Category Archives: Health

COVID-19 has impacted all facets of our lives, including the economy, with an estimated 10 million unemployment claims filed in March. Among them are horse owners, many of which now...

One writes a blog at the risk of sounding preachy. In my blog, I try to share my opinions, my experience, as well as links to scientific research. I realize...

In my experience, horse owners worry about a lot of things, and especially disease caused by bacteria and viruses—but I don’t think that most horse owners really understand much about...

I often wonder about the word “need” as it applies to working on horse teeth. Need means: “To require something because it is essential, or very important.” So, it seems...

At the time of writing there have been 1,029 scientific papers published on COVID-19—two papers in 2019 and 1,027 in 2020! This illustrates how acute the emergence of this pandemic...

When horses get older, people often talk about retiring them.  And until asked, I never really thought that much about it. I mean, I’ve seen plenty of horses that have...

Lameness, as pretty much everyone knows, is the bane of anyone who wants to ride a horse: particularly horses that are being asked to perform. Although the most common site...

So, I was walking up to this barn, and I see a client strolling down the aisle, shaking her head, obviously concerned about something. “What’s the matter?” I asked. “I...

If you look through any horse periodical, or get any horse-related catalog, or if you listen to just about anyone talking about horses and horse health, you may have noticed...

A tiny brown muzzle and dark, confused eyes are finally visible. The grey mare, flanks slick with sweat, rallies and completes the last push. It’s really happening; your foal is...

I tend to be pretty flexible. There aren’t a whole lot of things that I believe are absolutely critical. But when it comes to horses, when it comes to feeding...

I get that some horses cost more to buy than others. In fact, I wrote about it. (Read “On the Value of Horses.”) Over my career, I’ve been fortunate enough...

There’s a problem that crops up pretty regularly when it’s wet outside. I hope that you horse hasn’t had it. It’s called “scratches.” Or mud fever. Or greasy heel. Or...

You have a horse. You take him to shows (doesn’t really matter much what kind). Congratulations, you horse is now a “performance” horse. Look out. You are undoubtedly subjected to—or going to...

I’ve written a few articles about colic—myths, when to go to surgery, and such—and, with all that's been said, by me, and by many other folks, I think that there’s...

If you have your horses where they can hang out with their buddies in big grass pastures, good for you.  Good for them, too. Horses are social creatures. They are very curious...

A major piece of the puzzle of equine airway diseases has been discovered: the role of fungi. A three-year study published by The Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine (JVIM) involving over 700...

For every yin, there is a yang. I wrote an article on fat horses—here’s one on skinny horses. Skinny horses are the flip side of the coin from fat horses....

Have you ever noticed in training that it is often easier to do lateral work, bending, turning, and lead changes, in one direction than in the other? This may be...

When I was a senior in veterinary school, I spent three months working in central Kentucky, in what-was-at-the-time the largest Thoroughbred veterinary practice in the world. It was just a...