Consider This

Getting Started in Endurance Riding: Part 1

mer@TheEquestrianVagabond.com (Merri) — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 14:47:00 +0000

Yourhorse.co.uk

A series of videos by Endurance Great Britain
on Getting Started in Endurance Riding.

Some Aspects of Feeding the Endurance Horse

mer@TheEquestrianVagabond.com (Merri) — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 14:22:00 +0000

An article from Per Spangfors of Forskning, Sweden

A Horse and a Poorly Fitted Saddle

mer@TheEquestrianVagabond.com (Merri) — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 14:03:00 +0000

Juliegoodnightontheroad

Thursday, August 28, 2008

This week on Horse Master is one of my favorite episodes that we have filmed so far. It?s about an Arab trail/endurance horse that we thought had some training issues. In fact, we thought the episode would be about bucking at the canter?and that he did. But it became clear right away as I watched the horse try to canter around the arena that we were dealing with a physical issue. In fact, a very poorly fitted saddle.

The horse was rushing at all gaits, crow hopping and breaking gait at the canter and throwing his head high and travelling in a very inverted frame. She had owned the horse and ridden him in this saddle with these problems for four years. For that reason, I didn?t expect an immediate cure on this horse. I figured even if we got him in a comfortable saddle, we would see some improvement but his memories and habitual behavior would persist.

I put my Circle Y Flex2 Reiner on him...

More...

England: Second-career recognition for re-schooled racehorses

noreply@blogger.com (Steph Teeter) — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 13:06:00 +0000

Farmers Guardian
Equestrian | 29 August, 2008

DO you have an ex-racehorse doing well in a second career? There is still time to register for the South Essex Insurance Brokers Racehorse to Riding Horse Performance Awards and get your horse's achievements recognised.

The awards are presented at the star-studded British Breeding Breeders Awards Dinner.

Registration is free, and all you need to do is collect points as you go along and then submit your competition card to SEIB.

Horses competing at all levels are eligible, and there are sections for affiliated eventing, showjumping, dressage, endurance and showing, and an unaffiliated section for those competing in various unaffiliated disciplines.

The Racehorse to Riding Horse Performance Awards were instigated to support the retraining of racehorses, and to provide a platform to show how a correctly re-schooled ex-racehorse can be successful in a new career. Thousands of horses come out of training each year and their futures can be bright - with time and patience, they can go on to compete successfully in many different disciplines.

The competition is open to thoroughbreds that have been in training but now successfully compete at an affiliated or unaffiliated level. In the affiliated section, awards are given for four disciplines: showing, dressage, show jumping, eventing and endurance. These points are collected throughout the 2008 competition season.

Similarly, for those competing at an unaffiliated level such as in local shows, riding club events or hunter trials, an award is presented to the ex-racehorse with the highest number of points in the Combined Discipline section.

Those with the highest number of points in each section will be invited to the awards dinner in London during January next year, to be presented with their prize.

Competition Cards should be submitted to Racehorse To Riding Horse Performance Awards, SEIB, South Essex House, North Road, South Ockendon, Essex, RM15 5BE.

More information

Visit www.racehorse2riding horse.co.uk. for more on SEIB's Racehorse to Riding Horse Performance Awards.

Guide to dehydration and electrolyte use in horses

noreply@blogger.com (Endurance.Net) — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 13:26:00 +0000

Original Article: Horsetalk.co.nz

Horses and humans use the same strategies for keeping cool, but there the similarities end.

Horses are nowhere near as efficient as people in staying cool. It's all because of their body shape and their much greater percentage of heat-generating muscle.

The difference is most apparent in hot and humid conditions, when a horse's rate of heat build-up will be about three and a half times greater than that of a human.

"For us as caregivers to horses, it is critically important to recognise these very high rates of heat storage," says Dr Michael Lindinger, from the Department of Human Health and Nutritional Science at the University of Guelph, in Ontario, Canada.

"Even though we may perceive that warm, humid conditions are not producing undue stress or strain in us, they may certainly be resulting in strain in horses," he says.

The higher rates of heat storage in horses result from a greater proportion of contracting muscle in horses - some 40% of body mass - compared to about 20% in running humans.

Also, horses have a lower skin surface in relation to their size than people, meaning their ability to dissipate heat is greatly reduced compared to humans. Horses have only 40% of the surface area to body mass as people do.

"Horses are capable of producing large amounts of heat at high rates but, compared to humans, are a severe physical disadvantage in dissipating that heat."

Lindinger, whose particular interests lie in the regulation of ion transport across cell membranes and the regulation of body fluid balance, was amongst speakers at the fourth European Equine Health and Nutrition Congress in the Netherlands, where he talked about challenges faced by performance horses in staying cool.

[More ...]

Horsetalk.co.nz : Guide to dehydration and electrolyte use in horses

noreply@blogger.com (Steph Teeter) — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 01:11:00 +0000

Horses and humans use the same strategies for keeping cool, but there the similarities end.

Horses are nowhere near as efficient as people in staying cool. It's all because of their body shape and their much greater percentage of heat-generating muscle.

The difference is most apparent in hot and humid conditions, when a horse's rate of heat build-up will be about three and a half times greater than that of a human.

"For us as caregivers to horses, it is critically important to recognise these very high rates of heat storage," says Dr Michael Lindinger, from the Department of Human Health and Nutritional Science at the University of Guelph, in Ontario, Canada.

"Even though we may perceive that warm, humid conditions are not producing undue stress or strain in us, they may certainly be resulting in strain in horses," he says.

The higher rates of heat storage in horses result from a greater proportion of contracting muscle in horses - some 40% of body mass - compared to about 20% in running humans.

Also, horses have a lower skin surface in relation to their size than people, meaning their ability to dissipate heat is greatly reduced compared to humans. Horses have only 40% of the surface area to body mass as people do.

...full article, Horsetalk.co.nz

Vetting the Tevis - by Karen Phillips

mer@TheEquestrianVagabond.com (Merri) — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 16:43:00 +0000

Wendell Robie's horse
being checked by Dr. Bob Bushnell
at Robinson Flat checkpoint.
1958. Photo by Charles Barieau.
Shannon Weil Collection.

Pictured left to right: Dr. Don Jasper;
Wendell Robie; William Tevis;
Randy Steffen; Dr. Bob Goulding.
1959. Courtesy of Dr. Murray Fowler.

Pictured in foreground: Dr. Bob
Goulding. Dr. Bob Bushnell with
stethescope. At left: Paige Harper.
1962. Photo by Charles Barieau.
Courtesy of Kate Riordan.

Pictured left to right: Al Fogo M.D.,
secretary to Dr. Barsaleau; Dr.
Richard Barsaleau; Dr. Bob Goulding;
Randy Steffen. Circa 1963.
Photo by Charles Barieau.
Courtesy of Hal Hall.

Pictured left to right: Dr. Bob
Bushnell; Dr. Bob Goulding; Dr.
Fowler; Dr. George Cardinet III; Paige
Harper, receiving the first Haggin Cup
Trophy; unknown individual; Dr. Dick
Chance. 1964. Photo by Charles Barieau.
Shannon Weil Collection.

Dr. Jim Edwards examines Rufus,
ridden by Penny Scribner, at Michigan
Bluff. circa 1980. Photo courtesy
of Penny Scribner.

Current Head Vet Dr. Greg Fellers
takes a break with Head Vet Secretary
Judy Hall. 2007. Photo courtesy
of Penny Scribner.

Dr. Greg Fellers, Head Vet,
examines horse while Judy Hall,
Head Vet secretary, makes notes
on rider card at Robinson Flat
checkpoint. 2007. Photo courtesy
of Penny Scribner.

Example of old rider card.
Note the comment at the top about
"old splint." The card uses a
combination of AAEP (American
Association of Equine Practitioners)
number system for lameness evaluation
(1 = very slight, almost imperceptible;
5 = non-weight bearing). All the other
parameters are on a letter graded
system (Hyd = hydration; Gut = gut
sounds; CR = capillary refill).
Shannon Weil Collection.

Example of new rider card.
Courtesy of Hal Hall.

A brief history of the use of veterinarians for the
Western States Trail Ride, 100 Miles 1 Day

The Western States Trail Ride, 100 Miles One Day, begins just south of Truckee and continues to the fairgrounds in Auburn. Today the ride is more commonly known as "The Tevis," after the Tevis Cup, which is awarded to the first horse and rider to finish. This annual, international, event was founded in 1955 by Wendell Robie, local businessman, avid horseman, and innovator. At that time the ride was an unknown quantity. "When we started there were no rules or criteria to go by," Wendell remembers. "They were developed as we went along."*1 From the beginning he insisted on using veterinarians. In 1956 three vets were used (compared to 17 staffed in 2007); Dr. Wheat and Dr. Kitchen of UC Davis, and Dr. Bullock of Auburn. The rules section of the 1957 welcome letter to ride starters, regarding vet exams, states "there is no chance of cruelty to tired horses with their inspection."

