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PRODUCT AND EQUINE HEALTH CARE NEWS: Couple Donates $1 Million to UPenn Laminitis Research Fund
by: Edited Press Release
November 15 2007, Article # 10821
University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine has announced a gift of $1 million from philanthropists Marianne and John K. Castle to support its laminitis research.
"We are enormously grateful for the Castles' generosity. Their thoughtful philanthropy leverages two of the University's strengths--research and the translation of research into medicine for both animals and humans," said Penn President Amy Gutmann, PhD.
In speaking about the gift, John Castle said, "Marianne and I are thrilled to be able to support Dr. Orsini and the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine in their research. Our hope is that the knowledge acquired will be important in helping both animals and humankind."
There are big plans for the funds.
"The Castles' generosity will allow us take a significant step forward in creating a research institute dedicated to sharing and advancing the breadth of knowledge about this deadly condition," said Joan C. Hendricks, VMD, PhD, the Gilbert S. Kahn Dean of Veterinary Medicine.
When fully funded, the institute will include new research laboratories, funding for research projects at Penn Vet, and in collaboration with other institutions, a home-care treatment model, support for student research opportunities, and improved clinical facilities.
In addition to funding research in laminitis, the Castles' gift will support the institute directorship, which will be held by James Orsini, DVM, Dipl. ACVS, associate professor of surgery at Penn Vet's New Bolton Center campus. In 2001, Orsini founded the First International Conference on Laminitis and Diseases of the Foot, building on his many years of experience treating patients afflicted with this condition. The biennial conference is funded in large part by the Castles, in memory of their beloved horse Spot, who died from laminitis.
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Parasiticidal Resistance Reported in New Study by: Stacey Oke, DVM, MSc
June 19 2008, Article # 12105
Kentucky researchers report that roundworms and small strongyles, two common equine intestinal parasites, are developing resistance against most of the commercially available worming products. What's worse, no new drugs against either of these parasites are forthcoming on the market. "Since drug resistance by small strongyles and roundworms has been increasing since the late 1950s, the purpose of this study was to obtain field data regarding the efficacy of commercial wormers to obtain more information on the development of drug resistance," explained Eugene Lyons, PhD, from the University of Kentucky's Gluck Equine Research Center. Drug resistance by small strongyles and roundworms has been increasing since the late 1950s. Between June 1 and December 20, 2007, foals on five farms located in Central Kentucky were monitored in this field study. Efficacy of fenbendazole, oxibendazole, pyrantel pamoate, and ivermectin were evaluated by calculating the reduction in the number of foals with roundworm eggs or small strongyle eggs in their feces before versus after treatment. "Our results showed that there was a significant reduction in roundworm eggs after treatment with fenbendazole and oxibendazole, but not ivermectin or pyrantel pamoate," summarized Lyons. "In addition, only ivermectin reduced the number of small strongyle eggs--the remaining three drugs were ineffective." Lyons explained that while ivermectin still appears to be effective against small strongyles, research using worm count data in addition to egg count data needs to be done in order to evaluate why eggs of these parasites are returning more quickly than previously after treatment. "In this study, we calculated eggs counts only one to two weeks post-worming. This might have been too early and providing misleading information because other studies have suggested that small strongyle eggs counts are returning more quickly than they used to post-treatment," said Lyons. (See Study: Small Strongyles Developing Resistance to Ivermectin for more on this.) Parasite resistance to these drugs is a serious concern for horse owners, veterinarians, and the scientific community in general. The study, "Evaluation of parasiticidal activity of fenbendazole, ivermectin, oxibendazole, and pyrantel pamoate in horse foals with emphasis on ascarids (Parascaris equorum) in field studies on five farms in Central Kentucky in 2007," was published in the July 2008 edition of Parasitology Research. |
