Summer has arrived. It’s been over 90 degrees, humidity has been up there, and it’s threatening to rain every day. As far as this cat is concerned, it’s summer. I spend my summers like I spend all my seasons: going from inside to outside and back again. I have to say the outside gets very hot this time of year. Especially in my prefered spot in the middle of the driveway. I like to watch the humans either wait for me to move (I won’t), or drive around me. This week I learned that what you eat can really affect how you handle all that hot weather. That doesn’t work so well for me since I’m on a strict diet for my diabetes. However, it can be really helpful to horses during the summer who can’t come in the air conditioned great indoors.

Hay is Hot

Horses are hind gut fermenters. This means they pass a lot of gas. Cats do NOT do this, and I find the shear volume of gas a horse is able to pass from their hind end to be unbelievable. That gas is the result of microbes breaking down the fiber from forages. Yes I know there are other sources, but hay is the biggie so let’s pretend it’s only hay. Besides gas, this process creates fatty acids which the body can use for nutrition, and heat, lots and lots of heat. You know what happens when you leave the wheelbarrow full overnight? It’s all steamy when you dump it the next day. Same thing in the equine GI tract. I hear you saying “Whoa Tony. I can’t just stop feeding hay.” I know, I know! What I’m saying is summer is the time to cut hay back if you’re feeding way over 1.5% of body weight. Remember, summer is good grass season, and grass counts as forage too! This means that even if you are feeding 1.5% of body weight, it’s likely your horse is getting way more than that if you’ve got decent pasture. The other big advantage of grass is the high water content. Lots of water is always a great answer for hot weather.

Finding the cool calories

Hay makes heat, but so do some other things in the equine diet. Chief amongst these things is starch. The cool thing to do these days is feed a low starch diet, but it’s not always necessary. If your horse needs quick energy to, let’s say, run a barrel pattern for example, you are going to need some starch. What happens if a body is using mostly starch for energy? It makes a whole lot of heat! Heat is a pretty significant byproduct of energy production from starches. Know what works better? Fat. Know what’s cheap and really calorie dense? Fat. Horses can digest any vegetable oil. Add some vegetable oil to your horse’s diet, and you can keep the calories, decrease the concentrates, and reduce the amount of heat they produce. Be sure you keep the diet balanced when you do this. Ration balancers are an easy way to manage this. If you’ve got questions, remember my Docs have answers!

Support the processes

Electrolytes are a key additive in the summer. If you’ve been reading my weekly wisdom drops for a while then you know I’m not big on supplements. However, salt is life. A good electrolyte is really important during sweating season. Horses can lose so much sodium, potassium, and chloride during the summer! One reason horses are the athletes they are, is their ability to sweat to keep cool. Support that with plenty of electrolytes. A good electrolyte should have sodium, potassium, and chloride as the top three ingredients. A little sugar is important too. I know that sounds weird, but a little sugar helps the gut absorb electrolytes.

It should go without saying, but I’m going to say it anyway. Plenty of water is necessary too. Sweating, and digesting, and just plain surviving the Florida summer requires plenty of water. Make sure your horse has lots of it. Ideally in a shaded location because who wants warm water on a hot day? Not this cat, and probably not your horse!

Mind the beach bod

Summer is the most common time for horses to gain weight thanks to all that grass, but it’s the worst time of year for them to have all that fat! Fat is an excellent insulator, trust me I know. However, during summer in Florida one doesn’t exactly need insulation. Keep an eye on that weight to make sure you aren’t making it even harder for your horse to cool down.

Ok so this isn’t nutrition related, but I feel like we should have a quick discussion about keeping your horse cool with other strategies. I love misting fans! Use them to help really cool your horse down. Speaking of misting, hosing your horse off before you ride will help cool them down. Hose them off quickly once you finish riding. Water is a great way to move heat out of your horse. You will see plenty of questionable articles this time of year about how you could darn near kill your horse by hosing them off. You can’t. What you can do is significantly reduce the time it takes to cool them off! If you want lots of science about this Google Dr. David Marlin and look at his really great work on cooling horses down. Spoiler alert: it involves a lot of water.

Summer is tough! Take if from a black cat who likes to lay around an asphalt driveway. Taking a moment to evaluate your horse’s nutrition can make summer a little easier. Need help? Call my Docs!

Until next week, 

~Tony

P.S. Now be a good human. Scroll down a little further to click the subscribe button. You get my blog a day earlier than everyone else, and you don’t have to rely on the questionable logic of Facebook to show it to you.

Everyone loves the pitter patter of little feet. Everyone but me, that is! In case you all missed it, this weekend on Saturday night, we welcomed a new life into the world here at the clinic, and let me tell you, it was a huge inconvenience to me. It interrupted my sleeping pattern and my minions didn’t even let me out to assist. It was like I didn’t even exist and all that mattered was the new baby, what the heck? In fact, come to think of it, all last week they spent more time staring at the mare than me. What gives? Needless to say, Monday morning, I had a chat with my staff about this oversight. During our chat, the docs explained why it was so important to watch mom so carefully and what all went into Saturday night. Instead of continuing to be bitter about the lack of attention I have been receiving, I have decided to share my newfound knowledge with you all.

 Foal Watch

 Early last week, the mare was dropped off at the clinic for what they call foal watch. I was very confused by this since there was a full-grown adult horse at the clinic, not a foal, so how was I supposed to watch the foal? My minions explained that foal watch is actually, watching the mare when she is getting close to having the foal. Still not 100% sure what all is involved in foal watch, I allowed the docs to explain further. They explained that during foal watch they monitor the mare’s behavior, her eating habits, changes to her body and any other differences to her normal routine.