Dr. Robert Bushnell, a nephew of Robie, remembers the first year he vetted the Tevis in 1958 with 35 riders (compared to over 200 currently). "I remember it was just the two of us, me and Dr. Bill Lewis of Auburn," he says. "Lewis was a laid back kind of guy. We traveled to each checkpoint in an old jeep with a fishing pole sticking out the back. Lewis wanted to stop at every fishing hole. We really had to hustle."

In 1959 Dr. Murray Fowler became the chief veterinarian. He served as chairman of the veterinary examining committee for 15 years.*2 One year during Fowler's tenure, Drucilla Barner, Robie's secretary and the first woman to win the Tevis Cup, was diagnosed with terminal cancer. It was her last ride and her horse came up lame. Robie begged Fowler to let her finish. Robie told him, "I'll carry the horse if I have to." But Fowler couldn't do it. After all, he had helped develop the stringent vetting standards that Robie himself approved.

In 1961 Dr. Richard Barsaleau started vetting the ride and remembers a pivotal moment when he pulled Robie's horse for lameness. Robie was not pleased, but later walked up to Barsaleau, punched him in the arm, and said, "You were right." At the request of Mr. Robie, Dr. Barsaleau became chairman of the judging committee the next year and alternated in this head veterinarian?s role with Dr. Fowler for the next several years.*3

With experience, vets learned to be more objective in their analysis during post-ride examination. The awareness of the signs of an impending crisis improved due to the sheer number of horses examined on the ride. "We saw all gradations of fitness," the now 82-year-old Barsaleau says. The Haggin Cup Award was established for the best-conditioned horse of the first 10 finishing horses. Barsaleau was instrumental in making changes to the parameters of the award based on his philosophy that "the horse should be used, but not used up."

Dr. Todd Nelson, head vet in the 80's and early 90's, instituted changes to the number of one-hour-hold checkpoints (originally three and now two), the location of some checkpoints, and how horses are timed in. Moving the Devils Thumb checkpoint to Deadwood allows horses a mile to recover from the grueling series of switchbacks in the canyon they just climbed out of. A "gate-to-hold" was instituted where horses rest for one hour after their pulse has dropped to near normal. In earlier years riders could gallop their horses into a vet hold knowing they could use the horse's rest time to meet the pulse criteria, or "gate." These changes benefit the horse and encourage more responsible riding.

A shift in perspective occurred when vets judging the ride actually rode the Tevis. That experience became a valuable insight into the future of the event and the safety of both horse and human. Fowler was the first vet working the Tevis who entered the ride. Soon after, Barsaleau participated, completing 14 out of 16 starts. However, not all vets were eager to enter the ride. Dr. Jim Edwards, the longest acting vet on the vet committee, says that he and Nelson "were going to get a couple mules and ride it, but we made a pact that we?d call each other and talk until the feeling passed." According to Dr. Greg Fellers, head vet since 2005, "Sitting in the saddle for 24 hours is not my idea of a good time." Dr. Jamie Kerr, head vet from the late 90's until 2005, asked Fellers to take over as head vet, temporarily, so he could ride the Tevis. Kerr graciously bequeathed his title to Fellers as he continues to alternate between riding and vetting the Tevis each year.

Over the years the relationship between vet and rider changed, according to Penny Scribner, six-time Tevis finisher. "The first time I rode, vets strictly enforced rigid rules with little discussion with the rider or even with another vet," Scribner tells me. She attributes part of the change to Fellers. "The vets work with management and riders much more now instead of just showing up and acting as policemen," says Fellers. "There can be an adversarial relationship between vets and riders if you allow it, but it can be a win-win situation."

Fellers has seen riders often unwilling to see lameness in their horses even when it is obvious. The decision to pull a horse is a serious one and the rule has always been that a minimum of two vets consult on the matter. The main mode of communication between the vets is the rider's card. "As you can imagine on a 100 mile course," Fellers says, "we get strung along from hell and back." The cards pass along little "alerts." The rider's card has been reformatted for easier recording and communication.

One of the biggest changes, made recently, was to put in place exit exams at the two existing one-hour-hold checkpoints located at Robinson Flat and Foresthill. "We were letting horses back on the trail that might have needed another look," says Fellers.

Fellers has seen a "paradigm shift" while vetting the Tevis. "The level of care we can provide now is far better than, say, 10 years ago. I would dare to say that the Tevis is at the very forefront - in the field - in the level of care of horses that need treatment."

One of the main reasons for treating a horse is dehydration. "Some horses arrive ... dehydrated," Edwards points out. "They're already behind the eight-ball. They really need a day to get over the trailer ride." The challenge and working with his colleagues keeps Edwards coming back to the Tevis. "This is what it's all about. Looking at a fit horse ... and spotting something before a rider can even feel it," he says. "The Tevis is the ultimate. It's the oldest race and the toughest. It gets in your blood."

Footnotes:
1. The Tevis Cup by Verne R. Albright
2. Murray, Hummingbirds to Elephants and Other Tales, Autobiography of Murray E. Fowler, DVM
3. Endurance Ride Judging - How It All Began by Dr. Barsaleau, 2004 Tevis Forum

Author?s note: The history of vetting the Tevis has played a key role in the study of the horse under stress. The veterinarians mentioned here are only a small fraction of the many notable doctors who have included vetting the Tevis as part of their legacy in veterinary sciences. Much has changed since the Tevis started in 1955, but one thing has remained the same?the commitment of vets to keeping the horse healthy and safe.

For more information on the Tevis, visit www.foothill.net/tevis

New and improved test for West Nile virus in horses

mer@TheEquestrianVagabond.com (Merri) — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 20:38:00 +0000

Horsetalk.co.nz

August 21, 2008

A new test for West Nile virus in horses that could be modified for use on humans and wildlife may help track the spread of the disease, according to an article in the September issue of the Journal of Medical Microbiology.

West Nile virus infects a wide range of animals, including humans, horses, dogs, cats, bats, squirrels, rabbits and birds.

It is widely distributed in Africa, the Middle East and Europe. It was first reported in North America in 1999, when there were human fatalities in New York City.

Since its arrival in the US it has spread rapidly across the continent. The virus sometimes causes swelling of the brain, or encephalitis, which can be fatal.

It is transmitted by several species of mosquito. Because the mosquitoes feed on so many different creatures the virus spreads quickly in areas where it has been introduced.

"Thousands of cases of West Nile virus have been reported worldwide, but 80% of infected people don't show any symptoms," said Dr Louis A Magnarelli, Director of The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station in the US.

"It is important to have highly sensitive and specific tests to diagnose infections and also to help track the ecology and epidemiology of West Nile encephalitis."

The US researchers have found that a new test designed to detect antibodies produced by horses is highly effective at diagnosing West Nile virus infections. Compared to the standard test for West Nile virus, the new test is much faster and gives accurate results. It was also useful in confirming past infections.

"Although the methods developed are for diagnosing West Nile virus in horses, the procedures can be easily modified to develop new antibody tests for humans and wildlife," said Dr Magnarelli.

"It is essential to test wildlife for infection to determine the ecological and epidemiological aspects of West Nile virus infections in nature so that we can try to control the disease by managing mosquito populations."

Diagnosing West Nile encephalitis in ill horses helps to identify areas where the virus is spreading and to make decisions about vaccinating horses. Laboratory diagnosis can also clarify the cause of undiagnosed neurological disorders.

"We tested 43 privately owned horses for the infection. The results showed that none of the horses with undiagnosed illnesses had been infected prior to the 1999 outbreak of West Nile virus in Connecticut, USA," said Dr Magnarelli.

"This kind of information is useful in confirming the epidemiology of the virus; determining when it arrived in certain areas and how it spreads."

Full Article

The Church of the Hoof

noreply@blogger.com (Endurance.Net) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 23:14:00 +0000

Lynne White

It?s been an interesting read, this shoe vs. barefoot theme. One truth about endurance is that since it?s a whole horse sport there is always something to learn about and obsess over. I think I?ve mastered the mechanics of the equine gut so I suppose now it?s time to start turning the pages of the equine foot.

I?ve been a shoe fan for years without really knowing why. I always just thought that horses needed shoes and to be frank, it?s easy to just nail shoes on and forget about it. I never had much of a problem with shoes and didn?t give it much thought. I didn?t think about the mechanics of lower leg movement, the force a horse exerts on the front end, the stresses and strains of tendons, or coffin bones or any of that soundness stuff. I never had a problem with it so I just didn?t worry about it. I was a default member of the ?Shod Denomination.?

