The Equinist: Articles and Commentary by Susan Kauffmann

WARNING: The details of this case may be disturbing to some readers.             Gail Jewell, DVM, CAC, is a holistic veterinarian who practices in the Lower Mainland and Okanagan areas of British Columbia. With her emphasis on chiropractic and homeopathy, she is used to dealing with devoted horse owners willing to do most anything to help their horses. In 1998, however, when she was called out by the SPCA to examine an injured horse in Aldergrove, BC, she became a central player in an animal cruelty case that brought her face to face with the worst of human nature.             The horse was an Appaloosa filly now named Kessie, approximately 1 ½ years old, who had gotten a leg caught in a piece of derelict farm machinery left in a field housing a number of horses and cows. “The place was wall-to-wall junk”, says Jewell, “so it’s amazing more animals didn’t get hurt there.” As for Kessie, she was unable to get...

I just read an article on theHorse.com ( http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=12310 ) about a horse who nearly died and was horrifically scarred after an infection ravaged his body. This would be sad in any case, but in this case, it is infuriating, as the cause of this infection was totally preventable, not to mention stupid and just flat out WRONG. The infection was a result of a tail-blocking injection -- a procedure done for the sole purpose of making a horse unable to move its tail so that it looks "quiet and obedient" in the show ring. AAARRRGH!!! First off, a horse NEEDS to be able to move its tail to protect itself from flies. Secondly, if the horse is wringing or swishing its tail when you ride it -- maybe you need to look at what you are doing that is causing the horse to wring or swish its tail! The horse could be telling you that the saddle hurts, its back hurts, or that you just suck as a horse trainer! But no -- people want a quick fix, no matter if it ...

I just read an article on http://www.thehorse.com/ that quotes TB Racing trainer Jeff Bonde as saying that the ankle fracture suffered by Kentucky Derby hopeful Sierra Sunset this week is just "part of the game". Sadly, he is right: injuries to racehorses are endemic in the sport, so much so that it is a huge selling point in the marketing of a TB if you can say "never raced" in your ad. I am perpetually dumbfounded and dismayed by the fact that this so-called "sport" is legal in North America, while other "sports" that frequently cause traumatic or life-threatening injury to animals are outlawed. Though it is true that it is not the express intention of a horse race to injure the horses forced to participate, the outcome is often just as serious as what happens to the unfortunate animals used in dog-fights or cock-fights. The kicker is that much of this suffering could be avoided if horses were not raced at an age when most sane horse owners wo...