 The mare’s gluteal muscles will become very soft when the she is close to foaling and her tail will also become more relaxed.  The docs explained that from the first night that the mare arrived, they monitored the stall cameras every hour for signs of labor. Twice a day, they would check her udder and milk development. Part of this involves checking the pH of her milk. Once her pH drops below 7, and more specifically 6.8, it’s go time, and the mare will likely foal in the next 24 hours.

 This is exactly what happened on Saturday. Saturday morning at her pH check, her milk was around 7.25 and by 5pm it had dropped to 7. That’s when my docs knew it was probably going to happen. I sure wish they would have warned me, so I could have taken some extra naps in preparation for a long night!

 Labor

 There are three stages to labor which apparently can last for many days prior to actually having a foal on the ground.  The first stage of labor is the longest, and it involves the positioning of the baby. This is when the mare may show signs similar to those of colic. She may go off her feed intermittently. Often times, the mare may be seen rolling, pawing and frequently kicking at her abdomen. Usually these signs will diminish, the mare will return to normal, and it will be very confusing to those who are waiting for the foal to come. 

 The second and third stages of labor should be relatively short. The second stage of labor starts when the mare’s water breaks and the foal is expelled. Abdominal contractions are visual followed by periods of rest. My docs explained that it is extremely important to monitor this stage of labor. This is when things can go very wrong, very quickly. The foal should be presenting front feet first, followed shortly by a nose. The foal should be expelled within 30 minutes, 45 minutes maximum. 

 If the foal does not present front feet and head first, or takes longer than 45 minutes to come out, it is considered an emergency and involves intervention from the docs. This incorrect positioning resulting in a difficult birth is called a dystocia, and dystocia can be life-threatening to the mare and foal.  Luckily, everything went smooth on Saturday and the foal was expelled within 30 minutes.

 The final stage of labor is the expulsion of the fetal membranes, or placenta. After the foal is born, the mare will continue to contract to facilitate the expulsion of the placenta. The placenta should be passed completely within 3 hours after the foal is expelled. Once again, it is considered an emergency and can be life threatening if the placenta is not passed or if a piece of it is retained.

 1-2-3 Rule

 After the foal was born, I was super excited that I was about to get some sleep again, but I couldn’t get the docs to leave. How inconsiderate of them! They said they had to stay and monitor the baby, and make sure that he was able to stand on his own, move around, and nurse. The rule is, after the baby is born it should be standing within an hour. After 2 hours, the baby should have nursed, it is essential that the baby nurse within this time so that it ingests colostrum and is protected against disease and infection. If the foal doesn’t nurse within 2 hours of birth, doctor intervention may be necessary. They may need to milk the colostrum from the mare and tube the foal or offer a bottle.

 As I previously mentioned, the placenta must be passed within 3 hours after birth, and is thus the 3 in the 1-2-3 rule.  I realize now why my docs were at my clinic for so long after the foal was born. They had to wait for the mare and foal to reach all these milestones before they felt comfortable leaving them for a few hours. 

 New Foal Exam

 Despite being present for hours over night Saturday night, they showed back up on Sunday.  And I thought, finally, I am going to get some attention, maybe some belly rubs or extra snacks.  Alas, I found myself disappointed. Yet again it was all about the baby.  Sure, he’s kind of cute, but I’m a pretty cute cat and could use a little attention as well. At least this time they let me out to explore the new baby.

 While I was out performing my “Cat” scan, Dr. Lacher was also performing her new foal exam.  She was checking him for any physical problems. She listened to his heart, lungs and gut sounds. She checked eyes, joints, mouth, and umbilicus. She also pulled blood to assess his IgG. The results of this blood test will tell us if the foal got enough colostrum. If the results of the test were low, it would mean the foal may need to have a plasma transfusion and/or be started on antibiotics.  Dr. Lacher finished her new foal exam with some scratches for the new baby, and FINALLY, I got my rubs and scratches. 

 Despite the lack of attention I received this past weekend, it was pretty neat to learn about all that goes into getting a healthy new foal on that ground. If you’re expecting a little one soon, or think you might want to expect one in the future, be sure to talk with my docs about your mare’s birthing plan and what to watch for when your new foal is due.

 Until next week,

~Tony

P.S. If you want to know more, my docs have several podcasts on this topic. You can find them here on the Podcast Page, or you can subscribe to Straight form the Horse Doctor’s Mouth wherever you get your podcasts.

A couple weeks ago I talked about flies from the how not to have them breeding around your farm perspective. It was a solid blog if I do say so myself, but I wanted to dive a little deeper into keeping those little *?@%ers off the poor horses. For one thing, you humans can only conquer so many of the bug breeding grounds. For another thing, there are some horses who really, really, really just don’t like bugs. Yep, I’m looking at you, super fancy warmblood recently flown on a plane here from Europe. Luckily, you humans have been super creative at ways to keep bugs off horses, and sprays are only the tip of the iceberg!

Fly Spray

Yes I know, I discussed these in the last fly blog. However, I have noted you humans aren’t great at remembering details so let’s discuss fly sprays again. First, they should be called fly wipes. That’s right, you’ve been doing it wrong for years. The very best way to apply a fly “spray” is to wipe it on. This can be done with a rag, a microfiber mitt, or even spray on a brush then brush it on. Wiping it on wastes less by putting the product where it needs to be, and not in a huge cloud around your horse, and it more effectively gets the product onto the hair. I expect to see everyone wiping fly sprays from now on. I have decreed it to be so.

Second, I talked about which ones worked best in a recent study. Here’s the study info if you want to look it up yourself: “Behavioral Inhibition of the House Fly (Diptera: Muscidae) When Exposed to Commercial Equine Fly Repellents,” Elizabeth V. Tuorinsky and Erika T. Machtinger, Journal of Economic Entomology, September 2019. TLDR version: EcoVet kicked booty, OutSmart was pretty darn good (side note: very similar to Bye Bye Flies from the Fly Predator people), and Equiderma’s fly spray wasn’t too shabby either. No matter what, fly wipes are an assist but shouldn’t be the cornerstone of your no-flies-on-me plan.