Then I watched this old silent 1925 documentary called ?Grass? in which the nomadic Bakhtiari people in Southwest Iran migrate over the Zagros mountains twice a year to get to their grazing grounds?on unshod horses. Now that is some serious-ass-rocky-country. Their trip makes the Tevis look like a walk in the park (I think it?s still done, but most the people have moved on to the oil fields). I also have a couple photos from the 1920?s of Kurds riding their unshod horses on some pretty rough looking country. The Turkmen did some incredible things with their unshod Akhal-Tekes. The Cossacks did some major ass-whooping with their unshod horses, and it?s because their horses were unshod that they were able to defeat Napoleon?s shod cavalry during the winter months. Genghis Kahn almost conquered the world with unshod horses. Shoes obviously had their place in warfare, but they were no guarantee that battles would be won. The succcess
of a cavalry all boiled down to how the horses were kept and managed for the climate and type of warfare.

Back off that tangent on on to the subject: What furthered my ?enlightenment? was that suddenly my mare developed this rather violent aversion to having nails driven in her rear left foot. She had to be sedated to be shod...and I mean almost falling over sedated. So shoeing became a stressful endeavor of coordinating a vet and a farrier to come to my place simultaneously. It was at this time I started seeing shoeless horses at rides and heard all sorts of miraculous stories about unshod horses from the ?Barefoot Denomination.?

This whole debate of the shod vs. barefoot reminds me so much of differing interpretations of the Bible. Anyone that has spent any amount of time in an evangelical church can totally relate to this. It?s just about as emotional. The only difference is the opinion concerning who is going to Hell and whose horse is going lame.

But what it all this has done is resulted in people doing their own research and learning about the huge myriad of variables involved in hoof care. Yes, I am planning on the shoeless route with my mare because she has feet like steel and I live in a pretty arid climate. I?m a mile chaser so placement isn?t a big deal to me. If I need to go slow I go slow. I?ve still got a lot to learn about hoof balance and the mechanics of soundness. But I think we are on the right course. I don?t know if my colt will need shoes or not, but when we get there at least I will have done my homework and will be able to make a pretty sound decision (pardon the pun). I plan on being a member of the ?Hoof Health Denomination.? It should be a pretty lively place to be with lots of arguing, and back and forth with everything being subject to question. But we?ll learn a lot I think.

Lynn

Navigating Changing Times

mer@TheEquestrianVagabond.com (Merri) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 14:04:00 +0000

August 19, 2008

Back Country Horsemen of Washington Illustrate Success

Graham WA: This quote from Back Country Horsemen of Washington (BCHW) President Bob Gish hints at the winding road this 3,500 member organization has had to traverse in order to fulfill its mission of securing the recreational use of horses and mules on public lands. Mr. Gish outlined some of this journey, as well as several major accomplishments his organization has secured, at BCHW's Annual Meeting.

As any BCHA chapter member knows, volunteering to help with the maintenance, repair, and establishment of trails and equestrian faculties on public lands is critical to the continuation of stock use in the back country. Not only does volunteer work fill a void left by many a stretched state or federal budget, "research indicates that volunteering adds to the overall economic output of a community, helps build cohesive communities, and fosters trust between citizens," adds Mr. Gish. Hearing the call, BCHW members have consistently increased their organization's annual number of volunteer hours from almost 28,000 in 2002 to just over 63,000 in 2007, the equivalent of a $1.462 million donation to Washington's public lands. Although a sizable amount, BCHW leaders warn that the tallied hours are a drop in the bucket compared to the amount of work still needed to be done in Washington's National Forests, and members stand ready to clock even more hours in 2008 and beyond.

BCHW has also been hard at work building partnerships and promoting the horseback riding community as responsible stewards of the land with other pro-recreational use groups as well as local, state, and federal land managers and elected officials. With increasing demands on Washington's public lands from other user groups, BCHW leaders view these collaborations as vital to continued equestrian access. "Remember the saying - the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Only with reciprocal relationships and coordination will we be able to target and manage our resources effectively," said Gish. To this end, the organization's Public Lands Committee has worked with motorized and non-motorized user groups to plan relevant breakout sessions for the Washington State Trails Coalition annual meeting, successfully negotiated wording with the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife that raised the number of persons gathered in a group requiring a commerce permit from 5 to 30, and has encouraged local chapters to assist the Forest Service in controlling the spread of invasive weed species on public lands.

BCHW has also been highly successful on another front in its mission to keep public lands open to equestrian use - legislation. "Our organization has had to broaden its scope out of necessity to include less familiar territory because our mission is under siege," Mr. Gish warned members several years ago. "BCHW must shift to encompass expertise in policy and lawmaking to counter rules and policies that would restrict access to public land by stock users just as effectively as if a trail was closed by a downed tree and no one was chainsaw certified." His message was taken to heart, and in 2007 BCHW accomplished a remarkable achievement by claiming a hard-fought victory in passing Washington's Right-to-Ride legislation. It was the first time that any BCHA organization successfully introduced and had legislation passed to protect equestrians' right to ride.

Today, BCHW continues along the many avenues it has forged in its quest to protect access for horse and mules riders on Washington's public lands. Volunteers continue their hard work in the back country, new affiliations with non-equestrian groups are being sought out, and advocacy in the marble halls of state and federal legislatures carries on. "We (BCHW) can be very proud of what we have accomplished, and I hope that we remain filled with enthusiasm for what is in store for our future as BCHW undertakes to navigate the changing times in which we live, work, and play," said Mr. Gish as he summed up his organization's many achievements while looking ahead to future success.

Back Country Horsemen of Washington is a state organization of Back Country Horsemen of America, a 13,000 member national organization that promotes recreational stock use on public lands. To learn more, please go to www.backcountryhorse.com or telephone 888-893-5161.

Sweet feed can make young horses naughty, says study

mer@TheEquestrianVagabond.com (Merri) — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 23:20:00 +0000

Horsetalk.co.nz - Full Article

August 19, 2008

Young horses may be easier to train if they temporarily lay off the sweet feed, according to Montana State University (MSU) researchers.

A commercial mixture of corn, oats, barley and molasses - sometimes called "sweet grain" or "sweet feed" - gives horses the glossy coat and lively spirit that makes them attractive to prospective buyers, said Jan Bowman, an animal nutritionist at MSU.

But the extra energy provided by sweet grain during the early stages of training made horses in an MSU study more disobedient and fearful than horses who ate only hay, Bowman said.

The grain-eaters spent more time resisting the saddle...

More...

Snake Bite Preparedness

mer@TheEquestrianVagabond.com (Merri) — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 15:57:00 +0000

Thehorse.com - Full Article

by: Edward D. Voss, DVM, Dipl. ACVIM
October 01 2005, Article # 6165

Q: Our area has a healthy population of rattlesnakes. We spend six to 10 hours a week on trails where we have seen snakes. I would like to be prepared in the event one of our horses gets bitten. What are the procedures and supplies we should have on hand? Pat

A: When on excursions into areas frequented by pit vipers (also called crotalids, including rattlesnakes), it is prudent to consider some basic precepts concerning bites. Approximately 20-60% of bites are "dry" or defensive type of bites with little or no venom injected by the snake. These are bites that do not swell much within 10 to 15 minutes of being bitten and are not overly painful. It is difficult to ascertain whether a bite is dry, so assume envenomation (injection of venom) and proceed to obtain veterinary care. Rapid swelling and pain suggest venom injection. Venom has a Super Glue-like consistency and is absorbed rapidly from the bite site within 30 seconds to several minutes. Cutting an incision on the bite and suction is not recommended; icing of the bite is not a good idea, nor is a tourniquet.

Most bites occur on the muzzle in curious horses, and application of a dry absorbent wrap is not possible. Things to consider bringing on such excursions would be:

More...

APEX clinic at Vermont 100

noreply@blogger.com (Endurance.Net) — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 17:43:00 +0000

Patti Stedman

APEX ? One Participant?s Perspective

Plan B

Sometimes when life hands you lemons, you make lemonade.

Or better yet, if life hands you potatoes, you use the spuds to make yourself some outstanding vodka. And whip up a Cosmopolitan.

With the Vermont 100 one of the few rides on my schedule this year given the all-consuming construction of our house, I was primed to take Ned there for a third-times-a-charm stroll around the course.

But the fates had other ideas in mind: A way-too-hot forecast for heat-challenged half-Trakehner Ned, then a leaking transmission line on the hauling vehicle, topped by a key crew member who ended up on the losing end of a pedestrian/cyclist meeting with two broken wrists ? all pointed to opting out of the ride.

Enter Plan B ? I was reminded of the APEX Clinic happening the Tuesday through Thursday before the ride, and just around the corner from camp by Cecily Westervelt, a fellow member of the active New 100 Miler yahoo email list.

In a moment of rare spontaneity, I headed to a client meeting on Tuesday, then just kept driving northeast to Vermont.

What To Expect

A quick glance at the APEX website (www.apex-us.org) revealed clinicians I knew by name and reputation, if not personally: Stagg Newman, Kerry Ridgway, Ann Stuart, John Crandell III, Doug Lietzke, Jeff Pauley.

Would this clinic be over my head? (I consider myself to be a 100-miler newbie, with only 5 completions under my belt and less than a decade of endurance competition to my credit.)

Would it be geared toward international competition? (FEI level riding isn?t my cup of tea.)

