamoid bone, and the joint capsule attachments were readily accessible. Distending the joints with fluid gave access to portions of the articular surface between t...
Zamos DT, Parks AH.Medical records of 22 horses with humeral fractures were reviewed. The horses were from 2 to 144 months old (mean, 25.8 +/- 37.3 months). Ten horses were treated with stall confinement, 3 were treated surgically, and 9 were euthanatized at the time of diagnosis. Seven of 10 horses treated nonsurgically (stall confinement) were able to be ridden 5 to 12 months after the diagnosis was made (mean, 7.5 +/- 2.6 months). One horse treated nonsurgically was euthanatized 6 months after diagnosis because of laminitis in the contralateral limb. Two horses treated nonsurgically were lost to follow-up eva...
Everett KA, Chaffin MK, Brinsko SP.A diaphragmatic hernia in which 90% of the large colon had herniated through a 16-cm linear tear in the diaphragm was found in a 12-year-old Quarter Horse mare. Clinical signs included lethargy and exercise intolerance. Diagnosis of diaphragmatic hernia was made based on careful thoracic auscultation, combined with ultrasonographic and radiographic examination of the thorax.
Vacek JR, Macharg MA, Phillips TN, Foerner JJ, Everett KA.A 3-month-old Thoroughbred colt was presented with signs of colic. Findings from physical examination, abdominal paracentesis, abdominal radiographs and clinical pathology revealed uroperitoneum secondary to a calculus obstructing the urethra and causing subsequent urinary bladder rupture. Analysis of the calculus demonstrated a tissue center with outer concretions composed primarily of struvite.
Kwok WH, Choi TLS, Tsoi YYK, Leung GNW, Wan TSM.A fast method for the direct analysis of enzyme-hydrolysed horse urine using an automated on-line solid-phase extraction (SPE) coupled to a liquid-chromatography/high resolution mass spectrometer was developed. Over 100 drugs of diverse drug classes could be simultaneously detected in horse urine at sub to low parts per billion levels. Urine sample was first hydrolysed by β-glucuronidase to release conjugated drugs, followed by centrifugal filtration. The filtrate (1mL) was directly injected into an on-line SPE system consisting of a pre-column filter and a SPE cartridge column for the separa...
Blancou J, Parsonson I.Since Roman Antiquity, domestic and wild animals have been transported over long distances for purposes as different as improvement of livestock production, food supply, scientific interest, public entertainment, war and numerous other purposes. This long distance transportation was originally limited to the Mediterranean area but, during the Middle Ages extended to the rest of Europe. The conquest of the New World was the first major occasion to transport large numbers of horses and other livestock across the oceans. Domestic animals were necessary for the new colonies and their armies. Europ...
Taylor D, Hood DM, Wagner IP.To evaluate the short-term effects of 4 therapeutic shoeing systems on lameness and voluntary limb-load distribution in horses with chronic laminitis. Methods: 10 horses with chronic laminitis. Methods: A clinical trial was conducted that used a concurrent control, crossover design to evaluate the relative effectiveness of a standard flat shoe, fullered egg-bar shoe, heart-bar shoe, and modified equine digital support system to alleviate chronic lameness in horses. Therapeutic success was assessed during a 7-day period by use of subjective (Obel grade and clinical score) and objective (force-p...
Gurusinghe S, Hilbert B, Trope G, Wang L, Bandara N, Strappe P.Immortalization of chondrocytes enables long term in vitro culture; however, the chondrogenic capacity of transformed cells varies, thus highlighting the need to develop a proliferative and tuneable chondrocyte cell line where hypertrophic differentiation can be controlled. In this study the SV40 large T antigen and human telomerase reverse transcriptase were employed to immortalize pooled equine chondrocytes through lentiviral vector mediated transduction either singly or on combination. Transformed chondrocytes proliferated stably over multiple passages, but resulted in significantly lower e...
Boyd EH, Allen WE.Plasma drug concentrations were measured after two commercially available potentiated sulphonamides, trimethoprim and sulfadoxine and trimethoprim and sulphadiazine, were infused daily for 2 and 3 days, respectively, into the uteri of pony mares which had been mated before ovulation. Intravenous administration of trimethoprim and sulfadoxine allowed uterine absorption of trimethoprim (23-43%) and sulfadoxine (29-34%) to be calculated. After intra-uterine administration trimethoprim and sulphadiazine were detected in the milk of a lactating mare. In order to maintain plasma concentrations likel...