The Fly Mask

Take note of the following: every horse should have a fly mask! That’s right. Every. Single. Horse. There is no more important piece of how to avoid seeing my Docs for eye issues piece of equipment than a fly mask. They also, for the purposes of this week’s blog, keep the flies off the eyes, and as noted above we are discussing keeping flies off horses. There are approximately 8.3 million different kinds of fly masks. Surely there’s a kind your horse will wear out there somewhere. Find it. Get it. Make your horse wear it. Gnats around eyes lead to itchy eyes, which leads to horse finding pointy thing to itch eye on, which leads to Sunday evening call for one of my Docs to stitch eyelid back on. Get a fly mask. We are partial to Nag Horse Ranch fly masks around here. They do a great job blocking UV rays as well as keeping the bugs out, and they can custom make a mask if your horse has a weird head size.

The Fly Sheet

If you have one of those super sensitive souls who just can’t handle the thought of a fly touching them, fly sheets are a great option. More importantly, fly sheets are a lifesaver to the horse who is allergic to gnats. As a cat with allergies, I genuinely feel for these horses! Being itchy just plain sucks. Fly sheets come in slightly fewer options than fly masks. We’re down around the 1.7 million different varieties number. The biggest downside to this: it’s way more expensive to experiment with fly sheets than fly masks. Allow me to give you some Tony words of wisdom on fly sheets.

Note on fly sheets: always go for either the neck cover or the head-to-toe coverage variety. You really want to cover your entire horse. For long-term turnout, I like the Schneider’s mosquito mesh variety of fly sheet. It’s very light and airy, but does a pretty decent job keeping the buggers OFF! The mosquito mesh sheet is the coolest of the many I’ve tested. It also provides head-to-tail coverage when you add the generously-cut neck cover.

Next up on my list of likes are the Rambo Fly Sheets. I have found the softer versions are warmer in the lovely Florida summers. These fly sheets don’t go high enough on the neck for my cultivated feline tastes. Also, that upper neck area is particularly prone to gnat itchies.

If you are looking for what is likely the best gnat allergy fly sheet on the planet, I recommend the Boett sheet. It covers as much of a horse as possible while still being tough enough for turnout. It isn’t cheap, but it is well worth the cost. I also recommend checking out used tack sales for fly sheets when starting the process. This will allow you to try different kinds to give you an idea about what works and doesn’t work for your horse at less than full retail pricing.

Pour-on Fly Repellent

For the horse that won’t tolerate any of the above options, or for the owner who is looking for more economical alternatives for a herd, I bring you the pour-on fly repellent (also works well for ticks). There are many, many varieties of these. Some are marketed to horse owners in particular; many are marketed as cattle pour-ons. I personally find the cattle ones are more economical, come in a big container, and allow the use of small or big amounts as needed. Who doesn’t want the more economical thing when it comes to horses??

Many of the cattle versions are too harsh for the delicate equine skin. We have found that Ultra Boss does the best at lasting, while not burning the skin. I do recommend starting with a very small amount in one location, and monitoring your horse for 24-48 hours to see how they do before going all out. When you do go all out, pour a stripe down the back from ears to tail, then a small amount down each of the four legs. Add a drop or two to the backs of each ear to keep those nasty gnats away. If it doesn’t rain (ha! We do live in Florida) Ultra Boss will repel gnats for a good 7-10 days.

One final repellent tip: spraying fly masks and sheets with a made-for-fabric repellent will boost the fly-blocking abilities of these horse clothes to superhero levels. Re-application is necessary every 2-3 weeks in the fun Florida summers.

Bugs and Florida go hand in hand. Find the system that works best for you and your horse so that both of you can enjoy life more!

Until next week,

~Tony

P.S. Looking for more information on fly control? The humans did a great podcast on just this subject. Be sure to take a listen here.

Skin Funk

 This week I want to talk to you about something very near to me.  Definitely not near and dear to my heart, just something that drives this cat crazy a large portion of the year, and from what I understand, drives my docs and you horse owners just ask crazy: skin funk. I unfortunately suffer from seasonal allergies, and boy, when my allergies are kicking, is my skin just a mess!  It’s itchy and sore and I get these little red bumps and scabs all over me. It is utterly miserable. Horses also get the skin funk, as you all know. Living in Florida where it is hot and humid almost year-round, we deal with skin issues all the time.

 “Fungus”

 If you haven’t had the pleasure of dealing with rain rot, well then, I know a lot of people who are very jealous of you and your horse. Florida is the perfect breeding grounds for rain rot, or as you all like to call it, fungus. You know that nasty crud that hangs out on the front of your horse’s cannon bones, or those crusty scabs that just peel off your horse’s back along with clumps of their hair? I know you know it; I get questions about it all the time.

Let’s first debunk the myth that rain rot is a fungus. Surprise, surprise, it is not, so all those anti-fungal shampoos and home remedies you have for rain rot and fungus are just super fancy treatments that may or may not help. Rain rot is actually a bacterial infection of the skin caused by dermatophilus bacteria. Your horse’s coat naturally has dermatophilus bacteria that live on it without harming your horse’s skin. However, when humidity mixes with warm weather and slows the drying of your horse’s coat, the bacteria multiplies, resulting in rain rot.

Rain rot is very contagious. If you have a horse in your barn that has some of this skin funk, I highly recommend keeping all of their grooming supplies separate. I don’t like to share anything with other cats, heck, I barely tolerate Teenie Cat. Take it from me, sharing is not caring. I know what you’re thinking, “but my anti-fungal shampoos work so well!” This is because most of those treatments also have anti-bacterial properties which help to control the spread of bacteria.

