Emergency Services at Steeplechase and Cross-Country Events (AAEP 2008)

Due to the nature of the course terrain, it is best to have a four-wheel drive horse ambulance (and backup) with a long ramp for efficient loading. Cooling fans are desirable, and the ambulance should have curtains to form a screen around an injured horse and an adequate number of competent staff members on board. It is helpful to have radiographic, ultrasound, and endoscopic equipment, and a gene
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At the 2008 American Association of Equine Practitioners convention held Dec. 6-10 in San Diego, Calif., Reynolds Cowles, DVM, of Blue Ridge Equine Clinic in Free Union, Va., reviewed the logistics of various cross-country jumping events that involve the need for veterinary care.

Cross-country hunt meets typically have 70-75 mature (6- to 9-year-old) horses competing. He explained that licensed hunt meets run under racing rules, yet the horses encounter hurdles, brush, timber, or run on the flat. "National fences" are constructed of metal frames and plastic brush up to 4'6" with a padded foam roll covering the frame. A point-to-point race has fewer regulations and functions according to fox hunting club rules, rarely with post-race testing. Hunter pace horses encounter timber, brush, and ditches, and those events are loosely organized with local rules.

 

Horses that fall might incur head trauma, concussion, or fracture

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Written by:

Nancy S. Loving, DVM, owns Loving Equine Clinic in Boulder, Colorado, and has a special interest in managing the care of sport horses. Her book, All Horse Systems Go, is a comprehensive veterinary care and conditioning resource in full color that covers all facets of horse care. She has also authored the books Go the Distance as a resource for endurance horse owners, Conformation and Performance, and First Aid for Horse and Rider in addition to many veterinary articles for both horse owner and professional audiences.

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