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.
DOLL ER, WALLACE E, RICHARDS MG.Manninger and Csontos reported that mares inoculated with equine abortion virus developed a transient fever 2 to 4 days after pharyngeal or intravenous inoculation and that an uninoculated horse in contact with the experimentally inoculated mares contracted a febrile disease resembling equine influenza. Also, mares that had aborted virus-infected fetuses were resistant to inoculation with equine influenza virus. From these observations, they proposed that virus abortions were a manifestation of infection of pregnant mares by the equine influenza virus. In reports on equine virus abortions, Kre...
CRAWFORD M.This disease has a very long history, with the earliest written description by Vegetius in the fourth century A.D. It has many names, such as periodic ophthalmia, recurrent ophthalmia, iridocyclitis, uveitis, moon-blindness, etc. Periodic ophthalmia is perhaps the name more generally used, but I prefer to use recurrent iridocyclitis because (a) there is no definite fixed period between the recurrent attacks and (b) because the essential lesion is iridocyclitis.
McElligott EM, Sommardahl CS, Cox SK.OBJECTIVE To determine the pharmacokinetics of chloramphenicol base after PO administration at a dose of SO mg/kg (22.7 mg/lb) in adult horses from which food was not withheld. DESIGN Prospective crossover study. ANIMALS 5 adult mares. PROCEDURES Chloramphenicol base (SO mg/kg) was administered PO to each horse, and blood samples were collected prior to administration (0 minutes) and at 5, 10, 15, and 30 minutes and 1, 2, 4, 8, and 12 hours thereafter. Following a washout period, chloramphenicol sodium succinate (25 mg/kg [11.4 mg/lb]) was administered IV to each horse, and blood samples were ...
Young DB, Ewing PJ, Burrows GE, Lessley BA, Clarke CR, Shawley RV.Phenylbutazone given during the perisurgical period has been reported to increase the intensity and duration of thiamylal anaesthesia in horses. A possible mechanism of competitive plasma protein binding has been suggested. The purpose of the present study was to experimentally reproduce the phenomenon of increased intensity and/or duration of thiamylal anaesthesia and to determine if there is competitive displacement of plasma protein bound thiamylal by phenylbutazone. Six ponies each received one of three treatments, 11 mg/kg intravenous (i.v.) thiamylal; 8.8 mg/kg i.v. phenylbutazone; and 1...
Jahn P, Dobešová D, Brumarová R, Tóthová K, Kopecká A, Friedecký D.Equine atypical myopathy (AM also referred to as multiple acyl-CoA dehydrogenases deficiency [MADD]) is thought to be caused by toxins metabolized from hypoglycin A (HGA) and méthylènecyclopropylglycine (MCPrG). HGA is contained in the seeds and seedlings of the sycamore tree (Acer pseudoplatanus); MCPrG has so far only been confirmed in seeds. Among other things, these substances can disrupt the fatty acids β-oxidation pathway with the subsequent accumulation of certain acylcarnitines. The tentative diagnosis is based on anamnesis and clinical signs and can be verified by the detection of ...
Voge J, Varner DD, Blanchard TL, Meschini M, Turner C, Teague SR, Brinsko SP, Love CC.Urine-contaminated stallion semen is a clinical problem due to a variety of causes. The effect of the level of urine contamination on the longevity of sperm quality has not been evaluated. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of urine concentration level (0%, 10%, 20%, 30%, and 40%) and cushioned centrifugation and resuspension of the sperm pellet in fresh extender, on measures of sperm quality, immediately after semen collection (T0), after 1 hour of storage at room temperature (T1), and after 24 hours of cooled storage (T24). In general, most sperm quality measures declined w...
Maśko M, Lewczuk D, Szarska E, Domino M.A horse learning about the entrance to narrow, cage-shaped places may be challenging both for the horses as well as for the owners. For some behaviors, such as loading into a trailer or climbing onto a treadmill, the final behavioral goal can be achieved by working towards it in stages. This study compared the successive approximation of horses to their first work on a treadmill with horses hardly ever loaded (HE L) and regularly loaded (R L) into a trailer. Fourteen horses were divided into two groups (HE L n = 7 and R L n = 7) based on their experiences of entering into a trailer. Al...
Ousey JC, McArthur AJ, Rossdale PD.Metabolic rate, rectal temperature Tr and respiratory quotient (RQ) were determined in 16 sick foals, aged 0-182 h. The foals were categorized into three groups: premature, dysmature or those suffering from neonatal maladjustment syndrome. The mean metabolic rate of the premature foals was 71 watts per unit area of body surface (W m(-2)), significantly lower than that of the other two groups. The overall mean metabolic rate for the sick foals was 82 W m(-2), about 25% below that of healthy foals of similar age. Air temperature (Ta) was 9.5-26.3 degrees C, and several foals shivered despite the...
