Downloaded 32 times
Lec 05 Equine
- 1.
- 2. Gender Terms • Male = stallion • Female = mare • Castrated male = gelding • Newborn/young = foal (until weaned) • Giving birth = foaling • Young female = filly • Young male = colt • Group = herd or band
- 3. Breeding • Seasonally polyestrousspontaneous ovulators • Estrous cycle 21.7 days • Estrus 6.5 days, ovulation in last 24-48h of estrus • Most horses at our latitude naturally begin cycling in March, but ideal to breed in February for Jan 1 foal birthday • Provide artificial lighting to start cycling (14.5-16h/day light starting 12/1)…. • ~25% of mares cycle in winter / throughout year • Gestation = 340 days • Birth usually at night
- 4. Breeding • Age recordedas January 1st of the year born • Wean @ 5-6 months • Puberty = 10 to 24 months (~18 months)
- 5. General Equine Information •Life span: 20 to 30 years – Oldest I’ve seen was 38 years old (‘Boomer’) • Measurement is hh = hands high – 1 hand = 4 inches • Peak usefulness is 3 to 13 years (plenty of exceptions) • Range horse can travel up to 30 miles a day.
- 6. Gaits • Four naturalgaits: Walk - 4 beat Trot – 2 beat Canter – 3 beat Gallop – 4 beat Complete Book of the Horse p32
- 7.
- 8. Anatomy • Hind gutfermenter: large cecum (like rabbits) • Relatively small stomach capacity – needs to eat throughout the day • Large lung area • Well-developed muscles in shoulders and hindquarters
- 9. Anatomy • 340 degreevision – blind spot directly behind them • Acute hearing – 16 muscles in each ear to move ears independently & pinpoint sound source • Can sleep standing upright – stay apparatus
- 10. Natural Behavior • Prey animal • Startle easily • Flight instinct stronger than fight • Naturally live in groups • Numerous vocal sounds • Well developed sense of touch
- 11. Behavior DO NOT: • Handleroughly • Try to modify undesirable behavior with negative reinforcement
- 12. Behavior DO: • Rule outmedical causes of behavior • Provide counterconditioning based on positive reinforcement, classical conditioning and desensitization
- 13. Common Equine BehaviorProblems Stereotypic Behavior • Locomotor • Stall pacing, walking, kicking • Weaving • Pawing at ground • Oral • Wind sucking * (don’t confuse with wind suckers…pneumonvagina 2nd to poor conformation, Caslick’s procedure used to help) • Cribbing • Wood chewing
- 14. Common Equine BehaviorProblems • Aggression • Towards other horses • Towards humans • Stable Vices (Stereotypic Behavior) • Locomotor • Oral • Transporting Problems • Loading/unloading, particularly
- 15. Common Problems UCD Equine Behavior Service 2005-07 • 25% - underlying medical problem • 33% - aggression • 14% - fear • 10% - procedure aversion • 5% - compulsive disorders
- 16. Body Language WATCH: • Earposition • Head position • Mouth • Feet
- 17. Restraint • Halter/lead rope • Distraction • Lift front foot • Twitch • Blindfold • Hobbles • Stud chain
- 18. Housing • Need shelterfrom wind, snow & rain • Adequate stall/paddock size – At least 12’ x 12’ for one horse – Behavior & health issues result from too small a space or over-crowding • Adequate ventilation • Appropriate bedding – (no black walnut shavings - toxic) – Clean daily – Bed deeply • Sturdy & Safe Fencing
- 19. Nutrition / Feeding •Feeding should be according to amount of activity in horses life – Pasture pet needs less energy (food) then a race horse • When multiple horses together, watch to make sure no one is out competing the others for food
- 20. Nutrition / Feeding INTAKE: •1.5% - 3% of body weight (lb) daily • 20-70L (5-20gal) water daily NEEDS: • Clean, fresh water all the time • Salt/mineral block • Forage – pasture, hay
- 21. Nutrition / Feeding •Pasture grass – May be adequate for nutritional needs of low activity horses (pasture pets) • Depends on stocking density and quality of forage • Hay – Grass hay preferred for many horses – High quality alfalfa best to slowly re-feed starved horses
- 22. Nutrition / Feeding •Grain – Some do not need supplementation with grain, depends on age, activity level – Excessive supplementation could lead to obesity, laminitis – Older horses often require supplementation • Equine Senior • Beet pulp • Vegetable oil
- 23. Toxic Plants • YellowStar Thistle
- 24. Health Concerns Legs andBellies (Orthopedic & GI) • Dentistry • Colic • Injuries • Lameness – Laminitis – acute & chronic – Navicular dz – Thrush (moist dermatitis of frog)
- 25.
