Bend Equine Medical Center 19121 Couch Market Rd.

Bend, Oregon 97701

WINTER/S PRING 2009 NEWSLETTE R

important to know that there are some drug interactions involving typical OJHS ingredients, so it is important to commu-nicate with your vet about all the medi-cations your horse is receiving.

Trying to encourage weight loss in those “easy-keepers”? Thyro-L is a oral prod-uct composed of Levothyroxine Sodium (T4). It is a common misconception that horses can develop hypothyroidism. Researchers have shown this to not be true, though there is still a useful appli-cation for thyroid hormone supplementa-tion. If used at the recommended dosage (3 teaspoons for a 1000# horse once daily) for a duration of 4-5 months, re-sults include an increase in your horse’s metabolism and an improvement in their insulin sensitivity. This therapy, paired with decreased caloric intake in their diet, will help horses lose extra pounds (research has shown a loss of 10% of your horse’s body weight!). Weight loss is especially important in horses that

Oral joint health supplements (OJHSs), such as ones containing glu-cosamine, chondroitin sulfate, and methylsulfonylmethane (MSM), may not be providing the beneficial effects horse owners are led to believe. OJHSs are not required to have moni-tored manufacturing or to have the contents analyzed like pharmaceutical drugs. In a recent review of Oral Joint Supplements, Drs. Oke and McIl-wraith stated, “...a myriad of poor quality supplements are available. This includes products that do not contain the amount of ingredient listed on the manufacturer’s label, products that recommend sub-therapeutic dos-ages, and nutritional supplements that are potentially contaminated by harm-ful components…”. These harmful substances included pesticides, heavy metals, and DMSO. There has also been a lack of clinical studies evaluat-ing the efficacy of these OJHSs, de-spite what the labels may claim. It is

have been diagnosed with obesity-associated diseases, such as laminitis. Though your horse should not stay on Thyro-L long term, it is a safe and effective way to help reduce weight.

Though Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is known to be the most supe-rior form of imaging to detect soft tissue injury and can evaluate areas in the horse that ultrasound cannot, ultra-sound examination is still an important

diagnostic tool, espe-cially for muscu-loskeletal injury. It is superior to MRI in imaging bone mar-gins. Through the study of MRI ex-aminations, veteri-narians have actually improved their ultra-s o u n d i mag i n g skills!

Current thoughts in Equine Medicine

Phone: 541-388-4006 Fax: 541-389-7508

E-mail: bemc@bendnet.com

UNPARALLELED COMMITMENT, CARE, COMPASSION & SERVICE

We’re on the web!

www.bendequine.com

Dr. Evans perform-ing an ultrasound exam of a horse’s

tendon

PRSRTD STD.

US POSTAGE PAID

BEND, OR

PERMIT NO. 3

In October, Bend Equine Medical Center celebrated its tenth anniver-sary. Just as the landscape of Cen-tral Oregon has evolved dramati-cally in the last decade, we too have witnessed our fair share of changes. The practice continues to thrive, every year welcoming hundreds of new equine patients. As we anx-iously await the coming of spring, there is a season of change and ex-citement already in full swing at the hospital. First, we are proud to an-nounce that Dr. Wendy Krebs has joined Dr. Wayne Schmotzer as the new co-owner and general partner of BEMC. Wendy recently became the first equine surgeon in the Northwest to have completed an American College of Veterinary Surgeons-approved surgical resi-dency program in private practice. Many of you already know of Wendy’s many talents and caring disposition. She is committed to bringing these talents into her new leadership role.

Dr. Mary Masterson will be winter-ing in Indio, California this year,

treating the show horses and perform-ing acupuncture. Look for her to start working again at the beginning of March, just in time for the breeding season!

Dr. Jessie Evans was our 2007-2008 intern whom we invited to join BEMC as a full-time associate. Many of you have already had the pleasure of working with Dr. Evans and have realized what a talented lady she is!