You’re probably wondering about the best way to treat dermatophilus. There is not just one right answer, but what I do recommend is bathing. Ask my docs about the best shampoo to use for your situation and if there are any other topical treatments to use. Remember, rain rot can be painful, so be gentle during treatments. I also recommend drying your horse’s coat before putting them in their stall. You can use towels or fans to help with the drying processes. Finally, body clipping can help tremendously. It’s hot and the humidity is ramping up, and if your horse hasn’t shed his coat yet, you are asking for a rain rot problem.  Getting your horse body clipped helps them dry faster and reduces the risk of rain rot.

 Summer Sores

 The dreaded summer sore. Those pesky flies and their stupid little mouths and stupid little feet that carry stomach worm larva are to blame for summer sores. I like to think I do my part on controlling the fly population by hunting flies for about 3 minutes a day. Flies land on injured skin, mucous membranes, or other moist areas on your horse and deposit the larva. Since the flies leave the larva in abnormal places, it cannot develop into an adult and results in an inflammatory reaction and results in an ulcerated, red, itchy sore characterized by hard yellow granules that are present within the sore. Summer sores can be a giant pain in this cat’s rear end and once a farm has one horse with summer sores, they are likely to have many other horses infected. Unlike dermatophilus, summer sores are not passed from horse to horse by means of grooming equipment. However, one horse can produce the stomach worm larva and flies can land on any horse at any time.

Preventing summer sores is a multi-step process. The first step is to control the fly population. If you haven’t read my blogs on flies, I recommend you do so now. If you notice a lesion on your horse that you suspect is a summer sore, the first thing you are going to do is call me, and I’ll get you in touch with my docs. You can even use Medici, our telemedicine app, to show them the sore and keep up with social distancing. My docs will assess the sore. Occasionally, they may suggest a biopsy of the lesion to confirm that it is a summer sore or determine if it is something such as a squamous cell carcinoma.

Typical treatment for a summer sore includes deworming on a specific schedule laid out by my docs, antibiotics, and steroids. My docs will assess your horse’s wound and determine the best treatment, so if you are concerned about a lesion on your horse, call the clinic today.

 Gnat Allergies

 Horses are just so sensitive! You would think for an animal that is meant to live outdoors they would be better equipped to deal with the bugs. Apparently, however, they find gnats just as annoying as I do. Those suckers are a lot more difficult to catch than flies are. They also cause a heck of a lot of problems for your horses.

Commonly known as sweet itch, gnats bite your horse, deposit their saliva, and your horse has an allergic reaction. This results in your horse itching and rubbing to the point that they rub their mane and tail off, rub their ears raw, and scratch until they have open sores on their abdomen, leaving them prone to summer sores.

Unfortunately, gnats are a lot more difficult to eliminate than flies are. However, it is possible to provide protection from gnats. Ask my docs which salves and sprays can help to keep the gnats off your horse. Fly sheets can also help protect your horse from gnats. However, there is no treatment that is 100% effective. Sometimes, my docs will elect to put your horse on an antihistamine that will help decrease the severity of the allergic reaction your horse has to the gnat saliva. I take a medication call Apoquel for my allergies, let me tell you, it works wonders and helps keep my skin and coat silky smooth. Apoquel is also available for horses and works fantastically to treat sweet itch. If you have questions about treating your horse’s sweet itch, call me and I’ll get your horse on the schedule for my docs to come evaluate and determine the best course of treatment.

By no means have I discussed all the skin problems your horse can have. However, if you have a question or concern about your horse’s skin, call me! And tune in to our Facebook Live Seminar this month for more information about treating your horse’s skin funk. I will be monitoring the feed for questions so be sure to tune in and ask all those burning questions you have about skin.

Until next week,

~Tony

P.S. If you want to know more, check out my YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/user/SpringhillEquineVet/videos. There are videos of past seminars on both skin funk and summer sores, as well as a lot of other great free information, and Yours Truly makes a cameo appearance in many of them. 

I spend a good portion of my days laying around on the front porch. From there, I have an excellent view of a whole lot of lameness exams since most of them happen on the asphalt in front of me. There is often a discussion about injections, and arthritis. I’ve talked about injections, but I realized during a recent stroll through my vast library, that I haven’t touched on arthritis. Allow me to correct my oversight. This week let’s talk all things arthritis.

Where does it come from?

One doesn’t generally think of arthritis when they think of the younger crowd. As a kitten I certainly didn’t have it. Foals aren’t born with it, so where does it come from? Let me be the first to assure you it doesn’t magically appear, or disappear. You earn your arthritis. Even me, who spends a large portion of my life avoiding athletic activity, has earned some arthritis. I blame most of mine on Teenie. And before you talk to her about the “incident,” I never said what she said I said, and her actions were a bit extreme in my not so humble opinion. Anyway, the incident and arthritis. Many years ago I was walking down the hallway minding my own business, not mentioning anything to Teenie about her only having one eye, when she suddenly, for absolutely no reason, bit my hind leg. She bit me so hard that she broke one of my foot bones! Once again, I deny anything she said about what I may or may not have said. Back to arthritis. This injury caused me to wear a splint on my left hind foot for about 6 weeks. Wearing a splint led to an alteration in the way I walked. Once the splint came off, my left leg was weaker, which meant I put more weight on my right front. I was given exercises to do once the splint came off, but I really felt these were stupid, and went with laying on the porch instead. In retrospect, the humans may have been correct here. Don’t tell them I said that!!! Those exercises were important……

Tiny injuries change everything!

