Educational Articles

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• Pus in the Foot (Gravel) in Horses

  Infection in the foot is by far, the most common cause of acute (sudden), single-leg lameness in the horse. Infection results in painful inflammation and pus (abscess) formation.

• Quittor in Horses

  Quittor is an old term for a condition that involves death and destruction (necrosis) of the collateral cartilages of the foot (see our information sheet on sidebones), following an infection in the foot (see our information sheet on pus in the foot).

• Ragwort Poisoning in Horses

  Ragwort is a tall plant with yellow flowers which contains a poison (toxin) that is also found in some other plants, such as Lantana and some Heliotropes.

• Rain Scald in Horses

  Rain scald is a bacterial infection of the skin that results in the formation of matted scabs usually affecting the back and rump but occasionally the lower limbs.

• Recurrent Airway Obstruction in Horses

  RAO (previously called chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or COPD) is a relatively common cause of coughing and nasal discharge in stabled horses. In long-standing cases the horse may have difficulty in breathing and its chest and abdomen can be easily seen to move, hence the even older name 'heaves'.

• Ringworm in Horses

  Ringworm is a skin infection caused by a dermatophyte (skin 'loving') fungus of which there are several different species. The fungi that cause ringworm in horses include the Microsporum and Trichophyton species, that can infect not only horses but other animal species, including humans.

• Ruptured Bladder in Horses

  This is one of the conditions that affect young foals during their first few days of life. It is potentially life-threatening. Some cases occur when the full urinary bladder wall tears in response to high pressure during delivery whereas others result from incomplete development (closure) of the bladder wall leaving a hole in the wall.

• Sarcoids in Horses

  Equine sarcoids are the most common tumors seen and account for approximately nine out of every ten skin tumors seen in horses. They are non-malignant (i.e., they do not spread throughout the body) but do grow larger and often spread and multiply locally.

• Seedy Toe in Horses

  Seedy toe is a separation of the horse's hoof wall from the underlying sensitive laminae at the white line, resulting in a cavity that fills with crumbling dirt, horn and debris and is prone to associated infection.

• Sheath Cleaning in Horses

  Some horse owners feel that it is necessary to 'clean' a colt or gelding's prepuce (sheath) and penis on a fairly regular basis.