Long time team members Misha Kirchmeier and Sarah Cook continue to work for us as they juggle careers with raising their fine young boys, Cooper (Misha’s) and Dawson (Sarah’s). Erica Angele got married in September to long time boyfriend, Kevin Leehmann of Summer Lake. You may see a little less of Susie Botts as she is now working part-time so she can spend more time with her family and her horses. And lastly, Carol Nork, another long time mem-ber of BEMC, has discovered scuba diving! We are hoping Carol does not apply for citizenship in Mexico any-time soon!

Celebrating Our Tenth Year

Emerging Diseases in Central Oregon 2

Bend Equine Barn Days 3

Take the Headache out of Deworming 3

New Faces at Bend Equine 3

IRAP Joint Therapy 4

Advanced Tendon Therapy 4

BEMC Client CE Meeting Invitation 5

CE Response Form 6

Acupuncture 7

An Update on Hero 7

Current Thoughts in Equine Medicine 8

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Contact us at:

(541) 388 - 4006

bemc@bendnet.com

www.bendequine.com

If your horse was one of the lucky ones to not develop a pigeon fever infection, chances are you were still out checking your horses chest, abdomen, and sheath/mammary gland daily for swellings. The bacteria that causes pigeon fever, Cory-nebacterium pseudotuberculosis, defi-nitely took its toll on our horses. Though the number of new cases diag-nosed has decreased significantly as the weather has turned colder, we still have a few residual cases that we continue to treat. The majority of the cases had a typical presentation, with horses devel-oping external abscesses in areas like their pectoral region, ventral abdomen, and sheath/mammary glands. Some of our patients were systemically ill, show-ing signs such as fever, inappetence, and general malaise. These horses, as well as the ones who developed multiple ab-scesses over the course of their infection, are placed on antibiotics to help rid them of infection. Some of our patients were diagnosed with internal infections, and had to be placed on a second antibiotic to penetrate the abscesses. The bacteria is now a resident of Bend, living in the soil and multiplying when it is hot and dry. Unfortunately, the cold weather is not enough to kill off the bacteria, though the cold has demolished the fly population, which was instrumental in the spread of disease (see box above regarding Solitude®). We are unsure if the incidence of infection will be as high next summer. Hopefully those who fought off the disease this year will have antibodies to the bacteria and therefore

This year, we were burdened by out-breaks of three diseases in Central Ore-gon, Rhodococcus equi, Corynebacte-rium pseudotuberculosis (pigeon fever), and Lawsonia intracellularis. Though these bacterial infections are common in other areas of the United States, in the past they were not a problem in our area. Unfortunately, there is not cur-rently a vaccine available to prevent against any of theses diseases. In case you were unaware of these new men-aces, the following is a review prepared just for you.

Rhodococcus equi is a bacterial organ-ism that can cause severe bronchopneu-

monia in foals. Foals contract disease by inhaling the bacteria from the soil (the bacteria is a soil inhabitant found at high concentrations in fecal matter of grazing animals). Infections are typi-cally seen in foals at 1-6 months of age. The bacteria localizes in the lung tissue, resulting in extensive abscessation. The foals that presented to our clinic showed signs of respiratory distress (coughing, wheezing) and typically had a fever. Diagnosis is based on clinical signs (fever, coughing, nasal discharge), tho-racic ultrasound to look for abscesses, and sampling the fluid in the foal’s tra-chea to identify the organism. Though treatment is lengthy and expensive, foals typically respond well to antibiot-ics. In the event of an outbreak of dis-ease at a barn, the foals can be adminis-tered hyperimmune serum that may help prevent the incidence of disease.

some resistance to reinfection.

