Horsekeeping and backyard training, pets and art by Connie Moses
California Senator Quizzes Salazar on his Deadly Wild Horse Fiasco. The Senator from California Barbara Boxer asks pertinent, pointed questions which deserve answers. We are glad to see this high-level attention to a serious issue.
This reported by Steven Long on horsebackmagazine.com, as published on blog Straight from the Horse’s Heart…
There are certain advantages to having a son who’s a pilot!!!
Magical night lights of downtown Boston! Best if watched full-screen: double-click on this image to be taken to youtube, then click on 4 arrows at lower right of screen.
Ez treated Antoine and me to a once-in-a-lifetime view of Boston, from a Cessna 152 out of Hanscom Field. He even let Antoine hold the controls for a bit. Ez was in instructor mode, and I was in a fantasy world, at least that’s what it felt like!
More videos soon to come on youtube!
Bute (phenylbutazone) and Banamine (flunixin meglumine) are the most common non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) used by equine veterinarians and horse owners. They are in the same category as aspirin and ibuprofen and are very effective against fever, swelling and inflammation from injuries and infections, laminitis (founder), and musculoskeletal pain.
Banamine is very effective against visceral pain and is the medication of choice for colic. Bute and Banamine do not come without side effects however, and could do more harm than good if administered improperly. The two organ systems most commonly affected are the kidney and gastrointestinal systems.
Proper dosing is important to effective use of bute and Banamine while minimizing side effects. Banamine should be given at .5 mg per pound of body weight in both the intravenous and paste form. That is equal to 10 mls of the injectible for a 1,000 pound horse. The paste form is dosed by weight on the tube. Banamine takes effect within 2 hours and the peak response is 12 hours after it is given. The total duration of effect is 24 to 36 hours.
Banamine can be given safely at the recommended dose every 12 hours in a healthy, hydrated horse for several days. The importance of following the dose and frequency of administration recommendations is that research has determined the amount that will give the maximal result with the minimal side effects. Careless or uninformed administration of Banamine can have deleterious results.
Bute comes in an injectable, paste, and tablet form. The tablets for a full grown horse are normally 1 gram each. The injectable form is to go in the vein only and should be given by a veterinarian. Administration outside the vein can cause serious damage to the tissues. The recommended dose for bute is 1 to 2 grams a day. The dose can be split and given every 12 hours. Higher doses can be given for short periods of time as prescribed by a veterinarian. Low doses of bute can be given safely in many horses for weeks and months at a time. The lowest effective dose should always be used.
Occasionally a horse will suffer side effects to even lower doses. These usually involve the gastrointestinal system. If your horse shows signs of colic, diarrhea, lack of appetite, or depression while on bute, contact your veterinarian. Bute is thought to have the highest risk for gastrointestinal side effects but any NSAID can cause a problem. Bute is very effective for musculoskeletal problems but should not be used for colic as it is less effective than Banamine and can limit the types of medication your veterinarian can use for treatment.
Sick horses are often dehydrated, and giving bute or Banamine to a dehydrated horse can cause permanent kidney damage. It is a good idea to contact your veterinarian before administering one of these medications. Your horse may need intravenous fluids to rehydrate prior to safe administration of an NSAID. Take the horse’s temperature before giving bute or Banamine. They are effective fever reducers and can lower your horse’s temperature. Your veterinarian may want to know if the horse has a fever before you give the medication.
Pain is an important protective mechanism of the body. A horse with an injured, painful leg will not want to bear full weight on the leg and will be less likely to further injure it. Bute and Banamine relieve pain and inflammation and at times may cover the pain when more aggressive therapy is needed. Banamine and bute are convenient to have on hand but you should always consult your veterinarian before medicating your horse at home.
Beau Whitaker D.V.M.
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From Arizona Equine Medical and Surgical Center
This site has a ton of other useful horse malady information…
Glen and Gilford chasing around, enjoying the snow in early January.
A friend of ours is sailing around the world on an ARC Rally (Atlantic Rally for Cruisers, World Cruising Club), how cool is that! They started the Rally from St. Lucia Island (SW of Puerto Rico in the Caribbean) in January, and are now heading down the east coast of South America, having gone through the Panama Canal. Their finish schedule is to be back in St. Lucia by April, 2011.
Here are their websites, with lots of cool photos.
wildtigris.org
Our friend, CN, actually sailed from Spain last October (where the Wild Tigris had been undergoing refitting and repairs) across the Atlantic to St. Lucia to begin the ARC Rally in early January. As many as 200 boats are participating; it is not a race, but rather a pleasure cruise with groups of yachts staying more or less together (as I understand it).