Would it be too basic? (After all, I am not exactly new to the sport.)

Would I find out that the little success I?d already had was pure fluke and that I was a living breathing role model of What Not To Do? (Uh oh.)

Be Welcome, Come Learn, Share Ideas and Resources

From a speedy response to my last-minute ?Can I come?? to the warm welcome offered by Gene Limlaw, the local rider who organized the clinic (hosted by the Rojek?s Smoke Rise Farm), to the hot coffee waiting in the Carriage House (which served as our lecture hall), to the little welcome bag of goodies we received from Slypner?s Gear, I immediately felt right at home.

Gene and Cecily filled me in on the previous evening?s goings-on since I had been absent. Conformation and shoeing analysis of less than perfect, real life with each clinician offering their perspective, a goal-setting discussion, and an overall theme of how to make your horse the best, most enduring it could be.

As the morning progressed and Ann Stuart, DVM, presented a lecture and video synopses about Recognizing Lameness, it became obvious to me that this clinic was all about learning, and sharing ideas, and enhancing a sense of community.

Participants and ?experts? alike laughed over their wrong guesses about which leg was lame, which was primary versus secondary, what might be compensatory. Many of us were just relieved that we could see the horse was lame, and that yes, it was Grade 3 by AAEP criteria which would mean you were done for that day in an AERC ride.

Over and over, the ?experts? talked about how they deferred to others, how they realized they didn?t know everything, how they?d learned through (often embarrassing) mistakes, how a specific program (even their own) -- be it electrolyting, conditioning, post-ride leg care, shoeing ? wasn?t the be-all or end-all, it was just what worked for them.

On to Jeff Pauley, a SE Region Master Farrier whose wife, Leigh Ann, competes successfully in 100-mile rides. Jeff presented a multitude of shoeing set-up suggestions for various types of rides ? concussive, sandy, rocky, slippery terrain. Again, he emphasized taking advantage of the network of farriers shoeing endurance horses around the country ? make phone calls, drop emails, ask some questions about what shoeing set up might make sense for a particular ride ? cultivate and use your resources was his primary message.

In a light-hearted moment, Jeff spoke about the best time to approach your farrier about new ideas ? somehow, it seems that some horse owners like to have these chats while the farrier is bent over in concentration, sweating over a hoof, 99% done with the trim.

A better idea might be to call ahead and ask your farrier to schedule a little extra time for the beginning of the shoeing appointment to watch the horse go, chat about the shoeing set up for your next ride, and bounce some ideas off each other. Jeff also discussed the upcoming Shoeing for Endurance clinics being hosted by Kentucky School of Horseshoeing (see the APEX website for more details).

Ann and Jeff agreed that farriers and vets are getting better and better about working together on sport horse foot and leg care. They pointed to the upcoming AAEP (American Association of Equine Practitioners) Convention (http://www.aaep.org/convention.htm) in December, 2008, where a full day will be dedicated to the farrier/veterinarian partnership.

The treadmill demonstration was impressive, and I am so looking forward to making my Christmas Wish List for Santa, as one of these is right near the top. What a tool!

Phoenix, a Decade Team horse ridden by Dinah Rojek, cheerfully went through his paces on the treadmill, and participants were able to pick up dozens of things ? the foot flight of the horse, the way the horse landed (heel first? lateral? medial?), how the heart rate responded to changes in gait at the same speed (Phoenix is an efficient canterer), and just how critically important actually moving through space is to the thermoregulation of the horse (without the fan running, Phoenix overheated rather quickly).

The good news is that those of us not on Santa?s Good Child List can reap many of the advantages of the treadmill in a low-tech way. There are ways of getting videotape of a the foot flight of a horse in motion, some better suited for the risk-tolerant than others, all requiring a bit of patience and planning and a steady hand.

John Crandell spent some time, both at the treadmill and in the classroom, talking about how successful endurance horses tend to be narrow, thus able to more efficiently move their body mass through air. As John emphasized, these were the horses that could move with economy; these were the survivors in nature. For endurance, however, these horses present a shoeing challenge because of their relatively narrow path of hoof travel, and the close tolerances for perfect balance over long and challenging distances.

Jeff and John, both farriers, agreed that farriers do not create balance issues, they sometimes just don?t catch them soon enough, particularly if riders fail to communicate about small changes the may or may not notice.

Kerry Ridgway, DVM, moved us back to the internal function of the endurance horse, with an enlightening and sobering look at the impact of ulcers, and the management and feeding and medical remedies available, both at home and in competition, as allowed by the new AERC drug rules.

Kerry discussed his upcoming study with Frank Andrews, DVM, regarding acupuncture as both a diagnostic and treatment tool. This is a topic endurance riders should look forward to hearing more about! While it is clear that while ulcers are not a new problem, the research about them is evolving, as is the approach to addressing them.

During the breaks, participants chatted with the clinicians, picking their brains, seeking ideas, coming up with possible solutions to specific problems. This was the rubber meeting the road.

Jim Masterson (www.mastersonmethod.com) demonstrated an integrated method of massage for horses, using Finch, one of Smoke Rise Farm?s horses, as a subject. The great thing about this method is that it is intended to be one that horse handlers can perform themselves. Finch is a stoic sort, but we all watched in fascination as Jim?s work, even with the lightest of pressure, elicited responses from Finch ? twitching of his lips, blinking, changes in breath, snorting, shifting of weight or fidgeting, to repeated and enthusiastic yawning ? that showed release of tension.

An additional handful of horses were brought in for hands-on practice, each with different tight spots and personalities, and one of the many messages brought home, as in so many situations with horses, is that less is more. When a horse would resist, many of us would push or pull through, rather than lightening our touch and guiding the horse along. The light touch worked much better!

At the end of a long day Kerry Ridgway gave a saddle fitting demonstration, using a systematic approach (http://www.ultimatesaddlesolutions.com) to check the saddle, the horse, and the fit of the saddle to the horse, to include the placement and rigging of the girth or cinch. Kerry gave us his opinions and anecdotal stories about specific brands and types of saddles but the overall theme of that discussion was, as it is so many times with endurance riding I?ve learned, ?Whatever Works!?

Day Three ? As Joan Rivers would say, ?Can We Talk??

The third day of the clinic came too soon, culminating the previous days? learning, with round-robin small team work with each of the following ? John Crandell, Stagg Newman and Doug Lietzke. Doug gave us a lecture about positive imagery and using sports psychology tools to excel in our sport. Fascinating, and applicable in a very practical sense.

We shared stories, ideas and techniques. We laughed, we confessed our inadequacies and challenges and strengths, as well as those of our horses. I won?t share the inadequacies, other than to say that even the legends are human (or equine) in their imperfection. Being less than a model of perfection, myself, and having a herd of beasts for whom I can point out every flaw and shortcoming, this is considerable comfort.

Something I scribbled in large letters in my notes -- ?There are NO formulas!? Conditioning, electrolyting, post-leg care, whether a young horse was ready for his first CTR, 50, 100 or ready to race ? each participant there, including and with emphasis on the ?experts,? had their own opinions, experiences, ideas, and strategies.

And in the end, one of the predominant messages was summed up in a presentation by John about a ?Virtual Stable?, in which the endurance community in the U.S. can work together, pool resources, and share in one another?s successes and learning experiences.

Since so many of us have only one or two horses, why not set up a network with so many others like ourselves, so that we can learn and share and commiserate and set community goals so that we can belong, virtually, to a much bigger stable? It will make the highs higher, the lows a little less traumatic, and celebrate our collective successes.

The creation of a ?virtual stable?, in a nutshell, is the message behind APEX.

Patti

Shoulda been a cowgirl

mer@TheEquestrianVagabond.com (Merri) — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 14:38:00 +0000

Tahoe.com - More

By Wendy Lautner

Tahoe.com assistant editor Wendy Lautner had the chance to catch up with the busy Phyllis Keller, vice president of the Truckee-Donner horsemen/women this week. In between putting on the Truckee Championship Rodeo this week and preparing for a 100-mile horseback ride in Santa Cruz on Aug. 16 she offers up a little advice for folks wanting to get on the trails in the Tahoe area. Check out what she had to say below.

Tahoe.com: Tell me a little bit about your experience riding horses?
Phyllis: I started riding when I was in fifth grade, in Montana. My father was in the Air Force and we were stationed in Great Falls. I needless to say was horse bit and developed friendships with other kids who had horses. It was ride by the seat of your pants in those days.

My father retired which brought us to California. I had always wanted to ride over fences and after graduation from high school that?s what I got involved in. I purchased my first horse and got started. I rode for a few years, the bigger fences the better. I have wonderful memories of those years.

More...

How to know if your horse has problem hooves?

noreply@blogger.com (Endurance.Net) — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 15:59:00 +0000

Equethy.Com

By Chrisann Ware
Equine Myofunctional Therapist, UHHGM
& Co-ordinator Equethy Barefoot Workshops (Aust.)