The last newcomer is a bacterial organ-ism called Lawsonia intracellullaris that causes severe inflammation in the small intestines of foals 4-7 months of age. Weanlings are the age group commonly affected, most likely due to stress which weakens immunity. Foals contract dis-ease by ingesting the bacteria from af-fected horse’s feces. The foals that pre-sented to Bend Equine showed the fol-lowing signs: fever, depression, weight loss, colic, and diarrhea. Some foals developed severe hypoproteinemia (low protein) from loss through their gastro-intestinal tract. Diagnosis is based on clinical signs, bloodwork, and ultra-sound findings of thickened small intes-tine. The foals recover well if treated with appropriate antibiotics in a timely manner, though they often are hospital-ized for fluid therapy and plasma infu-sions (to combat the low protein). This disease is potentially fatal if not treated appropriately.

As with all infectious diseases, preven-tion and control of disease is paramount. Affected horses should be isolated from their herd mates and caretakers should treat these horses last after handling all the other horses. People can carry bac-teria on their shoes, hands, etc, so after handling a sick horse, they should disin-fect their shoes (bleach is typically a good foot bath), wash their hands, and change their clothes. Bedding, water buckets, and any other materials that come in contact with the sick animals should be disinfected or disposed of and not shared with other horses.

Page 2

Emerging Diseases in Central Oregon

B E ND E QUI NE ME DI CAL CE NTE R

Dr. Schmotzer surgically lancing a pigeon fever abscess

Dr. Krebs performing an ultrasound exami-nation on a foal with R. equi

Solitude IGR® may be our best de-fense against Pigeon Fever this year! It is a feed-through fly preventative that is top-dressed on grain, just like a daily wormer. Solitude works as an insect growth regulator, meaning it prevents the development of flies in treated ma-nure. You should start feeding it in the early spring before flies appear and continue until the cold weather comes in the fall. Solitude is manufactured by Pfizer Animal Health and can be pur-chased at Bend Equine.

Dr. Mary Masterson has completed training through Colorado State Uni-versity’s well-respected acupuncture course, and now offers this as a com-plementary treatment modality. Acu-puncture can be useful for a variety of ailments in horses. Musculoskeletal conditions such as back pain, decrease in stride, generalized body soreness and stiffness all tend to respond well to acupuncture. Acupuncture can help these conditions as well as others by increasing blood flow, relieving muscle tension, and promoting relaxation. One advantage of acupuncture is that it is able to treat areas of the body such as the pelvis and sacroiliac region that often are not particularly responsive to many of our western modalities. While acupuncture is a very effective treat-ment for a wide variety of problems, it is not a “cure-all” and it is often inte-grated as an adjunctive therapy in a complete treatment plan.

Acupuncture provides therapeutic ef-fects by neuromodulation. The specific effects of acupuncture needling are mediated through stimulation of the peripheral nervous system (nerves un-der the skin at the site of needling), which in turn communicate with the central nervous system (nerves within the spinal cord and brain). Via these

pathways, substances are released in the brain and spinal cord that have wide-ranging therapeutic effects on the body. Such biochemicals include en-dorphins and serotonin, two substances that are well-documented to relieve pain and provide relaxation. Acupunc-ture needles are very fine and flexible, so there is typically very little reaction to placement of the needle. Some horses are very relaxed and become sleepy as natural endorphins are re-leased during treatment. Some horses are more guarded and may require se-dation for treatment, especially if we are treating a sensitive area of chronic pain, such as the back.

Initial treatment is typically once a week for three weeks, then as needed based on your horse’s response to treat-ment. To find out more about acupunc-ture and whether it would be an appro-priate choice for your horse, please call Bend Equine.

I am sure most of you are aware of last year’s most notorious patient at Bend Equine. Trooper, who was renamed Hero by his new owners, is the horse that was found in the Sisters wilderness, shot in the head, emaciated, and anemic from losing half of his blood volume. He also had an old wound on his left forelimb that was rotting with infection. The Deschutes County Forest Service brought Trooper to our clinic for emergency treat-ment.

