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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44 TheHorse.com THE HORSE September 2015 To counteract the negative effects of stall confinenment (the potential for gastric ulcers, lack of natural exercise, etc.), Zeytoonian says, "the best advice I can give is to do everything possible to mimic a horse's behavior in the wild. Wild horses spend a significant part of their day moving around—a recent study showed greater than 10 miles a day—and eating. A horse on limited acreage will need more structured exercise to make up for lack of movement in turnout, and they should always have access to clean water and quality hay, fed as frequently as pos- sible to mimic natural grazing behavior." Because there's no turnout in the Big Apple, Chateau Stables staff, for instance, hand-walk their horses around the block. Every two weeks, says Gerami, she rotates two horses at a time on and off her 23-acre farm in Pennsylvania, where they can enjoy turnout and a slower pace of life. Maintaining fitness with arena exercise or limited turnout in a small, urban enclosure is more challenging than with extended pasture turnout that naturally involves navigation of uneven ground, ruts, and hills. Horses in the latter scenar- io tend to have stronger tendons and liga- ments, says Olson. "I think a lot of sport horse injuries … occur in horses that lack the biomechanical strength of horses who get a lot of turnout, like an event horse in Virginia who gets a lot of turnout and does trot sets out in an open field." Another benefit of regular exercise, particularly in older horses, is preventing and/or alleviating pain in arthritic joints. "The other effects of a sedentary lifestyle are similar to humans," says Zey- toonian. "There is a higher risk of obesity, metabolic disease, and hoof issues. Lack of exercise or stimulus can also lead to the development of vices like cribbing, stall weaving, pawing, and so on." Other good basic horse management approaches can help prevent additional problems that close quarters can enhance. For instance, horse owners can avoid the fungal hoof infection thrush (which some veterinarians link to stall confinement) by practicing good hygiene, such as daily hoof picking. And facility and equipment disinfection is essential for controlling disease in all management situations, but especially so in limited space. Also, "Providing horses with stimulus in the form of toys or slow feeders will help to reduce boredom and prevent stress-induced gastric ulcers," says Zeytoonian. General Maintenance Part of good management is a consis- tent maintenance and preventive care program. The horses at Chateau Stables get shod about every six to seven weeks, and because they don't do a lot of hard work, the farrier can often reset their shoes rather than placing new ones. "It's rare that we have lameness prob- lems," says Gerami. "It's a nice job for an older horse, and I can monitor them when they're indoors." Her veterinarian performs four well- ness exams on the horses annually and ensures all vaccinations and Coggins are up-to-date. Gerami says she keeps a folder for each horse with vaccination, farrier, and dental records to make it easy to keep all horses current. The horses' dental care provider, who lives just over the George Washington Bridge in New Jersey, visits to perform routine dental care about once a year, but stops by as needed to evaluate bitting and assess new horses' teeth, she says. That's how often Olson, who has a special interest in equine dentistry, checks any horse's teeth, urban or rural. She says that horses that aren't grazing and are on a hay diet, however, typically show different tooth wear than those on grass. "Some horses might need to have their teeth floated every six months, while horses with regular turnout tend to be on more of a yearly schedule," she says. "We've taken all of their natural STEPHANIE L. CHURCH The staff at New York City's Chateau Stables make the most of their limited space when it comes to caring for the horses and storing supplies. COURTESY ANITA GERAMI EQUINOMICS Open doors, windows, and fans can help keep air fowing through cramped urban quarters.