When an injury, even a tiny one, happens you change the way you carry your body. When you change the way you carry your body, you overload certain areas. When you overload those areas, the body tries to compensate. That compensation is bone being laid down on the edges of joints to try to take the joint to the area of increased load. It also is bone creeping into joint capsules and ligaments to try to strengthen those connections. This plan doesn’t work out well, but I’ve tried explaining it to Mother Nature and she has no interest in listening. What does all this mean? Working to keep your horse moving correctly and symmetrically is really, really important to help them avoid arthritis. Way more important than any joint supplement, Adequan shot, or joint injection. Turns out those dressage trainers are right! Definitely don’t tell them I said that!!!

Symmetry

Think about all the things we do Every.Single.Day to make horses asymmetrical. With rare exception, I have only seen humans leading horses from the left side around here. Watch a horse being led. They turn their head ever so slightly towards the human, they shift their hindquarters to the opposite side, and they bend slightly around the left side. What does that do? Overloads the left front and hind a little tiny bit, teaches them to travel with that arc in their body, and leaves their right side floating in the breeze. You bet your sweet bippee that translates to work under saddle. Do you ride one direction first every time? Do you work more to one direction than the other? Should you?

What does it all mean?

It means you need to talk with my Docs about your horse’s symmetry, that’s what it means. Even without my Docs (really don’t tell them I said that!) there are great tools out there. You humans all carry one of these smartphones around. In fact, I’m pretty sure it’s required that you 1. Have one, 2. Look at it at least every 5 minutes. Sorry, side tracked. There are tons of apps you can download on those smartphones that will track what you do when you ride. There’s even some pretty cool gadgets that attach to your girth that will also track all kinds of other stuff about how your horse moves, but just knowing how much time you spend going left vs. right is a great starting point! Watch your horse move around the pasture, or in the stall. Do they have a favorite direction to bend on their own? Do you feel them stronger going one way than the other? By stronger, I don’t mean pulling on the bridle or running, I mean able to hold their shape, speed, and stride better one direction than the other. Think about all these things as you’re riding (or driving) around. Then start to look for ways to adjust.

Simple exercises

There are loads of simple ways to help your horse get more symmetrical. One is a good trainer to point out all the ways you are likely contributing. Two is good stretching after every ride. Three is being aware that maybe you do need to work that weaker side more than the stronger one! There are also some super simple exercises my Docs can show you next time they’re out for a visit. Heck they can even show them to you over their new Telemedicine App, Medici. These exercises are better demonstrated by them than explained by a cat who isn’t all that fond of important details.

Now is a great time to work on basics. Turns out they really are important!

Until Next week,

~Tony

P.S. Wanting to know more about arthritis, or supplements & injections? The humans have a totally cool podcast where you can gain tons of useful knowledge. Click here to learn a little (ok, a lot) of useful knowledge.

The Flies Have It

Hope you all are staying healthy out there. It is certainly an odd situation we are all in. It really is starting to become a bit more of the norm around here. We are all split into teams and everyone is adjusting well, as are all of you. I must take the time to give you all some major recognition and thank you for being understanding and accommodating to this new way of life. Really, my life hasn’t changed much, I still get my minions to open and close the door to let me in and then out and then back in again about 500 times a day. I still find time for lengthy naps in the sun, and of course I find time to eat. But enough about me and my life (well not really, it is always all about me) but let’s talk about this week’s topic, Fly Control. Every year about this time the flies really start to drive us crazy. The weather is warm, there’s moisture in the air, and the breeding grounds for flies are abundant. So, before your farm is swarming with flies, let’s talk about what you can do to control them.

 Breeding Grounds

Perhaps the most important step in fly control is to eliminate their breeding spots. Flies love warm, moist areas like wash racks, manure bins, or anywhere that water and feed or bedding material accumulate. Avoid having standing water around your barn and be sure to rake up any hay or bedding that may find itself at the end of your barn aisle.

Let’s talk poop. We all know horses poop, A LOT! I hear you guys complain about your horse’s poop all the time. Some even go on to say, “I wish my horse would just stop pooping so much”. But then you all panic and freak out and call my docs when your horse doesn’t poop. So, which is it? To poop or not to poop, that is the question. Please make up your minds, it gets confusing for this old cat to follow.

Assuming you want your horse too keep pooping, you have to decide what to do with their manure. Well, there are many different options and some are better than others for fly control.  You can spread the manure and wet bedding, however, if you do, be sure to spread it far from your barn, because I can guarantee the flies will find it and they will love it for laying their eggs. Larva will be happy little campers in the manure you spread. You can compost the manure, when you compost you make the waste so hot, no fly larva would survive. You can have you manure taken off your property by professionals. This may be the best option, however most manure haulers will only pick up a certain number of times a month. What that means is, you will have manure piles sitting around on your property making the flies very happy. If you chose to have your manure hauled away, I recommend that you cover the manure pile with a tarp to trap in the heat. Remember, flies don’t like extreme heat. What you do with your manure is up to you, but be prepared that no matter what you do, there will be some management involved in preventing soiled bedding from becoming the flies most sought after place.

 Fly Spray

I never knew there were so many fly spray options. There are all-natural sprays, there are concentrated sprays, oil based, water based, wipe on, spray on, the list goes on and on. How does one even know where to begin on picking out the best spray for your horse? My answer is always, research. Which sprays have research behind them, and which sprays have been proven to work in a research setting?  My docs have taught me a thing or two about the importance of making sure a product or treatment has research that supports it.

When it comes to fly spray, there have been numerous studies done. One such study looked at several products. They put the flies on one side of a container, something really smelly and nasty on the other side, and fly spray in the middle.  Two products out-shined all the others: SmartPak’s Out Smart and EcoVet. My docs like to keep the Out Smart on their trucks. It has a nice minty fresh smell to it that is not horribly offensive. I’ve been unfortunate enough to be around when Ecovet has been sprayed and let me tell you, that is one interesting smell. The nice part of Ecovet is it is made of all amino acids and it works. I’ve heard through the grape vine however, that Ecovet has improved their product and has hopefully made the smell slightly less offensive. Either way, whichever product you chose, be certain to read the label and use as instructed. Similarly, use caution when trying a new product on your horse. Some horses are more sensitive than others and some ingredients may cause reactions.