After a long stay at Bend Equine where he endured an enucleation (removal of his left eye) and multiple small surgeries on his leg, Trooper was re-leased to his new home at Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch. During his rehabili-tation at our clinic, he really did live up to his name—he was quite a trooper throughout the entire ordeal.

Today, Hero is enjoying his new home and his new life. With the loving care of the owners, employees, volunteers, and visitors of Crystal Peaks, he is becoming accustomed to viewing the world through one eye, and hope-fully with a newfound trust in his human friends. His leg is healing, and though the process is slow, his care-takers are diligent about caring for it properly. We are delighted that his story has had such a happy ending. It was very touching to see how the community came together in an effort to support the bay Arabian gelding that was abused and abandoned.

We would like to thank all of those who made donations in honor of Trooper and other horses that are homeless and in need of care. Your generosity will not be forgotten.

Page 7

Equine Acupuncture

An Update on Hero

Hero enjoying some attention at Crystal Peaks

Youth Ranch

Dr. Mary Masterson performing acupuncture on one of her patients.

were placed on antibiotics to help rid them

Page 6

To register, please complete this form and mail or fax with check or credit card number to:

Susie Botts, BEMC, 19121 Couch Market Road, Bend, OR 97701

Telephone: 541 388 4006 Fax: 541 389 7508 E-mail: bemc@bendnet.com

*NO CHARGE FOR WINNER’S CIRCLE AND PREVENTICARE MEMBERS*

DEADLINE: FEBRUARY 18, 2009

FEE: $35

Name: ______________________________________________________________________

Phone: ______________________________________________________________________

Address: ____________________________________________________________________

Number attending: _____________________________________________________________

Credit card number, expiration and security code: ______________________________________

Registration Form

Bend Equine

Medical Center

19121 Couch Market Rd.

Bend, OR 97701

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

cut here

You’re invited to Bend Equine Medical Center’s 2009

Client Education Meeting!

This is a seminar you don’t want to miss!

Learn how to evaluate wounds, clean and medicate them,

and participate in a hands-on bandaging laboratory.

Apply quickly! Lab limited to 40 participants.

In today’s economic climate, it makes sense to maximize you horse health care dollars. Providing thorough pre-ventative care, such as vaccines, appro-priate deworming, and dentistry can actually save you money by preventing infectious disease outbreaks and colics, while maximizing feed efficiency. To help promote good health, Bend Equine offers Barn Days to ensure all horses are appropriately vaccinated and de-

wormed. A barn day can be applied when 5 or more horses are signed up for preventative care. Farm call fees are free for the owner, which is a sig-nificant savings. You might also want to look into Pfizer’s Preventicare Pro-gram, which provides free colic surgery insurance up to $5,000 when horses are maintained on Strongid C daily de-wormer and receive other routine pre-ventative care.

Page 3

Bend Equine Barn Days

Be sure to ask us about our

Bend Equine First Aid Kits.

We will provide everything you

and your horse will need in the

event of an emergency. These

also make great gifts for

horse owners!

Take the Headache out of Deworming Who hasn’t been a little confused by the correct way to rotate dewormers, or the best schedule to follow? This only gets more perplexing with the different needs of horses of varying ages and factors like pasture access vs. dry lot. We’d like to help you both make your life easier and provide a better program for your horse by offering customized deworming packages that contain the correct deworming products labeled

with the date to be given for an entire year at a time. You can combine this with a fecal floatation test to find out the degree to which your horse might be parasitized and with what specific types of parasites (worms). Purchased as a package, dewormers are dis-counted and save you multiple trips to the feed store while offering competi-tive prices.

New Faces at BEMC

Dr. Freya Stein is our 2008/2009 In-tern. She graduated from the Univer-sity of Minnesota College of Veteri-nary Medicine this past June and has continued her education here at Bend Equine. We will enjoy having her here until the beginning of this sum-mer when we will welcome our next veterinary intern.

