Fran Jurga`s Hoofcare + Lameness

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

All Clear! Quarantine Lifted at Cornell Vet School's Equine Hospital

Two weeks ago, this blog reported the closure of the Equine Hospital at the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine in Ithaca, New York after a foal died and later tested positive for Equine Herpes Virus. A gelding at the hospital also became ill.

Cornell voluntarily closed its hospital doors on March 30 and worked with animal health authorities from the State of New York to initiate the proper biosecurity procedures.

Today I learned that the Equine Hospital re-opened yesterday afternoon.

“The quarantine on Cornell’s Equine hospital barns and several other barns owned by the college was lifted yesterday afternoon after the results of twice-daily temperature-taking and testing by nasal swabs during the quarantine did not reveal any EHV-1,” wrote Stephanie Specchio, Director of Communications at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine in an email this afternoon. “The Equine Hospital is now operating under normal status.”

Although the Hospital and its barn are now open, the Equine Research Park and the Annex remain quarantined through April 19; a different quarantine schedule was established for those locations.

The following additional information has been posted on the vet school’s web site: “Presently, there are no horses exhibiting symptoms of EHV-1. While we believe there is a low risk of exposure, we are taking every precaution to ensure the health and well-being of all animals.

“The quarantine was lifted from the equine hospital barns and some additional college-owned barns on April 12, after temperatures (taken twice daily) and additional tests conducted on all horses indicated that EHV-1 is not present.”

© Fran Jurga and Hoofcare Publishing; Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog is a between-issues news service for subscribers to Hoofcare and Lameness Journal. Please, no use without permission. You only need to ask. 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.

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Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Farrier History: Negro Ellick Shod Horses for the Confederacy in the Civil War

Today is the 150th anniversary of the beginning of one of the darkest and most painful chapters in United States history: the Civil War. Where I live, every little village has a monument to its men who died in places like Gettysburg and Antietam. The names go on and on. It makes you wonder if anyone came back at all.

I can imagine that in the southern states, the lists could be longer and it would be possible that no one returned.

As much as I read and study about the Civil War, I keep learning new things. For me, the horses are the thing of interest, and the farriers who serviced them, and the foot problems that challenged both horses and farriers.

Farriers for the Union horses were often foreign immigrants. This group looks like new arrivals: their aprons are clean and their hammers shiny.

If you have read this blog for any length of time you know that the Burden Horseshoe played a big role in turning the tide of the War in favor of the Union. Trainloads of horseshoes could leave the factory in Troy, New York and be bound for the huge remount stations or go directly to the front. Not just the cavalry but the entire artillery and the massive kitchens and quartermaster depots moved camp only the horses were shod. And those first machine-made shoes from Troy kept them all moving.

The Confederacy wasn't so lucky. They had a limited supply of iron, and it was needed for munitions as much as for horseshoes. There were no horseshoe factories in the South and orders were given for any raids on Union supply trains to go for two things: cash and horseshoes.

Until recently, I never thought much about who the farriers of the Confederacy were. I knew the Union recruiters met ships in New York and convinced farriers and blacksmiths from all nations to either enlist or to go to work as civilian government horseshoers in the remount stations.

But what about the Confederacy?

This is the enlistment paper for Ellick, an African-American who was brought into military service to work as a farrier for the Confederate States of America, even though it was not approved for white men to conscript blacks into service. This document is preserved in the National Archives in Washington, D.C.

This week I learned that the laws of the Confederacy prohibited the conscription of slaves into military service. But African-Americans were there anyway, in fighting and non-fighting roles, and if authors Kevin M. Weeks and Ann DeWitt are correct, the care of the horses may have been one area where they could have been found. Just take Ellick's case.

Ellick was a farrier for the Confederacy, though he had no rank and drew no pay. It's impossible to know if he went willingly. It's quite likely that the Confederate army was desperate for farriers and experienced horsemen. Ellick may have played an important role.

Not only did the Union have new recruits with shiny hammers and unmarked aprons. They had mobile forges built on double wheel axles. In front of the forge you see here was a big bellows. The US Army designed and built these to get the farriers and the shoes to the front, where they were needed. (Library of Congress photo)

How amazing is it that the National Archives in Washington would have preserved the enlistment paper of a farrier after that war was over? This is just one example of the millions of bits of fascinating information that lies buried in those vaults of papers.

Who found Ellick? Kevin Weeks and Ann DeWitt are the authors of the new book, Entangled in Freedom: A Civil War Story. Last week their book graced the cover of Publishers Weekly's Special Independent Publishers Spring Announcement Issue. Entangled in Freedom is a young adult novel written as a first-person account of a young African-American serving with his slaveholder in the Confederate Army. The book has already won the Bonnie Blue Society Award. Ann DeWitt runs the web site www.blackconfederatesoldiers.com.

