Horse Care | Horse Racing Free Tips

Much To Gain For Horses And People At Therapeutic Horses Of Saratoga

Horses got an early hold on Laura LaRue.

“I've been obsessed with horses for as long as I remember,” said LaRue, who turned her passion into a position as Director of Equine Care at the Saratoga-based Therapeutic Horses of Saratoga [THS]. “I remember begging and begging my parents to ride – and that dream became true when I was 8 and I got to take lessons.”

LaRue rode through her childhood, competing in English show jumping. But at the University of Albany, horses took a backseat as she planned to turn a job working with at-risk youth at summer camps into a career as a psychologist or a counselor – that is until she discovered the growing field of equine therapy.

THS specializes in equine assisted therapy, which rescues and retrains retired racehorses for hands-on work with individuals in need. THS horses get a new purpose by serving as a source of support while engaging in confidence-building and improving coping abilities for people of all ages. Their assistance can cover the gamut from children dealing with anxiety to victims of domestic violence and veterans.

LaRue called it “the best of both worlds,” which combines her knowledge of and desire to work with both horses and people. Retraining the horses at the 27-acre THS farm off Lake Avenue means a new start for those in the 20-horse herd. Of those 20, 11 are therapy horses, a mix of retired thoroughbred and standardbreds.

Equine-assisted learning is about rescuing horses, and a lot more. Partnering with the Saratoga-based ECS Psychological Services, THS works with licensed mental health therapists in making up a vital part of the mental health organization's animal therapy program, in which the horses play a vital role.

At the heart of the ECS animal therapy program is the belief that having a dog, cat or even a horse present in counseling sessions can be comforting – and that bonding with an animal reduces stress levels while increasing positive emotions. For children who are nervous about attending therapy, the presence of a therapy animal can make the experience less stressful and more fun.

“Time and time again, we've seen the proof that animal therapy works,” said Dr. Erin Christopher-Sisk, the founder and clinical director of ECS.

Dogs, Cats & Horses

After launching her counseling practice in 2004, Dr. Christopher-Sisk incorporated her two dogs as therapy animals. At the time, she and her husband Jim Sisk owned a trotter named DW's Regal; and a few years later when they started looking for a post-racing second career for their horse, they made him a therapy horse. At the founding of THS in 2015, DW's Regal was its first horse.

At the time, equine therapy was beginning to gain a real foothold in the aftercare community. But fortified by demonstrated success stories and several comprehensive studies that document the benefits of equine therapy for people with mental health issues, the field has gained a lot of adherents in the wellness field. Last year, the State of University of New York [SUNY] Cobleskill even added a Therapeutic Horsemanship program.

“There's nothing better than to give a horse a loving home while helping people with mental issues,” said Dr. Christopher-Sisk. “It requires licensed therapists and people with horse-handling skills. We have those people here and we have the horses – and it's really worked well.”

Horses getting a new start at THS include its newest arrival, the New York-bred filly Dr. Capote, who arrived last year. Bred and owned by Joe DiRico, Dr. Capote appeared headed to a good career on the track. Trained by Hall of Famer Bill Mott and ridden by Jerry Bailey, she was retired due to a tendon injury and, at 18, deserved “a new start,” as DiRico put it.

“I was thrilled to be able to find her this new home,” says DiRico of Dr. Capote. “Dr. Capote is a sweet and intelligent horse, perfect for working with people with mental issues. And with all the brushings she's getting and the attention, she thinks she's the 'Queen Bee.' I wish there were more places like Therapeutic Horses of Saratoga, which are really looking after the needs of retired racehorses.”

That commitment shines through in other programs as well. Working with ECS professionals, the organization uses members of the herd to provide team-building exercises to businesses, school classes, teams and other organizations. The THS program, HorsePlay, provides non-therapeutic, individually-tailored opportunities to learn horsemanship skills and how to care for horses. It also hosts birthday parties, where 5-year-olds-and-up can interact with the horses through obstacle courses and learn how to groom and lead them.

Strolling amidst the herd on a recent morning, trailed by DW Regal's best friend, Broadway Straight or “George,” a Standardbred gelding who wants his ears scratched, LaRue delved into what it takes to fulfill the THS mission.

“Growing up, it had been more about teaching a horse just to obey,” she said. “Here, we are working in partnership and helping a lot of people in the process. It's an awesome job and I love it.”

