VACCINATION AND YOUR HORSE’S
FEET
Restarting the
OLDER HORSE COMPRESSION
Therapy How
EMOTIONS affect his HEALTH
THE BROOKE offers help for working equines
land
HEALTHY , HEALTHY HORSES A closer look at the Equicentral System
UNBRANDED
The 3,000-mile adventure of a lifetime brings awareness to the issues facing North America’s wild horses.
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October /November 2015
EquineWellnessMagazine.com Equine Wellness 1
Conte 26 FEATURES 10 HEALTHY LAND,
30 UNBRANDED
48 RETRAINING
The Equicentral System – a look at the relationship between horses and pasture.
This documentary of a 3,000-mile ride brings awareness to the challenges North America’s wild mustangs are facing.
16 OSTEOPATHIC
36 SADDLE FIT FOR THE
Mystery lameness? The answer may lie deeper in your horse’s body than you think.
Just because your saddle fits your horse today doesn’t mean it will forever. His body will inevitably change over time, and along with it, his saddle fit needs.
Many horses don’t get started under saddle until much later in life, or need to be restarted after an injury, trauma, or change of career. If you are assisting an older horse through this transition, these tips will get you started.
HEALTHY HORSES (PART 2)
RESTRICTIONS
20 CAN VACCINATION
AFFECT YOUR HORSE’S FEET?
CHANGING HORSE
The answer is yes!
38 COMPRESSION
26 GO GREEN!
It’s been around for many years, and has recently been making a comeback in the equine industry. Take a look at how this simple therapy could offer big benefits to your horse!
Green cleaning around the barn doesn’t have to be difficult, or expensive. Here are some tips to get you started.
THERAPY FOR HORSES
44 HIS EMOTIONS HAVE AN EFFECT ON HIS HEALTH
Learn how your horse’s physical and emotional well-being are intertwined.
4
Equine Wellness
OR RESTARTING AN OLDER HORSE
56 HELP FOR
WORKING EQUINES
The Brooke is providing assistance to working equines through education, awareness, support, and preventative and emergency care.
nts 30 56 DEPARTMENTS
COLUMNS
6 Editorial
8 Neighborhood news 24 Homeopathic column
25 Product picks
29 Business profile:
42 Equine Wellness resource guide
RITEZYME
47 Heads up
35 Green acres
53 Social media corner
41 It’s elemental
59 Book review
52 Herb blurb
60 Marketplace
54 To the rescue
61 Classifieds 62 Events
SOCIAL MEDIA
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Equine Wellness
5
vaccination
CAN
AFFECT YOUR HORSE’S FEET ?
THE ANSWER IS
V 20
Equine Wellness
by Geri White accination is a very touchy and hotly debated topic. I believe in informed decision-making. This is why I encourage my clients to examine all sides of this issue.
yes
What I would like to do in this article is give you information that can be placed on both sides of the scale, as well as share a few personal experiences in rehabilitating horses and how vaccinations can affect the process.
IMMUNIZE WISELY The best place to start is with a quote from noted vaccine scientist, Dr. Ronald Schultz from UW School of Veterinary Medicine: “Be wise and immunize, but be wise how you immunize.” Dr. Schultz’s mantra is universal, and crosses all species. I also believe it brings a better balance to the subject, since we currently have those who believe annual vaccines should always be administered, and those who believe that no vaccines should ever be given. These represent the extreme views. Where we need to be looking is somewhere in the middle. We also need each horse to be treated as an individual, based on how he responds or reacts when vaccinated. A one-size-fits-all approach doesn’t work, based on what I have observed in the field.
TITERS AND MEMORY CELLS My interest in all this was sparked by an incident over 20 years ago. I was exposed to a rabid raccoon in my barn and received post-exposure treatment. I asked my doctor if I should get an annual booster, and he told me I should first have a blood titer drawn, but added that, chances were, I should have a high titer level for many years. At the time, I had no idea what a titer was. I never forgot my doctor’s words, and was given another opportunity to investigate this topic further when my dog had an adverse reaction to a rabies vaccination. Veterinarian Dr. Jean Dodds ran titers for all my dog’s puppy shots. As we discussed the results, Dr. Dodds told me that immunity is like pregnancy – you either “are” or “are not”. You cannot impart more immunity to an already immune individual. Any measurable titer is evidence of immunity. Beyond the evidence in the blood, T-cells and B-cells (aka memory cells) are also part of the picture; we can’t measure them but they operate to protect us and our animals just the same. Memory cells persist for 20 or more years, and are not increased by re-vaccination.
THE VACCINE/HOOF CARE CONNECTION In my practice as a hoof care professional, all new clients fill out an extensive information sheet to help me look for patterns and reasons why their horses have lameness symptoms. Spring is the most common time of year for this to happen. My peers call it laminitis season. I am always on the search for why, because unless a horse actually injures a hoof, most lameness issues have their genesis in the body, and often originate from many sources, as opposed to just one. Common threads show up time and again in springtime lameness incidents. Vaccinations are high on the list, especially when several are given at once and when a horse has an ongoing health issue like Cushing’s, Lyme, allergies, or a challenged or compromised immune system. Veterinarian Dr. Mark DePaolo states in his article on vaccinations: “A 2003 study conducted by researchers from Texas A&M University Equine Wellness
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