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Rood & Riddle Podiatry: Quality Of Life Improved For Percheron With Coffin Bone Disease

The Rood & Riddle Equine Podiatry unit posts a unique case each month on its social media pages in order to highlight how the combination of science with art can be used in the all-consuming effort to improve equine welfare. Reprinted with permission.

An approximately 10-year-old Percheron gelding presented with chronic right hind lameness stemming from recurrent abscesses and hoof instability. The owners had acquired this horse with hoof pathology already present in the hopes of improving his condition. He has since become a cherished member of their family.

The medial aspect of the hoof capsule was dystrophic with poorly organized and diseased horn complicated by significant attrition of the dorso-medial coffin bone. There was evidence of chronic abscessing along a dorsal vertical crack of the medial toe. The sheer size of the hoof capsule was a challenge for therapeutic shoeing choices. Initially, a hand made shoe with a welded heart bar plate was chosen to stabilize the hoof capsule and bolster central loading. Comfort was immediately well improved and the horse became much more active and bright at home.

An x-ray shows the extent of the bone disease; (right) the hand made shoe with a welded heart bar plate

Unfortunately, the shoe was pulled in his paddock at approximately three weeks. The compromised medial wall prevented the ability of resetting the steel shoe. The decision was made to place the hoof in a wall cast with a handmade aluminum shoe applied to the bottom for improved mechanics and wear protection. Again, the size of the hoof prevented a standard approach to this method. A fully encompassing wall cast that covers the bottom of the hoof requires many layers of fiberglass to prevent unwanted flexion and degradation. This layer along with orthopedic felt was made initially on a bench and allowed to cure before the perimeter of the cast was formed and glued onto the hoof. Comfort was restored and access was made on the dorsal crack for treatment of a mild abscess. The horse was placed into this set up for two cycles and the hoof wall integrity was improving nicely above the poor quality wall.

The decision was made to place the hoof in a wall cast with a handmade aluminum shoe applied to the bottom for improved mechanics and wear protection.

Just prior to the last shoeing, a worsening lameness was noted and found to be from an abscess formation of the lateral heel bulb. The hoof had collected-up in size enough to allow a heavily modified Sigafoos Series II shoe to be applied with a treatment plate over the lateral bar in case future access is needed.

The hoof had collected-up in size enough to allow a heavily modified Sigafoos Series II shoe to be applied with a treatment plate over the lateral bar in case future access is needed

Although prognosis remains guarded with the degree of bone disease present, currently, this horse's quality of life has been greatly improved. We are hopeful that once the old, poor quality hoof wall is grown out, being barefoot may once again be possible or at a minimum, allow a steel shoe for protection and stability.

The Rood & Riddle Equine Podiatry is a group of specialized veterinarians and farriers dedicated to proper hoof care of the horse. We specialize in therapeutic shoeing and management of all disease processes of the equine hoof in addition to maintaining the high demands of the athletic horse. You can follow the RREH Podiatry page on Facebook for more content like this.

The post Rood & Riddle Podiatry: Quality Of Life Improved For Percheron With Coffin Bone Disease appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Adding Oil To Horse Feed: More About Omegas Than Calories

Topdressing a horse's feed with oil has long been an affordable horse-health hack to add calories to to an equine's diet. What hasn't been clear is exactly what type of oil is best. Dr. Carey Williams of Rutgers University told EQUUS magazine that no oil is “bad,” but some types are better for horses than others.

Horses must ingest both omega-3s and omega-6s as their bodies cannot synthesize them, but it's important to have the proper balance between the two, said Williams.

The ratio of omega-3s and omega-6s can differ depending on the oil source. Corn and some vegetable oils contain higher amounts of omega-6s, which can contribute to inflammation. Fish oil, flaxseed and linseed oils are all rich in omega-3s, which have multiple health benefits.

Studies conducted at the University of Florida showed that two or three cups of flaxseed oil has the same amount of omega-3s as 22 pounds of cool-season, grass hay like orchardgrass or timothy. This would mean that horses on an all-hay diet would have an omega-6 to omega-3 ratio of 0.3:1; horses on all pasture would have a ratio of 0.6:1.

Adding corn oil to these diets would increase the ratio to about 8:1. While this is significantly higher, there is no recommended ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 in horses since there have been conflicting study results on the effects of omega-3 supplementation and its ability to reduce inflammation.

Williams suggests that horses fed lower-quality hay and pasture may benefit from the addition of flaxseed or fish oil to their diet as these oils are rich in omega-3s. A horse ingesting good pasture or cool-season grass hay harvested early may already have a good ratio of omegas, so feeding rice bran (19:1) or soybean oil (7:1) instead of corn oil (53:1) may give the horse the added boost he needs without disrupting the omega-6 to omega-3 ratio.

Research: Hard Footing Increases Risk Of Muculoskeletal Injury In Harness Horses

A study completed by researchers from the Ecole Nationale Vétérinaire d'Alfort in Maisons-Alfort and the INRA (French National Institute for Agricultural Research) has found an association between horses training on hard footing and musculoskeletal injuries.

The study used 12 healthy trotting horses and followed them through four months of race training. The horses were paired depending on size and weight; one horse trained on a track with hard footing and the other trained on a softer surface.

All of the horses had a battery of diagnostic imaging done before the study and at two and four months into the training. These modalities included radiographs, ultrasounds, nuclear scintigraphy, and MRI.

In total, 46 lesions were identified and considered clinically relevant, meaning they could cause lameness or poor performance. Eighteen of the lesions were classified as moderate to severe.

Fifteen of the 18 moderate to severe lesions were in horses training over the harder track surface.

The scientists also found lesions on the superficial digital flexor tendons on three of the six horses trained on the harder surface; no SDFT lesions were found on the horses training on the soft track. Horses training on the harder track also had more fetlock injuries.

The scientists concluded that the firmness of the track surface is a risk factor for harness horses in training. Working on a hard surface can lead to musculoskeletal injuries.

Clean It Up: Hay Refusal May Have Multiple Causes

Quality forage is the cornerstone of a healthy equine diet; horses that refuse to eat their hay can be more than simply frustrating for farm management, they may be lacking in key nutrients needed to maintain their health.

Dr. Anna Pesta Dunaway tells The Horse why a horse might not be eating all of its hay.

Possibility 1: The horse may not like the type or quality of hay being fed. Older horses may have trouble eating more mature, stemmy hay and picky eaters may choose to leave this hay behind. To rectify this problem, source softer, less-mature hay that is easier to ingest. Second cutting of orchard grass is a good option, Dunaway said.

Possibility 2: A senior horse may have trouble chewing and digesting any type of hay – even the very soft variety. Even if he can chew, his hindgut may have trouble extracting calories from the hay. If the horse can't maintain body condition a forage replacement may be necessary. The most digestible option is a complete senior feed, which has forage built in and can partially or totally replace hay (or pasture).

Possibility 3: Determine if hay quality is really the issue. Horses that don't feel well, like those that have gastric ulcers, for example, may be reluctant to clean up the hay. This can create a cycle where he doesn't finish the hay because his stomach hurts, but his stomach hurts because he isn't ingesting hay and receiving the buffering effect from saliva and hay.