Recent News for Conditioning
Article
AAEP Convention 2005: Using GPS to Train Racehorses
February 16, 2006
An Australian researcher reported he's found a reliable way for trainers to monitor Thoroughbred racehorse fitness using global positioning system (GPS) technology measurements of velocity and heart rate during normal fast gallop training... Read More
Article
Biomechanical Efficiency
October 01, 2005
The horse is an amazing athlete, with great speed and endurance considering his body size and weight. For the past 20 years, researchers have evaluated what makes the equine locomotive system so efficient for racing and other strenuous... Read More
Article
Science and Horsemanship
September 01, 2005
Over the past two decades, the work of Hilary Clayton, BVMS, PhD, has elevated equine sports medicine to a whole new level. As the first incumbent of the Mary Anne McPhail Chair at Michigan State University, Clayton brings an element of modern... Read More
Article
Conditioning the Competitive Trail Horse
August 01, 2005
Those of us who have trail ridden and packed into the mountains are very apt to proffer this advice to the beginner or novice who wants to do likewise: Don't take the mountains lightly, because they can be unforgiving. Know what you are doing an... Read More
Article
Ponying for Exercise
June 01, 2005
Ponying is leading one horse from another. The pony horse is the one you are riding; the ponied horse is the one being led. Ponying is a good way to exercise a horse you don't have time to ride or one that can't be ridden. If you need to keep tw... Read More
Article
Sudden Death: Untimely End
June 01, 2005
Sometimes horses die suddenly when they aren't involved in athletic competition. You walk out to stall or paddock one morning and your good trail horse or companion animal is lying dead, even though it had appeared normal and healthy when you fed the... Read More
Article
Eventing's Short and Long Formats Compared
June 01, 2005
Three-Day event horses performing the short format endurance portion of an event and horses completing the conventional long format experience a similar amount of stress, according to a recent study. The public has speculated on whether or not... Read More
Article
Early Jump Training Unnecessary
May 03, 2005
Training young horses for jumping at six months of age is ineffective and unnecessary, according to a Dutch study published in the American Journal of Veterinary Research. The effect of specific jump training on young horses' jumping... Read More
Article
Joint Cartilage Adaptation in Young Horses
April 22, 2005
It is widely believed that exercise and limb-loading in foals help joint cartilage functionally adapt to the rigors of athletic activity. In 2005, Dutch researchers set out to find out if they could verify the concept of functional adaptation of... Read More
Article
Cold Air and Lung Health
April 08, 2005
Researchers at Oklahoma State University (OSU) recently completed a study on airway cooling and mucosal injury during cold weather exercise. Using the Thoroughbred racehorse as a model, scientists found that even cantering in sub-freezing... Read More
Article
AAEP 2004: Vets Discuss Pre-Purchase Exams
December 06, 2004
The Dec. 5 open forum discussion of pre-purchase exams at sales covered several topics critical to consignors, buyers, and veterinarians at the 50th anniversary meeting of the American Association of Equine Practitioners in Denver, Colo. A task... Read More
Article
Winter Riding
November 03, 2004
Give your horse longer warm-up and cooling-out time in cold weather to prevent tendon injury. Frozen ground, cold temperatures, and stiff tendons (not warmed up) can result in damage or even a bowed tendon. ... Read More
Article
It's Not Greek to Them
July 01, 2004
When the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad begin with characteristic fanfare Aug. 13 in Athens--the birthplace of the ancient Olympic Games--approximately 10,500 of the world's greatest athletes will convene to match skills and wits in 28 sports.... Read More
Article
Educational Event after Rolex Thursday April 22
April 21, 2004
Spectators at the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event in Lexington and area horse owners will have the opportunity to hear about some of the latest veterinary technologies for the sport horse from top veterinarians on April 22 after the first day of... Read More
Article
Too Much, Too Soon? Just Right?
October 01, 2003
Ithink we have seen over and over again that it is beneficial to stress the bones of a horse when they are most adaptive. This optimal adaptive period would seem to be when the horse is still in an active growth stage. We have all seen man... Read More
Article
Steroid Effects on the Knees
October 01, 2003
During intensive training, young racehorses experience a thickening in the layers of bone under the cartilage of joints. These layers, called subchondral (located nearer the surface) and cancellous, become harder and better able to handle the... Read More
Article
Training Young Athletes
October 01, 2003
It sounds completely backwards, the idea that you might actually increase health risks by postponing training and competition until a horse is four or older. It goes against the ages-old and widely held belief that you cause damage by initiating... Read More
Article
Heat Stress in Horses
July 01, 2003
Beneath your helmet, your head feels hot and sweat drips off your face as you ride. Your horse's neck is soaked, and your reins are slippery and lathered. The more you call for an effort from your horse, the more sluggish he seems. Despite movin... Read More
Article
Camping With Your Horse
April 01, 2003
Whether it is the increased stress of daily life or the baby-boomer generation wanting to experience the roots of their pioneer forefathers, more and more people are setting out to see the country from horseback. As a result, equestrian... Read More
Article
10 Tips on Getting Ready for Spring
March 01, 2003
You can feel it. You can smell it. Spring is in the air. Oh, to be sure, we aren't finished with cold weather in many parts of the country, but it won't be long before we will be ready to head out trail riding or be off on the spring horse show... Read More
Article
Juvenile Bowed Tendons and Racing Prognosis
December 17, 2002
“Juvenile bowed tendons, or ‘baby bows,’ are not uncommon in yearlings and weanlings,” said Johanna Reimer, VMD, Dipl. ACVIM, Dipl. ACVC (cardiology), of the Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Ky., at the 2002 American Association of... Read More
Article
Stretching Out the Kinks
December 01, 2002
There's nothing like a good stretch--when you wake up in the morning, during breaks at work, or before and after your workout. In human physiology, we know about stretching and its benefits for the athlete. Many practitioners and physical... Read More
Article
Exercise and Bone Development
December 01, 2002
Beneath the smooth surface of articular cartilage, subchondral bone gives structural support to joints. Normally, newborn foals have a lot of water in this layer, which is slowly replaced by calcium and collagen as the foal weights his joints.... Read More
Article
Is His Heart In It?
December 01, 2002
Do you know why a Thoroughbred can deliver that great burst of speed to eat up a mile in 1 1/2 minutes, or how an endurance horse can maintain the strength and stamina to cover long distances at steady speeds? Of course you do: Conditioning.... Read More
Article
Fatigue in Racehorses
July 01, 2002
While visibly obvious, fatigue is hard to quantify. Electromyography (EMG) measures conduction along nerves in a particular muscle group--as muscle fibers fatigue, EMG signals shift from high to low. Taking EMG readings during galloping is... Read More
