Horse Care | Horse Racing Free Tips

The Perfect Pack: A Professional’s Packing Protocols

Farrier Mitch Taylor, founder of the Kentucky Horseshoeing School, tells Horse & Rider that there are a variety of reasons a horse owner may pack their mount's feet, but packing should always provide support for the frog and sole.

Taylor noted most horses wear pads under their shoes for one of two reasons: to provide protection or to provide structural support. Pads are never placed on a horse with nothing between the pad and the sole—this space needs to be filled to prevent dirt and debris from entering and packing to the point where it might bruise the hoof. Farriers can fill this space with a variety of things to provide cushioning and protection.

Taylor says that for a pad that's being used to provide protection, he likes to use Magic Cushion. Taylor said he also uses this product in hooves overnight on a variety of horses to relieve soreness and provide protection. Once packed in a horse's foot, Magic Cushion begins reducing hoof heat within an hour.

For a horse that wears pads to provide structural support, Taylor uses a material similar to silicone putty or impression material that will go back to shape no matter how it is stretched or pressed. Taylor often uses this material on horses with laminitis when the coffin bone rotates and tries to drop out of the sole of the hoof.

Overall, Taylor's favorite type of pad is leather, as it has more give than plastic pads and is somewhat breathable. He also says that the leather is easier to manipulate and customize to each horse and their specific issue.

Do Horses See Well In The Dark?

Unlike human eyesight, the equine eye is especially adapted to seeing well in the dark—that's when many predators would attack their wild ancestors. The equine eye is so well adapted that a normally sighted horse under a partial moon or bright stars can see as well as a human does in full daylight!

Horses require about 15 minutes for their vision to completely adjust between differently lit environments. This process be seen by stalled horses' reactions to having the barn lights turned on in pre-dawn hours: they squint and blink repeatedly as their eyes try to adjust.

Though it may make some riders anxious, there is no reason to restrict riding to daylight hours. Open fields and lightly wooded areas can be traversed easily in the dark. Dense woods or pitch-black nights aren't ideal, but a horse in familiar territory is just fine if the rider lets him choose his own path. Caution should be taken when leading a horse out of a brightly lit barn to ride—his eyes need time to adjust, so starting slowly and remaining on known paths at the beginning of the ride is a must.

After Near-Fatal Experience With Black Widow, Mulhall’s Miracle Horse Catemaco Wins Racing Debut

The Catemaco story reads like a chapter right out of “Frankenstein,” Mary Shelley's classic 1818 horror novel of a young scientist who creates a sapient creature in an unorthodox scientific experiment.

But Catemaco's tale has a happy ending.

A 4-year-old colt bred in California on March 23, 2017, Catemaco won his first start Friday by a widening four lengths at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif., leading throughout six furlongs in a sprightly 1:09.08, paying $30.60 to his scattered backers and earning $36,000 for owners Twilight Racing LLC and Steve Taub, all pretty remarkable facts in their own right.

But truth be told, it's a miracle Catemaco is even alive.

He swallowed a black widow spider when he was four months old, had a reaction that put him near death and would have died if it hadn't been for the diligent response of his trainer and breeder, Kristin Mulhall. She has the distressing details committed to memory.

After completing training at Santa Anita one morning, Mulhall arrived at her home in Covina Hills where she keeps some horses on her two-acre spread, only to find Catemaco lying down, “struggling to breathe.”

“The horse couldn't breathe at all,” Kristin said. “There was froth coming out of his nose, his eyes were bloodshot and cloudy. He was seconds away from dying.”

Mulhall's passion and persistence prevented his death even though she had only rudimentary tools at her disposal.

“I called my vet, Melinda Blue. We were on FaceTime and she was having her hair done. She said find anything, and I found a box blade. Fortunately, my tack room was right next to where the horse was. She told me to feel the ridges in his throat to find his trachea and slice a hole all the way through it, and he started breathing through that.

“Then I said, 'Now what?” and she said, 'Find any kind of tube,' and I found a syringe casing, cut the end of it and shoved it in, but I only had a couple minutes before the hole would plug up with foam and stuff.

“I tried to shove it in but the hole closed and he was flailing around really bad like a fish out of water, I tried to cut it again but couldn't.

“At that point, Humberto Gomez (Bob Baffert's exercise rider, known as Beto to friends) had returned and he held the horse's feet and head and I got it through the trachea the third time I tried, made a bigger hole which I was able to open with my finger to insert the casing.

“Then I called Melinda back and asked how the casing would stay in … I had to find dental floss and the largest needle I could, tie the dental floss to the needle and try to suture the hole the best way I could.

“I said I don't know how to do that. She said just tie a knot. Put it through the hole, through the skin and tie a knot on both sides, and that will hold it in until you get him to the hospital.

“Beto was holding Catemaco until I found everything I needed, we got it all done but then we didn't know if he was going to get up, if he was brain-dead or what.

“He got up after an hour. His eyes were still bloodshot and cloudy but he was up and walking. We put him in the back of the trailer with his mom and Humberto stayed with them, holding the tube in place.

“We took them to Chino Hills Equine Hospital and Dr. (Andreas) Klohnen, the head vet there, was absolutely shocked at what he saw. The horse would have been dead if we didn't do what we did, so the doctor was able to administer the correct implements for about two days before the swelling went down enough that they were comfortable to remove it.

“The horse was in the hospital about a week before I brought him back home and he's been fine ever since. It didn't affect him at all.”

Catemaco is named for a horse by the same name that Gomez said was 'a freak' when he rode him as a jockey in Mexico City. “It was the favorite horse he ever rode and he asked me to name my foal Catemaco, so I did,” Mulhall said. Catemaco also is a city in the Mexican state of Veracruz.