García-Rubio I, Fittipaldi M, Trandafir F, Van Doorslaer S.In this work, we show the extreme power of multifrequency HYSCORE (hyperfine sublevel correlation spectroscopy) techniques to unravel the hyperfine interactions of the electron spin with the remote nuclei in the heme site of high-spin ferric heme proteins. Horse heart aquo-metmyoglobin was used as a model system to demonstrate the power of these techniques. Experimental evidence was collected and assigned to protons of the proximal histidine ligand, to the mesoprotons of the heme ligand, and to two different protons of the distal water ligand. The latter difference relates to the stabilization...
Dash RF, Minshall GJ, Wright IM.Slab fractures of the third carpal bone (C3) are a common cause of lameness in Thoroughbred racehorses. Information on fracture morphology is commonly obtained from radiographs or CT. This retrospective, methods comparison aimed to explore the agreement between radiography and CT for imaging C3 slab fractures and discuss the contribution of the latter to clinical case management. Thoroughbred racehorses with a slab or incomplete slab fracture of C3 identified on radiographs that subsequently underwent CT examination were included. Fracture characteristics (location, plane, classification, disp...
Fultz LE, Peloso JG, Giguère S, Adams AR.To compare the outcome of horses with nephrosplenic entrapment of the large colon (NSELC) that were treated nonsurgically by IV administration of phenylephrine and exercise with that of horses treated by IV administration of phenylephrine and a rolling procedure under general anesthesia. Methods: Retrospective case series. Methods: 88 horses with NSELC. Methods: Horses examined between 2004 and 2010 because of acute abdominal pain that had NSELC on the basis of findings on abdominal palpation per rectum, abdominal ultrasonography, or both were included. Medical records were reviewed to obtain ...
Zeitler-Feicht MH.The guidelines of the Federal Ministry of User Protection, Nutrition and Agriculture (BMVEL) regarding "horse keeping with respect to animal welfare" are from 1995 (BMELF, 1995). Therefore, they are not suitable for modern horse keeping. The Veterinary Association for Animal Welfare (TVT) held it to be necessary to rework the guide-lines in light of 1) many subsequent investigations concerning horse keeping, and 2) the species-specific needs of horses in practice. Each chapter of the BMELF (1995) guide-lines was revised such that the literature and practical experiences were updated. Several c...
Ellerbrock RE, Curcio BR, Zhong L, Honoroto J, Wilkins P, Lima FS, Giguere S, Canisso IF.Enrofloxacin may be an alternative antimicrobial for unresponsive cases of severe bacterial infections in pregnant mares. As pregnancy may affect drug bioavailability, distribution, metabolism and excretion, dose adjustment might be necessary. Objective: To determine the disposition of orally and intravenously administered enrofloxacin in pregnant and non-pregnant mares. Methods: Randomised cross-over experiment. Methods: Six light-breed, healthy pregnant mares (260 days gestation) were given a single dose of either intravenous (5 mg/kg bwt) or oral compounded (7.5 mg/kg bwt) enrofloxacin, ...
Balkman CE, Nixon AJ.To clone and determine molecular structure of equine stromelysin 1 (matrix metalloproteinase 3) and examine stromelysin expression in articular cartilage. SAMPLES AND PROCEDURE: Total RNA was harvested from equine arthritic cartilage specimens and was used for reverse transcription and polymerase chain reaction amplification to develop overlapping complementary DNA (cDNA) clones. Four cDNA sequences were ligated into plasmid (pGEM3Z) constructs and subcloned into bacterial expression vectors, and sequence was determined by automated dye terminator sequencing. Stromelysin mRNA expression was as...
Roels K, Smits K, Ververs C, Govaere J, D'Herde K, Van Soom A.In horse breeding, intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) has gained interest to obtain offspring from subfertile individuals. This paper presents a case report of a stallion with severe testicular degeneration. Semen analysis showed very low motility and 83.5% of detached heads. Histology of a testicular biopsy showed severely decreased spermatogenesis, while transmission electron microscopy of the sperm cells revealed no significant abnormalities. A total of 39 oocytes were fertilized by ICSI with frozen-thawed spermatozoa of this stallion: 25 oocytes with intact spermatozoa and 24 with det...
Linklater WL, Henderson KM, Cameron EZ, Stafford KJ, Minot EO.To investigate the utility of faecal oestrone sulphate (OS) concentrations for detecting pregnancy in mares during behavioural studies of feral horses, in which the collection and preservation of samples is not immediate. Methods: Oestrone sulphate concentrations were measured in fresh dung samples collected from 153 free-roaming Kaimanawa mares throughout the year. In addition, multiple samples were taken from the same pile to investigate the reliability of diagnosis from a single sample, as well as the influence of time until preservation on OS concentrations. Samples were also taken before ...