As an Equine Myofunctional Therapist dealing daily with equine musculo-skeletal problems and through Equethy workshops (who have now delivered hundreds of workshops all over Australia in the past seven years), I have had the pleasure to meet many horse owners who turned to barefoot rehabilitation.

he comment I hear all the time after they see the dramatic changes that occur both in hooves and bodies is ?I wish I had known how to spot hoof problems earlier.... I could have helped my horse years ago instead of wasting all that time while he was getting steadily worse......I feel like such an idiot!"

I tell them "don't" because you are not alone. I was just the same at one time until I learned a little hoof anatomy.

Many horse owners know instinctively that their horses are ?not quite right. They ask their farrier who says ?well he doesn?t have great feet but just keep him shod and he will be OK.?

...More at Equethy.Com"

NoHands Bridge

noreply@blogger.com (Endurance.Net) — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 15:55:00 +0000

Original Article

Ben Furtado/Auburn Journal

Gordon Ainsleigh stands below Mountain Quarries Railroad Bridge ? also known as No Hands Bridge. The first man to complete the Western States Endurance Run, Ainsleigh sees No Hands Bridge as a ?bridge to the promised land.?

The Mountain Quarries Railroad Bridge once connected Auburn with the vast resources of the American River Canyon. In modern times the structure spanning the American River serves as a beacon for weary equestrians and endurance runners.

The landmark commonly referred to as ?No Hands Bridge? connects the rugged Western States Trail with the final climb to Auburn, leading runners from the wilderness to civilization.

?No Hands is our bridge to the past and to our future,? said Gordon Ainsleigh, who was the first man to run the Western States Trail from Truckee, which led to the founding of the Western States Endurance Run two years later. ?For those of us in the Auburn area who have sweated so much, breathed so much and lived so much of the best of our lives on that trail through the wilderness to Tahoe that we usually access only by No Hands, it?s like a bridge to the promised land.?

The bridge was erected in 1912 by the Pacific Portland Cement Company to connect its limestone quarry to the Southern Pacific main line in Auburn. At the time of its construction, the bridge was the largest concrete arch bridge in the world. More than 800 men worked on the construction of the bridge, which cost $300,000 to build.

When the railroad ties were removed in the 1940s, the bridge was relegated to primarily serving adventurous equestrians like Wendell Robie. The Auburn businessman founded the Western States Endurance Ride in 1955. He was also the driving force behind the creation of the Western States Endurance Run more than 20 years later.

The Mountain Quarries Railroad Bridge?s unique design has survived numerous floods while other bridges in the area failed. In 1964, the Hell Hole Dam gave way and the ensuing flood took out two bridges up-river. The cement structure was pressed into service, providing the link between Placer and El Dorado counties while the Highway 49 Bridge was being rebuilt.

The ?Valentine?s Day? flood of 1986 knocked out two bridges to the west while the Mountain Quarries Bridge held firm.

The nickname ?No Hands Bridge? came about prior to the installation of handrails along the bridge in 1984. While most equestrians would dismount to cross the guardrail-less bridge, veteran rider Ina Robinson would drop her reins and cross with no hands, leading to the catchy nickname.

The bridge?s rich history is now a major part of the endurance community. The bridge is the last major monument before runners reach the Placer High track and the finish of the Western States Endurance Run. The bridge has witnessed some major drama in the Tevis Cup. In 2007, Jeremy Reynolds passed John Crandell between No Hands and the finish line in Auburn to win.

The bridge stands less than four miles from the Western States finish line, though the final climb out of the canyon has claimed many a runner.

No Hands Bridge was closed temporarily in 1995 and ?96 when it was discovered the footings on the mid-river abutment were failing. However the bridge was opened temporarily for both Western States and Tevis Cup.

Congressman John Doolittle, R-Roseville, was able to appropriate $700,000 for the repairs on the bridge, which were completed in ?96.

Auburn?s Hal Hall helped lead a major effort to have the Mountain Quarries Bridge listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2004 by the U.S. Department of the Interior. The bridge has been a huge part of Hall?s life as one of endurance riding?s most decorated competitors.

Ainsleigh couldn?t picture life without No Hands Bridge, the gateway to a land that remains the wild west.

?The trail basically follows the drainage of the middle fork and it?s our connection to that,? Ainsleigh said. ?It?s like so much of our lives are connected to this trail and this bridge is kind of sacred ground.?

The Journal?s Todd Mordhorst can be reached at toddm@goldcountrymedia.com or comment at AuburnJournal.com

--------

Fast Facts:

Mountain Quarries Railroad Bridge
Commonly referred to as No Hands Bridge after being dubbed such by endurance rider Ina Robinson in the early 1980s, who would drop her reins and ride across the then guardrail-less bridge with no hands.

Built by John B. Leonard and completed on March 23, 1912.

The bridge is 15 feet wide, 482 feet long and 70 feet high at average water flow.
The U.S. Department of the Interior placed the bridge on the National Register of Historical Places in 2004.

Gordon Ainsleigh
The chiropractor from Meadow Vista was the first man to run the Western States Trail from Truckee to Auburn ? 100 miles ? in 1974.

The Western States Endurance Run was founded two years later and Ainsleigh has finished the run 22 times in 30 hours or less.

Ainsleigh now serves on the Auburn Recreation District?s board of directors.

The CRI: Appropriate and InAppropriate Use - Dr. Kerry Ridgeway DVM

noreply@blogger.com (Endurance.Net) — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 22:19:00 +0000

Both veterinarians and competitors would like to have a parameter that is 100% objective and would tell us whether a horse is fit to continue. Early in this sport that parameter was thought to be the heart rate. Every- one, veterinarians included, tried to establish a magic number. The early ?number? was 72 beats per minute. To many competitors this meant that a heart rate of 72 was okay but a heart rate of 73 was not. Most competi- tors believed that even if other parameters were poor, because the pulse was 72 or less the horse should have no problems continuing. Even the veterinarians tend- ed to fall into this trap. Though it doesn?t take much thought to recognize the patent fallacies of this con- cept, it still woos us we just replace the 72 with lower pulse numbers.

This mystique has, unfortunately, been transferred to use of the Cardiac Recovery Index as providing the ?magic number,? and the ?objective and, incontrovert- ible piece of data.? Many see it as an ?either you pass it or you don?t pass it? mentality.

Complete Article (PDF)

Dead birds spark concern at Hong Kong equestrian centre

mer@TheEquestrianVagabond.com (Merri) — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 14:19:00 +0000

Horsetalk.co.nz - Full Article

July 29, 2008

The discovery of two dead birds at the Olympic equestrian venue has raised the ugly spectre of bird flu as the games build-up continues.

It is understood the birds have been taken for testing by Hong Kong's Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department.

Bird flu is not known to affect horses but it can jump to people. Millions of birds have been culled across Asia in recent years as authorities move to minimise the risk of the disease jumping to people.

Hong Kong's worst outbreak of bird flu was in 1997, when six people died.

The Olympic equestrian events are being held in Hong Kong because of equine disease concerns around mainland China and quarantine issues...

More...

A Mongolian festival to sing about

mer@TheEquestrianVagabond.com (Merri) — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 14:12:00 +0000

Travel.reviewnews.org - Full Article

By Rebecca Byerly
For CNN

ULAANBAATAR, Mongolia (CNN) ? Standing slightly more than 4 feet tall, 9-year-old Tuguldur proudly stated the greatest challenge he faced in a horse race across the Mongolian plains in the country?s annual Naadam Festival was serenading his horse.

Young wrestlers cheer on teammates during the opening round at the Naadam Festival.

?The hardest part of the race was singing to my horse while riding,? said Tuguldur, wiping perspiration from the July sun off his face.

The long-distance horse race is exclusively for children, ranging in ages from 6 to 12. Riding up to 30 kilometers (19 miles), these children maneuver their galloping steeds on a thin saddle pad that often does not have stirrups.

?Mongolians believe they can communicate with their horses through singing, and their horse will go faster,? said Tamir, a senior at Mongolian University. ?This is why the kids must keep singing during the race...?

More...

Endurance Granny's blog: Cybil Syndrome and The Lighter Side of Endurance

noreply@blogger.com (Steph Teeter) — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 03:14:00 +0000

Endurance Granny's Blog
Saturday, July 6, 208

A wonderful endurance (and past CTR National Championship rider) Christine Eickleberry sent me by mail this week "The Lighter Side of Endurance Riding" by Angie McGhee. If you have never read this....you must find a copy. She comes up with some really humorous stuff, and it reads as the HOW NOT TO of endurance, how things went wrong, and how things are just down right funny. I've not gotten through the entire book yet, have been savoring it bit by bit prior to sleep each night.

