Equine Health Industry
Hi Everyone,
I am recently undergoing a second childhood dream, I started taking Dressage Lessons. It has kept me busy from blogging about medical advances in the Equine Industry. I recently ran across an article, I thought I should share. There are about 10.5 million horses in the US and they generate over $40 billion annually in spending.
(A Favorite Entry from an Educational Seminar from Fall '09)
Lots of companies sponsored the event. I would like to add information on latest bits and news about the industry. I know lots of people claim to know everything about the horse but when you listen to the sales rep or Ph. D that represent these huge equine companies give their power point presentation you always learn a thing or two. Here it goes:
The day started off talking about one of my favorite subject: Laminitis. Apparently 60% of Lameness in horses are related to Osteoarthritis (OA). Basically take prevention on trying to help your horse from getting or developing a greater problem because you can avoid headaches, $, patience! I am pretty sure most horse owners know how to treat and manage their horses joint and laminitic conditions. With that said, I would like to introduce IRAP, it is used to help inflammatory situations with OA. You use your horses own blood along with the syringe with the "magic beads" that are used to go back into the horse's joint which could reduce the inflammation.
Rabies: one of the oldest documented diseases that dates back to the Greek and Romans. In 2006, during a Tennessee Walking Horse show, the CDC notified 150,000 people of the potential to have been exposed to rabies which was document that a gelding had rabies and was euthanized. Rabies could be prevented by vaccination. Also, it is deactivated through soap and water and eliminated through UV light. Also worth noting that the highest numbers of rabies are in the Texas and four states above it.
Yikes! Equine Insurance. I will go there. I found out that it is pretty affordable if you do your research correctly. I was listening to one of the largest insurance companies talk and they have over 45,000 policies. They were sharing their numbers and just in this year to date they have had over 55 claims and have paid over $11 million for medical claims. In the category of just plain colic (without surgery) they had about 450 claims and paid an average of $1,700. For colics that included surgery, they had 245 claims and paid off $5,500. They could also give discounts to people who have over a certain number of horses and/or have a value over a certain number. Lots of the audience members were very impressed with this company and their figures.
Right before lunch break, I saw a video that was as entertaining as watching a Gator football game. It was a video about the ins and outs of Colic Surgery. From beginning to end, from getting the horse cleaned and washed up for surgery to seeing the Small Intestine and all of its 70 feet coming out of the horse. The numbers included for this year said that they have had 93 colics and about 53 have survived without surgery. I really enjoyed the video because you can see where the $7,000 to $9,000 go for this kind of surgery and the great teamwork and staff to make it work. :o) I can't think of a better example of great teamwork but in this situation.
With the high climbing number of cases of Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) and West Nile Virus (WNV) you would want to brush up on the symptoms, signs, and prevention of these disease. The treatment is worth about $2,500, act early and vaccinate. Make sure that if your horse is traveling out west to check if there are current outbreaks of Western equine encephalitis (WEE) because say you planning on going to that area in a couple of days, you shouldn't rely on the vaccine to work immediately within a few days or so, give it time to create immunity. Maintenance work on mosquito's: turn off the lights to avoid them (that means those lights you use for your broodmare) and think about your water, try adding Gambusia fish to eat larvae.
Lets not forget Parasites! Can you believe that in the country of Denmark, they don't let you deworm your horse only if the Vet has run a fecal egg count test? Things you might not have known about negative fecal egg count test: they don't mean they don't have parasites, if you picking out 1 to 2 grams out of 30 pounds of manure, what are the chances of getting nothing from that sample, pretty high. They could reside in the manure from others times of the day. Also about storing the feces sample, you should refrigerate it, because it was mentioned in the power point that heat causes it to go into the larvae stage which could cause negative counts (hint hint: which doesn't mean your horses has a negative feed count #) Best time do perform these test is in the Spring and Fall, and avoid the summer.
Joints and Nutrition: Emphasis: nothing can repair damaged joints once it has been damaged. There was nothing new to highlight about joints and nutrition other than what that certain company and feed company were promoting. If you have any questions on nutrition, you can ask me and I could point you in the right direction.
*Please consult with your Veterinarian or Equine Professional about any questions or concerns you may have and always consult a Veterinarian before starting a vaccination program*
by Valentina Escobar-Gonzalez
http://www.valentinasequinenews.com/
To View suggestions for deworming in the Winter, please Visit:
Prevention for Winter Months
Comments