Slaughter Prohibition Update: Veterinarian Patty Hogan Testifies to Congress

Things are wrapping up in the US House of Representatives today, as the final testimonies have finished in the controversial equine slaughter prohibition legislation, a.k.a. HR Bill 503, which seeks to prohibit the commercial slaughter of horses in the United States. In spite of a huge groundswell of public support, donations, and even heartfelt efforts from individuals in the horse breeding community, this legislation seems doomed. The House Agriculture Committee failed to recommend it, and now it looks like two different versions of the bill are circulating.
Can this bill make it with the opposition of the AVMA, AAEP, and AQHA? Don't bet on it. 

One of the few bright spots in it all was the eloquent testimony of Dr Patty Hogan of New Jersey Equine, at Tuesday's House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee hearing. She pointed out many of the ambiguities surrounding this issue.

Those speaking out this week against the bill, which is expected to come up for a vote in the full House in September, were Dr. Bonnie Beaver (president of the AVMA), Dr. Doug Corey (president of the American Association of Equine Practitioners) and Dick Koehler (vice president of Beltex, one of three U.S. equine slaughter plants).

Koehler cited issues of private property rights as they pertain to horse owners, "It is a matter of choice," he said. "If you wish to do that with your horse, I believe you should have the right to do that." (It's not clear if he is a horse owner himself or not.)

Two of the veterinarians differed in their perspective on the humaneness or lack thereof in the slaughter process or whether it would curtail the prevalence of horses being slaughtered for meat. "By banning slaughter in the U.S., it will not stop slaughter," said Dr. Doug Corey. "It won't stop a Ferdinand [a former Thoroughbred champion believed slaughtered for meat in Japan after being there as a stud]. I would prefer to have these horses processed in the United States where there are regulations."

Dr. Hogan cited, "confusion regarding humane euthanasia and horse slaughter. We must remember these are two distinctly different processes. Horse slaughter is not euthanasia by anyone's definition. ... Horse slaughter uses a method called the captive bolt which involves aiming a bolt gun at the forehead of a partially-restrained horse in what is commonly termed the ‘kill-pen.’ ...There is a great deal of room for human and technical error with the captive bolt method and the recommendation for 'adequate restraint' is loosely defined and open for interpretation.”

Material for this post was aided by input from Harness Racing Communications, a division of the United States Trotting Association.

To learn more about Dr. Patty Hogan and her work as an equine surgeon, visit the New Jersey Equine Center home page at http://www.njequine.com; some of you may remember her as the surgeon who worked on Smarty Jones and Afleet Alex, two leading US Thoroughbreds.

Hoof Blog is a news service provided by Hoofcare & Lameness, Journal of Equine Foot Science.

Note: this blog is an interactive web page. By clicking on the envelope icon at the bottom of an article, you can instantly email that article to a friend. By clicking on the word “comment” after a post, you can leave a message, which may be viewed by future blog readers who click on the same “comment”. Commenting may require registering with Blogger.com. You may also comment by emailing the author, Fran Jurga, at hoofblog@gmail.com and your comment will be posted for you, technology willing.

Barbaro Update: Cast changes and sling-dom

Here's the latest from New Bolton Center: "Monday afternoon we changed his right hind leg cast to take new radiographs and to examine the incision,” said Dr. Richardson. “The radiographs looked good; the plates we placed on July 8 to fuse the pastern are intact and the fetlock fusion is unchanged. The leg and the incision looked as good as we could have hoped.”

The right hind leg cast supports the repair of the injury suffered at the Preakness on May 20, and it extends from the colt’s foot to just below his hock.

The modified foot cast, which acts like a bandage on Barbaro’s left hind foot, was also changed yesterday. The foot cast is rigid and provides stability and support, but will be changed often so that the hoof can be treated. Both cast changes were performed with Barbaro lightly sedated in a sling. He has adapted very well to being managed as needed in the sling. “He is a very intelligent horse,” said Dr. Richardson.

“He spends several hours a day in a sling, which he has adapted to very well,” said Dr. Richardson.

Slings, which were originally designed for rescuing horses, are now common in the treatment of horses with conditions that include neurological problems or musculo-skeletal injuries. They have been in use for many years for long-term management of a horse’s movement. “We have a lot of experience in using slings for equine support,” said Dr. Richardson. “In Barbaro’s case, it is a part-time aid that we use to increase his comfort level.”

News provided by University of Pennsylvania Large Animal Hospital at New Bolton Center. Hoofblog is a news service provided by Hoofcare & Lameness, Journal of Equine Foot Science. Visit http://www.hoofcare.com for lots more in-depth articles and information about the care/prevention of lameness in horses. Reference books, videos, and dvds are sold at that site. Please subscribe to our award-winning journal at our "summer special" price: 4 issues $59, 8 issues $99. For more information, write to Hoofcare, PO Box 6600, Gloucester MA 01930; tel 978 281 3222; email news@hoofcare.com.
All posts and photos protected by copyright 2006 Hoofcare Publishing--Fran Jurga, Publisher

Barbaro Update, Comment on Foot Cast

KENNETT SQUARE, PA —­ Chief of Surgery Dean Richardson reports today that Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro’s vital signs are good and that he had another quiet, restful night. “He remains in stable condition, and he is eating well,” said Dr. Richardson. “We continue to manage his pain successfully, and he is alert.”

