Equine Health and Management

Question 1

Sign of a healthy horse

Question 2

1. normal behavior/demeanor

Answer 2

• normal vital signs: eyes bright, neck elevated, ears forward
  
  • will be dropped if sick, labored breathing, nostrils expanded
• eating
• not standing alone
• normal body posture
• vital signs:
  
  • heart rate: 32-48 bpm
  • respiratory rate: 8-16 breaths/min
  • temperature: 99.5 - 101.5 F
• donkey vital signs are higher than horse

Question 3

2. Good body condition

Answer 3

• scored 1-9: ideally in the middle
• 5 (moderate) or 6 (moderate to fleshy)
• very thin (1) or obese (9) = unhealthy
• racehorse: 4-4.5
• brood mare: 6
  
  • lose weight when foal is born

Question 4

3. hair coat

Answer 4

• shiny, glossy hair = 1 of the best indicators
• often relates to nutrition & deworming program

Question 5

4. hoof growth

Answer 5

• healthy hoof wall tissue
• 1/4 to 1/2 inch growth per month => trimmed every 6-8 weeks
• smooth and untracked
  
  • cracked can mean nutritional deficiencies

Question 6

5. eyes

Answer 6

• bright eyes, fully open, clear no discharge, not glazed over or dull
• sick: dull eyes and sunken

Question 7

5. manure/urination

Answer 7

• urine should be pale yellow
• firm manure (not loose or watery)
  
  • green & moist
  • darker can relate to GI function & hydration status
• wheat straw (not cloudy of dark red)
• indicator or hydration/illness
• not consuming enough water -> disease state
  
  • color of urine gets darker & the darker it gets, the more concerned you should be
  • no manure = not eating or impaction

Question 8

Capillary refill

Answer 8

• circulation assessed by gently pressing thumb against the gums
• count seconds to return to normal color, 1-2 seconds

Question 9

mucous membrane check

Answer 9

• mucous membrane appear healthy & pink
• pale, white, yellow, deep purple cause for concern
  
  • strangulation, internal bleeding, heavy parasite loads etc.

Question 10

checking for hydration

Answer 10

• tent skin (not most reliable b/c older horse has wrinkles)
• 1/2 to 1 second is normal
• longer stays tented = dehydration
• indicator of water balance
• color manure and urine
• no manure/urine = unhealthy
• color and odor of both can indicate health status
• renal failure => obnoxious odor to urine
• bacterial infection: Potomac horse fever (diarrhea & smells terrible)

Question 11

nonspecific pain indicators in Equids

Answer 11

1. restlessness, agitation, anxiety
   
   • common in acute pain cases
   • confined horses
   • not reliable in donkeys
2. rigid stance, reluctance to move
   
   • general description for many disorders
   • horses face away
   • protective behavior
   • not for donkeys (misdiagnosed b/c they developed in desert so they don’t move to conserve)
3. lowered head carriage
   
   • chronic pain, unrelenting
4. fixed stare, dilated nostrils, clenched jaw
   
   • facial pain, nondescript lacks info on pain source
5. aggression towards own foal or people
   
   • pain during parturition
   • behavior emerges w/ pain

Question 12

Identifying pain or discomfort

Answer 12

• identifying pain is subjective but can be seen through difference in behavior
• level of pain the horse is experiencing is often misinterpreted

Chronic vs. Acute
- one sign of chronic colic: loose lower lip or clinched cheek muscles
- acute pain: generally look at the area that hurts
- acute colic: look at sides or flanks, eyes has glazed over look
- difficult to identify source of pain b/c different age experienced different levels of pain (pain tolerance)

• some horses/equine are very stoic and difficult to assess pain
  
  • donkeys have much higher pain tolerance especially for GI issues

Question 13

Managing healthy horses and preventing disease

Answer 13

• recognizing signs of healthy vs. unhealthy equine
• providing proper nutrition
• implementing parasite control program
  
  • mostly roundworms => mitigate high levels
• maintaining an active vaccination program

