The Horse:Your Guide To Equine Health Care provides monthly equine health care information to horse owners, breeders, veterinarians, barn/farm managers, trainer/riding instructors, and others involved in the hands-on care of the horse.
Issue link: https://thehorse.epubxp.com/i/570682
TheHorse.com THE HORSE October 2015 12 FREE HORSE LISTINGS This site (TheHorse.com/ free-horse-adoption) was an excellent resource for us, and I can't thank you enough. We had a ton of leads on people who wanted to take the horses off our hands. We had a situ- ation where we needed to re- home them because of a death in the family, and this site was extremely helpful! Ana Wiggins via email DEWORMING PREGNANT MARES I just read the July issue and enjoyed it very much. I have a question from the article, "Managing the Pregnant Mare." I am a mobile equine veterinarian. I own my own practice and have been in business for 10 years. I read in this article a quote from Dr. Christine Aurich saying, "Avoid deworming in the last four weeks of pregnancy, though, as this can cause abortion." Can you provide some validation to this point? I have never known this to be true and would like to read a study or paper that points to this conclusion. Maybe Dr. Aurich can clarify if this is a personal theory or if there is evidence to back it up. I am seriously interested in being educated about this as we commonly do deworm in the last 30 days of gestation. Katie Hamrick, DVM via e-mail From Christine Aurich, DVM, PhD: This is an interest- ing and important question. I have always had doubts that deworming mares during the last month of pregnancy may do any harm. To the best of my knowledge, there is no scien- tific study backing this theory. However, in the clinic we re- peatedly see cases of premature foals that are born to mares after they have been dewormed prior to term. I suggest that premature parturition (birth) might be caused by induction of the inflammatory cascade in intestinal tissue in response to deworming. An increase in prostaglandin F2-α (a hormone used to manipulate estrus as well as induce labor) concen- tration in the mare's blood may be sufficient to induce parturition if it occurs close to term. This has been proven in work by Abigail Fowden, MA, PhD, ScD, and colleagues at the University of Cambridge. This suggestion, together with the experience in the clin- ic, lets me stick to the statement that late pregnant mares should not be dewormed. Instead, we recommend deworming the mare within the first 24 hours after parturition. This treat- ment is highly effective to avoid infestation of the newborn foal with Strongyloides larvae via milk and makes deworming be- fore parturition needless. First deworming of the foal and dam should then be done at four weeks of age of the foal. LETTERS Letters@TheHorse.com E-mail us at Letters@TheHorse.com, or write us at The Horse, 3101 Beaumont Centre Circle, Suite 100, Lexington, KY 40513. Letters may be edited for space limitations and must include the author's name and contact information. L t She had waited all her life for this moment, dreaming about it since she was 10 years old. T e trailer ramp touched the ground; he whinnied as she backed him out, swinging his head around to get a good look at his new home. His coat gleamed in the sun. Her love had arrived—she was breathless; he was beautiful. She could hardly wait to tack him up and start of on what she was sure would be the best times of her life. Call 859-873-2974 or visit KPPusa.com to order today. Satisfaction guaranteed. The horse that matters to you matters to us® TH 2015-10A T is love story is brought to you by: Elevate® Research-proven to have superior bioavailability, Elevate supplies the essential vitamin E often missing from the diet. Its all-natural formula supports healthy muscle and nerve functions. Correction: In "The Ups and Downs of U.S. Horse Registrations" article in the July issue, the American Morgan Horse Association headquarters should have been listed as located in Shelburne, Vermont.