Clinical Equine Nutrition 2 Flashcards
Will energy requirements for a horse increase or decrease in severe weather, hot and cold?
Increase
Minimum of ____ % of feed should still be good quality roughage
35-40%
Omega 6 is pro _________
inflammatory
*in large amounts
How long does it typically take to see results after adding oil to a horses diet?
2 - 3 months
Want to start adding in oil slowly as well
Besides water, what is lost in sweat?
Electrolytes
T/F: Age is a disease
False
but with age, comes disease
What are common health concerns for aged horses?
Dental issues
parasitism
arthritic conditions
T/F: Protein, fiber, and phosphorus digestion and absorption decrease with age
TRUE
What kind of diet is recommended for geriatric horses?
(whatever they’ll eat!)
Needs to be palatable and easily digested - often cubed or pelleted feeds with the addition of a fat supplements as needed
Why should you avoid immediately starting a starving horse on a high quality diet?
Refeeding syndrome
can have a fatal increase in blood insulin
Cardiac and respiratory failure
**will be noted 3-5 days after new diet has begun
What diet should you start a starved horse on?
Start on a low glycemic indez diet Roughage only (alfalfa is ideal) introduce 50-75% of maintenance and gradually build up over 10 days to maintenance
Can increase to 125% maintenance
Besides being malnourished, what other concerns should you have when dealing with a starved horse?
Parasites - most likely the horse also was not getting dewormed
Dental issues
hoof care
underlying dz
What is equine metabolic dz? It what patients do you see it in?
It is a metabolic dysregulation: These horses are considered “easy keepers” bc they continue to put on weight, they are obese and often have intermittent laminitis
Can have persistent hyperinsulinemia –> leading to insulin resistance
*often in adults less than 15 years old who are obese: body score 7 or greater on a 9 scale
How do you treat equine metabolic syndrome?
Low glycemic indes diet: avoid green lush pastures
Exercise
*somtimes levothyroxine sodium
T/F: Equine metabolic syndrome patients will typically have PPID (equine Cushing’s)
FALSE
What is hyperlipemia?
A life threatening condition that often affects ponies, donkeys, and miniature horses: it is a sudden severe breakdown of body fat stores
What is the survival rate of hyperlipemia?
56%
What are the predisposing factors of hyperlipemia?
Obesity
Insulin resistance
Females>males (especially if they are pregnant or lactating)
What are some precipitating factors to hyperlipemia?
Inadequate feed intake
stress - from feed change, transport, etc
pain
disease
What clinical signs will you see in a patient with hyperlipemia?
May present like colic Anorexia dysphagia pyrexia encephalopathy depression weakness abortion ****rapid weight loss
How do you treat hyperlipemia?
First, you need to get the patient to eat - feeding tube if necessary. Want to use fresh palatable feeds or liquefied pelleted complete feeds for tube feeding
Terminate stress, fluid therapy, tx hypoglycemia
What are some key factors thought to be involved in developmental orthopedic diseases in horses?
Rapid growth
Diet imbalance (too much energy, poor calcium to phos ratio, copper and since deficiencies)
Biomechanical stress or trauma (too much exercise)
Hormonal factors
Genetic predisposition *
Epiphysitis is most common in what horses? What is it?
Most common in the thoroughbred race horse
Inflammation of the physis
Where is the most common location of epiphysitis?
Distal radius and distal metacarpal III/Metatarsal III
What is the treatment for epiphysititis?
Decreased nutritional plane - feed roughage only +/- mineral supplements
Rest
+/- NSAIDs
*self limiting when growth plate closes
In severe cases, epiphysitis can lead to _________
Angular limb deformities
How do you treat angular limb deformities?
Trimming/shoeing
Stall confinement
Surgery: Periosteal stripping or transphyseal bridging
what are the most common angular limb deformities?
Distal radius and distal MCIII/MTIII
Carpal valgus and fetlock varus are the most common
What locations do you most often see flexural limb deformities?
Distal interphalangeal joint (DIT) Metacarpophalangeal joint (MCP) Metatarsalphalangeal joint (MTP)
What are the treatments available for flexural limb deformities?
Exercise, shoeing
Tenotomy (tendon)
Desmotomy (ligament)
Oxytetracycline: binds to calcium to weaken the collagen (need to monitor renal values while on this drug)
What horses are more prone to have Osteochondorsis and OCD?
Standardbred and warmblood breeds
*disturbances in endochondral differentiation, proliferation, maturation, and ossification of fast growing animals
What clinical signs will you in a horse with Osteochondorsis or OCD?
+/- Lameness
Joint effusion
Where is the number one site for Osteochondorsis and OCD? What are other common sites?
1 - Distal tibia (intermediate ridge)
Lateral trochlear ridge of the femur
medial femoral condyle
What horses are more prone to cervical vertebral malformation?
Thoroughbred, quarterhorse, morgan
Male > female (3:1)
What clinical signs will you see in a horse with cervical vertebral malformation? What is the tx?
Ataxia
Tx = surgery - spinal fusion
What should you feed an orphan foal?
Mare’s milk = best
Goat’s milk = ok - close to mare but may note constipation
Cow’s milk - less fat and more sugar (add dextrose or jelly pectin)
Commercial mare’s milk is available in powder and pellet