Traversa D.The recognition that the health and welfare of some humans are improved through contact and relationships with animals is now established. Two commonly recognized assistance animals are dogs and horses. Both provide therapeutic benefits to humans with some physical and mental illnesses and both assist people with disabilities. Moreover, the public and scientific attention to the health and conservation of many animal breeds is also increasing worldwide. In the past few years, two potentially life-threatening nematode infections that can induce tumours or tumour-like masses in canids and equids...
Greene SK.The reintroduction and development of safe motorized instruments, the increased availability of continuing education, and the understanding and implementation of appropriate procedures allow practitioners to provide better dental care. Veterinarians realize that sedation, analgesia, a full-mouth speculum, and proper instrumentation are necessary to provide these services. Continued instrument design, future research, and new treatment and prophylactic protocols should have a positive impact on the future of equine dental health. New and rediscovered procedures for equilibrating equine occlusio...
Wilkins PA.Rapid evaluation and intervention is a requirement and a characteristic of patient management in neonatal intensive care units, and this applies for equine neonates also. Appropriate interventions are based on solid knowledge of age, maturity, and species-specific differences in reference ranges. Point-of-care (POC) testing devices speedup decision making regarding treatments and interventions. However, there are potential limitations of these devices when applied to age groups and species beyond those they were specifically developed for. This article discusses the age-specific differences in...
Trope GD, Steel CM, Bowers JR, Bradbury LA, Hodge PJ, Maggs DJ.2 horses were examined because of vascular masses involving the lower eyelid. Results: Both horses had a unilateral, fluctuant mass involving the lower eyelid. For horse 1, the mass had been present since birth and had slowly increased in size over time. The mass also changed in size in response to various environmental stimuli, alterations in the position of the horse's head, and digital obstruction of superficial vessels adjacent to the mass. Horse 2 was brought to the hospital for euthanasia, and no historical or antemor-tem data were available. A combination of contrast angiography, Dopple...
Durando MM, Corley KT, Boston RC, Birks EK.To compare cardiac output (CO) obtained by the lithium dilution method (LiDCO) with CO calculated from the Fick principle (FickCO), in horses maximally exercising on a high-speed treadmill. Methods: 13 Thoroughbreds. Methods: In part 1 of the study, 5 horses performed a warm-up (walk, trot, and canter) and exercise test (walk, trot, canter, and gallop [90% to 100% maximum oxygen consumption [{VO(2)max}]) with measurements of LiDCO and FickCO obtained simultaneously after 60 seconds at each exercise level, for a total of 7 measurements. In part 2 of the study, 8 horses performed a warm-up (walk...
Nardi S, Nuti M, Nocera I, Sgorbini M, Marmorini P, Barsotti G.This study assesses lacrimal secretion in healthy foals within 48 hours after birth and evaluates their variations in lacrimal secretion and menace response appearance during the first month of life. A total of 31 Standardbred foals were evaluated. Foals were housed with their dams in 4 × 4 m boxes throughout the study. A complete ophthalmic examination was performed for each animal enrolled in the study, including the foals' dams which were used as a control group to compare the lacrimal secretion of foals at birth with that of adult horses. In foals, the Schirmer Tear Test I (STT I) and m...
Holowka DA, Cathou RE.IgM antibodies specific for the fluorophore epsiolon-1-dimethylamino-5-naphthalenesulfonyl-L-lysine(DNS-lysine) were elicited in the horse and nurse shark by immunization with a DNS-lysine streptococcal conjugate; the antibodies were purified by specific adsorption with an immunoadsorbent followed by gel filtration to select the IgM class (molecular weight 900 000). About 90% of the equine anti-DNS was IgM.DNS-Lysine, when bound in the combining sites of a population of these anti-DNS IgM antigodies from horse and nurse shark, as well as from pig, exhibited a marked fluorescence enhancement an...
Alvarenga MA, McCue PM, Bruemmer J, Neves Neto JR, Squire EL.Equine pituitary extract (EPE), has been reported to induce multiple ovulation in mares, however ovulation rates are poor in comparison to those obtained in other species. Attempts to improve the effectiveness of EPE for induction of superovulation in cyclic mares has focused on daily frequency of EPE treatment. Two experiments were performed to compare the ovarian response of cyclic mares given EPE once or twice-daily. Mares were assigned to one of two treatment groups 6 to 8 days after ovulation: prostaglandin was given once and EPE (25 mg) was given once daily (Group 1) or twice daily (Grou...