Ann Dahlen joined BEMC this sum-mer as a receptionist. Most of you have already had the pleasure of speaking with Ann and learned of her witty nature. She enjoys par-ticipating in reining competitions with her Quarter Horse, as well as many other outdoor activities. We are very happy to have her join our family!

Ashley Clark is an experienced and talented veterinary technician that joined the BEMC family in 2007. We recruited her from the exclusive equine practice Alamo Pintado in California. When she is not working, you can find her riding her Haflinger cross, Kalena. Hopefully the snow has not scared her away and we will con-tinue to benefit from her expertise!

sense to maximize your horse health

Page 4

B E ND E QUI NE ME DI CAL CE NTE R

“No hour of life is wasted that

is spent in the saddle.”

Winston Churchill

IRAP Joint Therapy In the spring, BEMC acquired the innovative new IRAP (Interleukin-1 Receptor Antagonist Protein) sys-tem for use in treating equine joints with early mild to moderate os-teoarthritis or synovitis. The Or-thokine IRAP system is used to col-lect, amplify, concentrate, and re-administer substances from the horse’s own blood that combat in-flammation in joints. It was initially developed in Europe, where it has been successfully used for several years, and was recently introduced to the United States. A specialized syringe system containing glass beads is used to draw blood from the horse. The blood is processed via incubation for 24 hours, during which IRAP concentrations in the blood are amplified, and then centrifuged to sepa-rate the serum containing the IRAP from the blood cells. The serum is then separated into several syringes; extra doses can be frozen for later use. These IRAP proteins prevent triggering of inflammatory cascades by interleukin when injected into joints, helping to manage osteoarthritis and decrease pro-gression of the disease. This therapy is an alternative to repeated cortisone injection of joints, and avoids their potential complications.

IRAP injection in the hock joint of a patient

Advanced Tendon Therapy Healing and repair of injured tendons can be enhanced at the cellular level by using Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP). PRP is a blood by-product produced by special centrifugation of the patient’s blood. Rich in growth factors, PRP is a natural patient-derived product that is safe, effective, and one of the best ways to enhance tendon healing.

Another therapy that is now available at Bend Equine is the use of bone marrow derived stem cells for treatment of muscu-loskeletal diseases. Research has shown that these cells are a beneficial therapy to treat tendonitis, desmitis (inflammation of a ligament), and joint disease. The bone marrow is harvested from your horse from either the pelvis or the sternum. This is a stand-ing procedure (only sedation and a local anesthetic block re-quired). The cells are sent from our clinic to a lab where they are expanded, frozen, and sent back to our clinic. The cells are then thawed and injected into the lesion.

Ultrasound of an injured

tendon that would benefit from PRP therapy or stem

cell therapy

Page 5

BANDAGING, WOUND CARE AND IM INJECTIONS LECTURE AND HANDS-ON LABORATORY

Wounds are the most common equine emergency, and appropriate first aid can make an enormous difference in the ultimate outcome. Bandaging is an integral part of successful wound care, and both and art and a science. Learn more about how to assess wounds, wound healing, appropriate topical medications, dressings, bandaging tech-niques for various locations, and how/where to safely give IM injec-tions. The afternoon session will be hands on with veterinary in-struction on proper bandage applications and injection techniques. The first half of the course will be held from 9:30 am—noon at Five Pine Conference Center in Sisters, and the second half will be from 1pm—3:30 pm at Bend Equine Medical Center. The lab will be lim-ited to the first 40 applicants.

B E ND E QUI NE ME DI CAL CE NTE R

Sponsored by

Fort Dodge

Animal Health,

Butler Animal

Health, and

Bend Equine

Medical Center

Bend Equine Medical Center Client Continuing Education

Meeting

Saturday, February 21, 2009 At Five Pine Conference Center

Sisters, OR

Wet Lab at BEMC

BEND EQUINE MEDICAL CENTER

19121 Couch Market Road

Bend, OR 97701

Phone: 541-388-4006 Fax: 541-389-7508 bemc@bendnet.com

www.bendequine.com