The First Day of Summer: Favorite Guinness Commercial and Favorite Horse Commercial Are One and the Same

Surfers wait for that one wave. Guinness drinkers wait for their pints (they take a long time to draw). And around here, we wait a long time for summer to come around again, but so it has arrived today. To celebrate, here's a little bit of classic video, courtesy of our friends at Guinness.

This commercial is perennially called the best television commercial ever made. It's labeled "iconic". I've watched it enough times over the years, to be sure, but I still can't really tell you what's going on. But I also think that might be the point.

It's summer. President Obama tells us it's even "recovery summer". So let's just sit back and take this minute's entertainment at face value. Don't worry, Captain Ahab, we're living the dream.

I hope you agree that this video is a fitting salute to the first day of summer...and one of the most creative uses of horses in a commercial, ever!

By the way, the inspiration for this commercial was the famous children's book illustrator Water Crane's painting, Neptune's Horses. Neptune,  of course, was the ruler of the sea and in his second identity, as Neptune Equester, he served as the patron saint of horses in Roman mythology. He was supposed to protect all the horses in the chariot races. I've always loved this painting.

If you have a slow connection and you're having trouble seeing any horses in the Guinness commercial, try toggling the stop and play button, and leave the screen alone for a while to see if perhaps YouTube needs to load. You can also click on the lower right of the YouTube screen on the blog and the video will open in YouTube and it might play at a better resolution. This video was made in the last century so it is not HD.

21 June 2010 | The First Day of Summer | Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog at Hoofcare.com 

 © Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing

Please, no use without permission. You only need to ask. Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. This blog may be read online at the blog page, checked via RSS feed, or received via a digest-type email (requires signup in box at top right of blog page). To subscribe to Hoofcare and Lameness (the journal), please visit the main site, www.hoofcare.com, where many educational products and media related to equine lameness and hoof science can be found. Questions or problems with this blog? Send email to blog@hoofcare.com.

Warning: Lawn Clippings Are Not Good for Horses!

by Fran Jurga | 14 May 2009 | Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog

Golden Light, originally uploaded by Dan65

Vet and farrier readers: This post is your clients--please share!

There’s no mistaking that sound: the mowers have started. Is there a more sure sign of summer?

If the sound of mowers is the first sound of summer, the second should be the sound of horse owners explaining to landscapers, lawn crews and neighbors that, while the thought is kind, it is NOT okay to dump mulch mower bags or raked-up grass clippings into horse paddocks or feeders.

Some people will think they are doing some clever recycling and being kind of animals, but the opposite is true.

Wet green lawn clippings are often left in mower bags or in piles, where they start to ferment quickly. A hungry horse will nibble at the clippings, and the fermentation (and the gastric gases it creates) in the gut can be deadly. We won’t even talk about the chemicals from herbicides and fertilizers!

Horses can also choke on clumps of grass clippings.

Laminitis might be a real risk too, particularly for horses with other considerations like insulin resistance, and for ponies.

Here are some suggestions, especially if you have horses that are at risk for colic or laminitis problems:

If your turnout borders an area served by a landscape crew, talk to the crew foreman. If you are off at work and leave your horses turned out, consider posting a sign on your fence.

If possible, make sure that town and county road maintenance crews that mow roadsides and median strips know not to dump trimmings into horse pastures.

When you arrive home in the evening, check your pastures, paddocks and arenas, especially along any sections facing neighbors or the road to make sure nothing has been dumped.

Consider writing a letter to the editor of your local paper, and post this article in your feed store and any stores that sell lawn mowers or at nurseries and farmstands that sell plants.

Chances are, your neighbors and community members are completely unaware of the dangers of grass clippings to horses, ponies, donkeys and mules. Remember, they probably mean well.

Do you have experiences with horses suffering the ill effects of grass clippings? Or neighborhood relations suffering? I know this is sort of a suburban issue, but that is where so many of our horses live these days...or the suburbs have come to them!

