Veterinary

Figure 2. Swelling of the right hock of a foal with synovial sepsis.

Synovial sepsis in neonatal foals

Septic arthritis can occur as the result of a periarticular infection, inoculation of the joint by a puncture wound, iatrogenic causes or by haematogenous spread (Hardy, 2006). In foals, haematogenous...

The developmental behaviour of foals and its relevance to husbandry, part 2: weaning

Free-ranging domesticated horses that have become feral or are kept under naturalistic free-range conditions stop being suckled by the age of approximately 10 months, unless their dam is not pregnant...

Figure 3. Heart girth.

Does body condition scoring portray an accurate representation of a horse's condition when compared to other morphological techniques?

The study design was based on the observation and collection of data concerning the assessment of a horse's body condition. Ethical approval was gained from the University Ethics Committee, before any...

Orthopaedic injuries on the racecourse

All racecourse veterinary surgeons should be equipped to provide first aid and emergency treatment on the course and in the stables, as well as to transport these horses to their home yard or a...

Figure 2. Horses undergoing emergency exploratory laparotomy may have concurrent systemic compromise and, in some cases, may be suffering from muscle fatigue or exhaustion.

Evaluating equine anaesthetic risk

Intra-operative mortality was significantly and positively associated with heart rate and packed cell volume at admission in horses undergoing colic surgery (Proudman et al, 2006). Similarly, in a...

Horserace Betting Levy Board: codes of practice update

The Horserace Betting Levy Board codes of practice are a vital resource for vets and horse owners of all disciplines and it is worth reviewing them each year to refresh existing knowledge and keep up...

Figure 1. Example of a partial hoof wall resection performed under general anaesthetic for removal of a keratoma. A) Shows the solar view; b) shows the dorsal view; C) shows a close-up of the healthy, underlying tissue after removal of the mass; D) shows the keratoma and overlying hoof wall removed during surgery with a scalpel blade for scale of size.

Surgery of the equine hoof: a review

Septic diseases requiring surgical intervention in the horse generally result from a penetrating foot injury, with wounds most commonly occuring on the solar surface of the foot when the horse stands...

Figure 1. Two horses diagnosed with over-riding dorsal spinous processes, demonstrating antalgic posture and imbalanced muscle patterns.

Veterinary physiotherapy for back pain in the horse

Veterinary physiotherapy assessment of the back region follows a thorough history taking from the owner or rider, during which the clinical signs of back pain during riding and when not ridden should...

Figure 2. Multiple bee stings can cause multi-organ damage in victims.

Summer poisoning hazards

Veterinary Poisons Information Service (VPIS) https://www.vpisglobal.com/ American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Animal Poison Control Center:...

Avoiding pitfalls in today's pre-purchase examinations

Practices must have a clear booking policy and reception staff should be suitably experienced to manage PPE enquiries in a timely fashion, as this is an increasingly complex role (Werner, 2015a;...

Figure 1. The paired winged fruits (samaras) of sycamore (Acer pseudoplatanus) containing two seeds. Only the seeds contain hypoglycin A.

Atypical myopathy

Atypical myopathy is seasonal and occurs in horses at pasture that eat the seeds and seedlings of sycamore or box elder. Various factors may be involved but most cases occur in the autumn from...

Figure 7. This is the same horse as Figure 5. Radiograph (dorsolateral-palmaromedial oblique) of a comminuted displaced fourth metatarsal fracture (A). The fracture plane and distal fragment were surgically resected (B).

Management of splint bone fractures

Conservative management strategies are best suited to minimally displaced splint bone fractures, whether open or closed, simple or comminuted. Treatment consisting of thorough debridement and lavage,...