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.
Adams SB, Fessler JF, Rebar AH.Cytologic examination of serial peritoneal fluid samples of nine experimental ponies was performed during a 72 hour period following laparotomy. Six of the ponies had jejunal infarction induced by occlusion of the corresponding vasculature. Cytologic examination was also performed on the peritoneal fluid of a series of horses with naturally occurring abdominal crises presented to the Large Animal Clinic. A rapid staining technique allowed evaluation of smears within 5 minutes of obtaining the fluid. Alterations in peritoneal fluid of the experimental and clinical cases reflected an acute infla...
Akinboade OA, Awani O, Best O, Cole T.Summary Twelve (12) heavy horses of the Shire breed imported into Nigeria in 1974 died within two months after importation. This was because of inclement weather and non-availability of AHS vaccine.
Stick JA, Boles C.Three foals with chronic cough, bilateral nasal discharge, and pneumonia were found to have a subepiglottic cyst as the inciting cause. Consistent findings were dysphagia and aspiration pneumonia, in addition to the abnormal respiratory noise usually found in the adult horse with a subepiglottic cyst. Histologic examination of the cysts suggested their origin was traumatic rather than embryonic.
Franken P, van Beukelen P, Blok G.Two horses became ill, and one died, after being fed onions, presumably over a long period. Their intake of grass was low at the time of illness because the pasture was covered with snow. Examination of blood and urine revealed signs of severe haemolytic anaemia.
Greet TR, Jeffcott LB, Whitwell KE, Cook WR.The paper describes the assessment and practical implications of a laryngeal adductory reflex in a series of 30 ataxic and 64 non-ataxic horses. The reflex was evoked by slapping the saddle region just caudal to the withers. In normal horses this produced a flickering adductory movement of the contralateral arytenoid cartilage which was observed endoscopically. Abolition of the laryngeal response was encountered in in 3 situations:--(1) Disruption of the afferent impulse occurred in those horses in which there was significant spinal cord pathology affecting the pathway from the cranial thoraci...
Jeffcott LB, Dalin G.The functional anatomy of the thoracolumbar (TL) spine is considered in relation to the horse's ability to perform at speed and to jump. The morphological features quite clearly show the relative inflexibility of the equine back and this was confirmed by some experimental studies. Fresh post mortem specimens from 5 Thoroughbreds were used to estimate the limits of dorsoventral movement of the TL spine from mid-thoracic to the cranial lumbar (T10-L2). The individual spinous processes could be moved a mean 1.1-6.0 mm on maximum ventroflexion and 0.8-3.8 mm on dorsiflexion. The overall flexibilit...
Allen WR, Urwin V, Simpson DJ, Greenwood RE, Crowhurst RC, Ellis DR, Ricketts SW, Hunt MD, Digby NJ.Daily oral administration of 30 mg allyl trenbolone (Regumate) for 10 to 15 days to 61 barren, maiden and lactating Thoroughbred mares which were exhibiting either deep anoestrus, shallow anoestrus, prolonged spring oestrus or lactation anoestrus, resulted in 54 mares (88 per cent) showing oestrous behaviour within 8 days, and 51 mares (84 per cent) ovulating within 18 days, after the last dose of compound. Response rate was lowest in mares in deep anoestrus. Of the 38 Regumate-treated mares which were covered during the induced oestrus, 21 (55 per cent) conceived. The practical value of this ...
Reuter G, Pfeil R, Kamerling JP, Vliegenthart JF, Schauer R.The novel sialic acid 4-O-acetyl-9-O-lactyl-N-acetylneuraminic acid has been identified as a constituent of horse submandibular gland glycoproteins in addition to the already known equine sialic acids, N-acetylneuraminic acid, 4-O-acetyl-N-acetylneuraminic acid, 9-O-acetyl-N-acetylneuraminic acid, 4,9-di-O-acetyl-N-acetylneuraminic acid, N-glycolylneuraminic acid, 4-O-acetyl-N-glycolylneuraminic acid and 9-O-acetyl-N-glycolylneuraminic acid. The structure has been established by combined gas-liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry.
Perryman LE, McGuire TC.Between January 1973 and September 1979, 2,092 horses and ponies were evaluated for immunologic disorders. A total of 418 abnormalities were detected in 416 (20%) of the animals tested. Disorders encountered were failure or partial failure of colostral immunoglobulin transfer from mare to foal (228 cases), combined immunodeficiency (159 cases), selective immunoglobulin M deficiency (19 cases), agammaglobulinemia (3 cases), transient hypogammaglobulinemia (2 cases), and lymphosarcoma (7 cases). Four conclusions were drawn from the study. (1) Immunologic abnormalities occur commonly in horses an...
