VPN Plus+ ExclusiveTime to stop horsing around with equine pain managementJune 19, 2025 Many horses are described as grumpy, aggressive, unwilling, lazy, bad-tempered, or ill-mannered, but what if they are none of those things? Equine pain experts say unwanted behavior is often an attempt to communicate the animal is in pain. Failure by owners and veterinarians to recognize pain occurs for several reasons: the propensity of horses to conceal pain; a lack of training for veterinarians in evaluating poor performance or low-grade multi-limb lameness, especially in ridden horses; and denial by owners and trainers who may not want to admit that their horses are aging, injured, or unable to compete in a particular event. "I think one of the biggest challenges for us is equine medicine hasn't really come along as well as small animal medicine, dogs and cats, with regard to recognition of pain as a vital sign and something we should be treating," says Rachel Reed, DVM, DACVAA, associate professor at University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine. "For horses, we're a little bit behind on thinking about managing their pain. It's often an afterthought to whatever they are presented for." Veterinary researchers are seeking improved methods and tools for recognizing and …
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VPN Plus+ ExclusiveUsing NSAIDs to rein in performance horse painNovember 15, 2024OA is the leading cause of lameness in more than 60 percent of horses and is a significant concern for those managing the care of performance horses. To combat OA or soft tissue injuries, performance horses are often prescribed NSAIDs to reduce inflammation and pain.
'Purrfecting' feline orthopedicsJuly 6, 2024Recognizing lameness in cats is a growing area of research. The first step in trying to understand this is learning how to do an appropriate feline orthopedic exam.
Classifying and newly subclassifying medial patella luxation in dogsJanuary 17, 2023Canine medial patella luxation is a common cause of lameness. While it most often affects small and toy breed dogs, medium and large breed dogs can also be impacted. Clinical presentation varies depending on the severity (or grade) of luxation. Most patients with patella luxation will present at a young age, some as early as three months, but many are around 12 months to four years old.
Can you solve this puzzle?January 19, 2022Can you solve this Brain Teaser? A 10-month-old female spayed shepherd mix originally presents for hind limb lameness.
VPN Plus+ ExclusiveThe art of sporthorse medicineJanuary 6, 2022Sporthorse medicine involves specializing in treating equine patients that often compete at the highest levels of international sports such as jumping, dressage, and cross-country. Unlike treating a backyard equine companion, sporthorse medicine requires an understanding of the equine athlete and the different health and soundness issues they face due to their occupation.
UF studies anesthetic with potential for misuse in racehorsesApril 16, 2019A local anesthetic with the potential for misuse in racehorses is being studied by veterinarians at the University of Florida (UF) College of Veterinary Medicine in collaboration with UF Racing Laboratory. The study will observe bupivacaine as there are concerns the extended release form of the drug could be used unethically to mask pain or an injury in a racehorse. "Bupivacaine has been around for a while," says Taralyn McCarrel, DVM, an equine surgeon and the grant's principal investigator. "We don't use it a lot, as most of the time we're doing very short procedures and for those, we tend to use drugs that are shorter-acting. This is true also when we're using them in a lameness examination. We only need the drugs to last a few hours in most cases." "In this new formulation, tiny droplets of bupivacaine are wrapped in a membrane, which is the liposomal component. After injection, the liposomes start to break down, and gradually release these small pockets of drug over a long time." The research team will start by determining the minimal effective dose to block pain in a horse's foot and to assess how long the anesthetic effect lasts. They will then …