Hanson RR, Brawner WR, Blaik MA, Hammad TA, Kincaid SA, Pugh DG.Fourteen horses with a progressive forelimb lameness of 3 to 12 months' duration, diagnosed as navicular syndrome, were selected from clinical cases admitted to Auburn University Equine Hospital for evaluation of the efficacy of an orally administered nutraceutical (Cosequin, Nutramax Laboratories, Inc., Edgewood, MD) for ameliorating clinical signs associated with naturally occurring navicular syndrome. Horses were randomly allocated to treatment with the nutraceutical or a placebo. Treatment was five scoops (16.5 g) of powder twice daily in the feed. The test group (n = 8) received a patente...
Katila T.In this review, effects of the composition of the inseminate on uterine response and pregnancy rates in mares are discussed. The inseminate can differ for volume, sperm concentration, total sperm numbers, presence, absence, or proportion of seminal plasma, and extender composition. Semen can be used as fresh, cooled, or frozen. The site of semen deposition also plays a role; semen is deposited either into the uterine body (standard artificial insemination (AI)) or into the tip of the uterine horn ipsilateral to the preovulatory follicle (deep AI) using the hysterocopical or transrectally guide...
McDonnell AM, Watson ED.Four pony mares were used in a cross-over study to investigate the effect of different treatments on experimentally-induced endometritis. The mares were treated with progesterone to facilitate establishment of uterine infections. They received an intrauterine infusion of Streptococcus zooepidemicus 5 days after the start of progesterone therapy. Five days later, they were treated by intrauterine infusions of 2 g ampicillin in 50 ml sterile water or by sterile water without antibiotic for 3 consecutive days. Prior to infusion of Strep. zooepidemicus, no bacteria were cultured from the uteri of ...
Ellis JS, Mama KR, Rao S, Sadler RA, Marinkovich M, Clancy MM, Howard LL, Lamberski N, Kinney ME.Przewalski's horses () are an endangered equid species. Anesthesia administered by remote delivery is often needed to provide medical care. Behavioral and physiologic parameters were prospectively compared in 14 horses (8 females and 6 males, 3-18 yr) after a single-dart or staged two-dart anesthesia induction protocol with intramuscular medetomidine (0.06 mg/kg), butorphanol (0.05 mg/kg), thiafentanil (0.02 mg/kg), and ketamine (1 mg/kg). Seven horses were randomly assigned to receive all drugs in a single dart, and the other seven to receive medetomidine and butorphanol 10 min prior to thiaf...
Rich AF, Ricci E, Gates S, Hinnigan GJ, Owen KR.A 20-year-old British Warmblood gelding was presented for a progressively worsening right forelimb lameness which developed following an intense dressage training session. Initial ultrasound examination revealed a triangular, intrathecal, hypoechoic region within the superficial digital flexor tendon (SDFT) in the proximal, palmar carpal region distal to the accessory carpal bone (ACB), extending 7cm distally into the proximal metacarpal region. No significant improvement in clinical presentation was observed following an eight-week rehabilitation programme. Repeat ultrasound examination revea...
Davies HM.In Thoroughbred racehorses, the dorsal cortex (DC) of the third metacarpal bone (MC3) enlarges when horses are first exposed to fast exercise speeds. It is now possible to measure ultrasound speed through 3 to 5 mm depths of bone around the bone shaft using Sunlight Medical's 'Omnisense' machine. The aim of this experiment was to determine whether the ultrasound speed measured in the surface 3-5 mm of the midshaft dorsal cortex of MC3 could be related directly to the midshaft shape and size of the MC3s of young Thoroughbred racehorses at the same stage of training. Sixteen 2-year-old and sixte...
Exner G, Engelmann A, Lange K, Wenck B.A total of 67 patients, both paraplegic and quadriplegic, had participated in a hippotherapy programme over a study period of almost 18 months, with positive effects found relative to spasticity, certain pain syndromes, as well as contraction syndromes associated with impaired joint mobility. Frequently the only effective measure at all, and moreover of astonishingly lasting effect, the spasticity-reducing treatment turned out especially beneficial. Along with these statistically supported findings, a number of associated effects were noted in the physiotherapy and, especially, the nursing sec...
Boyle AG, Higgins JC, Durando MM, Galuppo LD, Werner JA, Decock HE.A 22-year-old female Welsh-cross pony was evaluated because of intermittent colic, signs of depression, pyrexia, anorexia, muscle wasting with abdominal distention, and weight gain over the preceding 12 months. A large abdominal mass was detected and surgically removed; the hemodynamic alterations and complications caused by the dramatic fluid losses and shifts that can occur in association with removal of a large abdominal mass required extensive postoperative management. Monitoring of clinical and hematologic variables such as attitude, heart rate, mucous membrane color, mean arterial blood ...
