The Horse Doctor

For those that are interested there will be a Hurricane preparedness siminar on July the 8th at the Mandarin Community Center. Since the tropics are getting active I thought it would be wise to give a small self test I recently came across so you can see if you're truely ready. Get your #2 pencils out....and no cheating. You turn on the TV or radio and hear the following warning" “A Hurricane Warning has been issued for the coast, including the Jacksonville beaches. At 12 Noon, the center of Hurricane "Chris" was located 360 miles southeast of the first coast, and is moving toward the northwest at 15 mph. Highest sustained winds are about 100 mph. Hurricane force winds extend outward up to 60 miles from the center and tropical storm force winds extend outward up to 180 miles. On its present course, the center of the hurricane will be ...

I was on call this weekend and had to go to Harmony Stables to treat a colic. The plus is that there is a nice pond on the farm and I could take my youngest son with me.....plus some fishing gear. After treating the sick horse...who is doing fine by the way ....Mac and I were able to spend a little time fishing. Mac was able to bring in three bass which he released.....I personally am a filet and release kinda fisherman....Mac's more of the sportsman. When you look at life through the proper lens you see little moments like this are really the main events.

I recently returned from the ACVIM (American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine) meeting in Louisville Ky. One of the special aspects of this meeting are the research Abstracts. These are 15 min. presentations given back to back for several days. Each of these is a synopsis of an ongoing research project and allows us as clinicians the ability to obtain information that won't be published for almost two years. There was a great deal of information concerning EHV myeloencephalopathy (Neurologic Rhinopneumonitis). This is the same virus that we routinely vaccinate against for viral abortion and respiratory disease. EHV (Equine Herpes Virus) has the ability , like all Herpes viruses, to move into nerve tissue and become dormant, only to show up again during times of stress( ie. horse shows, illness, when treated with steroids). It has also been determined as of late that there may be a mutated form of this virus that has a higher propensity for neural tissue. The virus has also...