Author Archives: Eleanor Kellon, VMD

In my younger (ok, MUCH younger) days, I didn’t like mares. They seemed unpredictable and difficult compared to geldings, or even stallions. I was wrong. In the feral society of...

There is a trend these days to label many highly nutritious feed ingredients as worthless wastes. This particularly falls on anything that might be classified as a by-product, including beet...

It happens every winter. A horse that may not even have a prior history of laminitis is found to be very lame and reluctant to move. It’s more than the...

Research has proven that exposure to cold causes increased stiffness in both muscle and connective tissue, including tendons and ligaments. A recent human study also confirmed that dampness (relative humidity)...

Impending winter weather and loss of good pasture make all owners of thin senior horses anxious. Some things to consider when a horse is underweight span all age groups, but...

We’ve all seen at least one article claiming a high percentage of horses are overweight, or even that it’s an epidemic. While the numbers are true, 40+ years as a...

The classical signs of Cushing’s Disease in horses (pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction/PPID) of poor topline, sagging belly and long curly coat that fails to shed are only evident fairly late...

On one level, it’s exactly what it sounds like: restricting what you feed your horse. The devil is in the details, though. Exactly what is being restricted, why, and how much?...

Whether you are prepping for sales and halter classes or trying your best to raise a healthy and sound youngster, careful attention to nutritional needs is a key component. Yearlings...

Tendon and suspensory ligament injuries plague horses performing in all disciplines. Even pleasure horses and pasture ornaments may fall victim if they take the proverbial “bad step” over rough ground...

Stallions, in many ways, are like overgrown kids, and 'mom skills' can come in really handy. For instance, sensing when things are too quiet and having eyes in the back...

If you are thinking ahead to the imminent summer heat by looking at electrolyte supplements, good for you. Horses lose massive amounts of electrolytes (and water) in sweat, putting them...

It’s perfectly natural to want a silver bullet that will instantly remove the threat of devastating health problems like laminitis, but it’s just not that simple. The latest proposed silver...

Your immediate response would probably be, "Sure, why not?" That may well be true, but you might be surprised to find out that a true food allergy has never been formally...

Insulin resistance (IR), defined as a failure of insulin responsive cells to take up glucose under normal levels of circulating insulin, affects an estimated 12-15% of horses. IR is typically...

Spring is the peak time for grass-associated laminitis in most parts of the world. You can effectively treat, or better yet, prevent it, but only if you understand the mechanism....

I remember quite well the time when a show horse over the age of 8 or 10 was considered “old”. Those days are long gone as appreciation for the experience...

Frozen lumpy ground can make any horse look lame but if the horse has insulin resistance there may be more going on. The first thing to do is rule out...

There is a reason hoof supplements have a sizable market. There is also a reason they tend to have the same ingredients. The quality and integrity of the hoof wall,...

Although horses can survive a remarkable range of environmental conditions, surviving is not the same as thriving. Winter is hard on any horse but particularly so for seniors. Like older...