Merlin A, Schneider J, Cazeau G, Sala C, Linster M, Foucher N, Ferry B, Delerue M, Amat JP, Tapprest J.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...
Cahill CM, Van der Kolk H, Goode JA, Hayden TJ.Highly purified and well-characterised preparations of equine prolactin and growth hormone from equine pituitary glands were employed to set up highly sensitive and specific homologous radioimmunoassays (RIA) for the measurement of hormone in horse plasma. The limit of sensitivity of the GH RIA was 1.2 ng/ml with mean intra- and inter-assay coefficients of variation (CV) of 6.6 and 10%, respectively. The sensitivity of the equine prolactin (ePRL) RIA was 0.5 ng/ml with mean intra and inter-assay CV of 9.1 and 15.6%, respectively. Dose-response curves of a crude pituitary gland extract and plas...
Metcalfe A, Craig LE.This retrospective study describes 8 cases of intestinal hemangioma diagnosed in horses during postmortem examination or surgical biopsy at the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine. In all cases, the intestine was the sole organ affected, and lesions were focal (3/8) or multifocal (5/8). Nodules were most commonly within the small intestine (7/8), particularly the jejunum (5/7). One case was in the left dorsal colon, which is the first report of hemangioma in the large colon of a horse. Lesions were discrete, raised, smooth, black to red, and ranged from 2 to 15 mm in diamete...
Campos-Junior PH, Costa GM, de Avelar GF, Segatelli TM, Lacerda SM, Aponte PM, de França LR.Morphometry is a classical quantitative method often used in biology to provide a data basis for functional interpretations/interactions of a particular organ or system. Herein we took advantage of this valuable approach to evaluate the spermatogonial stem cell niche using the horse testis and immunocytochemical localization of GFRA1 [glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor receptor produced by Sertoli cells)] as an example. Using the NIH ImageJ free software, we describe in detail all the necessary steps to investigate this specific and crucial microenvironment. Based on several recently ...
Johnson AL, Becker SE, Roma ML.Standard bred mares that were cycling normally were treated beginning on Days 9 or 10 of the oestrous cycle with repeated pulses of GnRH (20 micrograms/h) and/or a single injection of prostaglandin (PG)F-2 alpha (alfaprostol, 3 mg), and were subsequently bled and palpated daily until the next ovulation. GnRH treatment increased serum concentrations of LH and progesterone at 4 days after the start of treatment compared to controls. The combination of PGF-2 alpha + GnRH treatment resulted in an immediate decline in serum progesterone values, and subsequently decreased the interval to next ovulat...
Earley ET, Galloway SS.Dental repulsion techniques reported in the past decades have a high incidence of complications. Although the practice of surgical extractions in horses is limited because of the training, instrumentation, and experience required to perform these techniques, veterinarians should be aware these procedures are available, general anesthesia is not required, and when performed by skilled veterinary dentists they have low complication rates. Surgical techniques are often used after failure of other extraction techniques to remove retained tooth root and fragments or to debride chronically contamina...
Haupt JL, McAndrews AG, Chaney KP, Labbe KA, Holcombe SJ.It has been suggested that the rate of post operative abdominal adhesions in miniature horses is higher than that for other breeds. However, few reports exist in the veterinary literature describing complications and long-term survival following surgical treatment of colic in these horses. Objective: To determine the prevalence of surgical lesions in miniature horses with acute abdominal disease in terms of clinical signs, surgical management, post operative treatment and complications, as well as short- and long-term survival. Methods: Medical records of 57 American Miniature Horses undergoin...
Wong AS, Ho EN, Wan TS.Myo-inositol trispyrophosphate (ITPP) is a new drug capable of increasing the amount of oxygen in hypoxic tissues. Studies have shown that administration of ITPP increases the maximal exercise capacity in normal mice as well as mice with severe heart failure. The properties of ITPP make it an ideal candidate as a doping agent to enhance performance in racehorses. While there have been speculations in the horseracing industry that the covert use of ITPP is already widespread, no reported method exists for the detection of ITPP in equine biological samples. ITPP is a difficult-to-detect drug due...
Krueger K, Esch L, Byrne R.Debate persists over whether animals develop innovative solutions primarily in response to needs or conversely whether they innovate more when basic needs are covered and opportunity to develop novel behaviour is offered. We sourced 746 cases of "unusual" behaviour in equids by contacting equid owners and caretakers directly and via a website (https://innovative-behaviour.org), and by searching the internet platforms YouTube and Facebook for videos. The study investigated whether differences in need or opportunity for innovation were reflected in the numbers of different types of innovations a...