Barbaro is tolerating his right hind leg cast well; this cast supports the repair of the injury suffered at the Preakness on May 20. To treat a severe case of laminitis in the colt’s left rear hoof, last week Dr. Richardson and his surgical team performed a hoof wall resection that removed 80 percent of the hoof. Doctors then applied a modified fiberglass foot cast to protect the hoof; this foot cast will be changed as needed so that the hoof can be treated and watched for signs of infection. The foot cast is rigid and provides greater stability and support than a bandage.

“It is important for people to understand that this is not a ‘routine’ laminitis. The care involved in treating a hoof with this degree of compromise is complex,” said Dr. Richardson.

(17 July update from New Bolton Center)

News provided by University of Pennsylvania Large Animal Hospital at New Bolton Center. 

All posts and photos protected by copyright 2006 Hoofcare Publishing--Fran Jurga, Publisher

Another Strasser Trimmer Charged with Cruelty in the UK

Portions of this text appeared in the British horse magazine, Horse & Hound:

An English woman has appeared in British court accused of causing unnecessary suffering to a pony by using the Strasser barefoot method of hoofcare.

In her trial, the trimmer denied two charges of causing suffering to "Brambles" between 3 June and 20 July 2004.

Brambles came into the trimmer's care in January 2004 after the previous owner could do nothing more to treat her laminitis. The pony was seized by the RSPCA on 20 July 2004 when she was found with "mutilated" hooves, walking with crossed legs and barely able to move.

The court heard how the trimmer had undergone training in the Strasser technique and had kept horses for about 35 years.

The prosecutor told the court the soles of Brambles' hooves had been trimmed away too thinly.

"The bone had rotated within the foot to an abnormal angle, so it protruded into the sole," he said, adding that there were abscesses present in the hoof and that a farrier had described it as the worst case of lameness he had ever seen.

Brambles was taken into the care of the International League for the Protection of Horses (ILPH), but despite five months of intensive care, was put down after failing to respond.

Counsel for the defendant said the defendant "wanted to give the pony a chance using the Strasser technique because it was clear conventional treatment had not worked."

Mr Vass admitted a vet was not called to treat Brambles, but stressed that the pony was well-fed, well-housed and given the freedom to roam.

He added: "With the benefit of hindsight, (she) may have taken on slightly more than she could handle."

The prosecutor said: "We are not suggesting (she) was deliberately trying to hurt this pony, but her treatment was the incorrect treatment for the pony and caused her to suffer additional pain."

He said the Strasser method was the "inappropriate method of treatment", and had "resulted in mutilation and caused extreme pain".

The verdict will be given on 26 July.

Editor's note: Horse and Hound is the weekly newsmagazine of the horse world in Great Britain and often works together with Hoofcare & Lameness.

This is the second prosecution of a Strasser trimmer involved in a laminitis case to be tried in recent months. Previously, a trimmer was found guilty of cruelty and Dr. Strasser testified at the trial. In that case, charges directly related to the trimming were not found but the trimmer was found guilty for not seeking veterinary care for the horse.

Barbaro: the other point of view

I feel obliged to post about Barbaro; after all, he is the poster child for what we all do to help horses. It's also pretty darn interesting if you scroll down this page and watch the disaster story unfurl.

Not everyone agrees. Check out this scathing editorial on over-Barbarozation:
http://www.sportsfanmagazine.com/sfm/articles.html?id=2775

I apologize for the sheer number of posts, but this blog will stand as a record for anyone who wants to be able to document anything about Barbaro in the future, which is also why I post what New Bolton Center provides me, unless stated otherwise, such as direct communication with Rob Sigafoos, the chief of farrier services at New Bolton.

Unlike most of you, and certainly unlike the SportsFan guy, I don't have an opinion about this case, just a lot of hope that everything reflects positively on the vet and farrier and equine health professions and that we all learn something from this horse and his high-profile struggle.

I'm not there and neither are you. All I can do is believe that they can and will do everything they can and I am sure that they are in consult with experts around the world.

Many people have asked why Chris Pollitt's cryotherapy was not used. Well, we don't know that it wasn't! Pollitt has published a paper in which he induced laminitis; one leg was placed in a deep ice boot and the other left in ambient temperature. The cold leg did not contract laminitis.

However, that was "traditional" laminitis, i.e. carbohydrate-induced, not support limb overload laminitis.

And here's a special detail for all you nay-sayers and doubting Thomases out there: Pollitt's co-author on the cryotherapy paper and former student is now a resident at New Bolton. So, they have cryotherapy expertise right on staff, had it been pertinent to the case.

I also hope that somehow more money will go to laminitis research. Please visit these web sites to learn more about how you can help with laminitis research:

http://www.ahf-laminitis.org
http://www.laminitisresearch.org

Thanks.

How's Barbaro Today?

July 14, 2006 , 4:00 p.m., Eastern Time

KENNETT SQUARE, PA — Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro remains in stable condition according to his veterinarians at the George D. Widener Hospital at the University of Pennsylvania. “His vital signs, including heart rate and pulse, remain good,” said Dr. Dean Richardson, Chief of Surgery. “We are treating his laminitis aggressively and he continues to respond well and is acceptably comfortable.”

“As I said at the press conference on Thursday, we monitor his condition very closely because signs can change quickly,” said Dr. Richardson. “However, it’s important to remember that Barbaro’s treatment could easily continue for several weeks, and if all goes well, even months. Our goal is to keep him as comfortable as possible, and clearly that comfort level will be a major indicator for our treatment decisions.” Dr. Richardson also emphasized that Barbaro, as evident in the footage and still photos, has a very positive attitude.

Editor's Note: This is an extract from an official statement from New Bolton Center.