Tag: Horse Care

The Kentucky Department of Agriculture has confirmed the presence of the organism responsible for causing strangles in a 3-year-old Thoroughbred filly at the Thoroughbred Training Center in Fayette County, Ky., according to an alert posted to the Equine Disease Communication Center's website and bloodhorse.com.

On April 15, the filly presented with a swollen lymph node without signs of an elevated temperature. On April 18, laboratory results confirmed the organism responsible for causing strangles. The filly, who was unvaccinated against the disease, remains alive and affected.

Subsequent testing has been done on 18 additional exposed horses with results pending. Results are expected late on April 19.

“At this point in time, it's not affecting any other barns at the facility,” Rusty Ford, equine operations consultant for the Office of the State Veterinarian at the Kentucky Department of Agriculture, told bloodhorse.com. “The good thing about this incident is the good separation from this barn from other barns and the fact that we had solid walls there. Again, we're in the infancy here, so it's going to be a changing dynamic every hour I imagine.”

The upper respiratory disease commonly referred to as strangles is caused by Streptococcus equi subsp equi. Strangles is spread from horse to horse through direct contact. Horses can also contract the disease by coming into contact with contaminated surfaces. The disease is highly infectious.

For more information go to: https://www.equinediseasecc.org/strangles.

Read more at bloodhorse.com.

The post 3-Year-Old Thoroughbred Filly Positive For Strangles At Kentucky Training Center appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Thoroughbred Charities of America has been named the charitable beneficiary of the Derby Dozen handicapping event, presented by In the Money, to be held at the Galt House Hotel in Louisville, Ky. on Thursday, May 4 from 7 – 9 p.m. ET.

Professional handicappers Peter Fornatale, Jonathon Kinchen, and Maggie Wolfendale-Morley will take a deep dive into the analysis of the 2023 Kentucky Oaks and Derby starters as well as explore some of the best bets in some of the other races at Churchill Downs.

Tickets may be purchased here and will include admission to the event as well as food and beverage.

“TCA is honored to be selected as the charitable beneficiary for this exciting Derby week event,” said Erin Halliwell executive director of TCA. “We look forward to hearing from Peter, Jonathon, and Maggie about the field of runners in the Oaks and Derby, while raising money for TCA's approved grant recipients working in Thoroughbred aftercare and health and human services for backstretch and farm employees. We appreciate the Galt House's support of TCA.”

The panel of handicappers are some of the most respected in horse racing. Eclipse award winner Peter Fornatale has written four books on racing and is the U.S. correspondent for Sky Sports Racing and attheraces.com. Jonathon Kinchen is a member of the Fox Sports NYRA broadcast team, has appeared on NBC's coverage of the Kentucky Derby, and finished second in the Breeders' Cup Betting Challenge in 2020 and 2021. Maggie Wolfendale-Morley is a third-generation horsewoman and currently serves as an on-air analyst, host, and reporter for NYRA's America's Day at the Races and Fox Sports' Saratoga Live.

Thoroughbred Charities of America (TCA) was formed in 1990 to raise and distribute funds to charities in the Thoroughbred industry that provide a better life for Thoroughbreds, both during and after their racing careers, by supporting qualified repurposing and retirement organizations and by helping the people who care for them. In 2022, TCA granted over $783,000 to 74 approved charities working within Thoroughbred retraining, rehoming and retirement; backstretch and farm worker services, research and equine-assisted therapy. During the last three decades, TCA has granted over $26 million to more than 200 charities that successfully meet the criteria set forth in its annual grant application. TCA administers the Horses First Fund, founded by LNJ Foxwoods in 2016, to assist Thoroughbreds in need of emergency aid. TCA manages Cómo, a mobile app founded by Godolphin, that connects racing industry employees to the vital services they need through a network of racetrack chaplains and Thoroughbred industry organizations. TCA is the charitable arm of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA).

The legendary Galt House Hotel is Louisville's only waterfront hotel and offers more meeting space than any other in Kentucky. Originally established in 1835, The Galt House has been the backbone of Louisville's hospitality industry for over 180 years. The property was re-established by local developer Al J. Schneider in 1972 and remains a cornerstone of the AJS Hotels portfolio. In 2020, The Galt House was transformed after an $80 million renovation to feature 1,310 sophisticated guest rooms and suites, 130,000 square-feet of function space, over 50 meeting rooms and 70 residences. There are four premium food and beverage destinations including Swizzle Dinner & Drinks, a revolving restaurant on the 25th floor of the West Tower, Walker's Exchange, which harkens to Louisville's earliest days as a culinary destination, and Jockey Silks, one of the founding members of the Urban Bourbon Trail. For reservations, call 1-800-THE-GALT, or visit www.GaltHouse.com

The post Thoroughbred Charities Of America Named Charitable Beneficiary Of Derby Dozen Handicapping Event appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

New Vocations Racehorse Adoption Program is excited to host its 6th Annual Open Barn & BBQ on Friday, April 28 from 3:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the program's Lexington, KY, facility at Mereworth Farm.

