Sep 27, 2016 | Cushings, PPID
While Dr. Lacher was off gallivanting at the Grand Canyon last week, I was helping Dr. Vurgason groom her horse for the Racehorse Reclaim benefit horse show. As we were brushing his coat to a glorious shine, what to my wondering eyes should appear but a clump of long hair! I couldn’t believe my eyes: Smokey was already beginning to grow his winter coat. “Is this normal?” I inquired to Dr. V. She replied that yes in fact, a horse’s winter coat begins to grow in response to hormonal changes within the brain. These hormones are triggered by changes in length of daylight.
You may have noticed your evening rides being cut short recently because it is getting dark by 8:00 already. Well, horses have noticed this too. The brain actually has a very intricate system of glands that produce hormones that stimulate other glands that produce other hormones that stimulate organs elsewhere in the body.
That long hair coat comes way too early for Florida. It makes for some hot horses. In particular, if your horse has heaves (asthma in horses), or is a non-sweater, this time of year is no fun. Unlike me, your horse likely can’t come in to the air conditioning to get out of the heat. This means it’s time to fire up the clippers and get rid of that hair. Sometimes that hair can be an indication of a problem.
Long hair at the wrong time of year can mean one of the glands in charge has gone AWOL. In horses, the pituitary gland is the most likely culprit. Nobody knows why, but many older horses will grow a tumor on their pituitary gland called an adenoma. This tumor applies pressure to the gland as it grows, and causes it to over-produce its hormones (namely, adrenocorticotropic hormone, or ACTH). This condition is known as Pituitary Pars Intermedia Dysfunction, or more affectionately, Cushing’s disease.
Cushing’s disease can lead to a whole slew of problems. For one, overproduction of ACTH can confound the whole winter-coat-growing system, so your horse winds up with long, curly hair in the hottest summer months. Failure to shed out completely or patches of long hair (not in the Fall) are often early signs of Cushing’s disease. Through mechanisms which are not completely understood, Cushing’s disease can cause lethargy, muscle loss, potbellied appearance, fat deposits, laminitis, and recurrent infections. Hmm, maybe I have Cushing’s disease…?
Luckily, our Docs have ways to determine if your horse’s long hair is from Cushing’s or if they are just getting ready for winter. First they draw some blood, then it goes on a trip to Cornell University where they test the ACTH levels. When I was a kitten, ACTH levels couldn’t be pulled in the Fall since the levels go up in the Fall and the humans didn’t know what was normal and what wasn’t. They have fixed that problem with some research. Now Fall is a great time to test since horses who are just beginning to show signs will have really high levels in the Fall. Also….Springhill Equine has a contest going on now where you can get your horse tested for FREE!!!! Free you say? Yep, FREE. Just click on this link to the
“Does my horse have PPID?” form, fill it out and Voila! You are entered. That’s easier than getting Beth to share her tuna fish sandwich with you.
Sep 6, 2016 | Disaster Preparedness, Events, Uncategorized
I’m going to start with a reminder to come visit with me on Thursday evening at 6:30pm. We have a limited number of Meet Tony opportunities, so don’t miss your chance. There will also be some talk on why horses need vaccines so often. I say it’s because they are a lesser evolved critter, but the humans say that’s not true. Oh and there will be good food. All in all a good time.
Moving on to Hurricane Hermine. I realize I have discussed hurricanes before but I felt you humans would be well primed for a refresher course given recent events. Let’s start with the basics: food, water, shelter. Did you have all of these after Hermine? Where there close calls? Walk in the feed room today and take stock of what you have. Don’t forget to check on medications. We were lucky this time; the phones never went down so our Docs were reachable, but it doesn’t always work that way. If your supplies levels are good, then you probably would have done OK if you are in the greater Gainesville area. Cedar Key and similar areas weren’t as fortunate. Determine if you are prepared for that level of destruction.
Did you have enough water for the horses? Being a cat, I was fine on water but a 5 gallon bucket will pretty much last me forever. Horses do love their water. We recommend 15 gallons per day per horse multiplied by how long you think power will be out. Planning for a week without power is the minimum we recommend. Of course, our amazing power companies normally do much better than that, but the bigger a storm, the longer it takes. In 2004 many people were out for over two weeks! Have a way to get water if power stays out. A generator to run the pump or tanks to haul water make the world a much happier place.
How did you fences do? Which brings up are your horses microchipped? We were pretty lucky at the Clinic, and the human houses to have intact fences for the most part. It’s easy to see how a tree can hit a fence line and free a horse though. And being horses they will run the least safe direction. Picking a pasture that, at the very least, directs them away from power lines or other dangers is a good start. Microchipping them so they can be identified when found is an even better step.
Take this opportunity to evaluate your disaster plan. Were the cats (ok and the horses) happy? I was about to strike over the no air conditioning thing. Do you feel you were ready for worse? Look at Hermine as Mother Nature’s little pop quiz. She just wants us to know what she can do. Kind of like us cats. Shameless plug here at the end: The humans have continued the microchip special for two more weeks. It’s ridiculously easy. The $43 price includes LIFETIME registration. Can’t beat that deal. Also since the weather was not completely disgusting today, horse show season must be upon us. We are offering 10% off Back-To-School, Back-To-Horse show lameness evaluations.