The post Much To Gain For Horses And People At Therapeutic Horses Of Saratoga appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Genetics To Blame For Friesian’s Eye Issues

A study team led by Dr. Rebecca Bellone, of the University of California Davis Veterinary Genetics Laboratory, has identified a genetic variant as the cause of a painful eye condition in Friesian horses. The condition, called distichiasis, causes hairs to grow at odd angles along the eyelid; these hairs rub the cornea, making the eye irritated and painful. Severe cases may result in corneal ulceration and possibly the loss of the eye.

Distichiasis can be treated by removing the offending hairs via thermocautery, but the condition recurs in nearly 50 percent of cases. To determine the genetic cause of this condition, the scientists traced the family trees of 14 horses afflicted with the condition. The team discovered a large chromosome deletion between two genes on the ECA13 chromosome strongly associated with distichiasis.

[Story Continues Below]

The team concluded that distichiasis in Friesians is a trait with incomplete penetrance, meaning that the condition may show up in some individuals with two copies of the variant, or the horse may show no sign of the condition at all. The research team noted that testing can avoid crosses that produce animals that are homozygous for the variant. Results can also be used to ensure affected horses are evaluated often to prevent irreversible corneal damage.

To read the full study, click here.

The Blueberry Bulletin Presented By Equine Equipment: The Mental Side Of Riding A Young OTTB

This is the third installment in our monthly column from editor-in-chief Natalie Voss following her journey with her 2021 Thoroughbred Makeover hopeful Underscore, fondly known as Blueberry. Read previous editions in this series here and learn Blueberry's origin story and the author's long-running bond with this gelding and his family here. You can find Blueberry's Facebook page here.

Like a lot of other people, I've spent a lot of time this week absorbing the ongoing coverage of gymnast Simone Biles and her decision to withdraw from several Olympic events. Her choice has meant different things to different people, and has been a jumping off point for discussions about mental health, athlete image, and the unfathomable pressure surrounding Olympians. What I have found most interesting – and most understandable – was her discussion of the phenomenon she was experiencing that led to her decision.

As Biles has explained, she was not simply discouraged by a less-than-perfect performance early in the team competition: she was experiencing something gymnasts call “the twisties.” The twisties are apparently a phenomenon where a gymnast suddenly loses track of their position in the air, having no idea where the floor is in relation to their body. It's something many of them experience at some point, and apparently there is no straightforward cure. They have to break down their routines into smaller, simpler pieces and hope the feeling dissipates. Some move past it, and some can't. The twisties are more likely to happen in times of stress, and of course spur their own kind of stress. Imagine how terrifying it is to suddenly realize you may come crashing down out of the air onto your head because you don't know if your feet are pointed at the floor or the ceiling.

I can't pretend to know what it's like to be the greatest gymnast of all time, but I do think there's some degree of constructive delusion that's required for any dangerous, athletic endeavor. Biles knows that (particularly with her unique and difficult skills) she could end up dead or paralyzed if one of her routines goes wrong, but she must go out every time and suspend her awareness of the fact in order to do it successfully. Riding horses (at any level) is like that, too. You have to be aware that at any moment, the 1,000-pound beast beneath you could make today your last. But if you ride like you know it, you're going to make it more likely to happen, so you have to pretend that the stakes are low.

As Blueberry has advanced in his dressage training, I've had a lot of people ask me whether we're going to begin eventing once we get through the Retired Racehorse Project's Thoroughbred Makeover in October. I made the switch from riding hunters to eventing when I got my draft cross mare years ago. The horse loved it and I'm never sure whether I did or not.

When I was younger, I had no fear over fences. I jumped school ponies with sometimes reckless abandon through rollback turns and over skinnies. I was wary of a horse with a dirty stop, but not afraid, happy to push for a long takeoff or hold for a difficult turn. Then, in one of my first rides schooling a horse by myself, I had a crash. I was 18 and on board a willing little mare who had a lot of spunk. I spotted a skinny fence in a tough spot in the outdoor arena and thought, 'You know, I bet that's even harder if I jump it the opposite way from what we do in our lessons.'

[Story Continues Below]

I had good, forward energy coming out of the very difficult turn I'd plotted for us. I saw a good spot. I did not see that there was no ground line on the jump coming from this direction. Without a pole on the ground to help create depth perception for her, the well-meaning mare saw the wrong take-off point, and the wrong height. She launched into the air a solid one and a half strides early, high enough that I had time to realize that something was wrong. I realized we were hurtling through the air way too high, returning to the ground in the general vicinity of the jump standard. We were going to fall. We were both going to fall. We were going to fall on top of the jump. And we did.

