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.
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R 11 December 2017 THE HORSE TheHorse.com Call for Abstracts for 2018 WEVA Congress The World Equine Veterinary Association (WEVA) will host its 15th Congress in Beijing, China, April 21-23, 2018, in col- laboration with the China Horse Industry Association. Program co-organizers Chris Riggs, BVSc, PhD, DEO, Dipl. ECVS, MRCVS, and Henry Tremaine, BVetMed, CertES (Soft Tissue), MPhil, Dipl. ECVS, EVDC, FHEA, MRCVS, and I are inviting authors to submit abstracts of papers to be con- sidered for poster presentations at this Congress. Abstracts sum- marizing original research, novel clinical techniques, or unusual case series must be submitted using a dedicated form, which can be obtained by e-mailing Riggs at weva.beijing2018@hkjc.org.hk. Applications must be received by Dec. 20. An independent panel will judge posters, taking into ac- count the quality of the science, clarity of presentation, and overall contribution to horse welfare. The winner and two runners-up will be awarded prizes, and the authors will be invited to present their papers at the podium. Find additional Congress information, including presenta- tion and wet lab topics, at TheHorse.com/39844. —CJ (Kate) Savage BVSc(Hons), MS, PhD, Dipl. ACVIM WEVA President weva Researchers in Finland recently unearthed the first reported mandibular (cheek tooth) hook in a medieval horse. Suvi Viranta-Kovanen, PhD, of the University of Helsinki Faculty of Medicine and colleagues discovered the hook (shown at right) in a horse buried between A.D. 1300 and 1500. The horse came from an excavation site in Levänluhta, Ostrobothnia. The horse, who was about 7 years old when he died, probably suffered from an underbite, Viranta- Kovanen said. Such hooks, also found on cheek teeth in today's horses, can obstruct jaw movement or dig into the gums opposite the tooth. The research team's current and previous work has revealed that medieval horses in this part of the world consumed very little hay, straw, or even fresh grass, especially in winter. Rather, they ate soft fodder for part of the year and little abrasive forage to wear the teeth evenly, said Viranta-Kovanen. Learn more about medieval horses' teeth at TheHorse. com/39770.—Christa Lesté-Lasserre, MA DID YOU KNOW HOOKS ON HORSE TEETH: A TALE AS OLD AS TIME COURTESY DR. SUVI VIRANTA-KOVANEN A recent study of Scandinavian riders has revealed that owners generally do not have the scientific knowledge needed for good blanketing and clipping practices. Cecilie M. Mejdell, PhD, of the Norwegian Veterinary Institute, in Oslo, said about half the riders didn't appear to understand how equine thermoregulation works. Participants clipped horses because they believed the horses would dry faster after work and would perform better. While those things might be true, many respondents also disagreed with the proven facts that "clipped horses have greater heat loss capacity" and "blan- keting after exercise increases recovery time." Ultimately, Mejdell said, "the best thing an owner or rider can do is to understand … the balance between heat production and heat loss and effects of environmental factors. Horses have a great ability to regulate body temperature under different conditions. Do not disturb this ability." Find the researchers' welfare-friendly blanketing tips at TheHorse. com/39738.—Christa Lesté-Lasserre, MA Owners Lack Blanketing, Clipping Knowledge ISTOCK.COM For additional news items, see TheHorse.com/News and veterinary supplies ar- rived at San Juan's airport and were distributed to the horses' caretakers. On the other side of the country, horse owners in Northern California were facing multiple rapidly moving wildfires. CAL FIRE reported that by Oct. 15 the fires had scorched more than 217,500 acres and thou- sands of structures. Owners, vets, and emer- gency response person- nel joined a University of California, Davis (UC Davis), team in evacuating hundreds of equids threatened by the flames. Not all owners were able to evacuate their horses, however, and once the fires passed, authorized veterinary teams stepped in. "The fire spread so fast, some people did not get the call out to evacuate except from their neighbors," said John Madigan, DVM, MS, head of the UC Davis Veteri- nary Emergency Response Team on Oct. 16. "Out in the field, horses that can be reached are being treated for stress colic, and we've had one horse with burns." Veterinarians also treated horses for smoke inhalation. At press time many horses remained at evacua- tion sites. Find more detailed cover- age at TheHorse.com/topics/ horse-care/disasters/disaster- recovery. — Erica Larson and Pat Raia Straight From The Horse's Mouth The Horse's team of freelancers resides around the world, including in the paths of Hurricane Irma and the California wildfires. Read their firsthand accounts: ■ It's All Academic Until it Happens to You, TheHorse.com/39712 ■ Saving Horses From the Northern California Wildfires, TheHorse.com/39807