I was at a party once when a gentleman came up to me and smugly introduced himself as a neighbor to the boarding farm where my horse was living. He informed me that he was kind to animals and dumped the clippings of his vast chemical green carpet into my mare's paddock. I was speechless, and had to be, as the farm's relationship in the neighborhood was at stake. You might need that neighbor at a zoning or board of health meeting sometime.

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing. No use without permission. You only need to ask.

Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. This blog may be read online at the blog page, checked via RSS feed, or received via a digest-type email (requires signup in box at top right of blog page).

To subscribe to Hoofcare and Lameness (the journal), please visit the main site, www.hoofcare.com, where many educational products and media related to equine lameness and hoof science can be found.

Questions or problems with this blog? Send email to blog@hoofcare.com.

Laminitis News: Vermont Horse Show Fundraiser Benefits Research in Barbaro's Memory

From left to right: Dr. James Orsini and Gretchen and Roy Jackson at Vermont benefit held to benefit laminitis research in honor of the Jacksons' late, great racehorse Barbaro last week at the Vermont Summer Festival horse show.

On the evening of Thursday, August 7, more than 100 guests enjoyed "An Equine Evening" held in the Grand Prix Pavilion at the Vermont Summer Festival in East Dorset, Vermont, to honor Barbaro, the late Thoroughbred racehorse Barbaro, who died because of complications of laminitis in 2007.

Barbaro, the 2006 Kentucky Derby winner, suffered catastrophic injuries to his right hind leg during the running at the Preakness Stakes, the second leg of the Triple Crown for three-year-olds. He underwent intensive surgery at the University of Pennsylvania’s New Bolton Center under the care of Dr. Dean Richardson to repair multiple fractures. His struggle for survival captured the nation’s attention.

However, in January of 2007, Barbaro was euthanized after a difficult battle against laminitis.

Proceeds generated through donations and raffle ticket sales during An Equine Evening, co-chaired by Kimet Hand and Betsy Perrott, benefited the University of Pennsylvania's Laminitis Research Fund, the Barbaro Foundation, a program established by Gulfstream Park that oversees an annual scholarship for future veterinarians, and the Spring Hill Horse Rescue in Clarendon, Vermont.

Gretchen and Roy Jackson, owners of Barbaro, were the evening’s honored guests, as was Barbaro’s trainer, Michael Matz, who was unable to attend.

“I just want to thank everyone who came here this evening. You are the ones supporting the Laminitis Fund and the Barbaro Foundation,” Mrs. Jackson addressed the guests. “I feel like I’ve said this so many times; Barbaro opened our hearts to what horses mean to us. We never expected what happened to Barbaro, but are thankful for all the positive things he has brought.

“Barbaro always seemed to enjoy being out there,” she continued. “He ran so easily and showed up so proudly in the paddock and we found so much joy in that. Even after his injury and during the eight months he spent in a stall, he kept his ears pricked, always happy to have visitors. But when the laminitis hit, he became a different horse. He let us know he was ready.”

James Orsini, DVM, ACVS of the University of Pennsylvania's New Bolton Center took to the podium next to address the fundamentals of the laminitis disease and hopes for the future.

“Through Barbaro’s tragedy, laminitis has been turned into a household word and that has helped us gain the means to move forward and better understand the disease, and most importantly, prevent it,” Orsini explained. “We are making progress.”

Orsini outlined multiple revolutions in preventative technology including a variable temperature ice boot designed to reduce inflammation in the hoof, slow the metabolic process required by an affected hoof, and quell the pain laminitis inflicts.

Roy wrapped up the evening’s presentations with more positive news. “To date, the Laminitis Fund has raised approximately 1.5 million dollars,” he said. “We have received letters from every state and 15 foreign countries. Barbaro has inspired more optimism and positive causes than we could have ever imagined.”

As New England’s largest “AA” rated hunter/jumper horse show, the Vermont Summer Festival offers over $750,000 in prize money, making it the richest sporting event in the state of Vermont. Visit the Vermont Summer Festival website for more information, including full results.

Photo credit: David Mullinix Photography