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FEVER TICKS SPREADING ACROSS TEXAS COULD HAVE EQUINE IMPACT Veterinarians from the Texas Animal Health Commission (TAHC) are worried because fever ticks (Boophilus microplus) capable of carrying and transmitting deadly cattle "tick fever" protozoans Babesia bigemina or Babesia bovis, have been detected on livestock or wildlife in 139 Texas pastures during the past 12 months. More than one million acres in Texas is under quarantine, according to a statement from the TAHC. Horse owners are worried because this tick species can also spread Babesia equi and B. caballi protozoal parasites that attack and destroy red blood cells in horses. The resulting disease is known as piroplasmosis. (There are Babesia parasites that affect horses, cattle, dogs, cats, mice, humans, and other mammals.) "In July 2007, the first preventive quarantine was established--39,325 acres in Starr County--to enable the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Tick Force and the TAHC to inspect and treat livestock moved from the area, get ahead of the fever tick, and push it back across the quarantine line," said Bob Hillman, DVM, Texas' state veterinarian and head of the TAHC, the state's livestock and poultry health regulatory agency, in the release. "Now, a year later, we have more than a million acres under preventive quarantines in Starr, Zapata, Jim Hogg, Maverick, Dimmit, and Webb Counties, in addition to the half-million acres in the permanent fever tick quarantine zone that runs alongside the Rio Grande, from Del Rio to Brownsville." The fever tick, which can survive winters from coast to coast and as far north as Washington, D.C., was successfully pushed back into Mexico in 1943, according to the TAHC. Periodic tick incursions since then have occurred in Texas, but only one, in the 1970s, eclipsed the current outbreak for the number of premises infested, and that outbreak took six years to eradicate."Historically, fever ticks preferred cattle, and sometimes hitched a ride on horses," the TAHC statement noted. "Now fever ticks are being detected not only on white-tailed deer and nilgai (an antelope species), but also on aoudad sheep, fallow, axis, and red deer, and elk. Fighting fever ticks on a variety of species--especially free-ranging animals that don't respect fences--makes this battle much more difficult," said Hillman. B. equi and B. caballi can be transmitted by adult and nymphal ticks of several genera, including Dermacentor, Hyalomma, Rhipicephalus, and Boophilus. Piroplasmosis Equine piroplasmosis is a tick-borne protozoal infection of horses (EPM, equine protozoal myeloencephalitis, is another disease caused by a protozoal parasite, Sarcocystis neurona, although it is transmitted differently). It can be difficult to diagnose piroplasmosis since the parasites cause a wide variety of clinical signs, including acute fever, lack of appetite, anemia, jaundice, chronic weight loss, poor exercise tolerance, and sudden death. The disease can be fatal in up to 20% of previously unexposed animals. The tick vectors exist in the United States, and cases of piroplasmosis were seen in Florida in the 1960s. It took until 1988 before piroplasmosis was eradicated from Florida, according to Peter Timoney, MVB, PhD, FRCVS, a researcher at the University of Kentucky's Gluck Equine Research Center. Recovered horses become chronic carriers without clinical signs. The only treatment is a potent type of chemotherapy that should eliminate clinical signs of disease; however, it won't necessarily eliminate the parasites from infected horses. Recent research at Washington State University found that administration of a specific drug can effectively clear B. caballi from infected horses. Piroplasmosis is found in nearly every country in the world except the United States, Canada, Australia, England, Ireland, Japan, and Iceland. It is estimated that only 10% of the world's horse population is naive (has not been exposed to or developed antibodies to one or both parasites). Therefore, it is crucial that the naïve U.S. horse population avoids exposure. Equine piroplasmosis can also be spread by contaminated needles and syringes. Piroplasmosis can infect a fetus in utero, particularly if it's caused by B. equi. After recovery, equids can become carriers for long periods of time, probably lifelong in many cases, said Timoney. Semen from chronically infected stallions that might show no outward signs of disease could potentially spread the parasites if semen is contaminated with infected blood. The incubation period for piroplasmosis varies between five and 21 days. Equine piroplasmosis is considered a foreign animal disease by the USDA and, therefore, should be reported immediately to state and federal authorities, noted Timoney. Texas' Financial Fight "Early this year, the fever tick program received $5.2 million of the $13 million of federal funds requested to fight the tick, and while appreciated and used, it is not enough to win this battle," said Hillman in the release. "It's really a 'pay now or pay later' scenario, because this tick won't be stopped with less than an all-out assault that requires adequate personnel, sufficient treatment products, and enough equipment, such as portable dipping vats or portable spray boxes for cattle, and treatment equipment for deer and other wildlife hosts," continued Hillman. "Texas has a ticking time bomb in south Texas. So far, we have had only two of the three elements for a 'tick fever' outbreak--fever ticks and fever tick hosts, including cattle, horses, and several species of wildlife. If, however, some of these fever ticks carry Babesia, a blood parasite deadly to cattle, the equation would be complete and we could see livestock death losses." "Fighting fever ticks may seem simple, but it's not easy … and it's never cheap," said Hillman. |
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Beat the Mosquitoes by Vaccinating Now for West Nile
One dose of PreveNile West Nile virus vaccine helps protect your horse Many parts of the country have experienced an exceptionally wet spring, creating earlier hatching and larger mosquito populations. The associated mosquito threat makes vaccination against West Nile virus (WNV) critical.
