Laminitis has been found to be closely related to cresty necks in horses, and can even be predicted by the condition of the neck fat.

A ‘cresty’ neck is an indicator of illness and should be addressed

Neck fat is associated with several health issues, including laminitis and obesity

Reading Time: 3 minutes The observance of a cresty neck in a horse indicates some level of metabolic sickness and reflects more than just a fat horse. Although the fat or obese horse is burdened with a form of metabolic illness, the appearance of a cresty neck signals further metabolic complications along the continuum of diseases associated with obesity. […] Read more

Internal metabolic distress of horses is recorded in their hoof growth as abnormal ‘rings.’ These rings are testimony to the ongoing episodes of laminitis or founder. The signature rings are evident in both the pre- and post-trim pictures of this hoof.

IR/EMS/PPID in horses = OMG

Without proper management, horses can develop one of a number of diseases

Reading Time: 4 minutes The alphabet soup grouping of acronyms IR (insulin resistance), EMS (equine metabolic syndrome), and PPID (pituitary pars intermediare dysfunction also known as Cushing’s syndrome) represent an increasingly common and growing incidence of illnesses in horses between the ages of five and 15 years. Despite their separate labels these illnesses share many similarities in metabolic hormone […] Read more


Lameness in cows can have many causes

Beef 911: In some cases, knowing the cause and adjusting 
your management can prevent this common problem

Reading Time: 3 minutes This article will outline some of the more common arthritic conditions and touch on some preventive measures. A lot of these conditions of course are brought on by age. In order to get more longevity out of our cows, we need to look at lameness as it is one of the common reasons for culling. […] Read more

Healthy hooves are the result of many factors

Healthy hooves are the result of many factors

Horse Health: A horse’s lifestyle and diet can make a major difference in hoof health

Reading Time: 3 minutes The hoof responds to everything it experiences in its environment as well as everything going on within the body. Inseparably tied to the body, a sound foot depends on more than a correct trim. This in no way dismisses or diminishes the importance of a proper hoof trim, rather places the trim in its rightful […] Read more


Injuries to coronary band need extra TLC

Injuries to coronary band need extra TLC

Horse Health: Coronary band injuries commonly occur when trailering horses

Reading Time: 3 minutes Through their lifetime horses can accumulate a number of injuries — cuts, scrapes, scratches and bruises. Most locations on the horse’s body are fairly forgiving of such injuries, however there are a few sites on the body where added vigilance is necessary to ensure a favourable outcome. An injury to an eye or a joint […] Read more

Vet students at the University of Calgary assess a horse for lameness.

Demystifying equine lameness

Horse Health: Overtraining young horses can set the stage for lameness issues later in life

Reading Time: 3 minutes Lameness has become somewhat of a catch-all term for a broad spectrum of abnormalities in a horse’s movement caused by pain or reduced motion. Though often thought of as a problem of the feet or legs, the roots of many lamenesses are now being discovered to originate elsewhere. These discoveries are important since horse owners […] Read more