BACKGROUND Medical management of critically ill equine neonates (foals) can be expensive and labor intensive. Predicting the odds of foal survival using clinical information could facilitate the decision-making process for owners and clinicians. Numerous prognostic indicators and mathematical models to predict outcome in foals have been published; however, a validated scoring method to predict ...

REASON FOR PERFORMING STUDY Foals stand and walk immediately after birth, but insight into the subsequent longitudinal development of their gait kinetics in the early juvenile phase and the possible influence of osteochondrosis thereon is lacking. OBJECTIVES To quantify gait kinetics in foals during the first half year of life, taking into account their osteochondrosis status. STUDY DESIGN ...

Introduction Cell plasticity is crucial in cloning to allow an efficient nuclear reprogramming and healthy offspring. Hence, cells with high plasticity, such as multipotent mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), may be a promising alternative for horse cloning. In this study, we evaluated the use of bone marrow-MSCs (BM-MSCs) as nuclear donors in horse cloning, and we compared the in vitro and in vivo ...

Early recognition of life-threatening or serious injury is the necessary precedent for the implementation of appropriate therapeutic intervention. In the population of foals beginning life in a pediatric intensive care setting, rib fractures can be a significant cause of morbidity and mortality. This retrospective study describes the presentation, assessment, and care of foals with rib fracture...

The alleviation of pain in foals is an important welfare issue, increases patient and personnel safety, results in less disruption of homeostasis, and enhances return to normal function. It is important to anticipate and prevent noxious stimuli because pain in the neonatal period can alter pain processing, leading to altered pain thresholds and responses later in life as well as aversive behavi...

Rhodococcus equi is an intracellular bacterium primarily known as an equine pathogen that infects young foals causing a pyogranulomatuous pneumonia. The molecular mechanisms mediating the immune response of foals to R. equi are not fully elucidated. Hence, global genomic high-throughput tools like gene expression microarrays might identify age-related gene expression signatures and molecular pa...

Strongylus vulgaris is the most pathogenic nematode parasite of horses. Its extensive migration in the mesenteric blood vessels can lead to life-threatening intestinal infarctions. Recent work has shown that this parasite is still identified among managed horse populations. A serum enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) has been developed for the detection of migrating larvae of S. vulgaris....

BACKGROUND Lawsonia intracellularis is the causative agent of proliferative enteropathy, an endemic disease in pigs and an emerging concern in horses. Enterocyte hyperplasia is a common lesion in every case but there are differences regarding clinical and pathological presentations among affected species. We hypothesize that host susceptibility to L. intracellularis infection depends on the spe...

INTRODUCTION Obesity is a growing concern in horses. The effects of maternal obesity on maternal metabolism and low-grade inflammation during pregnancy, as well as offspring growth, metabolism, low-grade inflammation, testicular maturation and osteochondrotic lesions until 18 months of age were investigated. MATERIAL AND METHODS Twenty-four mares were used and separated into two groups at ins...

A rare and lethal “syndrome” has been observed in Fell pony foals since at least 1993, when it was first reported by Paul May, a veterinarian in Cumbria. Worldwide approximately 10-12 cases are reported each year out of 300-350 foals that are born, and the disease has been seen in all major bloodlines. To date in North America, less than five confirmed cases (from several different lines) have ...