Gerring EL, Thomsett LR.It is reported that in Australia, the finding of Psoroptes cuniculi (Delafond) (including its synonym P. hippotis Raill. & Henry) in the ears of head-shaking horses is relatively common among thoroughbred racing horses in southern Queensland. A survey of the ears of horses undergoing theatre surgery showed that about 20% of the horses were infested.
Steffey EP, Farver T, Zinkl J, Wheat JD, Meagher DM, Brown MP.Quantitative changes in hematologic and serum biochemical values associated with prolonged general anesthesia produced by known alveolar doses of halothane in oxygen were determined in six young, healthy horses under laboratory conditions. In addition, 25 young equine patients anesthetized for shorter periods under clinical conditions were similarly (except hematologic values) prospectively evaluated. In normal horses, muscle- and hepatic-derived serum biochemical values were mildly increased immediately after anesthesia. Values after anesthesia remained at greater than base-line values for up...
Gay CC, Lording PM.Actinobacillus equuli was the cause of peritonitis in 5 horses. In 3 the onset was sudden with intestinal stasis and acute abdominal pain as predominant findings. Two others presented with chronic disease and weight loss. Characteristically the peritoneal fluid had a high nucleated cell count with non-degenerate neutrophils as the predominant cell type. Four horses were treated and recovered.
Smyth GB, Brown RG, Juzwiak JS, Swaim SF, Vaughan JT.A vascularized full-thickness Estlander flap was used to repair a defect involving approximately 40% of the left lower lip of a colt. Postoperative problems were (1) providing nutritional support, (2) minimizing movement at the surgical site, and (3) partial wound dehiscence resulting in a salivary fistula. The surgical site healed well and the colt was left with a fully functional and cosmetic lower lip.
Rankin DC, Greene SA, Keegan RD, Weil AB, Schneider RK, Bayly WM.To evaluate effects of strenuous exercise in adult horses immediately before anesthesia and to determine whether prior exercise affects anesthesia induction, recovery, or both. Methods: 6 healthy Thoroughbreds in good condition and trained to run on a treadmill, each horse serving as its own control. Methods: Horses ran on a treadmill until fatigued, then were sedated immediately with detomidine hydrochloride and anesthetized with a zolazepam hydrochloride-tiletamine combination. Anesthesia was maintained with isoflurane in oxygen for another 90 minutes. Blood samples were taken before, during...
Simon F, Laczay P, Móra Z, Lehel J.The target animal safety of a dexamethasone-prednisolone combination was studied on 12 horses divided into two groups of six each. One group of horses received the therapeutic dose of the combination (25 mg/animal dexamethasone pivalate and 75 mg/animal prednisolone) and the second group was given the threefold dose of it. The preparation was administered intravenously for 2 consecutive days. For assessment of safety a wide range of clinical, haematological, biochemical and urine variables were tested as laid down in the guidelines of the FDA. All horses treated by the therapeutic or the three...
Martens J, Rosenbruch M.The paper presents the case-history of a 5-year-old pony suffering from an adenocarcinoma which proceeded from the pars intermedia of the pituitary gland. Neurological and patho-morphological findings are reported.
Gomaa N, Elemiri M, Hegazy Y, Zeineldin M, Nassif M, Alcala-Canto Y, Barbabosa-Pliego A, Rivas-Caceres RR, Abdelmegeid M.A retrospective cohort study was conducted on two Egyptian horse farms with most of horses were suffered from abdominal pain to describe the associations between the occurrence of mycotoxicosis and equine colic. The farms owner complain was an unexpected increase in number of colic cases and deaths among horses. The association between colic and risk factors (sex, type of food either dry or mixed with roughages and hematobiochemical parameters) was compared using independent sample T-test. The associations between possible prognostic indicators for colic caused by mycotoxicosis was estimated u...
Weaver MP, Jeffcott LB, Nowak M.Radiology and, more recently, scintigraphy are important ancillary diagnostic aids in the diagnosis of a horse with suspected back pain. Although the image quality is restricted by the size of the patient, radiographs have been used for several decades. With the introduction of modern fast-screen film systems, the quality of the images has greatly improved. These imaging techniques allow assessment of the anatomy and physiology of structures in the spine that are difficult or impossible to palpate. This article reviews the techniques and limitations of imaging the equine back, in addition to c...