Aug 2, 2016 | Farriers, Hoof Care, Infections, White Line Disease
Tuesdays with Tony – White Line Disease
It seems there has been an awful lot of something called White Line around here lately. I decided if there was going to be a bunch of it, I was going to learn about it. As it happens, we had one of these horses come in to the Clinic to have his feet worked on, so I got first-hand experience.
This horse was seen by our Docs for a Wellness visit. Small shameless plug for our Wellness Program: It’s everything your horse needs for the year, it has built in discounts, there’s no emergency fee if you are on the Plan, there’s an awesome Kentucky Derby Party, and we take care of all the remembering of what needs to be done. I really don’t understand why everyone who has a horse isn’t on one of our Wellness Plans. Anyway, back to what we were talking about… While there, they examined him for a right front lameness. As with all lameness evaluations, the exam started at the foot. This guy had a whole flap of hoof wall that wasn’t attached! I have now learned this is a tell-tale sign that you’ve got White Line. Yes, I did purposefully make that rhyme. It’s called a Cat-ch Phrase!
I started my adventure by assisting with x-ray set up. I find there is no better resting place than atop a keyboard on a computer. Turns out the humans don’t like it much, but we compromised and I was allowed to observe from an adjacent table as long as I agreed not to touch the x-ray computer. They get sooo protective of their stuff. We started our work on this horse with an x-ray of the front feet. X-rays let our Docs and Shawn (the farrier) get an idea how much White Line Disease is present before they bring out the nippers, knives, and rasps. The x-ray also shows if there are any other problems going on, such as founder. I learned White Line can so compromise the structural integrity of the foot that founder starts. Scary stuff. I know from years of managing this Clinic that founder is very hard on horses. Turns out this guy had a little bit of a change to the bones in his leg and foot. The Docs and Shawn explained to me this wasn’t because of founder (looked the same to me) but was because this horse had something called a Club Foot.
The x-rays led to a lively discussion on the causes of White Line Disease. Apparently fungi and bacteria can be cultured from the nasty, chalky stuff that builds up under the loose hoof wall, but that’s not the heart of the problem. Physics is the real problem. The fungi and bacteria under there are just taking advantage of hoof wall that is being pulled away from the foot. Almost always, that hoof wall is being pulled away because the hoof has bad conformation or it has been trimmed/shod poorly. Usually the break-over is way too far in front of where it should be, which causes pull on the hoof wall with every step. That pull opens up tiny cracks where bugs can grow. The bugs then harm the hoof wall allowing it to open even more, which lets the bugs multiply. As you can see, it’s a vicious circle. Check here for more information on the physics of feet: http://springhillequine.com/part-1-everything-you-ever-want-to-know-about-your-horses-feet
What’s a cat to do? Let the air in and fix the physics. We’ll delegate the task out to fix the physics. I’m not one for physics. I lean more towards business management. Step one on White Line cases is to take off all that hoof wall that isn’t attached. The bugs hate fresh air. Take off the hoof wall, and they get more air than they can stand. Off to bacteria/fungi heaven they go. Next a shoe is put on that addresses any of those pesky physics problems.
Voila! The worst of it is done. At home the humans just have to make sure the foot stays clean. They can do this by hosing the foot off, brushing with a wire brush (gently), and the occasional squirt of hydrogen peroxide (not too often, that is some powerful stuff). The hardest part is time. The horse will now need time for the hoof to grow out and heal. Humans just don’t do patience well. I recommend a good nap in a sunny spot. It does wonders for my patience.
With all this talk about feet, I’m off to give myself a nice pedicure on the scratching post. I think I will follow that with some patience practice.
-Tony
Jul 26, 2016 | Competition Horses, Joint injections
Tuesdays with Tony – Joint Injections
This week I’m going to continue my foray into the athletic world. I figure once I’m on a roll, I may as well continue. This athletic thing is a fascinating topic I knew nothing about. Sleeping: now there’s a topic I am an expert on! Anyway, I have learned a ton watching Dr. Lacher and Dr. Vurgason work on these athletic horses. Lameness or poor performance seems to be a topic that comes up a lot. Personally, I think horses have not trained their humans well. No one talks about my “poor performance.”
Lameness appears to come in two categories as far as this cat can tell. There is the ‘trot them around and, yep, there it is on such and such leg’. Then there is the ‘my horse just isn’t doing right.’ This is also known as ADR (ain’t doin’ right). For the first kind the Docs perform nerve blocks to numb specific areas. Once the horse improves, they know the approximate area to look for the problem. Then they can pull out the x-rays and the ultrasounds to see what’s going on.
ADR lameness is more difficult. These will often require watching the horse perform under saddle. Sometimes, the lameness can only be seen when the horse is doing its job. I’m not sure what a job is, but it seems to involve work. A good video of the problem will often help the Docs out a lot. It seems some horses only have an issue if they are at something called a horse show. I have heard there is a similar problem with cars and mechanics.