I'm wondering if Angie McGhee has written yet on "Cybil Syndrome". I found it to be the most terrifying aspect of those first few endurance rides...it can affect the rider, it can affect the horse, and may God bless and keep you safe if both horse and rider get it. Rider symptoms: The rider will present as a calm sane individual at the pre-ride check in. Having conditioned the horse for long slow distance, having prechecked gear, worked out feed regimines and taken a vow of "to finish is too win." There are virtually no pre-ride symptoms other than racing thoughts, and perhaps an increase in the rider's heart rate. After all this is a first endurance ride, and the rider plans to just take it easy, enjoy the trail, the woods, and get a completion. Now I've contemplated if over night ride managment sneaks into your camp and sprinkles some kind of "Cybil Dust" in your coffee mug....I don't know for sure how it happens, I just know it does happen. Ride day ---- the newbie rider presents on her pretty and nicely conditioned for LSD horse. The timer sends you out, and suddenly the Newbie becomes Cybil. Look at all those horses and they are all moving out in front...oh my God I can't finish last, this is my first race (did she say race?), oh the shame of it! The dual personality emerges and out pops full blown Cybil Syndrome, the crazed newbie, trying to out run the hot shoes, and doing it for at least a mile or two.

The other side of the coin is a fairly put together new rider, who has not caught the syndrome (or ride management thought they were going to be caught and just spread the Cybil dust around camp....some drifted onto the horse's hay). The horse and rider team present sanely, and head out on the trail, they look spectacular! Then a horse passes the team and Cybil Syndrome strikes the horse. The equine who could have given pony rides at the fair to tiny children suddenly gets the "Look of Eagles", and muscles start popping up and the rider feels the horse actually gathering up under the saddle, then they are off!!! All the while the rider is trying to do all those nice things she read about in the books she bought on endurance riding. The horse is galloping on after the pack, while the rider is hanging on for dear life ( she never practiced riding at speed as she had no plan or intention of doing so), grabbing for the horn on the saddle that doesn't have one because they are now using an endurance saddle. You hear screams of something like "whoa Black Betty!!!" as the horse races down the trail with the pack.

Cybil Syndrome can also happen at the vet check. If the rider is afflicted their unsuspecting crew (spouse) will greet their sweet wife and ask how they can help. All normalcy ends at that point as Cybil has arrived. She's hot, she's tired, and she's in back of the pack. How could that HAPPEN? He says, " honey, I thought you just wanted to finish"? Where she then glares at him and ponders the various methods of poisoning, and collecting on the insurance for a "faster horse." The husband turns pale and gazes into the woods wondering if she was abducted by aliens and who is this woman"? If only the horse is afflicted, the horse will come bounding into the vet check, with eyes glittering, dancing around like something from "The Black Stallion Returns", the vet becomes dizzy spinning the circle with his stethescope trying to get a pulse. He never gets one, but in fear of his life figures a horse with that much energy is good to go, but he does have some concerns about the rider who is standing bent over, long strands of mane hair entangled in her fingers, hands on knees, face frozen in fear...

When all is said and done the pair will finish pretty near last, just like they would have if all things had gone well and pair had not been afflicted. That is the irony of Cybil Syndrome.

First-Class Treatment for U.S. Team?s Horses

noreply@blogger.com (Steph Teeter) — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 14:20:00 +0000

New York Times

By KATIE THOMAS
Published: July 24, 2008

Tim Dutta has learned that satisfying his well-heeled clientele means attending to the smallest of details. One of his frequent fliers loves orange Gatorade, for example, but turns up his nose at lime. Another drinks water only if it has been sweetened with a touch of apple juice. Some ease their nerves by nibbling on wet hay, while others take it dry.

?These are high-end athletes,? Dutta said. ?And our main job is to make sure they are as stress-free as possible.?

His clients, of course, are not human but equine ? Dutta is a shipping agent for the United States equestrian team, responsible for flying the team?s horses to Europe for the first leg of their trip to the 2008 Summer Olympics.

After a seven-day quarantine in Britain or Germany, the horses will depart later this month and in early August for the equestrian site in Hong Kong as part of a global migration that will ultimately include 297 horses from 47 nations traveling on 57 airplanes.

With their superb training, million-dollar price tags and often excitable temperaments, many Olympic horses are celebrities in their own right. ?They are rock stars,? Dutta said. ?And we treat them like rock stars.?

Martin Atock, who has shipped horses for every Olympics since the 1988 Seoul Games, has been planning for this summer?s Games since 2001 and has already made 16 trips to Hong Kong. ?The trick to help them recover is you keep the whole transport as smooth and stress-free as possible,? said Atock, managing director of Peden Bloodstock, the German agency that is arranging the transport of every national team?s Olympic horses.

Olympic riders say they cannot help but worry while their horses are in transit. Because horses and riders work together for years, if the animal becomes injured, the rider cannot simply find a new horse. Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg?s daughter Georgina, for example, had to remove herself from contention for the Olympic team because her top horse, Cim Christo, injured his leg last fall.

?Traveling is one of the most stressful things a horse has to do,? said Beezie Madden, an American show jumper who competed on the gold-medal-winning United States jumping team in Athens in 2004. She competes with the 13-year-old Dutch-bred warmblood, Authentic. If a plane is delayed, ?it can end up being a much longer experience than it needs to be,? she said.

The horses fly with an entourage ? team grooms, veterinarians and at least one ?flying groom,? an equine flight attendant whose job is to make the horse as comfortable as possible. Tim Rolfe, the senior flying groom for Peden Bloodstock, said his job was as much about calming nervous handlers as about taking care of the horses. ?Basically, this is really like a giant baby-sitting job,? he said.

As with humans, a horse?s primary health concern during flight is dehydration, which explains why Dutta is so attentive to his clients? drinking preferences ? water sweetened with Gatorade and apple juice, for example.

Horses can also lose their balance, so cargo plane pilots use the full extent of the runway to make takeoff and landing as smooth as possible. Even air traffic controllers become involved, Atock said, approving a flight path devoid of sharp, unpredictable turns. ?We take a very slow curve,? he said, ?to let the horse anticipate the movement.?

The horse?s trip begins in a warehouse near the airport, where it is loaded into a container that resembles a standard horse trailer. From there, the animal is wheeled onto the tarmac and lifted into the belly of the cargo plane. Apart from wearing protective foam boots and, occasionally, ear muffs to block engine noise, the horse has an experience similar to riding in a trailer, Atock said.

Besides, most horses who will travel to the Olympics have already logged many thousands of miles in the air. Brentina, a 17-year-old mare who competes with the American dressage rider Debbie McDonald, travels to Europe at least twice a year. ?She?s a pretty seasoned flier,? said McDonald, who competed in Athens in 2004 as part of the United States team that won a bronze medal.

The United States plans to send four show jumpers, three dressage horses and five eventing horses to the Olympics, in addition to two alternates in show jumping and dressage, said James Wolf, executive director for sport programs for the United States Equestrian Federation, the sport?s national governing body.

Because of differences in their competition schedules, the horses will travel to Hong Kong separately. Eventing horses will leave from Stansted Airport outside London on July 30. The dressage horses will leave the same date, from Amsterdam. The show jumping horses leave last, on Aug. 6.

Once in Hong Kong, the horses will be transferred to air-conditioned trucks ? the temperature set at 73 degrees ? for the 30-mile trip to the Hong Kong Jockey Club, the site of the equestrian events. During a test event last summer, Atock clocked the journey from the tarmac to the stables at 1 hour 40 minutes.

By that time, humans are ?basically still collecting your luggage at the passenger terminal,? Atock said. ?We?re already in the stables.?

How a horse keeps cool

noreply@blogger.com (Endurance.Net) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 23:41:00 +0000

Equisearch.com

Consider how our equine partners regulate body temperature and keep cool.

By Heather Smith Thomas

You know just from standing close beside your horse that he, like every living animal, generates heat. But have you ever considered where that energy comes from? Just going about the daily business of staying alive, the cells of the body convert the sugar glucose into energy. But the cells do not use their fuel very efficiently--only a portion is turned into useful energy; the rest becomes waste heat.

A horse at rest generally maintains a body temperature between 99 and 101 degrees Fahrenheit (F). But when his muscles are called into action, be it for a cross-country run or a stroll to the water trough, the cells begin to metabolize glucose at higher rates, which in turn, increases the amount of excess heat produced.

"The harder a horse works, the hotter he gets," says David Marlin, PhD, of Hartpury College in Gloucester, England, an equine exercise physiologist who helped prepare standards of care for horses competing in the 2008 Olympic equestrian games in Hong Kong. "It's the intensity of the exercise that matters, not simply the running speed. The way we normally define how hard a horse is working is by heart rate." Running at high speeds or over long distances, of course, significantly increases a horse's heart rate, but so does slower work in soft footing, for example, or carrying heavier weights, or working too hard when the horses is generally unfit.

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How a Horse Keeps Cool
Consider how our equine partners regulate body temperature and keep cool.

By Heather Smith Thomas

You know just from standing close beside your horse that he, like every living animal, generates heat. But have you ever considered where that energy comes from? Just going about the daily business of staying alive, the cells of the body convert the sugar glucose into energy. But the cells do not use their fuel very efficiently--only a portion is turned into useful energy; the rest becomes waste heat.

