Horse Racing- Whip Ban?

Today new whip rules are coming into play for jockeys after there were a lot of complaints after the Grand National this year. The new rules are that the jockey is allowed eight strokes of the whip jumping or seven whilst on the flat.

The link to the story on the BBC news is below.

BBC news link

They say the reason the whip has not been banned completely is that they need it for safety when coming up to a jump a high speed to make sure the horse doesn't stop. They also need it to keep the horse balanced in the gallop...

I can see why they may need to give them a tap before the jump but they usually use the whip when they are coming to the end of the race, repeatedly hitting the horse that is already exhausted. I also can't see how this would help to balance the horse. They're hardly dressage riders giving them a tickle with the whip on their hindquarters! I think it is the way they are using the whip which is a large problem.

The best part of the new regulations is that they will face longer bans and they may be stripped of their prize money. This is a good idea as hopefully they will get out of the habit of hitting the horses coming up to the finish line if they may lose the winning money anyway! If they are banned they may also get fined. As the racing industry is so money driven I think using fines and taking away prize money is one of the best ways to reduce the amount of whipping.

This is a step in the right direction and we will have to wait and see the effects these new regulations will have.

Love Laura
xxxx

Galloping

On channel 4 a few weeks ago there was an episode of "Inside Nature's Giants" that looked at a dissection of a race horse. If you missed it you can watch it on 4OD here! It was a very interesting program and everyone was talking about it at the farm the next day!

One of the things they talked about in the program was the gait of galloping and how horses have raced for many years. When artists first started painting horses in gallop they could not tell what the horse's legs were doing. They thought that the horses had all 4 legs off the floor at the same time (which is true) but they painted them with the legs stretched out. This can be seen on the images below.

Painting from the Epsom Derby 1821 by Theodore Gericault

Painting of a Derby by Anand Swaroop Machiraju

The video below is from YouTube and is a slow motion video of a horse galloping. From this it can be seen that the horse does have all 4 legs off the floor at one time but they are all tucked up underneath it.

The gallop is a four-time pace like the walk as all of the legs are moving at different times. The trot is a two-time pace and the canter is three-time.

(None of the images or videos used in this post belong to me!)

Love Laura
xxxx

Horse Shoes For You!

There are always lots of horsey themes clothes and accessories in high-street shops. Here are a selection of horsey themed shoes that can be worn when you are not down on the yard!

Below are the Tan "Simone" loafers by Red Herring at Debenhams. They are now £24.00 reduced from £30.00. The have a horse bit running across the top and fringing on the toes. They also have a cushioned inner sole. Click here for the link!

Below is another pair of shoes also from Debenhams. These are the black "huckle" horse bit detail loafers. They are £28 and are by Henry Holland. Click here for the link!

"Chelsea boots" are in fashion at the moment and to anyone who knows horses they are just jodhpur boots! This pair is from Kurt Geiger and are £75.00 reduced from £110.00. Click here for the link! But if you already have a pair that are in good condition clean them up and you will be on trend!

And I couldn't do this post without adding my favourite boots, the Dubarry boots!! They are expensive at £299.00 but they will last for ages if you look after them well. They are definitely smart enough to wear during the day in the bad weather and are a good smart alternative to wellies! They come in different colours and there are also variations of the classic Galway style which can be seen here. Click here for the link!

(All of the images used in this post do not belong to me).

Hope you enjoyed this post! Please follow my blog if you are not already a follower!

Love Laura
xxxx

Platelet-Rich Plasma Tendon Injection

I am now back at university leaving my mum to deal with Trooper's injured tendon. On Tuesday he had the platelet rich plasma (PRP). I would have liked to be there to see what was done but I am also glad I wasn't as I am very squeamish, especially with needles! Here is some information about what was done.

The treatment was able to be carried out in Trooper's own stable. This was good as Trooper is not good at travelling and we would have risked him making the injury worse. The pros and cons have to be balances as carrying the treatment out in the stable increases the risk of infection as the do the injection right into the tendon. The bedding was all removed from his stable and it was cleaned with disinfectant. After the treatment it was also bandaged.

PRP is quite a new treatment in horses but the results so far seem to be very promising.

They took a blood sample from him which was then filtered to remove the plasma. I was wondering how this was done before the visit as the only method I have come into contact with for separating blood is using centrifuge machines. The blood was run through filters, I am not sure on the exact details of this though.

The plasma that had been removed was then injected into the tendon sheath at the site where it was injured. This works because in the plasma it is rich with platelets which is the part in the blood which helps the injury to heal. This is useful to use, especially in the lower leg as equines have a poor blood supply and this will give them the extra boost they need to help it heal.

He has been reduced from 2 bute a day now down to 1. Although for 2 days after the treatment he had 2 bute again. When I last saw him (23/9/11) he was lame in walk on 2 bute . He is now sound in walk on 1 bute and the vet said in trot he is 3/10 lame so the lameness is definitely improving.

