Young grasses are low fiber, very high protein and higher in rapidly fermentable carbohydrate fractions than more mature growths. This can lead to a variety of hind gut digestive upsets including bloating, varying degrees of manure softening/diarrhea, and in some cases colic. This can be avoided by careful introduction to the new grass.

The most common root cause of laminitis in horse populations worldwide is some form of underlying endocrine dysfunction, with high blood insulin being the common feature that appears to directly lead to laminitis lesions in horses with Pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction (PPID, or Equine Cushings disease) or Equine Metabolic Syndrome.

“We’ve done a lot of good work over the last 10 years, since Barbaro,” says van Eps. “We know now that there are different mechanisms that can lead to the disease, and we’re working out ways to prevent or ameliorate the different forms.”

Researchers believe pro-inflammatory proteins help stimulate a foal’s immune system to function appropriately, helping to activate immune system memory, rather than directly fighting infection.

Horses that stay home or rarely compete are not immune to stomach ulcers. Cheramie cites these situations as examples of what can cause them including: Light training, Short-term travel, Trailering, Change in routine, Change in feed schedule, Limited turnout or grazing, or Lay-up due to sickness or injury, Radio in the barn, or Social regrouping.

Unfortunately, the nurse mare didn’t take to the new filly either. So in order to provide the foal with the necessary nutrition, an Igloo cooler was retrofitted with a sheep nipple to allow for nursing. Finally, a bit of success! The filly took to nursing from the cooler quickly, allowing for one big hurdle to be overcome.

It’s a common misconception that senior horses, having received vaccinations for years, are already protected and haven’t the need for annual vaccinations.

Unfortunately, on a global scale, we’ve seen the overuse and misuse of life-saving medications in both humans and animals. Antibiotic resistance is a naturally occurring phenomenon, but the overuse of these medications has significantly accelerated AMR selection and spread. As a result, the world is rapidly reaching a point where we are in danger of seeing more people dying from infections due to antibiotic resistance than from cancer,” Dr Page said.

Traceability in the equine industry has been a highly-discussed topic for several years, with varying progress across the country to move forward with a national infrastructure. NIAA sought to establish consensus on the parameters of a national equine identification program, and provide recommendations for advancing equine identification technologies and electronic data capture methodologies by involving stakeholders from across the horse industry to get a broad perspective on the state of today’s technology and its uses.