All goes great, and the Docs are able to isolate a problem. Now what? Often the answer is an injection of an offending joint. What does that even mean? Never fear, I put my investigative hat on to find an answer. Turns out the answer is both simple and complicated all at the same time. There will be a serious nap after this blog. It has taxed my brain.
The simple part: a joint injection is injecting stuff into a joint. The complicated part: why and with what.
I assumed (you know what they say about assuming) that joints got injected because of arthritis. Turns out that is true in older horses. In younger horses, joints are injected to reduce inflammation from injuries and reduce soreness from training. It is very important to know why you are injecting a joint. If it is to help with an injury, then rest has to happen too. If it is soreness, it may be necessary to back down on the work for a few days. Arthritic horses can, and need to, go back to work as soon as possible. Why and what joint are very important for the future. Hocks can be injected for the competitive career of the horse. Every other joint that gets injected is at a cost to the long term health of that joint. Our Docs are always evaluating if that cost is worth it. For example, if the joint has inflammation that is harming the cartilage, then injecting it will cause less harm than leaving that inflammation in there.
Now for the what. Joints are usually injected with a combination of steroids, a lubricant, and some antibiotics. The steroid is chosen based on how much motion the joint does. For example, the fetlock does a whole lot of moving compared to the sacroiliac joint. Steroids are also chosen based on how friendly they are to cartilage, the lining of the joint, and any nearby important things like muscles. This means a different steroid is used in the stifle, than in the fetlock or the hock. The lubricant is almost always a high molecular weight hyaluronic acid. That is a fancy way of saying really gooey stuff. Sometimes the Docs will use Adequan, but that is reserved for the really bad joints. Last thing that goes in there is a bit of antibiotics. Joints do not handle bacteria well, so the antibiotics are there as a preventative. Our Docs are also super picky about scrubbing the area where the needle is going in to be sure it is really, really clean. Lastly, for those joints that are in really big trouble, our Docs go to what they call the “big guns.” These are called IRAP, PRP, and stem cells. They tell me these injections target the inflammation one step higher than steroids. They are pricey, but they do a very good job with minimal side effects.
Whew, that was a lot to say, and I only scratched the surface (pun intended). Joint injections are complicated and have a lot of factors involved. Want to know more? Ask away in the comments or check in with our Docs next time you see them. For now, I am off for a bite of food and a good nap. I haven’t had either for at least an hour.
Jun 21, 2016 | Athleticism, Farriers, Hoof Care, Lameness
This weekend I learned why I am best suited to my supervisory role here at the clinic. I monitored while Dr. Lacher worked closely with a farrier to determine the best treatment for a horse with a bunch of issues in her feet. I marveled at the way in which they worked as a team, batted around each other’s ideas, and came up with solutions that addressed all the issues. It was like watching TV in a foreign language. As a cat, I am not a team player. Heck, Teannie and I can barely get along. Turns out you need a team to manage your horse. High performance, senior, or just for fun. All horses seem to require a team. Not cats. We only require staff that will jump at our every request. I feel I have trained my minions well.
Anyway, Teamwork. Turns out teamwork is very important for performance horses. There is often a trainer, owner, veterinarian, and farrier at the very least. Trainers and owners need to feel comfortable talking to their veterinarian and farrier about how the horse is performing. It may be something as minor as a lift of the head in a transition one way, but not the other. Based on a trainer’s description of the problem, our Dr. Lacher will put her detective hat on and start investigating. Dr. Lacher uses her 30+ years of horse experience alongside her veterinary knowledge to help track down the source of pain. (We won’t tell her I talked about her 30+ years)
Treatment and rehab come next on the list. Again, teamwork is critical. I really don’t understand why there has to be all this teamwork. I would just impose my will; no questions allowed. Veterinarians today have a wide variety of therapies available. Joint injections with steroids are the most common treatment used. Problem is, those steroids come with some side effects. Hocks handle those side effects well, and can be repeatedly injected. However, every other joint doesn’t. Every steroid injection takes a little tiny bit off the end of a horse’s career. This means careful discussion with everyone involved to determine if injections will help the horse get better faster and cause less damage than the injury they have. Maybe some of the new, crazy advanced therapies like stem cells and platelet rich plasma should be used instead. Maybe rest and targeted exercises should be used. All of that has to be talked about and factored in. With all this talking, I’m going to need more nap time. And more food.
One of the biggest collaborations happens between our Docs and farriers. With the utterly ridiculous design horses have for feet, they need constant attention. Lots of horses need special shoeing to keep those feet comfortable or to help them heal from an injury. Our Docs use radiographs (x-rays) to help farriers line up their shoes perfectly. There is also a whole lot of discussion that goes on about what the Docs have found out from their exam and what the farriers think. There’s always tons of communication going on. I try to make sure I am nearby to assist with this process.
It can be a challenge to determine the best, right thing for these crazy horses sometimes. Making sure you have a winning team sure makes it easier. Until next week.
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