I'd like to thank them for bringing Ellick to my attention, for pulling him out of the piles of papers in the Archives, and for making him come to life. Maybe we'll never know much about Ellick but for today, he's the star farrier on the Hoof Blog and the Civil War is interesting all over again.

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Sunday, April 10, 2011

Merial Announces Deadline for 2011 Applied Equine Research Award Nominations

Merial has announced that nominations may be submitted for the 2011 Merial Applied Equine Research Award. The award recognizes outstanding research conducted in a specific field of applied equine science over the past five years. The 2011 award will honor advances in pain management of horses.

The winner will be recognized during the 12th WEVA Congress in Hyderabad, India, to be held November 2 –5, 2011. The recipient will be awarded a plaque and a $6,000 (U.S.) award, plus a $1000 contribution to travel costs. He or she will be invited to present an oral and written summary of their work to the Congress.

Award Guidelines

National equine veterinary practitioner associations and individual members of those organizations can submit a nomination. Nominees do not have to be members of the nominating association, nor do they have to be of the same nationality or live in the country from which the nomination stems.

Nominations should be comprised of the following contents:

A brief (not more than one page) cover letter from the nominator. This should include the candidate’s name, address, telephone, e-mail address, fax number (if required), and a listing/summary of his/her current and past positions of employment.
One-page listing the candidate’s major scientific publications from 2006 to 2010 (inclusive).
One-page narrative of the scientific basis for this nomination. For example: for what advances in the management and treatment of pain in horses has this candidate been responsible within the last five years, and why are they noteworthy?

An international panel will select the award recipient.

Nominations should be submitted electronically to:

David R. Hodgson, Professor and Head of Department 
Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences
VA-MD Regional College of Veterinary Medicine 
Virginia Tech
Duck Pond Drive (0442)
Blacksburg, Virginia 24061
(540) 231-7666
hodgson@vt.edu

The deadline for submissions is May 1, 2011.

Tuesday, April 05, 2011

Cornell Vet School Equine Herpes Virus Quarantine: Hospital and Barns Closed; Shoeing School, Farrier Shop Open

The following information is provided as a public service for horse owners and horsecare professionals.

The world-famous horseshoeing school and farrier shop at Cornell vet school is remaining open during the quarantine, according to resident farrier Steve Kraus. The shoes in the display case are part of the university's extensive collection of shoes made by Professor Henry Asmus, founder of Cornell's shoeing school in 1913; it was the first in the United States. (Flickr.com photo by Michael King)

The New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets’ animal health officials and veterinarians from the Equine Hospital at Cornell University are investigating two confirmed cases of Equine Herpesvirus 1 (EHV-1) in New York State. Both horses listed as cases of EHV-1 were inpatients of the Equine Hospital at Cornell University, and could have potentially exposed 69 other horses.

EHV-1 is a common viral infection of horses that is highly contagious and exhibits an array of symptoms, ranging from no clinical signs to neurological disorders.

New York State Veterinarian Dr. David Smith said, “While a common virus in horses, we are taking this situation very seriously given the large number of horses that have potentially been exposed to a highly communicable and sometimes fatal disease. To date, no other horses have showed signs, nor tested positive for the virus. However, this serves as an excellent reminder to horse owners that they should always be cautious of introducing new horses with an unknown disease status.”

“We recognize the seriousness of the Equine Herpesvirus Type 1 and other infectious diseases,” said Dr. Alfonso Torres, Associate Dean of Public Policy at the New York State College of Veterinary Medicine at Cornell University. “Thanks to our surveillance systems and access to highly sensitive testing at the New York State Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, we were able to rapidly identify the infectious agent and implement appropriate actions immediately to prevent the spread of the infection.”

A quiet barn aisle at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine Equine Hospital, photo by Ernest Fox courtesy of Flickr.com

This incident involves two confirmed cases of EHV-1 in New York State. One was a one-day old foal that was admitted to the Equine Hospital on March 18. The foal died two days later of pneumonia, and tests revealed the presence of EHV-1 on March 25.

During the same time, a gelding was being treated at the hospital for a spinal injury. It was discharged on March 22, but became severely ill and showed neurological symptoms after arriving back at its home farm. This horse tested positive for EHV-1 on March 30. The gelding is now recovering.

In response to the two confirmed cases, both the gelding’s farm and the Equine Hospital were quarantined immediately, restricting movement and access to animals at both facilities. Horses at both facilities are being monitored closely and having their temperatures taken twice daily. So far, no animals have exhibited a fever attributable to EHV-1, which would be an early warning of the virus.

At the hospital, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests have also been completed for four consecutive days on all current patients. The PCR samples from all animals in the hospital are negative, indicating that no virus shedding is occurring.

