Did you know that less than 3% of a technician’s schooling covers equine medicine? With this lack of training, how do equine technicians learn the basics of what it takes to become a valuable asset on the job?

“There are many different white-spotting phenotypes in horses,” said equine genetics researcher Tosso Leeb, Ph.D., of the University of Bern in Switzerland. “Often the exact genotype cannot be solely determined by looking at the phenotype of a horse and/or the genotypes of the parents, so breeders need to know whether a horse carries SW5 or not.”

The horse-lore that has accumulated over the centuries is a rich mix of both useful practice (approaching horses from their left side, making them slightly less reactive) and unsubstantiated myth, such as the one that chestnut horses are especially difficult to deal with.

Cow feeders may be more readily available and cheaper than horse feeders, but does this make them a good option for use around equines? The answer is a resounding “No!”

“We must remain vigilant through the USDA’s strict testing of horses at points of entry into the U.S. to prevent re-introduction of this disease.”

Researchers[i] from the University of Kentucky were looking for an effective way to reduce inflammation in horses suffering from equine metabolic syndrome (EMS), characterized as overweight and insulin resistant. EMS is generally treated with one of two pharmaceuticals – metformin or levothyroxine. However, there are questions about their efficacy and long-term usage.