 Fly Predators

These tiny little bugs are my favorite bugs for fly control. They come in a prepackaged baggy with their own bedding. Once they hatch, you put them out around your barn where the flies like to accumulate and breed.  These clever little bugs take over the fly’s cocoon, killing the immature flies. Fly predators are safe, safe, safe. There are no toxins and they will not become pests. All they do is get rid of bigger pests: flies. You can get an order once a month and sprinkle them around areas where organic material accumulates. It is better to start the fly predators before the warmer months, but it is never too late to start them, either. One important point: they only travel 3 to 5 feet. Make sure you have enough to cover the area you are treating.

 Feed-Through Fly Control

Yes! We get to talk about food! If ever there was a poster child for “Will Work for Food” it is this guy right here. Sadly, we aren’t going to talk about cat food right now, but we are going to talk about feed-through fly control for your horse.  Does it work? That is always the question I get from people, and the answer is yes, absolutely, if it is used correctly. The feed-through fly controls must be used appropriately in order to be effective. This means that every single horse in the barn must have the product added to their feed. When the horses eat the product, it is passed through to their manure, and breaks the lifecycle of the fly at its larval stage and prevents maturation of adult flies. Feed-through fly controls should be started prior to the weather warming up. However, they can be started at any time, just be patient as it can take 4-6 weeks to see the effects the feed-through fly control has on the fly population.

Flies can be a pest, they can spread disease and cause the dreaded summer sores. But they don’t have to.  It will take some work and patience on your part, but your barn can be relatively fly free. And let’s face it, now is a great time to get to work on improving your barn and reducing your fly population. What else are you going to do while on quarantine?

Until next week,

~Tony

P.S. If you really want to go to the next level with your fly control knowledge, my docs have a couple of podcasts on this topic. Check them out on our Podcast Page or subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.

I have heard from many of my cat brethren that their humans are still around ALL. THE. TIME. I told them this won’t be forever, and they should try their best to be patient and understanding. These are not cats’ finest qualities, so please know we are trying, but may not succeed in always being good caretakers of you humans. This does lead me down the winding road to today’s topic: What to do with your horse right now. While there aren’t any horse shows, or organized gatherings, trail rides can be tough with trail heads closed, and clinics are off the table, there are loads of things you can do to use this time wisely. Let’s talk fitness. A topic I absolutely despise.

All about that Base

That’s right, I know my recent Top 40 hits. When it comes to fitness, the base is incredibly important. And, yes, in some ways I do mean the butt, but I also mean a general level of fitness. To see where your horse is at, start with a fitness test. I would fail this one. Heck I wouldn’t even start this test. You can do this by yourself, but a helper makes it easier. Establish your horse’s resting heart rate. This is good to know on about a million different levels. To get your horse’s resting heart rate, check it a few times while they are doing nothing to do with anything. I like to get it while they’re standing around the stall, or pasture. Check it on a few different days to be sure you’ve got consistency. The number should be between 28 and 48. If the heart rate is higher than that it can indicate pain, or, more commonly in this scenario, fear of some imaginary monster in the woods. Give it 10 minutes to see if it goes back down.

Now that you’ve established base heart rate, go do something. Horses, being the athletes they are, can increase their heart rates very quickly, and quite significantly. We cats can do the same, we just prefer not to demonstrate. The heart rate should go the 150-160 bpm range while you are working. When you stop, it should drop to 60-70 bpm within about two minutes.

These two numbers tell you that you are working your horse in an appropriate range to put base fitness on them. This is often called long, slow distance by the endurance riders. Can I just say, 100 miles on a horse in one day???? That’s crazy. Anyway. This is where all horses should start, and many horses can stay. You will find that as you add distance or intensity to your exercises, it may take longer for your horse’s heart rate to come back down. That’s normal! However, your horse should get fitter every week, and get back into the happy heart beat range. If not, you know what to do: call my Docs!

What if I want more?

Base fitness is great, but doesn’t do much for any of the sports that require bursts of speed or power. For those, we have to get into interval training. Interval training pushes heart rates up for a short period of time, then slows things down, then picks them back up. For interval training you want your horse’s heart rate above 165 bpm. How long? So glad you asked. I am going to give the most cat of answers: it depends.

It depends because it depends on what you do with your horse. If possible, you want your interval to be twice as long as your maximal effort in the sport you do. Sometimes that’s hard to define because you humans do a lot of different things with your horses, but let’s start with an easy one: barrel racing. In a barrel race, you run flat out for, let’s say 18 seconds. That seems like a really long time to me. Anyway, in the alley way, around the barrels, and out again 18 seconds, maybe a bit more. This means you would ideally like to get your horse to go maximal effort for 36 seconds. In a perfect world, you would also repeat this three times in fairly quick succession. You’re likely beginning to see why cats aren’t big into fitness. I might run 18 seconds flat out for food, but never more than once, and certainly not twice that, three times in a row. Again, anyway, you don’t start at 36 seconds. More likely, start at 15-20 and be sure your horse can get their heart rate back down in two to three minutes. Once you’ve got that going, you can increase time, and add repetitions.

For the horse sports that require less defined times of maximal effort it gets a little trickier. For instance, reined cow horse. You will need bursts of maximal effort, but they aren’t sustained. Here you want to get an idea for how many of those you have during a run. Let’s say you need 10-15 seconds of running a cow down the wall, and you do that 4-5 times. Incorporate some short 20-30 second bursts in your base fitness program, check heart rates, and make sure your horse can handle it.

