How flies spread parasites and disease - Flies are the bane of many horses’ existence from spring through autumn. In Canada, horse-biting flies include gnats (no-see-ums), black flies, stable flies, deer flies, horse flies, and mosquitoes, all of which create painful sores. Non-biting flies include house flies, eye gnats, face flies, bot flies, and warble flies, and can be just as irritating. It’s not just buzzing and biting that’s worrisome; flies may transmit parasites and diseases, can cause a horse’s immune system to overreact, and some use horses as hosts, all of which impact horse health. Preventing horses from being bitten is key. Before diving into solutions, here’s a summary of the damage that flies can inflict on Canada’s horses.

One of the many reasons that the words “colic surgery” tend to strike fear into a horse owner’s heart is the question of whether their horse will be able to return to their previous level of performance (or even return to performing at all). A recent research study by Dr. Holcombe and her team at Michigan State University looked at specific ways that a horse owner can influence the likelihood of this return to performance after colic surgery (1).

Equine neurological examinations evaluate horses from head to tail. They are performed to evaluate signs consistent with neurologic disease or to establish that a horse is neurologically normal, such as during a pre-purchase exam. A neurological exam can be divided into two parts: static and dynamic.