A horse at rest generally maintains a body temperature between 99 and 101 degrees Fahrenheit (F). But when his muscles are called into action, be it for a cross-country run or a stroll to the water trough, the cells begin to metabolize glucose at higher rates, which in turn, increases the amount of excess heat produced.

"The harder a horse works, the hotter he gets," says David Marlin, PhD, of Hartpury College in Gloucester, England, an equine exercise physiologist who helped prepare standards of care for horses competing in the 2008 Olympic equestrian games in Hong Kong. "It's the intensity of the exercise that matters, not simply the running speed. The way we normally define how hard a horse is working is by heart rate." Running at high speeds or over long distances, of course, significantly increases a horse's heart rate, but so does slower work in soft footing, for example, or carrying heavier weights, or working too hard when the horses is generally unfit.
article continues below

A horse may safely experience a temporary climb in body temperature to as high as 103 degrees F. But to prevent his body temperature from spiking to dangerous levels, any extra heat must be dissipated. That process begins with the blood, which heats up as it travels through the working muscles, then carries that extra heat out to the skin.

"Blood is equivalent to the cooling fluid in a car," says Marlin. "Cooler blood is flowing to the muscles, picking up heat, taking it to the skin and getting rid of it, then circulating through the muscles again. This is similar to cooling fluid coming from the car radiator, going to the engine, picking up heat and going back to the radiator to get rid of some of the heat before going round again."

If the outside air is not too humid and the temperature is cooler than the horse's body temperature, the excess heat will simply radiate into the outside air; a smaller amount will also be dissipated as the horse breathes, as he exhales heat and draws cooler air into his lungs. "About 85 percent of the heat loss will be through the skin surface all over the body, and about 15 percent through the respiratory tract," Marlin says.

To boost the rate of heat loss, a horse will first increase his respiratory rate--flared nostrils are a sign that he's trying to draw in as much air as possible to aid that process. When the horse is generating more heat than can be dissipated via breathing and radiation alone, his body goes to the next stage of cooling--he sweats. That is, fluids from the bloodstream will pass through the sweat glands to the surface of the skin, where evaporation increases the rate of cooling.

"Horses are very efficient at sweating," says Kent Allen, DVM, a sports-medicine veterinarian in Middleburg, Va., and a veterinary coordinator for the Atlanta Olympics in 1996 as well as the 2010 World Equestrian Games.

A horse can produce a prodigious amount of sweat--"a quarter of a liter per minute," says Marlin. "If you multiply that by 60 minutes of exercise, that equates to about 16 liters per hour--a huge amount." Horses also have ample reservoirs of fluids in their systems to allow for relatively high levels of fluid loss, but there is a cost: "The body uses energy to produce sweat," he adds. "It also loses electrolytes and water, which causes its own problems. [Horses] become dehydrated and their electrolyte balance becomes disturbed."

Most of the time horses recover from exertion quite readily--all they need is time to rest and access to ample water, salt and proper feed, and perhaps an electrolyte supplement, and they'll be back to normal within hours or maybe days, if the work was especially intensive. However, if the horse is overworked and/or overheated to an extent that seriously taxes his capacity to cool himself, then his temperature can spike to dangerous levels, and if the process is left unchecked, his body will begin a sequence of events that become progressively more dangerous.

What You Can Do to Help
Intervene immediately if you suspect that your horse is overheated. The extent of the measures you need to take depends on how hot the horse has gotten. If he's still alert, still sweating normally, and his rectal temperature reads 103 degrees F or lower, he is overheated but not in danger. "He just needs walking around, letting him drink, and some washing down with cool water," says Allen. "It's normal for a horse to heat this much while working." But, when a horse starts edging toward overheating, more extreme cooling measures are necessary:

irst, stop riding, remove the saddle and move the horse into the shade. Keep him walking, to encourage circulation that will bring more heated blood to the surface of the skin for cooling; if there's a breeze, walk him in circles to expose him to the cooling air on all sides.

Let him drink his fill as soon as you stop working and as you walk him. A hot horse needs to take in as much water as he wants to replace what he lost though sweating. And don't worry about the temperature of the water. One myth that still crops up is the notion that letting a hot horse drink cold water will cause colic and muscle cramps. But there's no scientific basis for that fear.

Splash or spray cold water onto the horse to aid evaporative cooling. Another false notion is that putting cold water on hot muscles will constrict the blood vessels and lead to cramping; however, studies done in preparation for the Olympic Games in Atlanta in 1996 failed to identify any ill effects from the practice. "We disproved the myth that if you put cold water over the big muscles the horse would tie up," Allen says. In fact, cooling stations, where hot horses will be doused head to toe with cold water, are one of the strategies to be employed for the 2008 Olympic equestrian games in Hong Kong.

"Cooling the horse with [room temperature] water all over the body is fine in a hot, dry climate," says Marlin. The water will evaporate quickly into the dry air. "If it's hot and humid, you need water that's lower in temperature than the horse." Add ice to buckets of water to cool it to as low 40 degrees F before applying it to the horse. If the horse's body temperature is edging upward into the danger zones--105 degrees F or higher--douse as much of his body as possible with the coldest water available.

If dousing the whole horse is difficult, you can achieve some cooling by wetting down or holding ice on areas where large veins run close to the surface of the skin, such as the jugular. "You can do the same thing up between the hind legs, if the horse is used to this, since the veins are very distended in that area," Allen says. But don't "surprise" a hot horse with this tactic, he advises. Even just the legs provide about a quarter of the body's surface area, and the arteries and veins running have little insulation from muscle and fat. "There's a lot of blood circulating through the feet," says Barney Fleming, DVM, who practices in Custer, South Dakota, and monitors endurance rides all over the country. "If there's a stream nearby, just walk the horse in, stand him in the water and use it to keep wetting his jugular groove and abdominal veins."

Continue to monitor your horse's temperature as you walk and cool him. Within 10 minutes, you ought to see a 2 degree F drop. Stop using the cold water once his temperatures drops to 101 degrees or lower, his respiration approaches normal and the skin on his hindquarters feels cool to the touch after a walking period. If the horse is not back to normal and drinking readily within an hour, then summon immediate veterinary assistance. He may need intravenous hydration and other measures.

To read more, see "Heat Stress Prevention Strategy" in the July 2008 issue of EQUUS magazine.

On Mustang Range, a Battle on Thinning the Herd

noreply@blogger.com (Endurance.Net) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 14:52:00 +0000

The New York Times

By FELICITY BARRINGER
Published: July 20, 2008

GERLACH, Nev. ? Five mustangs pounded across the high desert recently, their dark manes and tails giving shape to the wind. Pursued by a helicopter, they ran into a corral ? and into the center of the emotional debate over whether euthanasia should be used to thin a captive herd that already numbers 30,000.

The champions of wild mustangs have long portrayed them as the victims of ranchers who preferred cattle on the range, middlemen who wanted to make a buck selling them for horsemeat and misfits who shot them for sport. But the wild horse today is no longer automatically considered deserving of extensive protections.

Some environmentalists and scientists have come to see the mustangs, which run wild from Montana to California, as top-of-the-food-chain bullies, invaders whose hooves and teeth disturb the habitats of endangered tortoises and desert birds.

Even the language has shifted. In a 2006 article in Audubon magazine, wild horses lost their poetry and were reduced to ?feral equids.?

?There?s not just horses out there, there?s other critters, from the desert turtle in the south to the bighorn sheep in the north,? said Paula Morin, the author of the book ?Honest Horses.?

?We?ve come a long way in our awareness of the web of life and maintaining the whole ecology,? Ms. Morin said, adding, ?We do the horses a disservice when we set them apart.?

Environmentalists? attitudes toward the horses have evolved so far that some are willing to say what was heresy a few years ago: that euthanasia is acceptable if the alternatives are boarding the mustangs for life at taxpayers? expense or leaving them to overpopulate, damage the range and die of hunger or thirst.

The federal Bureau of Land Management, the legal custodian of the wild horses and burros, recently proposed euthanization. For years, the bureau has been running the Adopt-A-Horse program, selling mustangs from the range to those who would care for them. But 30,000 once-wild horses were never adopted and are being boarded by the agency at facilities in Kansas and Oklahoma (another 33,000 run wild). As feed and gas grow more expensive, the rate of adoptions plummets.

Boarding costs ran to $21 million last year and are expected to reach $26 million this year, out of a $37 million budget for the bureau?s Wild Horse and Burro Program, which is intended to protect the animals. And drought lingers here in northern Nevada, where the mustangs were rounded up on a recent weekend morning to prevent them from starving.

The bureau ?can?t do a good job of taking care of horses on the range if they have to take care of all the horses off the range,? said Nathaniel Messer, a professor of veterinary science at the University of Missouri and a former member of the federal Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Committee.