- 26. Laminitis • Acute &Chronic versions • Often occurs secondary to overfeeding – lush pasture, horse broke into grain room, abrupt diet change • Also can be 2nd to other illness, excessive steroid administration • PAINFUL • Often both front feet, but any/all can be affected
- 27. Laminitis • “founder” –lay people use interchangeably with laminitis, more accurately refers to chronic laminitis • “sinker” – P3 (coffin bone) rotated through sole…VERY BAD
- 28. Colic Abdominal pain /discomfort •Signs can include: – Rolling, kicking / looking at abdomen, not eating/drinking/defecating, sweating, unsett led, stretching, increased HR •GI & extra-GI causes, including – Sand – Parasites – Enterolith – Strangulating lipoma
- 29. Colic • Medical vs.Surgical colic • Mild to life threatening Prevention: • Quality diet, primarily forage • Regular exercise • Clean water • Don’t feed directly on dirt
- 30. Strangles, ‘equine distemper’ • Streptococcus equi equi • Highly contagious • Consider barns contaminated for 2m post outbreak • Signs include: – Fever (103-106) – Mucoid to mucopurulent nasal discharge – Submandibular lymphadenopathy – ‘bastard strangles’ – internal LNs abscessed • http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp?cfile=htm/bc/121309.htm
- 31. Pigeon Fever, DrylandDistemper • Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis • External abscesses – pectoral region, ventrum • Internal abscesses • Late Summer / early Fall • When draining abscesses, do not let discharge contaminate ground/stall/barn http://www.aaep.org/health_articles_view.php?id=358
- 32. EHV-1, EHV-3, EHV-4 •EHV-1 – Respiratory disease – Abortion (9-120 days post exposure) – Myeloencephalopathy / neurologic • EHV-4 – Respiratory disease • EHV-3 – Coital exanthema (STD)
- 33. EHV-1, EHV-3, EHV-4 •HIGHLY CONTAGIOUS – Beware nasal droplets – lots of virus – Incubation & Shedding for ~21-28 days – ISOLATE NEW ARRIVALS FOR AT LEAST ONE MONTH • Some may remain infected lifelong • No vaccination for neuro form (there is a vaccination for respiratory & abortion
- 34. Equine Infectious Anemia • EIA, Coggins • Viral dz RBC destruction anemia • Regulatory disease • Infectious for life, no cure, carriers • Transmitted via blood sucking insects – horse flies, deer flies, mosquitoes, fomites (needle re-use) • http://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/animal_diseases/eia/
- 35. ‘Normal’ Vitals • Temperature:99.5 to 101.3°F (37.5 – 38.5°C) • Heart Rate: – Young 65-75 beats per minute – Adult 28 to 45 bpm (when racing, up to 250bpm) • Respiration Rate: – Young 14-15 breaths per minute – Adult 10-14 bpm
- 36. Recommended Vaccinations http://www.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/ceh/currenthealth.cfm • Rabies •3-way (EWT) – EEE, WEE, Tetanus +/- VEE • WNV (West Nile Virus) Pregnant mares: EHV – vaccinate at 5, 7, & 9 months of gestation
- 37. IM Injection Sites •Neck*, gluteal, semi-tendinosus muscles http://www.aces.edu/pubs/docs/A/ANR-1018/
- 38. Parasitism • Large strongyles – Strongylus vulgaris, S edentatus • Small strongyles - Tridontophorus • Tapeworms - Anoplocephala • Pinworms – Oxyuris equi • Bots - Gasterophilus sp. • Stomach worms – Habronema • Ascarids – especially young – Parascaris equorum http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp?cfile=htm/bc/toc_22500.htm
- 39. Parasite Control • Clean!!! • Manure management / muck stalls daily • Pasture rotation • Lower stocking densities
- 40. Deworming • Ivermectin POq 2 months – For example - March, May, July, September • 2x pyrantel q1y in ~January – Tapeworms • Moxidectin* or 2x fenbendazole q1y in ~November – Encysted larvae
Editor's Notes
- #14 Stall walking – anxiety, separation from other horses, confinement issuePawing – pre-feeding**DO NOT reinforce by feeding as reward for pawing!Cribbing – usually starts at weaning, thought to cause endorphin release, management can affect, more likely in foals weaned to grain diets then pasture weaned foals
- #33 Disease Background Equine Herpes Virus (EHV-1) infection in horses can cause respiratory disease, neurological disease, abortion in mares and neonatal foal death. The neurological form of the disease, is known as Equine Herpes Myeloencephalopathy (EHM). The neurological form of the virus has the potential to cause high morbidity and mortality. EHV-1 is easily spread and typically has an incubation period between 2-10 days. Respiratory shedding of the virus generally occurs for 7-10 days, but may persist longer in infected horses. For this reason, the isolation period recommendation for confirmed positive EHM cases is twenty-one (21) days. Clinical signs of EHM in horses may include nasal discharge, incoordination, hindquarter weakness, recumbency, lethargy, urine dribbling and diminished tail tone. The prognosis for EHM positive horses depends on the severity of signs and the period of recumbency. Employing supportive treatment with intravenous fluids, anti-inflammatory drugs, anti-viral drugs and other supportive measures may be beneficial since there is no specific treatment for EHM. Currently, no EHV-1 equine vaccine has a label claim for protection against the neurological strain of the virus.
- #34 Disease Background Equine Herpes Virus (EHV-1) infection in horses can cause respiratory disease, neurological disease, abortion in mares and neonatal foal death. The neurological form of the disease, is known as Equine Herpes Myeloencephalopathy (EHM). The neurological form of the virus has the potential to cause high morbidity and mortality. EHV-1 is easily spread and typically has an incubation period between 2-10 days. Respiratory shedding of the virus generally occurs for 7-10 days, but may persist longer in infected horses. For this reason, the isolation period recommendation for confirmed positive EHM cases is twenty-one (21) days. Clinical signs of EHM in horses may include nasal discharge, incoordination, hindquarter weakness, recumbency, lethargy, urine dribbling and diminished tail tone. The prognosis for EHM positive horses depends on the severity of signs and the period of recumbency. Employing supportive treatment with intravenous fluids, anti-inflammatory drugs, anti-viral drugs and other supportive measures may be beneficial since there is no specific treatment for EHM. Currently, no EHV-1 equine vaccine has a label claim for protection against the neurological strain of the virus.