It's not too late to protect your horse against WNV. Ask for one-dose PreveNile vaccine from Intervet--one dose is all it takes to provide rapid immunity against WNV. PreveNile is the only one-dose WNV vaccine available for primary immunization. One-dose protection makes PreveNile the perfect choice for foals, horses with unknown vaccination history, and as a booster for horses previously vaccinated with other West Nile vaccines. Ask your veterinarian today about PreveNile--the proven, one-dose solution for WNV. For more information, visit www.PreveNile.com. |
HOW VETERINARIANS AND HORSE OWNERS CAN COMBAT THE AFTERMATH OF STRESS
You know the drill: you load your healthy horse into a trailer and head off to a show, a race, a breeding appointment, etc., and the next thing you know, your horse is sick.
That's because stress-inducing events may reactivate the equine herpesvirus Types 1 and 4 (EHV-1 and EHV-4), which the majority of horses can carry latently in their bodies. The result can be an upper respiratory tract illness, or worse. Not to mention lost competition time, expensive veterinary visits and the possibility of infecting other horses.
Your veterinarian has the answer: ZYLEXIS. Given in a series of three injections - two before and one after the stressful event - ZYLEXIS stimulates the horse's immune system, resulting in less nasal discharge, fewer respiratory symptoms and for fewer days.1
Now that's a load off you and your horse. See your veterinarian for more information.
1 Data on file, Study Report No. Equine 1-98, Pfizer Inc.
Zylexis is a trademark of Pfizer Inc.
© 2007 Pfizer Inc. All rights reserved.
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California Declares WNV Emergency in Three Counties
by: The Associated Press
August 03 2007
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency Thursday in three California counties hit hard by the mosquito-borne West Nile virus, which has killed four people this year and appears to be spreading at a rapid clip.
The emergency declaration applies to Kern, Colusa, and San Joaquin counties, and will provide up to $1.35 million to help combat the spread of the virus, Schwarzenegger said.
West Nile is transmitted to humans through mosquito bites, and so far this year has infected three times more people than it did in the same period in 2006, he said.
The disease's epicenter thus far is Kern County, which has logged two-thirds of the state's 56 human West Nile cases this year including an 85-year-old Shafter man and a 96-year-old Bakersfield woman from Bakersfield who died last month. Health officials announced the state's third and fourth fatalities this week: two elderly residents of San Joaquin and Colusa counties.
Schwarzenegger met with Kern County mosquito control officials Thursday.
"Last year it was down, this year it has increased again," Schwarzenegger said. "The important thing is that we all go all out and we work together, the counties and the state, in order to get the job done and get rid of the virus."
Health officials recommend people avoid infection by staying inside at dawn and dusk, when mosquitoes are most active; wearing clothes that keep mosquitoes away from the skin; draining areas where mosquitoes can breed; and using insecticide with the chemical DEET.
In Sacramento County, authorities said Monday that West Nile had reached an epidemic rate there and had to be combated with a mass aerial-spraying campaign--often considered a last resort. More than 55,000 acres of urban neighborhoods north of the American River were scheduled to be sprayed.
Health officials in San Jose said Thursday that a Santa Clara County resident had become infected, in their first local case this year.
In Kern County, the new funds won't be enough to educate the public in time for the disease's high season in August and September, said Sen. Dean Florez, D-Shafter.
The state needs to provide a more consistent budget for eradication efforts in winter months, hire more vector control officers and coordinate surveillance efforts with real estate agents, who can provide updated information about vacant properties where standing water could provide the insects with a fertile breeding ground, he said.
"Next season could be quite possibly worse than this year unless we get a new infusion of money," Florez said.
Schwarzenegger said he was directing state agencies to take proactive measures, and that more funds could be made available if needed.
Click here for more on WNV in horses.
To track equine WNV cases reported to the USDA's National Animal Health Surveillance System in 2007 see http://nsu.aphis.usda.gov/nahss_web/faces/arbovirus_summary.jsp.
