Horse Health Lines from WCVM - Spring 2022

HORSE

HEALTH LINES Veterinary Medical Centre

Western College of Veterinary Medicine SPRING 2022

Unravelling the umbilical cord Does cord’s length and twists affect foal health? By Myrna MacDonald Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) researchers have added a couple of new twists to research focusing on the link between equine umbilical cords and foal health. Dr. Madison Ricard, a veterinary anatomic pathology resident, and her supervisor, Dr. Bruce Wobeser, are investigating whether excessively long umbilical cords or cords with more twists than usual affect the health outcomes of foals. Previous studies have investigated the link between umbilical cord length and equine abortions, but this study is the first of its kind: “As far as we can tell, nobody has looked at that situation before on live foals. It’s always been on aborted foals,” says Wobeser. The researchers are also relying on social media to find participants and online surveys and cell phone images to

gather information. Ricard, who develops websites and has an interest in social media, has been sharing the study’s details through horse breeding groups online. “It is outside the norm,” says Wobeser. “But really, social media data collection is just survey data. We’re surveying a different group of people with different tools. It’s absolutely worth trying.” The WCVM researchers are encouraging owners to enrol their pregnant mares in the study, which includes a few steps outlined on their website (wcvm-equs.ca). Immediately after foaling, the owner takes a photo of the umbilical cord and measures its length. Next, the owner records information about the mare, the foaling process, and the foal’s health at birth. These details can be submitted online or by using a printable, stall-side form. The owner also fills out surveys

about the foal’s health — one at seven days and another at 30 days after birth. “If there’s anything unusual about the foal’s health, that’s what we want to capture,” says Ricard, who plans to sort information into categories such as infectious versus non-infectious conditions and congenital issues versus bacterial or viral infections. “From there, we can do our statistics, home in on those categories, and then see the outcomes we find.” Normally, equine umbilical cords measure 50 to 60 centimetres (20 to 24 inches) long and have four or five twists along its length. But excessively long or twisted cords can restrict blood supply to the fetus and cause significant health issues — often leading to death. In an earlier study, Ricard and Wobeser reported that Canada has a higher rate of

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