We were lucky – we hit the rails instead of the standard, and they collapsed under us. The horse hit the ground and tossed me clear of her. She crushed the rails but did not get them tangled between her legs, as I've seen horses do in similar falls. She ended up with a few scrapes on her knees, and I took the skin off my arms and face. Thankfully, the mare moved on in about a day, once again attacking fences with no fear. But I couldn't stop remembering the suspension of that constructive delusion. I realized how it felt to have made a mistake, lost control, and thought I was about to be seriously hurt as a result.

So far, Blueberry is progressing well in his blossoming dressage career. Photo by Joe Nevills

I've never quite let it go, even all these years later. My mare, Jitterbug, does not frankly care much about my anxiety and loves jumping so much she has covered for the many moments when I have frozen, unable to figure out where our bodies are in space, how many strides we have left, paralyzed in my own loop of fear. My legs come off her sides, my upper body curls forward and I forget to breathe. For a lot of horses, that's a really mixed message about whether you actually want them to jump or not. It comes and goes – sometimes I can tackle the most wicked bending line, and other times I have a mental breakdown over a crossrail. I can navigate a course; I was trained well before my accident. The trouble is, once you look into the face of your own vulnerability, it can be hard to access the muscle memory that lets you actually do the thing. The brain is trained to hang onto traumatic experiences so that you won't repeat them, and you don't get to pick and choose what to delete and when.

I worry that Blueberry may not be as resilient as my mare. Is it fair to someday ask him to learn to do this, knowing that I'm an unreliable partner on a jumper course? Will I train him to be fearful? He has the heart so many people rave about in off-track Thoroughbreds – eager to please, happy and trusting of whatever I ask him to do. I don't want to wreck that. I also don't want him to miss out on the opportunity to do something he may really enjoy, or deny myself the chance to work through my fear and enjoy something I used to be good at.

As long as we've got the Makeover in our sights, it's a moot point. He has made a fantastic start in his dressage career, winning two of three classes we've entered at local schooling shows and picking up a second place ribbon. We have lots to improve upon before October however, and there wouldn't be much time to work in baby crossrails even if we wanted to. At some point though, I'll have to decide whether I want to face my fears again.

The post The Blueberry Bulletin Presented By Equine Equipment: The Mental Side Of Riding A Young OTTB appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Horse Ingests Chicken Feed, Survives With Quick Intervention

Chickasaw Squaw, a 5-year-old Quarter Horse mare whose stable name is Chic, visited the Virginia Tech Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center in July for an emergency appointment.

Owned by junior rider Eston and his dad, Todd Alexander, Chic and her stablemates raided the Alexanders' grain storage and consumed not only horse feed, but also chicken feed, which is toxic to horses and can prove fatal.

[Story Continues Below]

The following morning, Chic was visibly uncomfortable. Her primary care veterinarian, Dr. Justin Sobota of South Mountain Equine, was called to the farm, and he worked on Chic to relieve her discomfort. After a nasogastric tube was passed and water, electrolytes, and anti-inflammatory medication were administered, there was no visible improvement to Chic's comfort level, so she was referred to the Equine Medical Center for further diagnostics, treatment and care.

Upon arrival, Chic was dull and clearly uncomfortable. Thorough examination by the center's medicine team, led by resident Dr. Stephanie Hernandez, and on-site diagnostic testing confirmed that Chic was suffering from systemic inflammation and endotoxemia, secondary to grain overload.

Chic's temperature of 102.5 degrees landed her in the center's biosafety level 2 isolation building, which offers overnight supportive care in a temperature-controlled environment conducive to the recovery of critically ill horses. Aggressive medical management was started: intravenous fluids, anti-endotoxin therapy, electrolyte supplementation, vitamin supplementation, anti-inflammatories, ice boots to prevent laminitis and a stomach lavage.

By the following morning, Chic's temperature, heart rate and respiratory rate had normalized, and she was comfortable with no signs of colic or laminitis. Although she had not passed any manure overnight, she was much brighter and had a great appetite.

Chic was started on a gradual refeeding plan with small amounts of hay and she continued to maintain a great appetite.

After three days, the intravenous fluid therapy was discontinued and Chic was gradually weaned off anti-inflammatories. The following day, much to Eston's delight, the mare was able to go home for continued rest and recuperation under his care.

“We are so happy and impressed with the care that Chic received. Dr. Hernandez was so good about keeping us informed and up to date on Chic's progress,” Todd said. “It was obvious that Dr. Hernandez was truly concerned not only about her patient, but also our son Eston and how he was feeling. We can't thank Dr. Hernandez and her staff enough.”

The post Horse Ingests Chicken Feed, Survives With Quick Intervention appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post