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Avocado Soybean Unsaponifiable (ASU) Extracts Earn a Passing Grade for Equine Osteoarthritis
by: Stacey Oke, DVM, MSc
July 30 2007
Avocado and soybean unsaponifiable (ASU) extracts--the fraction of oil that does not form soap after hydrolysis--are some of the newest joint products to grace the equine nutritional supplement shelves. The beneficial effects of ASU for horses with osteoarthritis were reported in a new study by David Frisbie, DVM, PhD and colleagues from the Gail Holmes Equine Orthopaedic Research Center at Colorado State University.
The researchers evaluated ASU in horses with experimentally-induced osteoarthritis. This clinical trial concluded that ASU significantly reduced the severity of joint damage and significantly increased the synthesis of cartilage glycosaminoglycans (i.e., the "building blocks" of articular cartilage) in joints with osteoarthritis, compared to horses treated with a placebo.
In this study, 16 horses with osteoarthritis were divided into two groups: eight horses received ASU extracts in molasses and eight received only molasses for 70 days. During the study, the horses were exercised on a treadmill and the researchers measured the horses' lameness, joint swelling, and various gross, microscopic, and biochemical parameters.
"While ASU did not decrease clinical signs of pain in horses with osteoarthritis, a disease-modifying effect was identified suggesting that oral administration of ASU can be useful in the management of horses with osteoarthritis," Frisbie reported.
Despite the need for further research to identify the exact cause of the observed beneficial effects of ASU, the ramifications of this landmark trial are potentially far-reaching. According to Frisbie, this is the first peer-reviewed, placebo-controlled study evaluating an oral nutritional supplement conducted in live horses with osteoarthritis.
The next step, suggested Frisbie, is to hold other supplement companies to higher standards to prove that their products also are effective.
The study, "Evaluation of avocado soybean unsaponifiable extracts for treatment of horses with experimentally induced osteoarthritis" was published in the June 2007 edition of the American Journal of Veterinary Research. Contributing researchers were Frisbie, Kawcak, DVM, PhD; McIlwraith BVSc, PhD; Werby DVM; and Park DVM, PhD.
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Late Season Oats Can Reduce Autumn Hay Useby: The Ohio State University Extension
August 02 2007
Oats, traditionally grown in the spring as a grain crop, can also be planted in the summer as a late season forage, providing a feed alternative for horse owners and livestock producers short on hay or pasture. Based on five years of Ohio State University Extension research, oats planted in late July or early August can be grazed well into winter. "We have consistently experienced production of 4 to 7 tons of dry matter with an average of 18% protein. In some trials we were still getting 11% protein with oats grazed as late as March," said Stan Smith, an OSU Extension program assistant in Fairfield County. "The average production of hay harvested from perennial forages in Ohio is less than half of that. Without including land or harvest costs, the oats produced at that tonnage come at a total cost of less than $25 per ton, even at today's fertilizer prices.
Hay, by comparison, is presently valued at $60 to $70 or more per ton." Not all forages--or horses--are created equal. Ask your veterinarian if oats are appropriate for your horse.
With forage production in Ohio and surrounding states down this season due to a spring cold spell and ongoing dry conditions, producers are searching for alternative forages that are easy to establish and won't break the bank. Planting oats in the summer with the idea of grazing the crop was never thought of as an option in Ohio until Fairfield County Soil and Water Conservation District engineering technician Curt Stivison made a trip to the Heart of America Grazing Conference in 2001.