Question 14

1. proper nutrition

Answer 14

• feed according to:
  
  • exercise level: more exercise = more food = more calories needed
  • reproduction status
  • age: young need more food
  • growth rate
  • mature body weight
  • temperature (extreme cold): need more energy to produce heat

Question 15

parasites - general characteristics

Answer 15

• hosts: house parasites harmful relationship
• most are ingested: like grass close to manure
• external vs. internal
  
  • ticks (common in tropical areas), flies, lice (more common in donkeys)
    
    • donkeys very efficient at metabolizing poor quality forages => lice absorbes nutrients => decrease body condition
  • mites, mosquitoes

Question 16

2. prevention & control of parasites

Answer 16

• sanitation & good management
  
  • proper manure disposal
  • pasture management: rotating, grazing w/ other animals, helps control
  • feed & water
  • removal of parasites: deworming programs, grooming/inspections

Managing external parasites
- feed products (daily pellet)
- use of other insects (fly predators): monthly application one species eats the other)
- insecticides in chemical applications
- permethrin (synthetic)
- pyrethrin (natural from chrysanthemum plant)
- citronella, eucalyptus (natural
- geranial (natural from geranium plants)
- application: automatic fly system, spray on, roll on, wipe on, bait type, feed control
- use fly apparel on horse (to keep fly off)
- eats at corners of eyes => summer sores=> relates to harbor reil which develops in stomach of horse
- bite skin => protein in fly’s saliva cause skin to break out in bumps

Question 17

Horse health program: antibodies

Answer 17

• antibodies too big to pass through placenta
• come from colostrum = passive transfer
• foal must nurse w/in 24 hours
• IgG 600-800 mg/dL (normal)
• less than 400 mg/dL = call vet
  
  • failure of passive transfer & foal can pick up bacterial infection
• vaccinate mare 30 days prior to foaling & antibodies will be present in colostrum
• vaccinate foal w/ Tetanus antitoxin
• administer plasma (active transfer) 1L over 30-60 min if failure of passive transfer
  
  • 1L of plasma = 200 mg/dL
  • may need additional plasma
  • may use plasma for foals w/ Neonatal Isotheroloysis

Neonatal Isotheroloysis
- mare bloodtype doesn’t match sire’s => foal can’t nurse colostrum
- immunoglobulins w/n colostrum will attack immune system
- take blood test of mare 1 month before foaling
- test positive, foal not allowed to nurse

Question 18

Where to give vaccines

Answer 18

• triangle in neck
• pectoral muscles
• hind end (crop and thigh)

places:
- IM, IV, SubQ

Question 19

Core vs. Risk Based vaccines

Question 20

core

Answer 20

• protect from diseases tat are endemic to a region, those w/ potential public health significance, required by law, virulent/highly infectious, and/or those posing a risk of severe disease
• eastern/western equine Encephalomyelitis (sleeping sickness)
• rabies, tetanus, west nile virus

Question 21

risk

Answer 21

• may vary regionally, from population to population w/n an area or b/twn individual horses w/n given population
• anthrax, botulism
• equine herpesvirus (rhinopneumonitis): 1 & 4 that’s used & vaccinated against
• equine influenza

Question 22

Colic

Answer 22

• abdominal pain or discomfort
• symptoms: increase in TPR, sweating, panting and rolling
• multiple causes
• can lead to surgery or death

Prevention
- regular parasite program b/c masses of worms can be impacted
- maintaining a regular feeding program
- avoiding sudden dietary changes
- providing water, salt at all times (keep homeostasis in bloodstream)

Question 23

laminitis

Answer 23

• inflammation of the laminae, often from consuming too many carbs
• founder displacement of the coffin bone in the hoof
• clinical signs: inflammation of lamina
  
  • tears away from outside of hoof capsule due to diet
• causes: main one is dietary changes, decreased glucose to the lamina, constricted blood flow, dystocia, or retained placenta, stress, infection, high temperature