This Week in Horse Health News Presented by Absorbine

Bag of carrots, anyone? Photo from sarniaguineapigrescue.weebly.com. Bag of carrots, anyone? Photo from sarniaguineapigrescue.weebly.com.

Sometimes I equate my gelding Ripley to a vacuum cleaner for treats. Before he came into my life as the first horse for a (very) excited teenage me, he appears to have been handled poorly by people. He was jumpy around and mistrustful of people…but I did find that he came around to the idea of treats very quickly.

Apples. Carrots. Sugar Cubes. Horse Cookies. You name it. And from those early days, Ripley has always been a bit grabby when it comes to getting a treat. There was one particular time that I remember feeding him baby carrots by the handful. And what does he do…but grab part of the plastic bag and gulp it down with some baby carrots.

Of course, I panicked and then proceeded to immediately call my vet to ask what I should do. Sure, it was a very small sized corner of a plastic bag of baby carrots…but I was worried about what it could do since Ripley had to EAT IT. What steps should be considered in response to a horse eating a foreign object? Head over to The Horse and check out this Farm Call feature about what to do in the case of equine consumption of foreign objects.

And then check out some of the other headlines from This Week in Horse Health News, presented by Absorbine:

Road Work for the Event Horse: Does conditioning your event horse on hard surfaces, such as a hard-packed dirt road help them? Or does it put them at a greater risk for an injury? Check out this article by Laura Werner, DVM, which discusses both the upsides as well as the downsides of having your horse condition using road work. [Practical Horseman]

Does a Racehorse Know if they Win or Lose?: While it’s probably not a question that is easy to get a definitive answer to, is it possible for a horse to know whether they have won? Or whether they have lost? Check out this commentary article that explores the concept of whether horses know when they have ‘won’. [The Horse]

Tick Trouble: Do you find yourself pulling these little parasites off of your horse during grooming sessions? Along with being slightly creepy as they attach themselves to horses, ticks also have the ability to cause illness in your horse. Tick borne illnesses can be tricky to detect and diagnose…you can learn more about them here. [Equus Magazine]

New Bolton Center to Hold Special Event About Foaling: An upcoming special event at the University of Pennsylvania’s New Bolton Center will explore foal-related topics, including equine dystocia, caring for a sick foal, and also management of postpartum mares. The event will be held on Tuesday, December 15th from 7:00pm to 8:00pm, in the Alumni Hall of New Bolton Center at 382 West Street Road in Kennett Square, PA. Reservations are recommended, so please RSVP with Emily Daignault Salvaggio at [email protected]. [The Horse]