There, Stivison learned about late-planted oats research through the University of Illinois and decided to bring the concept back to Ohio. "I planted oats in my garden that summer. By Christmas the oats were still growing. At the time I didn't know of anyone else in Ohio growing late-planted oats," said Stivison. "In 2002, I moved the trials to a crop field, with similar results, and through collaboration with Stan Smith, we've been conducting late-planted oat trials ever since." Unlike spring oats, which are planted in March or April, head out in June and die soon after maturing, late season oats no longer produce seeds. As a result, all of the energy is put into leaf production (the source of dry matter protein). Oats will continue to grow until a significant freeze stops them, which in some cases can be as late as the end of December. Late-season oats can be seeded after wheat harvest, or interseeded with corn or soybeans. Although oats won't grow as tall in the presence of other crops, they can increase the overall quality of crop residues because of their high protein content, making corn fodder and soybean stubble more nutritional for livestock. Late-season oats can be grazed in the field, baled like hay, or ensiled. Smith said oats are a more attractive forage alternative than sorghum-sudangrass hybrids, cereal rye, or annual rye grass for a number of reasons: ·
When oats are planted after July 1, variety has no impact on forage yields. "We've used bin run seed, certified seed, treated seed, U.S. grown feed oats, and Canadian feed oats and found essentially no difference in the resulting forage production," said Smith. "That essentially means that producers can plant the cheapest oats they can find and still get good yields." By comparison, sorghum seed costs 2 to 3 times more. ·
Oats are a "scavenger" for nutrients and require little additional fertilizer. We've applied 18 to 50 units of supplemental nitrogen to July and early August planted oats and experienced similar yields with each rate," said Smith. "Fertilizer demand of sorghum-sudangrass hybrids is 3 to 4 times that." ·
Oats tend to tolerate dry conditions better than other alternatives. In fact, some of the best yields generated have been in July, August, and September when precipitation was below normal. ·
Oats reach maximum height faster. If a producer's primary need is to provide forage for this summer and winter, oats are a good option, as opposed to cereal rye or annual rye grass. Cereal rye and annual ryegrass, while both will grow in the fall, will not reach nearly the height that oats will before going into winter dormancy. "Cereal rye and annual rye grass are good crops if producers are looking for feed for next spring," said Smith. "Oats don't need to go dormant to elongate. They will reach maximum height and growth about 75 days after planting. Also, late-season oats do not need to be killed in order to plant a spring crop because they will eventually die over the winter. "Late-season oats are also a very forgiving crop, and tend to re-grow top growth if grazed before reaching maturity. "We used to think that fescue was the best crop you could grow as a winter forage, but that's turning out to not be the case," said Smith.
Researchers tested fescue along with oats and found that the protein content of oats was anywhere from 4 to 10% higher, depending on the month harvested. Stivison recently seeded his now dormant pastureland with late-season oats, in the hopes of adding to his forage production options. "Because of the hot weather, the cool-season grasses have shut down, and they won't come out of dormancy until it gets cooler. And even when they do break dormancy, there won't be enough grass available for grazing," said Stivison. "There's no reason to think that oats grown on dormant pastureland can't produce the same results we've seen in crop fields."
OSU Extension will be offering field days in August to provide livestock producers more information on forage options and the late-season oat trials. For more information on upcoming field days, visit the OSU Extension Beef Team web calendar at beef.osu.edu. For more information on the late-season oat trials, log on to fairfield.osu.edu/ag/graze/wntrgraz.htm.
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Alabama Drought Getting Worse
by: The Associated Press
August 04, 2007
The latest survey from the U.S. Drought Monitor shows the drought is getting worse in Alabama despite recent heavy rains in some parts of the state.
The D-4 area representing exceptional drought conditions has grown from about 18% to cover more than 32% of the state. The driest areas run from northeast Alabama to about Montgomery.
Almost two-thirds of the state is covered by the second worst drought condition.
Climatologists also predict that the drought conditions will continue at least through October in north Alabama.
For more on managing horses in drought conditions see www.TheHorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=9721.
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West Nile Virus Claims South Dakota Horse
by: The Associated Press
August 05, 2007
West Nile virus has killed a horse in Meade County, S. D.
This is South Dakota's first horse fatality from the disease since 2005, when three horses were struck by West Nile virus. There were no losses last year.
Sam Holland, DVM, South Dakota state veterinarian, said the 2-year-old Meade County filly had not been vaccinated against the disease.
Holland said vaccinations are at least partially responsible for the reduction in the number of reported cases since the equine form of the disease first appeared in the state in 2002.
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Online News
Jockey Begins Year Suspension for Shocking Horse
by: The Associated Press
August 06, 2007
A jockey has begun serving a yearlong suspension for using an electronic buzzer on his Quarter Horse last year at Fairplex Park in Southern California.
Carlos Bautista began the suspension on July 24 after stewards at Los Alamitos racetrack were notified by Orange County Superior Court that a temporary restraining order had been lifted.
That allowed the California Horse Racing Board to enforce previous rulings for violations of its rules on possession of contraband and animal welfare.
The board announced Bautista's suspension Sunday in its weekly update of CHRB decisions.
The suspension followed a two-day hearing in October on a complaint filed by the CHRB alleging that Bautista used an electrical device to shock Royal Medallion during the pre-race warmup on Sept. 24, 2006.
Bautista was not accused of using the device, which can shock a horse into running faster, during the actual running of the race. Royal Medallion finished third.
