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Husbandry

This page is devoted to the care, health and well being of the horse.

I will fill this page with information that I have found to be helpful.

Worm Control

Latest News

This Fact Sheet explains a lot and is a very informative read. No longer is worming with a compound enough. Click here to read

Infections

Ross River Virus (RRV)

With spring around the corner and so much water around the mosquito's should have a bumper breeding season. That means more of them to spread the RRV to our horses, dogs, pets and even us. It is well worth reading Fact Sheet 53 and preparing yourself, your family and your pets.

Greasy heal

This infection, often around the pastern/cannon bone area often occurs in wet muddy conditions. It tends to occur more on white skin than black and at the later end of winter when the warmer days allow better conditions for the bacteria to grow. There are many forms of bacteria living in the ground so when horses can't get to dryer ground and have to live in muddy conditions for a while it exposes them much more. Some horses never get greasy heal and some re-infect yearly.

I have just finished successfully treating my young horse with Betadine ointment twice daily and with the morning application I covered the betadine soaked area with zinc and caster oil. I did have success with bleach but it kept re infecting so I moved to the betadine which was much easier to use and my horse was very happy to stand still for the betadine.

5th August, 2010.

EQUINE HERPES VIRUS IN TASMANIA

Equine herpes virus type 1 (EHV1) (abortigenic and neurological strains) - A recent outbreak of EHV1 in Tasmanian homebred mares where over 30% were affected including one death and several abortions, should remind Tasmanian horse owners to be aware of this disease. EHV1 is generally thought to be uncommon in the Tasmanian horse population although abortion that is highly suspicious of EHV1 is regularly reported in mares introduced from the mainland. EHV1 can be excreted by previously infected horses when they are stressed eg by transport or entering a new group. Care must be taken to keep introduced horses isolated from pregnant mares on your property. This includes not sharing water troughs, feed bins and other gear and not permitting over-the-fence contact. EHV1 can be easily spread by contact with aborted foetuses and associated materials so cleaning up after an abortion is a high priority. Vaccination is available as an aid in the control of EHV1 abortion, however vaccine alone will not prevent abortions. Your veterinarian should be consulted as a matter of urgency if you suspect EHV1 infection on your property so a management plan can be initiated as soon as possible to limit losses. EHV1 is a notifiable disease.
See more details about Equine Herpes at   :   http://www.horsecouncil.org.au/_Upload/Files/Equine%20Herpes.pdf

Reference: Australian Horse Industry Council

Feeding

Overweight Horses/Ponies

TRIM is a new product from John Kohnke and Kohnke's Own (May 2009).

TRIM is a formulated to provide specific nutritional support to horses and ponies which are overweight and obese and which have hard 'cresty' necks and abnormal fat deposits behind the shoulders and tail butt area.

Teeth

Frequency

Best to have the Equine Dentist out every 12 months to paddock horses and horses in General work.

Best to have the Equine Dentist out every 6 months to fully stabled horses and horses being ridden in double bridles.

Water

Quantitiy

Meet Molly

Meet Molly.  She's a grey speckled pony who was abandoned by her owners when Hurricane Katrina hit southern  Louisiana. She spent weeks on her own before finally being rescued and taken to a farm where abandoned animals were stockpiled.
While there, she was attacked by a pit bull terrier and almost died.  Her gnawed right front leg became infected, and her vet went to LSU for help, but LSU was overwhelmed, and this pony was a welfare case. You know how that goes.

But after surgeon Rustin Moore met Molly, he changed his mind.  He saw how the pony was careful to lie down on different sides so she didn't seem to get sores, and how she allowed people to
handle her.  She protected her injured leg.  She constantly shifted her weight and didn't overload her good leg.  She was a smart pony with a serious survival ethic.

Moore agreed to remove her leg below the knee,
and a temporary artificial limb was built.  Molly
walked out of the clinic and her story really begins there.

'This was the right horse and the right owner,'
Moore insists.  Molly happened to be a one-in-a-million patient.  She's tough as nails, but sweet, and she was willing to cope with pain. She made it obvious she understood that she was in trouble.  The other important factor, according
to Moore , is having a truly committed and compliant owner who is dedicated to providing the daily care required over the lifetime of the horse.