Kristin, 38, is the daughter of the late Richard Mulhall, who managed the late Prince Ahmed Salman's The Thoroughbred Corp. after a lengthy training career in Southern California. But her experience in horsemanship extends well beyond learning from Dad.

She was an Olympic-caliber equestrian rider through her teens before being grounded by a serious arm injury. She obtained her trainer's license in 2002 after working for trainer John Shirreffs.

Presently she has 23 head at Santa Anita and some horses for trainer Jonathan Wong at her Covina Hills location. Her emotions understandably flooded forth after watching Catemaco win on Friday.

“I couldn't hold the tears back,” Kristin said. “That's the first time I cried after a race. That horse means so much to me, he's so special. The fact that he lived through that and he had the heart to fight through that is pretty unbelievable.

“I grew up with War Emblem, Point Given, Spain and all those good horses at their farm. I was around some special ones.”

But none as special as Catemaco.

The post After Near-Fatal Experience With Black Widow, Mulhall’s Miracle Horse Catemaco Wins Racing Debut appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Annual UK Equine Research Showcase To Take Place Virtually

University of Kentucky Ag Equine Programs will host its 10th annual UK Equine Showcase virtually through four sessions over four dates in January and February 2021.The event will continue the “life journey” theme initiated last year and will emphasize weanling to yearling horses, presenting both completed and work-in-progress projects relevant to this age group.

“We are excited to once again put together an excellent set of lectures and continuing education featuring many of our colleagues,” said Emma Adam, assistant professor and research and industry liaison at the Gluck Equine Research Center. ““The way our industry is helped through the resources we have at the University of Kentucky is unparalleled.”

Due to the current pandemic, the event has moved to a virtual format. Organizers wanted to continue to provide information and continuing education opportunities in 2021 rather than postpone for a year. Recognizing that staying engaged for long periods of time via a virtual format is challenging, organizers chose to break up the annual event into several shorter sessions over the course of a few weeks.

Jan. 5, 6-7:30 p.m. EST, will focus on musculoskeletal issues and include the following topics and speakers:

Bisphosphonates, NSAIDs and other medicines in the juvenile horse with Scott Stanley, professor of analytical chemistry at the Gluck Equine Research Center.
Sesamoid bone maturation by the laboratory of James MacLeod, director of UK Ag Equine Programs and John S. and Elizabeth A. Knight chair and professor of veterinary science at the Gluck Center.
Bone pathology in Wobbler's Syndrome with Jennifer Janes, assistant professor of anatomic pathology at UK's Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory.

Jan. 19, 6-7:30 p.m. EST, will focus on nutrition and pasture topics and include the following information and speakers:

Mineral requirements for a growing horse with Mieke Brummer-Holder, assistant professor in the Department of Animal and Food Sciences.
Amino acids and protein synthesis in the growing horse with Kristine Urschel, associate professor in the Department of Animal and Food Sciences.
UK Horse Pasture Evaluation Program information with Krista Lea, program coordinator, and Ray Smith, professor and extension forage specialist, both from the Department of Plant and Soil Sciences.

Feb. 2, 6-7:30 p.m. EST, will focus on parasitology, vaccination immunology and causes of mortality and include the following information and speakers:

Vaccination, immunity and immune response in weanlings with David Horohov, chair of the Department of Veterinary Science, director of and Jes E. and Clementine M. Schlaikjer Endowed Chair at the Gluck Center.
Parasitology as it pertains to weanlings and yearlings with Martin Nielsen, Schlaikjer professor of Equine Infectious Disease at the Gluck Center.
Common(est) causes of mortality in this age group with Laura Kennedy, assistant professor and veterinary pathologist at the UK VDL.

Feb. 9, 6-7:30 p.m. EST will cover hot topics in a mini session format of 10 minutes each, with updates about equine research literature resources at UK, nocardioform placentitis summary from 2020, COVID-19 economic impact and the next equine survey, lab updates, Equine Biological Passport update, genetic diversity project, updates on equine surface research, important parasitology updates and more.

“This is a unique and special outreach event. The purpose is to showcase some of what is happening at the University of Kentucky in terms of scientific discovery and service efforts relevant to the young horse,” MacLeod said. “Participants will hopefully gain new information they can apply to their programs, but importantly also a greater appreciation for some of the critical questions being addressed at UK, why these issues are important and where the cutting edge of research is on a number of very interesting topics. This annual program, now reaching 10 years, highlights our commitment to advance research, service and teaching for the benefit of horses and the equine community.”

The UK Equine Showcase is open to veterinarians, owners and managers of all horse breeds or anyone with an interest in learning more about foals and horse management. Its virtual format means that this opportunity is open to attendees from across the U.S. and even world.

The cost to attend all sessions is $25 until the early-bird registration deadline of Jan. 5. This package will include a PDF of the presentations and access to a recording of the sessions after the event has concluded. Attendees can also opt to attend only one or two of the sessions they are interested in. Individual event registration will also be available for $10 each. There are special rates for farms interested in having multiple employees attend. Students from any university can participate for free. Please contact equine@uky.edu for help in registering for those discounted or free sessions. Continuing education credit for veterinarians and veterinary technicians is pending approval by the Kentucky Board of Veterinary Examiners. Register here. Contact equine@uky.edu with questions about the event or with help registering.

UK is also accepting sponsor participation for the showcase. Presenting opportunities are available to participating organizations on a first-come, first-served basis. Email equine@uky.edu for details.