My mum is still hosing his leg for 20 minutes twice a day to help with the inflammation. He is also wearing bandages over night. We have bought him some boot bandages which will be easier to use but they are neoprene and we are going to wait until the weather is cooler before we use them as they may make his legs sweat. He is being turned out in the field for around 6 hours a day to try and prevent him from getting stiff.

He has also been having ultrasound treatment carried out by the veterinary physiotherapist which has been helping with the swelling.

He will be having an ultrasound scan in a week or two (I can't remember) to see how the healing is going. I am going home in just over 6 weeks so hopefully I will notice a big improvement from the last time I saw him.

Love Laura
xxxx

Deficiency and Excess of Minerals

Below is a table showing the main minerals involved with feeding horses and points on what happens if they are in excess or deficiency.

Name	Deficiency	Excess	Other points
Ca: P (Calcium: Phosphorus)	Related to vitamin D. Rickets, osteomalacia, DOD, growth plates, hypocaleamic, OCDs	Readily excreted but may cause osteoblasts	1.7: 1 ratio. Needed for rigid teeth and skeleton,  nerves and muscles. 99% Ca and 80% P is stored in the blood for ATP. Primary hyperparathyroidism- glands secrete parathormone which controls calcium. Secondary phyperparathyroidism- feeding too much.
Mg (Magnesium)	Unusual in horses, seen in cows after giving birth. Hypomagnesia causes sweating, muscle tremors, convulsions and they need Mg injection	Rare- may affect absorption of nutrients	Blood and muscle from chlorophyll forms enzymes involved with fat and CHO.  Muscle contraction, skeleton. In linseed, alfa A and bran.
K (Potassium)	Short term- electrolyte loss, overcome easily. Long term can cause diarrhoea and paralysis	Rare- easily excreted. Quarter horses- hyperkalaemia periodic paralysis (HPP), bulky muscles.	Regulates acid base balance. Osmotic pressure. Nerve and muscle function, CHO metabolism
Na (Sodium)	Short term- electrolyte loss= thumps, dehydration, loss of appetite,  muscle tremors, atoxic gait. Poor use of protein and energy. Weight loss, hyponitreamia	Rare- increased drinking	1:1 with Cl. Stored in blood and extracellular fluid. Regulates osmotic pressure. Acid/ base balance across membrane. Absorption of sugars and AA. Requires ATP.
Cl (Chlorine)	Unlikely, alkalosis. Alkali blood. Reduces growth rate	Excreted. Tissue odema (swelling), muscle weakness	Required for digestion. Used in RBCs for Co2 balance. Most cereals are deficient
S (Sulphar)	Weakness of hooves, skin and hair growth poor. White muscle disease. Hoof has tubules	Sulphar converted to hydrogen sulphide, colic, diarrhoea, convulsions	Essecntial in many molecules. It is in grass; biotin, thiamine, cystine,  methionine,  keratin, insulin and oxidation of fat

The microminerals are smaller but can still have large effects, notes on these can be seen in the table below.

Name	Deficiency	Excess	Other points
Cu (Copper) and Mo (Molybdenum)	Anaemia, activity of immune cells, joint disease, parturition haemorrhage	Horses aren’t susceptible as it is stored in liver	Cu and Mo antagonise each other in blood plasma and compete for binding sites. Mo is in enzymes. Cu is in haemoglobin,  hair, cartilage, stored in liver, immune system and involved in clotting
Zn (Zinc)	Depressed appetite, slow growth rate, skin lesions and parakertosis	Rare unless close to industrial sourve, anaemia, joint swelling, breaking skin around hooves	Every tissue. Cofacter in more than 200 enzymes. Bone formation, skin growth. CHO metabolism, energy and protein synthesis. CO2 transport and hoof growth
Mn (Manganese)	Enlarged hocks,  flexural deformities,  ballerina foals. Reabsorption of the foetus,  death at parturition. Irregular cycles	Well tolerated	Co factor for enzymes, important in bones as ground substance
Fe (Iron)	Anaemia- usually due to bleeding or worms perforating the gut wall	Very toxic, causes Cu or M deficiency as the compete for the same binding sites. Hapatitis, increase in WBC , lethargy and death	High in most feeds except milk, foals have a store in the liver and spleen. 90% of haemoglobin. In bone marrow. Recycled in the body when the cell dies, also activates some enzymes.
Fl (Florine)	Rare- government put it in water	Industrial contamination, soft weak bones, exposed pulp cavities, roman nose	Required in crysaline form in teeth and bones. Stimulates osteoblast production
I (Iodine)	Hypothyroidin- Goitre. Enlarged thyroid gland, ballerina foals,>	Hyperthyroidin- Goitre Respiratory problems,  soft bones, carpas <valgas/varus	Used in thyoid gland for producing thyroid hormones. Controls metabolism of bone growth and nerve development. Sea weed
Se (Selenium)	Pale, weak, poor racing performance, susceptible to infection	Highly toxic, loss of appetite, hair, lameness, bone lesion, twisted legs in foals and death	Vital component of glutathione peroxidise hormone (antioxidant) protects mitochondria, sperm, neurotransmitter.

Hope this summary was helpful!

Love Laura
xxxx