"My horse isn't too fat." That's what many horse owners think – and they're wrong. Assessing a horse's weight isn't easy, and horse scales aren't usually available on site. With a little practice, you can use body condition scoring to assess your horse's nutritional status yourself.
A large number of horses, especially leisure and dressage horses, are now overweight due to well-intentioned feeding of concentrated feed, supplementary feed, mineral feed, and treats. However, the ideal weight is not purely a cosmetic issue. Overweight horses live shorter lives than horses of normal weight. A variety of diseases can result from obesity, such as:
You can weigh your horse using a horse or truck scale. This allows you to administer medication more accurately. Regular weighing is also a good way of monitoring weight gain or loss. You can store all your horse's weight data in the petsXL health passport. This gives you a clear overview of your horse's weight history at all times.
If you are unable to weigh your horse regularly, you can calculate its weight by measuring its chest circumference and body length.
The chest circumference is measured at the girth, just behind the withers, and the body length is measured from the front shoulder point (shoulder joint) to the point where the hip bone meets the back. You can calculate your horse's body weight using the following formula:
Body weight (kg) = chest circumference (cm) x chest circumference (cm) x body length (cm) / 11900
However, your horse's nutritional status can only be partially assessed based on its weight. Body Condition Scoring (BCS) is more helpful, and you can learn how to do it yourself. This involves assessing eight typical fat deposits on the horse's body and assigning a score from 1 to 9 for its nutritional status. A score of 5 would be ideal.
The horse is emaciated. There is no body fat. The base of the tail, spinous processes (the upward-pointing bone protrusions of the individual vertebrae), ribs, and all bony protrusions are clearly visible.
A minimal layer of fat is present. The tail base, spinous processes, ribs, and hip bones are clearly visible. The bone contours of the withers, neck, and shoulders are clearly defined.
The tail base and spinous processes are covered with a little fat. The hip bones are prominent but rounded. The contours of the withers, neck, and shoulders are clearly visible.
The withers are slightly defined. The back muscles do not reach the level of the spinous processes. The rib contours are just visible to the eye. There is thin fat deposits on the tail base, neck, and shoulders.
The back muscles and spinous processes are at the same level. The ribs are not visible but can be felt. There is a soft layer of fat at the base of the tail. The contours of the withers, neck, and shoulders merge smoothly into one another.
Fat deposits are present over the ribs and shoulders. The fat is soft at the transition from the croup to the tail. A slight groove is visible over the spinous processes of the back.
There is a groove over the spinous processes. Firm fat covers the withers. There is a distinct layer of fat over the ribs. The fat pad on the tail is soft. Distinct fat pads are visible on the crest of the mane and behind the shoulders.
The mane crest is clearly fatty. There are fat pads behind the shoulders. A clearly visible groove is present over the spinous processes. The spaces between the ribs can only be felt with difficulty. The fat pad on the tail is soft.
There are heavy fat pads on the neck, shoulders, and withers, a deep groove over the spinous processes, and fat pads on the inner thighs and udder. The ribs are no longer palpable.
If you need help assessing your horse's nutritional status or nutritional advice (see relevant article), you can make an appointment with your vet via petsXL.
Laryngeal whistle syndrome, also known as hemiplegia laryngis or recurrent laryngeal neuropathy (RLN), describes the paralysis of one side of the laryngeal muscles caused by a disorder of the nerve responsible for controlling them. The disease manifests itself through a typical sound during inhalation, which is why riders often say that the horse has a "tone." Large horses are particularly affected, with geldings and stallions more commonly affected than mares.
Liver disease has a complex effect on metabolism. Symptoms are nonspecific and only appear when 70% of the liver is no longer functioning. This means that liver disease is only detected once it is at an advanced stage.
Some breeds that have been bred by humans to achieve a desired appearance suffer from serious health problems: breathing difficulties, joint damage, eye problems, or limited ability to communicate – the list of diseases and affected animal breeds is long. But what exactly is torture breeding?
A horse is quite large, and the damage it can cause is considerable. In the event of an accident, the costs can easily run into several thousand dollars. A substantial sum may also be required if our horse falls ill or even needs surgery. Not to mention the financial worries if we lend our horse and it has an accident while being ridden. It is therefore very sensible and important to think about what would happen in the worst-case scenario. There are plenty of insurance policies available. Every horse owner and rider should find out exactly what is available and choose the right policy for their needs. Below is a list of some insurance policies and situations where they might be needed.
The word brachycephaly comes from Greek and means short-headed or round-headed. It describes the hereditary shorter and wider skull shape of some dog and cat breeds, which is reminiscent of the "childhood pattern" of young animals. The health consequences of this shortened facial skull are far-reaching and are referred to as brachycephalic syndrome.
This infectious disease caused by the coronavirus affects only cats and occurs worldwide. The disease remains one of the most common causes of death in cats. The name is derived from the most common symptom of this disease, peritonitis (inflammation of the abdominal lining).
The West Nile virus is transmitted by mosquitoes between birds, but also to humans, horses, and other mammals. For a long time, it only occurred on the African continent. However, since 1999, the West Nile virus has also spread to the US. In 2018, it was detected for the first time in birds and two horses in Germany (Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt). Since then, infections have occurred in the summer and fall months. Berlin, Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony are particularly affected. However, more and more cases are now also occurring in Thuringia, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Hamburg, Schleswig-Holstein, Lower Saxony, Rhineland-Palatinate, and Bavaria. West Nile infection is a notifiable animal disease.
Testicular tumors are the second most common type of tumor in male dogs and account for four to seven percent of all tumors in dogs overall. There are different types of tumors, with dogs with one or two undescended testicles (= cryptorchidism) having a significantly increased risk of developing a testicular tumor.
Unfortunately, our pets are not immune to cancer either. Malignant lymphoma is a malignant tumor that originates in cells of the immune system. Since these cells are mainly found in lymph glands, it is also referred to as lymph gland cancer.
A doping scandal in dressage riding brought this condition to the attention of riders and owners a few years ago. But what exactly is this condition? More and more horses, especially sport horses, are now affected by this neuromuscular disease, the causes of which are still largely unknown. It is considered incurable and can severely impair a horse's performance. Large, heavy horses between the ages of 4 and 7 are particularly at risk, as are horses with naturally high muscle tone. Male horses are more commonly affected than mares.
This disease, also known as endothelial dystrophy, is a change in the cornea of the eye and is similar to Fuchs' dystrophy in humans. This disease causes damage to the endothelial cells that form the innermost layer of the cornea.
