Frequently Asked Questions
- My horse’s urine looks red in the snow. Is this blood?
- My horse’s urine is cloudy and /or thick. Is this normal?
- My horse’s urine is red/dark brown as he is urinating. Is this a problem?
- Does my horse need a blanket?
- My horse is itchy and is rubbing himself raw. What could this be?
- How can I keep my horse from getting ticks/Lyme disease?
- What should I feed my horse in the winter to help keep him warm?
- My horse is chewing my barn down! What can I do to stop him?
- My horse’s urine looks red in the snow. Is this blood?
- It is probably not blood that you are seeing. The urine of some horses contains compounds (probably porphyrin-like molecules from hay and other forages) that can oxidize after the urine contacts air. This can impart an red-orange color to the snow or shavings where the horse has urinated. If you are worried, getting a free-catch urine sample will show the real color of the urine. If you still are worried, we can perform a urinalysis on the sample to check for the presence of blood, white cells and bacteria. Back to top…
- My horse’s urine is cloudy and /or thick. Is this normal?
- Both of these are normal for the horse. In the horse, the kidneys play a large role in calcium excretion. The cloudiness seen in horse urine are calcium crystals (primarily calcium carbonate) being excreted. Mucus is secreted by the kidneys. It serves to protect the ureteral, bladder and urethral mucosa from calcium crystal deposition.Back to top…
- My horse’s urine is red/dark brown as he is urinating. Is this a problem?
- If your horse urinates dark red/brown/wine-colored urine, especially after exercise, your horse may have tied up. This is especially true if your horse is stiff and/or reluctant to move. In this case, your horse requires emergency treatment in order to prevent further muscle and kidney damage. Your veterinarian may also want to pull some blood to check the severity of the tie-up.Back to top…
- Does my horse need a blanket?
- While every horse should own at least a waterproof sheet or light blanket, blanket use depends a lot on the weather and your horse’s use, condition, age and haircoat. Horses evolved to grow a thick, protective haircoat for the winter. This coat protects the horse against the cold and snow. If your horse doesn’t work in the winter, is a healthy teen-aged horse with a thick haircoat and access to a run-in shed, or is stabled at night, he probably doesn’t need any blanketing except during extremely cold (less than 0 degrees F), windy or cold/rainy weather. The clipped, working horse requires a larger wardrobe than his non-working counterpart. He will require a light weight blanket for cool weather, and a heavier blanket, or blanket liner for colder weather. For really frigid weather, this horse may require several layers.
- It is important to make sure your horse is cool and dry before blanketing. If your horse lives in a warm barn, he will need some sort of blanket if he is to go outside for the day in the cold. Of course, if your horse is very old, is thin or always seems to be shivering, he will require blanketing as well.
- Be careful that you remove any blanket frequently to groom your horse and to check for any rubs. If any rubs are notices, you can sometimes alter the shape of the blanket at the neck, or buy a “sleezy” or “slicker” lining for the chest area.Back to top…
- My horse is itchy and is rubbing himself raw. What could this be?
- This could be a number of things. Lice or an allergic reaction can cause generalized body itchiness. Itching that is primarily confined to the tail is usually either pinworms or a dirty sheath/udder or tail/perineum. Lice infestations are more common in the winter. Biting lice, the most common variety we see, can cause intense itching, even in small numbers. This sometimes makes them difficult to find. As their numbers increase, they are easier to find, especially along the mane. They are very small (reading glasses or a magnifying glass may be necessary to find them), with white bodies and darker heads. They lay their eggs, called nits, on the hair shafts. Therapy aims at killing the adults and nymphs, and breaking their life cycle.
- Information on allergic reactions could fill a book by itself. To start, we need to look at anything that has recently changed in the horse’s environment or feed. Therapy includes removing the inciting factor (if known), antihistamines, and possibly steroid therapy.
- Pinworms are internal parasites whose adults live in the last foot or so of the rectum; the females crawl out of the anus and lay eggs on the perineum (area surrounding the anus). These both can cause intense itching. Diagnosis is by examining a perineal scraping for eggs. A routine fecal exam often does not pick up the presence of pinworms since their eggs are not laid in the manure. Pinworm eggs are very sticky, and often stick to feeders and stall walls, so cleaning up the horse’s environment is an important part of treatment. We are finding that more and more pinworms have become resistant to ivermectin and other commonly used dewormers, so we are advising different dewormers on a case by case basis.
- Finally, a dirty sheath/udder or perineum can cause hind quarter itching. This is especially true in geldings (or stallions), who can form a very large and irritating bean at the tip of their penis. Treatment is a good sheath or udder (between the udder halves) cleaning and or a good tail and perineum bath.Back to top…
- How can I keep my horse from getting ticks/Lyme disease?
- We are unfortunately seeing more ticks, and thus, more Lyme disease in our local horses. While the Deer tick is the primary transmitter of Lyme disease, other ticks can also carry it. So the best way to keep horses from getting Lyme disease is to keep ticks off of your horse.
- Ticks climb up tall vegetation, hold on with one side and hold out the legs on the other side of their body, grasping onto whatever comes along. Keeping vegetation in and around pastures mowed short will help keep the number of ticks down. As for your horse itself, applying insect repellents, especially on the legs, tail and under the jaw helps keep ticks off of your horse. The “spot-on” products can provide extended protection. Keeping your horse’s tail trimmed or tied up can also help.
- It takes about 24 hours from the time a tick gets onto your horse until it can transmit Lyme disease, so checking your horse daily and removing any ticks that you find is important. Don’t squeeze them: use a tick remover (Cabela’s sells a nifty one). If your horse develops a severe reaction to a tick bite, contact your veterinarian to discuss treatment or testing options.Back to top…
- What should I feed my horse in the winter to help keep him warm?
- Old-timers always said to feed corn, but the best thing to feed your horse to help keep him warm is more hay. The digestion of hay produces more heat than the digestion of grains, so extra hay will help our horse keep warmer than will extra grain. It will also keep him occupied longer in the winter when there is no grass to graze. Back to top…
- My horse is chewing my barn down! What can I do to stop him?
- Boredom is a great factor in wood chewing. Other horses just seem to need to chew on something wooden during the winter, and seem to stop during the warmer months. This may have to do with evolution: horses grazed during the summer, and had to browse more in the winter.
- One option to protect your barn is to provide a source of wood that is more tasty. Poplar tree logs (horses especially seem to especially like the bark) and “used” Christmas trees are good choices. Another option is to provide hay in a “Nibble Net” or hay net with very small openings so the hay takes longer to eat. A third option is to paint on an anti-wood chewing coating like Dyco-sote. Note: These coatings can stain clothing, blankets and, especially, grey horses before they dry.Back to top…
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