The Equine Hospital is located in Cornell's extensive new complex of animal clinics on the edge of the Ithaca, New York campus. Photo by Ernest Fox, courtesy of flickr.com

As part of this on-going investigation, the Department of Agriculture and Markets is working to determine the source of the infection, as well as to identify and isolate potentially exposed horses. In doing so, Cornell has been contacting all referring veterinarians and the owners of 69 other equine patients that may have been exposed while at the Equine Hospital. The Department is also communicating with private veterinarians to provide information related to this situation, and is prepared to follow up on possible quarantines of trace-out barns of the 69 potentially exposed horses, if necessary.

At this time, neither the Department nor Cornell know of any other animals that have showed signs or tested positive for EHV-1 in association with this incident.

Nearly all horses in their lifetime will be exposed to EHV-1 at some point, and therefore it is difficult to detect as it takes on a wide range of manifestations, from a complete lack of clinical symptoms, to pneumonia, to abortion in mares, to full-blown fatal neurologic cases. The virus does not persist in the environment and is neutralized by hand soap, alcohol-based hand sanitizers, and sunlight. Transmission of the virus is mostly via direct contact with infected materials.

EHV-1 does not affect humans or dogs, cats, cattle, sheep, goats, pigs or birds; however, alpacas and llamas can be affected.

If you are the owner or caretaker of a horse that was or has been at the Equine Hospital at Cornell on or after March 18, 2011 or that may have come in contact with a potentially exposed patient, the following guidelines are recommended:

Isolate your animal, if possible. It is always recommended that horses returning from veterinary hospitals be isolated for three weeks when possible.
Check your horse’s temperature twice a day for ten days. If the temperature is 102 degrees Fahrenheit or greater, contact your veterinarian immediately.
If you care to test your horse, consult your veterinarian. At this time, the preferred test is PCR analysis performed on nasal swab specimens.

Since March 30, 2011, the Equine Hospital at Cornell University has been quarantined. No movement of animals between the equine barns and other Cornell facilities is permitted at this time, and the hospital is only accepting emergency cases.

Out of an abundance of caution, the quarantine at the hospital will remain in effect through April 11.

For more information on EHV-1, visit the American Association of Equine Practitioners website or check USDA APHIS brochure on the virus.

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Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Equine Biomechanics on Broadway: Technical Videos Preview What the Audience Won't See When War Horse Opens in April

If you're new to War Horse, this video from London explains a bit about the play and shows some scenes of the horse puppet in action.

Everyone will soon be talking about the USA Broadway premiere of London's long-running hit stage play, War Horse. I've been writing about it on this blog and everywhere else that would allow me since it launched in 2007. Now we have a chance in the USA to experience the story of Joey the plow horse sent to France in World War I.

Joey's not a real horse, of course. He's a puppet, and one of the most clever puppets you'll ever see. But a few minutes into the play, you'll completely forget that he's made of cane and cloth and that there are two people inside him.

I'm so excited to share this video with you. This TED lecture explains the origin of the puppets with the creators from South Africa's Handsprings Puppet Company.

War Horse has played to sold-out audiences in London for the past few years, and it has brought attention to the fact that a million horses died in World War I. It's an anti-war story, of course; Joey belongs to a boy who is heart-broken when his horse is sold to the British Army. He sets off to rescue his horse who is meanwhile deep into the war. What the boy finds carries quite a moving message.

In this video, you'll meet War Horse's equine choreographer, Toby Sedgwick, whose job it is to make sure that the puppet moves and "acts" like a real horse. This video also has great close-ups of the design of the feet and legs, and was also shot for the New York premiere.

Joey's movements are so life-like that I know Hoof Blog readers will want to know more about how he was built and how he works. His creators gave a TED lecture recently, which was released today, so grab a cup of coffee and invest the next 20 minutes in learning about an outside-the-box application of your knowledge of equine biomechanics.

When you go to see the play, you'll forget all about biomechanics and be absorbed into this horse's-eye-view of the world at war. You'll soon understand what all the buzz is about, and why so many creative people have given so much to make this play such an amazing experience for theater-goers. Make sure you're one of them.

If you can't make it to Manhattan, War Horse is supposed to have shows in Toronto and Los Angeles in the future. And Stephen Spielberg's Dreamworks film of War Horse will be released by Disney on December 28, but with real horses. It was filmed in Dartmoor, England last spring.

I'll see you on Broadway! War Horse opens at the Vivian Beaumont Theater at Lincoln Center on April 14, 2011.

Read more about War Horse:
The Jurga Report's first article on the play's opening in London

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Laminitis Research: Equine Insulin Resistance Does Not Respond to Metformin Medication; Diet and Exercise Remain Key to Laminitis Prevention

Researchers in Australia tested the effects of a human medication, metformin, on ponies with insulin resistance, a condition that puts horses at risk for developing the endocrine or metabolic form of laminitis. The medication had no effect. (J.A. Holland image)

New research on the pharmacological management of the condition of insulin-resistance in horses and ponies has suggested that diet and exercise are still key in any management plan.

