Staying put till EHV-1 outbreak is over

The headlines have been filled with reports of equine herpes virus in the Midwest, as well as in the Upper Northwest and even in Canada.

EHV-1 is nothing new, and it's nobody's fault. But it can be dangerous and deadly to horses, particularly in its neurological strain.

Equine veterinarians continue to issue warnings, as well as advice for prevention and protection.

The University of California at Davis offers a very informative white paper for free downloading.

Here's another helpful piece, titled "10 Ways to Minimize Your Horse's Risk of EHV-1 or Equine Herpes Virus" and published a few years ago during another EHV-1 outbreak.

Plenty of horse owners and equine professionals (and their mounts) are attending equestrian events and traveling to various facilities for horse shows, expos, and other highlights. Hopefully, they are taking extra precautions against viral transmission and keeping traveling horses apart from their herds and barn mates for appropriate times after returning home.

Other events have been canceled, and certain barns and venues have closed their doors to wait out the EHV-1 outbreak.

A fair number of other equine enthusiasts are simply keeping their horses safely stowed in their home barns, hoping to wait out the viral storm, so to speak. If barn managers/owners and boarders/participants follow common-sense biosecurity precautions, their horses' odds of infection may be minimized.

Several veterinary experts, like the UC-Davis white paper authors, suggest a two-week separation / avoidance period after the latest known case may be a good precautionary guideline.

Some folks are displaying the accompanying graphic on Facebook and other social networking profile pages. Want to make it your profile photo? Feel free to grab it and use it. (This is a freebie.)

Let's keep the horses safe!

Image: 

Created by this user

Offered as public domain

Helmet Geek - and proud of it

I’m a helmet geek, and I’m proud of it. Seriously, I’m like the Helmet Mom at the barn, constantly asking other equestrians (and even trainers) where their helmets are. 

Sure, most riding safety helmets are not all that pretty.

Yeah, they come in all sorts of flashy colors. But they’re not all that flattering to the wearer. Even the fancy blingy ones aren't exactly haute couture.

We get that.

But a head injury’s gotta be worse.

Today, a horse-loving friend posted a scary story. She was trying out a quiet older horse for her therapeutic riding program. I know. One might assume she was in for a gentle ride. But the Steady Eddie mount launched her. Thank God she had strapped on her helmet for the spin.

Not long ago, a seasoned horsewoman I know was grooming her long-time trusty horse, when he suddenly stepped sideways in the barn aisle. He broke the cross ties and toppled my friend to the ground, where she hit her head on the concrete floor. The impact broke her helmet. Boy, was she glad to be wearing it!

Another riding pal slid off her pony on the jump course. It happened nearly in slow motion. He stopped, just before the jump.  But she kept going, right into the sand footing. Although it didn’t look like she fell too hard, the shell of her equestrian safety helmet cracked. But her skull didn’t.

Where’s your helmet?

Here are a few popular equestrian safety helmets – at a range of prices. Pick out any model you like, if you don’t have one - or if you have taken a tumble in yours and need to toss it.

And please wear it!

• Charles Owen Wellington Professional Riding Helmet
• Devon-Aire Adult Equestrian Riding Helmet
• IRH ATH Riding Helmet
• IRH Olympian DFS Helmet
• Medalist Riding Helmet
• Ovation Deluxe Schooler Riding Helmet
• Pegasus Velvet Show Helmet
• Tipperary Sportage 8500 Riding Helmet  
• Troxel Liberty Riding Helmet
• Troxel Spirit Schooling Helmet
• Ultra-Lite Equi-Lite Helmet with Dial-Fit-System

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Helmet Geek

Graphic created by this user

On FlamingText

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Have you seen Carmelo, the Dressage Donkey?

Sometimes divadom may appear in surprising packages. 

Take a look at Carmelo, the donkey that thinks he is a horse. To be more precise, he’s the donkey that thinks he is a dressage horse.

And maybe he’s right.

Have you seen the video yet ?

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)

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Alta escuela / classical dressage in action. 

Nope. That is NOT a horse wearing a Donkey Costume Nose. It's really a donkey.

Whoa! And Hee-Haw!

Equine Spanish-English Pocket Dictionary

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Video screenshot – fair use

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