World Cup Freestyle B Won by...a Lusitano!

Consider this: the world turned upside down today in Las Vegas, where at the FEI World Cup Dressage Finals, the Freesyle B was won by the Portuguese rider Daniel Pinto, riding a Lusitano horse of his native land. How about that!

In the picture above, from warmup day, you see Isabell Werth of Germany in the foreground, with Daniel in the back. Observers said they did an impromptu pas de deux while schooling; now each has won his or her event.

Obviously the Portuguese are breeding and conditioning a larger, more extended version of the classical breed, but when you think of the classical orgins of dressage and how it was dominated in the 20th century by northern European warmbloods at the international level, this is news. Granted, he won at freestyle, which means designing a program that spotlights the horse's strengths, while the Grand Prix tests all the gaits and speeds, but...good for Portugal. Perhaps this will be the dawn of the legitimate specialist dressage horse for musical freestyle.

Hopefully Kit will have a good closeup photo of the horse in action tomorrow.

(Photo courtesy of Kit Houghton and Rolex.)

Tildren: Denoix Study Shows Drug Helps Horses with Back Pain

Michael Davis, DVM, MS, of New England
Equine Medical Center. Fran Jurga photo.

Hoofcare and Lameness Journal first reported on the clinical trials of the drug tiludronate ("Tildren") about five years ago, when it was first tested on horses with navicular disease under the supervision of one of consulting editors, Jean Marie Denoix, DVM, PhD, Agrege, of France.

Dr. Denoix's team recently tested Tildren on 29 horses with back pain caused by lesions in the vertebrae, as documented in radiographs. Such lesions are common in many horses.

Fifteen horses were given Tildren and 14 horses received a control substance, and the horses were monitored for 120 days. This was a similar protocol to the navicular disease study. The horses given Tildren were significantly improved after 60 days.

The study was published in the March 2007 edition of the American Journal of Veterinary Research.

Tildren is currently not sold in the United States but is being used by some veterinarians in trial situations within FDA guidelines. Fortunately, the drug is being tested near here at the New England Equine Medical Center, by Dr. Michael Davis, and I've been able to follow its progress. So far, all the news is good...except for the price, of course!

Tildren has been used successfully for navicular bone lesions and hock spavin. Hopes have been high for its use in demineralization of the coffin bone but I don't think there is any documentation of tests for that problem.

Denoix's new study opens up the area of the back and makes one wonder about using it for neck and sacroiliac pain...but I'm sure he's working on that!

Photo: Michael Davis DVM MS of New England Equine Medical and Surgical Center has been using Tildren on carefully-screened US horses. 

A Big Day for the Little Guys

It hasn't been an active news week, and yet Thursday broke the all-time record for visitors to this blog. I don't know who you are but thank you for coming and reading the news. Please keep checking back for more news.

Thanks to Equitana of Essen, Germany for supplying this and some other wonderful photos that you'll be seeing on the HoofBlog.

AAEP Statement on FDA Withdrawal of Pergolide for Human Use: Will It Still Be Available for Horses?

The American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) has issued this statement to its members about the potential crisis of pergolide's removal from the drug market.

"As you may be aware, the FDA has withdrawn the drug pergolide from the market for use in humans. In order for the drug to continue to be available for use in veterinary medicine, the FDA must approve an exception for pergolide to be used by veterinarians and to be compounded in bulk quantities.

"The AAEP, through its Drug Compounding Task Force, has been in contact with the FDA, and they are aware of the significant impact of pergolide’s withdrawal from the market on equine medicine. The FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine is working with its counterpart for human medicine, the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, to allow importation of pergolide for use by compounding pharmacies. The FDA expects to have an official announcement by the end of this week.

"The AAEP will continue to communicate with the FDA on this issue."

Note to blog readers: Pergolide is a drug that has been found to have some problems in human use; it is often prescribed for Parkinson's disease. Pergolide has been very helpful to some older horses suffering from problems like Cushings disease or insulin resistance that may have laminitis as a side effect. Many horse owners are concerned about a shortage of the medication for their horses.

Please read my original post from March 30 for more information.

Blue Horse Matine: Top Horse Scratched from World Cup Finals in Las Vegas

Click on the screen arrow to find out why thousands had anticipated this horse's performance at this week's World Cup dressage finals in Las Vegas. An injury during transport caused the mare to be scratched today. (see story that follows) Even if you think you don't like dressage...take a look at this!

I believe this is what you call "peak performance"; this video is from the World Equestrian Games in Aachen, Germany last August. The British commentator is UK team rider Richard Davison.

Crowd's Favorite Dressage Horse Scratches at Las Vegas World Cup

(Thanks to the US Equestrian Federation for help with this post.)

Before the curtain had a chance to rise on the 2007 Rolex FEI World Cup Finals in Las Vegas, Nevada's Thomas and Mack Center, some unexpected news from the Danish camp brought a simultaneous chorus of concern and disappointment from fans and foes alike.

Denmark’s Andreas Helgstrand announced in an afternoon press conference today that his horse would not compete due to lameness. One of the favorites leading into the dressage competition, Blue Hors Matine, the striking 10-year-old grey Danish Warmblood that entertained and surprised the crowds at the 2006 FEI World Equestrian Games in Aachen, Germany, by taking the Individual Bronze and Silver in the grand prix special and the freestyle respectively, was pulled after the mare showed fluid gathering around her front left pastern.

The trouble began as the horse reached the ground from her transport to the venue. “The ground was slippery,” said Helgstrand. It was then that the horse twisted her left front leg’s pastern. After exhibiting some “twisting,” an ultrasound was performed and it confirmed the malady.

The horse looked good on Monday and Tuesday according to Helgstrand, but in the initial jog, the horse was held for re-inspection. The horse’s veterinarian said the horse might be good by competition time; however a decision had to be made before the draw.

“When we trotted the horse today, going up she was trotting 100%, and when we trotted her back, she was twisting again,” said Helgstrand. “So, there is no chance to compete with her.”

Such disappointment is part of the landscape when dealing with horses and the Danish rider said, “When you work with horses, there are ups and downs. This happened at the wrong time of course…but it’s better to keep it down now and let the vets look at her and do what is best for the horse.” Helgstrand pointed out that the prognosis for the mare, according to the veterinarians, was good.

No doubt Matine will now be aimed at the European Dressage Championships to be held in Torino, Italy in September.

More news about Matine: http://www.dressagedaily.com/

The mare has been the center of rumors: following her 81.25% score at WEG last August, the Danes were said to have been offered 9 million euros (approx US$12.25 million) for her...by an American, of course. They continue to deny the rumor.

Blue Horse Matine's scratch comes after a news-filled week on the international dressage and show jumping scenes, with several horses scratching before the flights even left Europe. Dutch team chef d'equipe Sjef Jansen shocked the dressage world by resigning his post, protesting that the Dutch riders were not serious enough in their preparation for the 2008 Olympics.

Note: I don't usually go overboard about a horse, but I make an exception for Matine. Commentator Richard Davison said of her performance at WEG in Aachen in August 2006: "It is an absolute privilege to watch this horse."