Gardner AK, Santschi EM, Mudge MC, Belknap JK, Metzler AG.To describe the repair of unstable facial fractures by using Foley catheter balloons as intrasinus bolsters. Methods: Case report ANIMALS: Two weanling foals with unilateral fractures of the sinus and orbit secondary to kick injuries. Preoperative imaging that included positive contrast dacrocystorhinography and computed tomography confirmed severe comminution of facial fractures and nasolacrimal duct disruption in both foals. Methods: Small bone fragments were surgically removed, and large fragments were retained even when denuded of periosteum. Repair procedures included nasolacrimal canalic...
Ramos ICDN, Ramos RADN, Lima VFS, Giannelli A, López IYT, Alves LC.The FLOTAC technique represents a highly sensitive method for the isolation of oocysts, eggs, and larvae of parasites in faeces. This assay could be used for detecting free-living stages of nematodes in the pasture but no attempt has been assessed so far. Therefore, the performance of FLOTAC technique for isolating infective larvae of nematodes in the environment was investigated and compared with the spontaneous sedimentation (SST) and centrifugal sedimentation (CST) techniques. The study was conducted in a horse farm located in northeastern Brazil, where the occurrence of strongyle larvae ha...
Turner CM, Reiswig J, Manfredi JM.Periodontal disease has been identified in horses and donkeys through the millennia at a prevalence of up to 75% and is a leading cause of tooth loss in horses. We hypothesize that there is a correlation between tooth elongations and periodontal disease. Dental records of all client owned horses examined by a single AVDC/equine board certified practitioner in 2016-2018 were analyzed. Inclusion criteria consisted of the examination finding of tooth elongation of one of the following teeth pairs 106/107, 206/207, 310/311, or 410-411. The included cases were then examined for the finding of perio...
Stumpf G, Fietz D, Ezer J, Litzke LF, Bergmann M.Surgically removed testicular tissue in cryptorchid stallions is sometimes difficult to identify because of morphological and histological malformation. Therefore, a sure method to characterise the removed tissue is required. A 2-year-old Haflinger stallion was castrated after diagnosis of cryptorchidism to remove the left intra-abdomnial testis. Intra-operative exploration of the abdominal cavity revealed a firm, dysmorphic structure, which could not be identified as testis based on macroscopic anatomy. The removed tissue was Bouin-fixed and paraffin-embedded for histological examination. We ...
Aouane N, Nasri A, Bekara MAA, Metref AK, Kaidi R.The Barb horse occupies a prominent place in the history, culture, and equestrian traditions of the Maghreb (Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia). Although many studies on the breed standard and morphometry have been published, there are no studies on its fertility and reproductive potential. Thus, this work aimed to study the fertility of Barb, Arabian Purebred, and Thoroughbred horses in Algeria. Methods: A total of 168 stallions and 1202 mares at the Chaouchaoua Stud farm in Tiaret, Algeria, were included in the study. The reproductive performance during 1592 cycles over 10 consecutive mating sea...
Bouters R, Vandeplassche M, De Moor A.The clinical, pathological and chromosomal findings in a male pseudohermaphrodite horse are reported. This animal appeared to be a female but showed strong male sexual behaviour. A small penis emerged from a rudimentary vagina. Two small testes were present in the abdomen and undifferentiated seminiferous tubules contained only supporting cells. No uterus was found. Culture of peripheral blood leucocytes revealed a 64XX/65XXY mosaicism.
Ueno Y, Uemura R, Niwa H, Higuchi T, Sekiguchi S, Sasaki Y, Sueyoshi M.Equine proliferative enteropathy (EPE) caused by Lawsonia intracellularis is characterized by hypoproteinemia. There are currently no reliable reports that provide a reference value for the total serum protein (TP) concentration to clinically diagnose EPE. The objective of this study was to statistically determine the reference value. Feces and sera of 99 foals with EPE-like clinical signs and of 35 healthy foals were obtained. The samples were used for specific-gene detection of L. intracellularis, TP measurement, and specific-antibody detection against L. intracellularis. Based on these resu...
Stephen JO, Corley KT, Johnston JK, Pfeiffer D.To evaluate the historical data, signalment, clinical signs, results of laboratory analyses, treatment, and outcome of horses with small intestinal (SI) volvulus. Methods: Retrospective study. Methods: One hundred and fifteen client-owned horses, aged 1 month to 21 years. Methods: Clinical signs, laboratory data, surgical or necropsy findings, and outcome for horses with SI volvulus were obtained from medical records, identified by computer search and manual review. Results: There was no statistical difference in signalment between cases and the hospital population. Seventy-four percent of hor...