Insulin resistance (IR) is defined as the diminished ability of a given concentration of insulin to exert its normal effect on glucose dynamics in particular. This causes the body to keep releasing more and more insulin in order to elicit an effect. This may be one of the most predictable factors that determines whether a horse or pony could be more susceptible to what is commonly known as the "endocrine" or "metabolic" form of laminitis.

The University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine's Equine Genetics and Genomics Laboratory explains insulin resistance this way:

Insulin is a hormone involved in the regulation of glucose (sugar) levels in the blood and tissues of the body. In response to feeding, insulin is secreted by the pancreas into the blood stream. Insulin in the blood stream directs the glucose (sugar) absorbed from the food into the body’s tissues including liver, fat and muscle. Insulin resistance occurs when insulin no longer has a normal effect on the tissues. In the insulin resistant horse, the pancreas releases insulin into the blood stream, and the insulin arrives at the tissues and binds the cells, however the glucose enters the tissue cells at a much lower rate than normal. This lower rate of glucose uptake into tissues results in higher levels of blood glucose.

Horses and ponies compensate for insulin resistance by secreting even more insulin into the bloodstream in order to keep the blood glucose concentration within the normal range. Therefore, horses and ponies with EMS (Equine Metabolic Syndrome) have a higher concentration of insulin within the blood, which can be measured to determine if insulin resistance is present.

An important goal for owners and vets should be to prevent IR from developing, or to manage it before it contributes to the development/progression of other potentially life-threatening conditions. While the correct management of energy intake and exercise levels is thought to be essential, in some cases medication is also considered, especially when increased exercise is not possible. With no licensed drugs currently available for the treatment of IR in horses and ponies, off-label medications used for IR in humans are sometimes prescribed.

A trial was conducted by the School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences at Charles Sturt University in New South Wales, Australia and the Department of Clinical Studies at the University of Pennsylvania's New Bolton Center, in collaboration with the Waltham Equine Studies Group in Great Britain.

The study's intention was to confirm the positive effect of the human medication metformin on insulin and glucose dynamics in insulin-resistant ponies so that this treatment could be used as a positive control in other studies.

Glenys Noble BAppSc(Equine Studies) PhD, along with PhD candidate Kellie Tinworth BSc(hons) MSc, carried out the clinical trial in Australia. Six insulin resistant, non-obese ponies were repeatedly monitored by means of a frequently-sampled intravenous glucose tolerance test (FSIGT). Metformin ia a drug reported to enhance insulin sensitivity of peripheral tissues in humans without stimulating insulin secretion. It was administered twice-daily (15mg/kg BW BID) to three of the ponies for 21 days.

Meanwhile, the three remaining ponies formed a control group, and each received a placebo. After a wash-out period, the treatments were crossed over. A Frequently Sampled Intravenous Glucose Tolerance Test (FSIGT) was conducted to evaluate the level of insulin resistance before and after each treatment. The ponies' body weight, body condition score and cresty neck score were also assessed. They did not change during this study.

Ray Boston MSc PhD is Professor of Applied Biomathematics in Clinical Studies at the University of Pennsylvania's New Bolton Center. He analyzed the data using MinMod, a computer program to calculate glucose effectiveness and insulin sensitivity from the frequently sampled intravenous glucose tolerance test, and Stata 10.1 statistics analysis software. No change in insulin sensitivity or glucose dynamics was seen under the control conditions or in response to the dose of metformin given in this study to these ponies.

What does this study mean to horse owners? Clare Barfoot RNutr is the research and development manager at the British feed company Spillers®; she reviewed the research and said: “Although clinical trials with metformin are ongoing, this trial was consistent with our previous work showing that the bioavailability of metformin in horses is poor, and chronic dosing at these levels may not achieve therapeutic blood concentrations.”

She continued: “On this basis it would seem that a fiber-based diet that is low in starch (found in cereals) as well as (being low in) sugar and fructans (found in grass), in conjunction with regular exercise if possible, is still the safest and most effective way to manage insulin-resistant ponies. It is important to recognize that, even if other doses of metformin are shown to be beneficial in the future for certain sub-groups of animals, full consideration to diet and management should remain a key tactic.”

The Waltham® Equine Studies Group, headed up by Dr Pat Harris MA PhD, VetMB DipECVCN MRCVS, provides the scientific support for the Spillers® and Winergy® brands sold in Great Britain.

To learn more: K. D. Tinworth, R. C. Boston, P. A. Harris, M. N. Sillence, S. L. Raidal, G. K. Noble (In press). The effect of oral metformin on insulin sensitivity in insulin-resistant ponies The Veterinary Journal; Available online 23 February 2011, doi:10.1016/j.tvjl.2011.01.015.

Thanks to Spillers for sharing this information with Hoofcare and Lameness.

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