Footwork and Stretching

You know those cool movie scenes where the football players are running drills through tires? You should do those with your horse as well. OK not tires, but the footwork part. No matter what you do with your horse, poles will help. This is where the internet excels. You can find approximately 1.3 million pole exercise videos on YouTube, and another bajillion on Facebook. This can also be as easy as throwing some fence posts on the ground in random distances and asking your horse to walk and trot over them. It doesn’t have to get fancy. Taking your horse through poles at even the walk will help them develop timing and coordination. Add speed, and it helps strength as well. It’s no cat exaggeration to say that every horse can benefit from poles on the ground.

Take it from a cat, stretching does a body good. When you get done with all that fitness work, get a good stretching session in there. Every horse can benefit from side to side, and nose down stretches. For more specific stretches for your horse, you know what to do: call my Docs. A few quick stretching tips: how long the stretch is held isn’t as important as the action itself, they should be repeated 3-5 times per stretch, and only ask for a fraction of an inch past your horse’s comfort zone. For the side-to-side stretches, I recommend you stand with your back to your horse’s hip, extend your arm, and ask them to touch your outstretched hand. The goal is to arc the entire spine. If they reach their nose back to the hip directly, only the neck really bends. My way (let’s be honest, it’s always the right way) arcs the entire spine.

I know some of you humans are bored right now, and we animals are trying our best to keep you entertained. It’s a great time to get some of the basics done, and fitness is good for every horse, but not cat. Don’t work on cat fitness. Never work on cat fitness. Use this time wisely, and you will be ready to get back to the arena, or trail, or whatever you want when your pets finally let you off stall rest. Ha!!!

Until next week,

~Tony

P.S. Still looking for things to do while staying home? Check out our YouTube page for some great vidoes and previous seminars. Speaking of seminars, we have a Virtual Seminar on Facebook Live, this Thursday, April 16th at 6:30PM.

If you have been following the Springhill Equine Facebook page, and I know you have, you have probably seen the post about a couple of horses who took the opportunity this weekend to injure themselves.  For some reason I think horses are feeling a bit restless with all this stay at home, self-quarantine, social distancing stuff. I have heard about several horses who have wounded themselves in one way or another since the start of all of this.  I guess they must be experiencing stable fever. Don’t worry, you all will be back on the trails, headed to shows, and barrel races soon. In the meantime, let’s talk about what to do when your horse is the one experiencing stable fever and finds a way to injure himself.

So, you’ve been inside all day watching Netflix and you finally decide to spend some time outside with your horse only to find your horse has an open wound on his leg, or neck, or face, or really, just about anywhere.  Oh, no! Now what do you do? Well, I know you all have downloaded the Medici App already, so you grab your phone and get ahold of one of my docs through Medici.  They will look at the wound and determine if it needs to be seen.

Initial Treatment

My docs will probably tell you to go ahead and start running cold water over the wound. Remember, dilution is the solution to pollution. They will instruct you not to go exploring the wound. Vital structures may lay just below the surface and any type of probing may disrupt those structures leading to a life-threatening emergency for your horse. Depending on the injury, they may recommend moving your horse to his stall or a clean environment. However, sometimes it is best to not move your horse at all until my docs can assess the situation. This is why we love using telemedicine with Medici! My docs can really see the problem at hand in real time and get you the best advice for your horse before they even get there.

If it’s possible, my docs may recommend getting your horse a dose of bute or banamine to help with any swelling that is inevitably going to occur. Now that you have performed the critical steps in your horse’s wound care, sit tight and wait for the doc to arrive. I have heard this is the hardest part of all. I have no trouble sitting around all day waiting for dinner, so I am not sure what is so hard.

The Exam

Now that my doc has arrived, they will assess the situation.  The first thing they will do is ensure that your horse is safe. They ask themselves several questions, including how much blood has been lost, is the horse in shock, how long ago does it appear the injury has happened, are there any other injuries that need to be addressed, etc.

From here, they will likely sedate your horse. An injured horse is unpredictable, and sedation is best and safest for all involved.  While your horse is getting sleepy, they will gather supplies. Scrub, clippers, syringes, needles, medications, surgical instruments, suture and drains. Your horse is going to have a funny haircut for a few weeks as they heal, since my docs are going to clip an area surrounding the wound. This allows them to clean the affect area better and to visualize any hidden cuts/scrapes that may need addressed.

Once your horse has his new -do, they will scrub the area thoroughly to make sure there are not contaminants. Next comes the blocking of the skin. They will use lidocaine so your horse cannot feel the area while they manipulate it and get an idea of the extent of injuries. They will assess nerve and blood vessel damage as well as muscle, tendon and ligament damage. Next comes suturing. Any excess tissue that will prevent proper healing is removed. Oftentimes, several layers of suture are required to put a wound back together. Occasionally, if there is a lot of open space under the skin, a drain may be placed. Drains help to prevent fluid from accumulating and developing an infection. Once the skin is sutured closed, they will clean up the affected area and apply topical ointment to the wound.

Doctor’s Orders

When my docs are finished putting your horse back together, they will leave you with very specific instructions on how to manage your horse’s wound. They will go back to what we said in the beginning: dilution is the solution to pollution. You and your horse are going to be spending some quality time together with the water hose. This shouldn’t be a problem for you since you’re stuck at home anyway. Ten to twenty minutes of cold hosing twice a day doesn’t seem like much, but when you’re having to put your Netflix on pause, you may change your mind.

This is going to be the best therapy for your horse. Not only will cold hosing keep the wound clean, it will decrease inflammation and swelling. Hope you stocked up on antibacterial hand soap, because you’re going to need it.  Once a day you are going to have to wash the affected area with a mild soap. After the wound is clean and dry, apply a triple antibiotic ointment such as Neosporin to the wound. I am a big fan of Kinetic Vet, IBH salve for these kind of things. For one, it keeps the bugs off, 2, it has antiseptic properties, and 3, it just smells really yummy.