This year's event—held concurrently with the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event, taking place at the nearby Kentucky Horse Park—will feature educational seminars, a MasterClass presented by the Retired Racehorse Project “Introductory Jumping Exercises for OTTBs” and a chance to meet adoptable horses while touring the facility.

“We look forward to welcoming guests to New Vocations at Mereworth Farm,” said Anna Ford, New Vocations' Thoroughbred Program Director. “Our Open Barn & BBQ is the perfect event for us to showcase our adoptable horses, host inspiring demos and spread the word about these amazing equine athletes.”

Guests can expect an interactive educational program featuring live demos on:

• Retired Racehorse Project MasterClass focusing on Introductory Jumping Exercises, presented by five star eventer, Sara Kozumplik
• Common Challenges with Your OTTB presented by New Vocations' Lexington Trainer and Facility Director Leandra Cooper; and
• Navigating Old Injuries presented by Veterinarian Dr. Rhodes Bell.

Jen Roytz — manager of Brownstead Farm, past executive director of the Retired Racehorse Project, and an OTTB owner and rider — will moderate the sessions.

In addition, guests will enjoy live music from The Ranahans Trio and a variety of food options from four food trucks and a boutique bar (two drinks included with each ticket), featuring the event's signature cocktails, a Maker's Mark Blackberry Collins and a Tito's Trifecta or other selections from Jackson Family Wines.

Guests can also bid on a large variety of items and experiences including a trip to Africa and an Exmark zero turn mower in the always-popular silent auction, featuring handmade artisan items and a wide variety of equine-themed gifts. All proceeds from the auction will go directly to support New Vocations' mission to rehab, retrain and rehome retired racehorses.

Gates will open at 3:00 p.m. with the first demo getting underway at 4:00 p.m.

Tickets are still available and can be purchased ($30 for adults, $10 for children 12 and under) at https://newvocations.wedoauctions.com.  Proceeds from the event will benefit New Vocations Racehorse Adoption Program, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.

The post New Vocations’ Popular Open Barn Event Set For April 28 appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Many horse owners facing a possible equine protozoal myeloencephalitis (EPM) diagnosis often discuss with their veterinarian the value of performing a spinal tap to diagnose EPM versus simply treating the disease based on symptoms. A spinal tap is able to provide a titer ratio of serum to cerebrospinal fluid, which will definitively diagnose the disease. 

Surprisingly, performing the spinal tap may substantially decrease the ultimate cost for the horse owner, reports The Horse. 

Vets who think a horse might have EPM often do one of three things:

1. Treat the hosed based on clinical signs
2. Treat the horse based on bloodwork, measuring the serum titers against the causative protozoa 
3. Treat the horse based on serum titers plus a spinal tap

Each of these can be expensive. University of Pennsylvania researchers examined the cost and accuracy of each option for the patients at their hospital and discovered that simply treating the horse for EPM without a definitive test isn't as cheap as it sounds. 

Drs. Sarah Colmer and Amy Johnson, both of the PennVet School of Veterinary Medicine's New Bolton Center, conducted a retrospective study of 681 neurologic cases to determine the accuracy and costs of diagnosis and treatment using these three approaches.

PennVet sees mainly sport horses from the Midlantic region. Though the clinic does see EPM cases, cervical vertebral stenotic myelopathy (Wobbler syndrome) and equine degenerative myeloencephalopathy (EDM) are seen more often. The three conditions present in the same ways, so diagnostics are key to determining the best treatment. 

Horses included in the PennVet study were ones that underwent a complete neurologic exam, EPM antibody testing on serum and CSF, and neurologic necropsy if the horse was euthanized; 196 horses were euthanized and 23 of them had EPM.

More than 80 percent of horses had positive serum titers and more than 50 percent had positive CSF titers. The scientists say that this shows how common equine exposure to EPM is. The duo used PennVet's prices to estimate the costs for serology alone, CSF centesis (spinal tap) and analyses, and treatment using Marquis, though other EPM treatment medications are available. The scientists found that 83 percent of horses were neurona-positive on serology and that there was a 12 percent chance EPM would be the diagnosis for any individual horse. 

They found that using CSF centesis increased the cost by $547 in diagnostics in 12 percent of cases and decreased the cost by $1,030 to 2,060 (the cost of one or two months of treatment) in 88 percent of cases. Because more horses will be negative for EPM based on these diagnostics, the cost to the client will decrease in 88 percent of cases because the horses won't be treated unnecessarily for EPM, Colmer said.

The study team notes that these findings are regionally specific as other areas of the country have different EPM prevalence.

Read more at The Horse

The post Money Matters: Treating EPM Without Diagnostics Not Always Cheaper appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post