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Serbian Minister Checks on Lipizzaner Horses After Reports of Neglect
by: The Associated Press
August 02, 2007
A Serbian government minister Thursday visited a herd of famed Lipizzaner horses rescued from war, but now at the center of claims of starvation and neglect.
The horses were brought to north Serbia from Lipik, Croatia, in 1991 to protect them from the war that erupted after the break up of Yugoslavia.
The Lipizzaners are kept at a farm near Novi Sad, about 70 kilometers (42 miles) northwest of Belgrade, amid continued wrangling between Serbia and Croatia over ownership and the cost of care.
Earlier this week, animal protection groups and media reported that many of the horses were sick and on the verge of starvation.
Serbian Agriculture Minister Slobodan Milosavljevic visited the farm Thursday with vets to examine the horses. "I am no expert to judge their condition, but they seem in a decent state," he told reporters.
The Beta news agency quoted veterinarians as saying they had examined 74 horses and all were healthy.
However, the agency also quoted unnamed neighbors claiming the farm owner put up a "show" for the minister and that horses in bad condition had been hidden.
Milosavljevic said he would soon meet his Croatian counterpart Petar Cobankovic to try to resolve the dispute over the horses.
"We have to determine how they came here, how they were kept, what their present condition is and what should be done to solve the problem," he said.
The farm owner has demanded €300,000 ($410,000) in compensation for the horses' care but Croatia has refused to pay. Serbian authorities in the past have said the matter is to be resolved between the farm and the Croatian government.
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Horse Quarantine, Inspection Nixed from Bill
by: Tom LaMarra
August 03, 2007
Weeks of lobbying by the horse industry were successful the evening of Aug. 2, when the United States House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly to remove from the Agriculture Appropriations Act language that could have stymied transportation of horses by halting funding for inspections.
The House voted 237-18 to strike the language, which would have prohibited the federal Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service from performing horse health monitoring and regulatory work. That would have impacted quarantine facilities and stopped the import and export of horses.
Some of the language used in the Agriculture Appropriations Act would have impacted quarantine facilities and stopped the import and export of horses.
Industry groups led by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) and the American Horse Council (AHC) urged the House to remove the language. House members reportedly received more than 100 phone calls and numerous email messages on the issue.
"A lot of people worked on this," AHC President Jay Hickey said. "We clearly got the House's attention."
Keith Chamblin, an NTRA spokesman, said the organization was "very pleased the House responded to the industry's concerns." The stricken language would have had far-reaching negative consequences for all equine disciplines, he added, calling the bill as originally drafted "a poor piece of legislation."
The Bush administration opposed the language that would have prohibited APHIS inspections. In a July 31 policy statement, it also expressed concern over potential withholding of funding for the National Animal Identification System, a voluntary program involving the equine industry.
The statement said the White House "strongly opposes" the full Agriculture Appropriations Act, which exceeds President Bush's request for funding by almost $1 billion. Combined with other fiscal year 2008 appropriations bills, it said, the bill calls for "an irresponsible and excess level of spending and includes other objectionable provisions."
Meanwhile, representatives John Spratt Jr. of South Carolina, Nick Rahall of West Virginia, and Ben Chandler and Ed Whitfield of Kentucky succeeded in inserting a provision in the measure to ban funding for federal officials who inspect horses bound for slaughterhouses. The United States Department of Agriculture has been charging a fee for such inspections, but a federal appeals court is determining the legality of that practice.
A motion to strike the amendment failed during the Aug. 2 debate on the bill.
"With anti-slaughter laws in Illinois and Texas, and now with this anti-slaughter language in a major spending bill in Congress, the writing is on the wall for the Belgian-owned slaughter plants in the United States," Wayne Pacelle, president and chief executive officer of the Humane Society of the United States, said in an Aug. 3 release. "The American people and their elected representatives want an end to horse slaughter -- not later, but right now."
(Originally published at www.BloodHorse.com.)
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Foot and Mouth Disease: Restrictions on U.K. Horse Trainers Relaxed
by: Mark Popham
August 13, 2007
The movement of horses to and from the United Kingdom hasn't been affected by the recent small outbreak of foot and mouth disease at two farms in Surrey in southern England. Providing the correct certification has been completed, overseas-trained runners can continue to compete in races in Great Britain.
Restrictions placed on certain trainers in the affected area, imposed following the outbreak, were relaxed as of Aug. 13.