Crew of Wild Tigris, our friends Heidi and CN on left
Antoine from Liege, Belgium talks frequently with his family back in Belgium. He Skypes with them online using his laptop and its built-in webcam. They can converse and see each other over the internet because they both have webcams.
One day he carried his (wireless) laptop out to the barn to show his sister the horses, who were partaking of their morning grain. When he went into Gilford’s stall with the computer, Gilford suddenly noticed the thing and jumped backwards. Antoine beat a quick retreat out of the stall!
(To make full screen, click on 4 arrows at bottom right…)
One of our previous exchange students, Joonatan from Finland, talked to his family face to face also, via the amazing technology available these days.
Your help is needed one more time, public comment ends Feb. 12…
Now we need you to act again to oppose the massive removal of 1,506 wild horse in the Antelope Complex located in northeastern Nevada. Please, keep up your great activism for the horses - click here and send one more e-mail!
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FEDS CANCEL ANOTHER WILD HORSE ROUNDUP AFTER LAWSUIT THREATENED
495 Wild Horses in Eastern Nevada Get Reprieve
Washington, DC (February 8, 2010) — The U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) postponed the proposed roundup of nearly 500 wild horses in the Eagle Herd Management Area in eastern Nevada, just three days after the national law firm of Buchanan, Ingersoll & Rooney notified the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) that it would sue to stop the helicopter stampede and capture, which had been scheduled to begin February 15.
The BLM received over 9,000 public comments on the proposed roundup, which would have left just 100 horses behind to roam over 670,000 acres of public land. It’s the second roundup cancelled by the BLM this year. In January, the agency announced that it was postponing the capture and removal of 200 horses from the Confusion Mountains Herd Management Area in Utah, after receiving thousands of letters in protest.
Read more at In Defense of Animals News…
From an earlier IDA article, Fed’s Wild Horse Program Faces New Lawsuit Over Another Huge Roundup, Feb. 4, 2010
The number of wild horses warehoused by the government (35,000) now exceeds the number of horses left free on the range. The Obama Administration plans to capture and remove nearly 12,000 wild horses in Fiscal Year 2010, compounding a fiscal black hole that is costing American taxpayers tens of millions per year.
Meanwhile, wild horses comprise a minute fraction (0.5 percent) of grazing animals on public lands, where they are outnumbered by cattle at least 200 to 1. Currently the BLM manages more than 256 million acres of public lands of which cattle grazing is allowed on 160 million acres; wild horses are only allowed on 26.6 million acres this land, which must be shared with cattle.
THIS IS TERRIFIC NEWS which will help protect horses from inhumane treatment! I congratulate the FEI for taking a stand, and Dr. Gerd Heuschman for being an advocate for horses!
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FEI Imposes Sanctions on Controversial Dressage Training Method
by: Erin Ryder, TheHorse.com News Editor
February 10 2010, Article # 15798
Participants in a Feb. 9 conference organized by the Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI) imposed sanctions on aggressive riding, including that which results in hyperflexion of the horse’s neck.
“The group redefined hyperflexion/Rollkur as flexion of the horse’s neck achieved through aggressive force, which is therefore unacceptable,” the FEI said in a statement. “The technique known as Low, Deep, and Round, which achieves flexion without undue force, is acceptable.”
No rule changes were deemed necessary, but a new working group will expand the current guidelines for stewards to facilitate the implementation of this policy, potentially including closed-circuit television monitoring of warm-up arenas at selected shows.
The issue came up for discussion after an Internet video circulated of Swedish Olympian Patrik Kittel warming up at October’s CDI Odense, Denmark, using a method some call inhumane. (Read more: Controversial Dressage Training Method Under FEI Investigation.) The FEI sent Kittel a warning letter in late January, but no formal claim was lodged.
FEI President HRH Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein also accepted a petition of 41,000 signatories against Rollkur presented by German veterinarian Dr. Gerd Heuschman at the Feb. 9 meeting.
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See Peaches’ previous post Anti-hyperflexion petition to FEI may help horses, please consider including video of hyperflexion, and more links.
THANK YOU to all who signed Dr. Heuschman’s petition, and to Isabella Sonntag for publicizing it!
Starving horses in desperate need reported by Maddy Gray on her NickerNews.net. Maddy provides phone numbers of Maine officials you can call…
Health coverage you can count on reviews the current Senate-proposed bill, at PrescriptionForChange.org. A handy tool here allows you to look at how health reform would affect you in your individual situation.
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Yeh I know it’s not horsey, but these issues are, of course, important. How can we enjoy our horses if we can’t afford to keep them? …and never mind folks who can barely afford to survive at all.
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