Depending on the location of the wound, where your horse lives, and how dirty the wound was to start, doc may start your horse on antibiotics. However, antibiotics are not always required and can sometimes be detrimental to your horse’s wellbeing. For the first few days post-injury, you can bet on administering some kind of anti-inflammatory medication to your horse. This will help will swelling and keep your horse more comfortable during the healing process.

Finally, and probably the most important part of your horse’s recovery, is you. Doc will instruct you to monitor the wound for any heat, redness, or discharge. If you notice any of these signs, call my clinic immediately and they will get you in touch with one the docs. You can also go through the Medici App to get the docs directly. Sutures come out in 14 – 21 days and then its smooth sailing from there.

Seeing your horse hurt is never easy and always scary.  Wounds take time to heal and can be frustrating at times, but just remember, we are only a phone call away and are always happy to help answer any questions you may have.

Until next week, stay safe, keep your distance, and go hug your horse!

~Tony

P.S. I have heard the humans talking about our Facebook Live seminar this month on Thursday, April 16th and they are talking about prizes? Be sure to keep an eye on our facebook page for that. Until then, looking for more great horse information? Don’t forget about our podcast. Click here to listen.

What Your Horse Does All Day

I’ve heard from the cat version of the dark web that some of you are suddenly home way, way too much during the day. I hear some virus is responsible. Let me tell you, the cats aren’t happy about it, and we’d like things to go back the way they were very soon. Those of you at home have also been watching your horses a lot more. You’re noticing things you’ve never noticed before. This week I’m going to help you determine if those behaviors you’re suddenly aware of after watching your horse for 8 hours while pretending to work from home are worth a call to one of my Docs, or if it’s no big deal.

Sleeping

I’m going to let you in on a little secret: us pets, small and large, spend a large portion of our time sleeping. In the wild, your horse would have to spend a large portion of the day trying to eat enough crappy, tough, dry grass to meet their nutritional needs. You have given them at least two square meals daily of delectable, nutritious concentrates, along with plenty of hay. While that hay is dried grass, it is of delicious varieties which were specially cultivated, and fertilized to provide optimum nutrition to the equine athlete. All that means your horse can spend most of the day sleeping under the thoughtfully provided fans, in their comfy stall, or in that perfect wallow they’ve made in the sandy area.
By now you’ve spent several days, at the very least, watching your horse’s patterns. As long as nap time happens around the same time every day, and involves snoozing either in sternal (the fancy word for sitting-up sleeping), or lateral (the fancy word for laying flat out) recumbency (the fancy word for laying down), then things are good. You may continue to “work” from home.
You will also notice normal nap time involves sleeping, then waking up, then moving on about one’s day. This is true for cats as well. If your horse is getting up, laying back down, getting up, laying down, and never truly sleeping, or getting on about their other daily chores, then it’s definitely time to call my Docs. Even better, send a video of the behavior to them via Medici. See last week’s blog if you have no idea what I’m talking about when I say Medici.
Repeated rolling, without a good shake upon standing, is also a reason to call the Docs. As is laying around at inappropriate times and locations. You may have noticed your horse is particular not only about what time naps occur, but also where. Changes to these behaviors are often early signs of colic. Definitely a reason to call the Docs!!

Standing around

Since you humans have provided all a horse could want, you may also notice them standing around an awful lot of the time. Much like napping, this often has a prefered location, especially if your horse is in a stall. While pretending to attend that Zoom meeting, you may be watching the camera on your horse. Take this opportunity to really notice how they stand around. Horses just hanging out will generally have one hind foot resting, with the opposite front foot popped forward a little bit. This keeps them stable, but allows that hind leg to really rest. Most horses will have a preferred hind resting leg, but will also switch legs periodically. There’s no hard and fast number here, but if your horse is constantly (think every few minutes) switching up the resting hind leg, there’s a good chance they have some level of lameness or soreness going on somewhere from the low back to the hind feet. If the opposite front foot is pushed more than about 6” in front of the other front foot, there’s a very good possibility that foot hurts.
Other clues to look for that can indicate pain, are resting against a wall, and piling footing underneath their feet. Horses will rest an entire side against a wall, or push their hips into a wall to help hold themselves up. A huge indicator of painful feet is stacked bedding underneath a portion of the foot. The most common way my Docs see this is pushing bedding into a hill that the horse then props their heels up on. By doing this, your horse has created their very own wedge shoe!

Eating, Drinking, Pooping, Peeing

These are the first four questions I often hear when my Docs are evaluating sick horses. Are they eating normally? Drinking the same amount? More? Less? Pooping as usual? And how’s that urine? Same color? Opacity? Quantity? These seemingly simple questions are huge clues about your horse’s basic well being. Now is the time to get a really good handle on how your horse normally goes about these normal daily tasks. Is the hay all scarfed down quickly? Or is your horse more of a savor-every-morsel kinda guy? How about drinking? A few visits to the water trough for a deep drink? Or more of a drive by sipper every time a cloud passes the sun? Get a handle on the details of the Big Four Questions, and you will be able to spot health concerns for your horse way, way before they become a big problem.

Many of you humans are looking at this stay-at-home thing all wrong. It’s not isolation, it’s a chance to understand a day in the life of your animals on an unprecedented level. This information can help you pick up on subtle clues about lameness, GI health, and more! As the official cat representative, I do ask that you keep these deep observational dives to the non-feline species. We cats would prefer to nap in peace!

Until next week,
~Tony

PS ~Looking for fun things to do while keeping your distance? Springhill Equine has a ton of videos on our YouTube channel. Catch up on all those seminars you’ve missed. Our website has every blog yours truly has ever written. You can get sucked down a rabbit hole of information there. Need more? Check out Springhill Equine’s podcast: Straight From The Horse Doctor’s Mouth. And maintain your distance!!