The stables that fell within a 10-kilometer surveillance zone, near the two farms where the disease was found, had been warned by the British Horseracing Authority, under guidance from the Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), that they wouldn't be able to ship horses to any race meets at home or abroad. However, with authorities believing the disease to be contained, trainers in the surveillance zone are now free to run their horses, providing they carry out the necessary biosecurity measures when transporting them to the racecourse.
Restrictions on trainers within the current three-kilometer protection zones in Surrey, remain in place. Although horses cannot be infected by foot and mouth disease, they can carry the virus on their hooves, skin, hair, and possibly in their nasal passages.
A serious outbreak of foot and mouth disease in the United Kingdom in 2001 devastated the farming community. It led to more than seven million animals being culled and cost the agricultural industry an estimated £8 billion ($16 billion). The 2001 Cheltenham Festival, the highest profile race meet for steeplechase horses in Great Britain, had to be abandoned following the 2001 outbreak.
It is thought the source of the latest outbreak was the Institute for Animal Health's Pirbright laboratory site in Surrey, used by vaccine manufacturer Merial.
(Originally published at www.BloodHorse.com.)
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Arabian Horse Quotes
The Arabian stallion is magnificent, and the mare quite glamorous, but the airy-fairy foal is so delicate and fawn-like, he steals your heart away!
- Gladys Brown Edwards, "Know the Arabian Horse"
The wind of heaven is that which blows between a horse's ears. -Arabian proverb
Statements that Arabians are "never parti-color" are wrong, attributed to lack of historical knowledge and refusal to believe very conspicious evidence.
- Gladys Brown Edwards, "Know the Arabian Horse"
My Beautiful! My beautiful! that standest meekly by With thy proudly-arch'd and glossy neck, and dark and fiery eye, Fret not to roam the desert now, with all thy winged speed; I may not mount on thee again--thou'rt sold, my Arab steed! - Caroline Norton, (1808-1877) An Arab's Farewell to His Steed
The following are excerpts from "The Horse: With a treatise of draugh and a copious index" by William Youatt
Published in 1831
"The Arabs have found out that which the English breeder should never forget, that the female is more concerned than the male in the excellence and value of produce; and the genealogies of their horses are always reckoned from the mothers."
"The Arabian horse would not be acknowledged by every judge to possess a perfect form; His head, however, is inimitable. The broadness and squareness of the forehead, the shortness and fineness o the muzzle, the prominence and brilliancy of the eye, the smallness of the ears, and the beautiful course of the veins, will always characterise the head of the Arabian Horse."
"The mare and her foal inhabit the same tent with the Bedouin and his children. The neck of the mare is often the pillow of the rider, and, more frequently, of the children, who are rolling about upon her and the foal: yet no accident ever occurs, and the animal acquires that friendship and love for man which occaisonal ill-treatment will not cause him for a moment to forget."
"When the Arab falls from his mare, and is unable to rise, she will immediately stand still, and neigh until assistance arrives. If he lies down to sleep, as fatigue sometimes compels him, in the midst of th desert, she stands watchful over him, and neighs and rouses him if either man or beast approaches."
"Man, however, is an inconsistent being. The Arab who thus lives with and loves his horses, regarding them as his most valuable treasure, sometimes treats them with a cruelty scarcely to be believed, and not at all to be justified. The severest treatment which the English racehorse endures is gentleness compared with the trial of the young Arabian. Probably the filly has never before been mounted; she is lead out; her owner springs on her back, and goads her over the sand and rocks of the desert at full speed for fifty or sixty miles without one moment's respite. She is then forced, steaming and panting, into water deep enough for her to swim. If, immediately after this, she will eat as if nothing occured, her character is established and she is acknowledged to be a genuine descendant of the Kochlani breed. "
"Our horses would fare badly on the scanty nourishment afforded the Arabian. The mare usually has but one or two meals in twenty-four hours. At night she recieves a little water; and with her scanty provender of five or six pounds of barley or beans, and sometimes a little straw, she lies down content, in the midst of her master's fmaily. She can, however, endure great fatibue; she will travel fifty miles without stopping; she has been pushed, on emergency, one hundred and twenty miles, and, occaisionally, neither she nor her rider has tasted food for three whole days."
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The Brands You Know and Trust |
HORSE
WAREHOUSE
49 Rosco Road · Lake Ozark, MO 65049 |
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