Steven L. Davis, an emeritus professor of animal science at Oregon State University, said: ?Many of the wild horse supporters claim that the horses have a right to be there. I reject that argument.? He added: ?They damage the water holes. They damage the grasses, the shrubs, the bushes, causing negative consequences for all the other plants and critters that live out there.?

For groups formed to protect the horses, the specter of euthanasia as a solution remains anathema. ?It?s not acceptable to the American public,? said Virginie L. Parant, a lawyer who is the director of the American Wild Horse Preservation Campaign.

The mustang, Ms. Parant said, ?is part of the American myth. People want to know that they can come to the American West and know that they can see herds of wild horses roaming. It?s part of the imagery.?

As mustangs increasingly competed with cattle in the 1940s and 50s, many were rounded up and slaughtered. They found a champion in Velma Johnston, better known as Wild Horse Annie, who pushed Congress to act. In 1971, Congress gave the federal bureau the job of caring for them.

Shelley Sawhook, the president of the American Horse Defense Fund, argues, along with other horse defenders, that the federal government ?mismanaged the program from the very beginning.? She added that ?their proposal to euthanize is a stopgap measure? to cover what she believes is an overly aggressive policy of removing horses from the range for the benefit of cattle interests.

Accusations of mismanagement have dogged the bureau across Democratic and Republican administrations; a decade ago The Associated Press found that a few agency employees were adopting mustangs themselves and selling them to slaughterhouses. In the wake of lawsuits by the Fund for Animals and other groups, the bureau required anyone adopting a mustang to sign a binding pledge not to send it to a slaughterhouse. In 2001, the Earth Liberation Front took credit for the firebombing of an agency hay barn on the Nevada-California border.

Today, the fundamental rift between the bureau and its critics involves two judgment calls: how many horses can a range of 29 million acres support, and how should that level be maintained?

Arlan Hiner, an assistant field manager for the bureau in Nevada, said, ?We?re supposed to be managing for ecological balance.? Over all, the bureau wants to cut the wild herd by about 6,000 horses. Ted Williams, the author of the Audubon article, argued that without euthanasia such a balance would be impossible.

Mr. Williams?s article infuriated the mustang advocates even more than the agency?s proposal to resume euthanasia. Ms. Parant laughs at the idea of attributing the range destruction to horses when cattle greatly outnumber them.

Jay F. Kirkpatrick, a scientist who is the director of the Science and Conservation Center in Billings, Mont., wrote in a rebuttal to the Audubon article that Mr. Williams had not given sufficient weight to birth control options, which could make ?serious inroads? on horse populations.

?The issue is not that the technology doesn?t exist, but that the B.L.M. is not investing in it,? Professor Kirkpatrick wrote.

Herd sizes, the bureau says, double every four years. And the agency is working with a contraceptive that is largely effective for two years in mares. Alan Shepherd, the official who helps run the contraceptive program, said that it showed promise but had limitations.

?The ultimate thing is you can?t catch them all,? Mr. Shepherd said.

The horses that came rushing into the corral ahead of the helicopter were taken to a holding facility and will eventually find their way into the Adopt-A-Horse program.

The bureau said it would be premature to discuss the criteria for culling horses or the means of euthanasia. Longtime observers believe that older, unadoptable horses would be the focus of such a program. And in past mustang-thinning operations at holding facilities, marksmen shot the horses, said Dr. Messer of Missouri.

After Representative Nick J. Rahall II, Democrat of West Virginia and chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee, raised questions this month about the euthanasia proposal, the bureau agreed to make no decision until after completion of a Congressional audit of the program, which is due in September.

Pride of the desert: The Arabian Horse

noreply@blogger.com (Endurance.Net) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 00:01:00 +0000

By M. Satya Narayan, Senior Reporter
Published: July 19, 2008, 23:06

Dubai: Arabian horses and the United Arab Emirates share a bond that has been handed down through generations and today some of the top owners of this fascinating equine breed hail from the emirates.

In ancient days, the possession of an Arabian steed was a matter of great pride for an Arab. Even now in many prominent locations one can find the late Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan seated on a grey Arabian, Vain Huzar, and it was the late President who ensured that the noble creature will not be lost in all the development and modernisation of the country. The breeding programme he initiated in 1980 has now spread and many new owners and breeders has resulted in a record number of foals born last season in the UAE.

Alanudd (Unchained Melody), which was owned by Shaikh Zayed, is one of the most famous Purebred Arabian race horses. During her racing career here in the UAE, Alanudd lost only once in 31 starts and dominated almost all distance while the 18-year is a broodmare now, one of her daughters is already creating ripples. Mizzna, owned by Shaikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Presidential Affairs, has already won six of her seven starts in the UAE and has also halted the winning streak of another great Arabian champion- Madjani.

Madjani hails from the stables of Shaikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Minister of Finance and one of the top owners currently of Arabian horses. Another great champion, Madjani won the Kahayla Classic Group 1 (one of the biggest Arabian races run on Dubai World Cup night) thrice in succession like Alanudd and was bidding for his fourth when Mizzna beat him and ensured her mother's record of three Kahayla wins stayed intact.

With quite a few stables breeding Purebred Arabians in the UAE, there are many races which are earmarked for locally-bred horses but last season Dynamite registered a major triumph for the locally-bred crop. The seven-year old bay gelding won the HH President's Cup in Abu Dhabi, the first locally-bred horse to win a Group 1 race against top quality opposition. This win in the 2007-08 season has been a perfect advertisement for the local-breeding programme and does augur well for the many new Emirati owners who are taking to racing.

With breeding programmes already on to produce champion endurance horses and the UAE riders emerging as world-beaters in the sport, Purebred Arabian horses will continue to be a desired craze for UAE nationals.

And this will only strengthen the age-old bond between the emirati and his Purebred Arabian horse.

Gallery of Arabian Horses

Gulf News - Full Article

Canada: Melville-area family busy breaking wild horses

noreply@blogger.com (Endurance.Net) — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 04:59:00 +0000

Braden Husdal, Leader-Post
Published: Thursday, July 17, 2008

REGINA -- On a horse farm near Melville, a history of wild and reckless behaviour is being wholeheartedly embraced by a patient and caring hand.

The owners of the farm, Kelly and Ingrid Ricketts, recently purchased 31 wild horses from the Bureau of Land Management in the United States. Until recently, the horses had lived wild their entire lives before they were rounded up from different areas of the country like California, Nevada, Wyoming, Nebraska and Montana.

photo: Jacob Ricketts with one of the wild horses.

On June 27, the Ricketts took possession of the horses after the animals were medically cleared to cross the border.

"We're trying to take our group of horses and make them tame enough so that they can enjoy what they were created for," said Kelly Ricketts. "They were meant to bring companionship to people and now they can be used for their potential.

"I had a horse in years past that enjoyed going riding and someday that can hopefully be a possibility for most of these horses."

Of the 31 horses Ricketts purchased, he hopes that 26 of them can become tame enough to be adopted or sold. He believes the remaining five horses are too wild to allow anyone to come close to them, let alone put a saddle on.

Ricketts spends seven to eight hours each day in and around the corral where he has the horses. He says that he constantly has his head on a swivel to watch for any aggressive signs from the animals.

"They know me better than anyone because they see me every day but I always need to remember that they're still wild," he said. "There are different things that upset wild horses than what upsets a domestic horse and these horses will bite and kick if I give them the chance.

"Right now they won't stop kicking either. A domestic horse might kick you once and be done with it. These horses have a survival instinct and they'll kick six or seven times before they're through."

Despite the initial dangers that he's faced, Ricketts is still confident that he will be able to tame the majority of the horses. Although he's never tried to tame a wild horse before, he's owned plenty of other horses in the past and is quickly learning the proper techniques for dealing with his new charges.

The 31 horses Ricketts purchased are all mares and are 11 to 12 years old. Ricketts plans to breed the horses that he cannot sell, and believes the foals will be much easier to tame than the mothers.

To be able to cross the border into Canada, each horse had to pass numerous medical inspections and so Ricketts knows that each is individually healthy. He says that they are all very skinny right now, but living in the wild has made them much tougher and given them more endurance than any domestic horse he has encountered.

"I've had horse people over to look at these mares and every person is amazed when they see them," said Ricketts. "I think of it as something like being in a zoo and being able to touch a grizzly bear.

"For people that understand horses, these ones are wild but still incredibly beautiful creatures."

Ricketts has already sold one of the 26 horses he deems are fit to be sold. He charges a $500 adoption fee and offers to keep the horse on his property and tame it for an additional $225 per month.

Ricketts refuses to let any horse out of his possession that he believes still has the potential to hurt somebody. He says the last thing he wants is for someone to believe they know how to handle the horse and then suffer a serious injury.

"These horses are part of American history and some of them might go back as far as 16 or 17 generations," said Ricketts. "In the States there are so many wild horses that they have no choice but to round them up and try to sell them to people.

"I think once people adopt these horse and give them a home, they'll realize that it is a really rewarding experience and something that is really unique."

bhusdal@leaderpost.canwest.com