Page 99 - July 2019

After the rescuers free the horse and it is back on its feet, the veterinarian will want to examine it for nerve and muscle damage, especially if the horse was cast for an
extended period of time or if it thrashed violently during the episode.
GETTING THE HORSE UNCAST
Safety is the top priority in dealing with a cast horse. A cast horse tends to thrash around with its legs as it attempts to free itself, and it can kick a person trying to help it. The first rule for everyone involved in the rescue is to stay behind the horse and away from its legs.
“I always tell people to first grab the mane and make a big, collective pull and try to pull the horse’s front end away from the wall,” DeNotta said. “Don’t pull the horse by the head or by the halter because you can hurt his neck. Grab the mane
and try to pull the shoulders back [away from the wall]. If you can get the shoulders even just a few inches back, that’s often enough room for them to get their knees in front of them, and if they can get their front feet stretched out in front of them, they usually can push off the wall and stand up.”
DeNotta warned not to pull on the horse’s tail to get it away from the wall because this can seriously injure the horse’s tail. She also warned horsemen not to use the widely touted method of roping the horse’s legs and pulling on them to roll the horse completely over and
“They can get the rope wrapped around their limbs and hurt themselves,” she said. “And if you pull them up and over toward you, you’re pulling the limbs toward you. Even if you get them over to where they can get up,
if the rope is still attached to one of their legs when they stand up, that presents a pretty dangerous situation, too.”
After the rescuers free the horse and it is back on its feet, the veterinarian will want
to examine it for nerve and muscle damage, especially if the horse was cast for an extended period of time or if it thrashed violently during the episode.
“They can assess nerve function by watching the horse move, and there is blood work that can be done to clue you in to the degree of muscle damage,” DeNotta said. “Muscle enzymes in the blood will go up
with a horse that is down, so you would expect them to go up even with a horse that was mildly cast. But in a horse that has been down for a long time and has a lot of ongoing damage, they might be very elevated.”
Blood work looks at levels of the enzymes creatine kinase (CK) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST).
SCRATCH AN ITCH
Dr. Katherine Houpt, emeritus professor from Cornell University and founder of its Animal Behavior Clinic, offered this insight into horses that habitually get cast.
“Most horses roll to scratch their backs. Giving the horse a suitable sand pit or other nice surface [to roll on] outside his stall would help,” she said. “If he is afraid to roll in a group of horses, you might try putting him in a paddock alone or with a compatible horse.”
Houpt said she found a cure for one habitual caster when she suggested the owner groom the horse with a metal curry comb, especially on the back, when she was making her last stall check before turning in for the night.
She suggested installing a surveillance camera to observe when and why the horse rolls and gets cast. With those questions answered, the owner can take appropriate steps to prevent it.
Houpt added this warning, “If he rolls but does not shake himself afterwards, he may be having a bout of colic.”
A horse that repeatedly has colic episodes— even mild ones—needs a veterinarian to diagnose the cause and address it. Then, the horse may stop getting cast.
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Most horses roll to scratch their backs. Giving the horse a suitable sand pit or other nice surface to roll outside his stall is beneficial.
SPEEDHORSE, July 2019 97