Heath TJ.To give an account of the views held by Australian veterinarians who work with horses on the future of their professional field. Methods: Questionnaires were mailed to 866 veterinarians who had been identified as working with horses, and 87% were completed and returned. Data were entered onto an Excel spreadsheet, and analysed using the SAS System for Windows. Results: Their future prospects were believed to be very good or excellent by >60% of equine veterinarians but by only 30% of mixed practitioners seeing < 10% horses. The main factors believed likely to affect these prospects were ...
Acone F, Botti M, Gazza F, Sanna M, Cappai MG, Bo Minelli L.The sensitive and autonomic innervation of the prostate was studied in some mammals (rat, rabbit, horse, donkey and bull) using gold chloride impregnation. In all the species considered the gland was supplied with conspicuous innervation located in the thickness of the capsule and in trabeculae. The autonomic innervation was constituted by ganglion cells of different sizes (small, medium and large), isolated or in groups of large ganglia also, always located along the course of nerve bundles. The sensitive nervous component, placed more frequently in the most superficial layer of the capsule, ...
Simpson CM, Lumsden JM.A 2-year-old Thoroughbred gelding was evaluated for a grade 3 out of 5 unilateral hind limb lameness. Flexion of the right hock and stifle joints (spavin test) exacerbated the lameness. Response to intra-articular and perineural anaesthesia isolated the source of lameness to the tarsocrural area, despite an absence of tarsocrural joint effusion. Routine radiographic examination of the hock did not reveal any significant abnormalities. Skeletal nuclear scintigraphic evaluation revealed a focal region of increased bone activity in the proximal medial trochlear ridge of the talus. Flexed laterome...
Klein LV, Wilson DV.A mare with a thoracic laceration was anesthetized with halothane-O2 for surgical repair. Shortly after initiation of controlled ventilation, inspiratory plateau pressure began to increase. The increase in pressure continued despite decreasing the tidal volume. Tension pneumothorax was suspected, but because arterial PCO2 and PO2 were normal, the anesthetic apparatus was examined. Excess gas continued to exit through the bellows pop-off valve even when the fresh gas flow was turned off. It was determined that driving gas from the ventilator was entering the breathing circuit through a hole in ...
Pratt SM, Christian JA, Paige Jackson L, Hawkins JF, Sojka JE.A 16-year-old castrated male Arabian horse was presented to the Purdue University Veterinary Teaching Hospital with a 4-hour history of colic. Initial examinations provided strong evidence for small intestinal obstruction. Abdominal surgery revealed a strangulating lipoma, and 25 feet of small intestine were resected. Postoperatively, the horse developed obstructive ileus due to adhesion formation, which required a second laparotomy. During and after surgery, the abdomen was lavaged with sodium carboxymethylcellulose (CMC). One week after the second surgery, evaluation of peritoneal fluid reve...
Cota LO, Júnior OS, Oliveira APL, Paz CFR, Maróstica TP, Duarte PC, Leme FOP, Faleiros RR.Systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) is a common condition in horses with gastrointestinal disorders. If not prevented or controlled, SIRS promotes multiple organ dysfunctions that may culminate in serious disabilities or even death. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of Lithothamnion supplementation on systemic inflammatory response and organ function variables in horses undergoing oligofructose overload (OFO) intake. Twelve healthy horses were randomly divided into control and treated groups. The treated group received Lithothamnion (100 mg/kg bw PO BID) for 7 ...
Scarth JP, Clarke AD, Teale P, Pearce CM.Effective detection of the abuse of androgenic-anabolic steroids in human and animal sports often requires knowledge of the drug's metabolism in order to target appropriate urinary metabolites. 'Designer' steroids are problematic since it is difficult to obtain ethical approval for in vivo metabolism studies due to a lack of a toxicological profile. In this study, the in vitro metabolism of estra-4,9-diene-3,17-dione is reported for the first time. This is also the first study comparing the metabolism of a designer steroid in the three major species subject to sport's doping control; namely th...
Mulhern FJ.There is an increasing need for the veterinary profession to meet the new challenges brought about by increased and intensified livestock production. These challenges consist of control and eradication of diseases, the humane treatment of animals and the prevention of transmission of disease from animals or animal products to man. Examples are given of the contribution which regulatory medicine activities have made to the prevention/control/eradication of screw worm, foot-and-mouth disease, Venezuelan equine encephalomyelitis, Newcastle disease, bovine brucellosis, hog cholera, and certain oth...
