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Kaydence Sports Medicine & Rehab, 12635 County Road 130, Carthage, MO (2026)

02/04/2026

Low Heels In The Hind Feet - An Often Overlooked Problem
A look at two treatments with succesful clinical results

1. Introduction
Low, underrun or collapsed heels affecting the health of the foot or as a cause of lameness has been well documented in the front limbs. However, very little information has been written concerning the effects of low or damaged heels in the hind limbs.

Horses with structural damage to the heels of the hind feet will suffer the same consequences associated with the hoof capsule as noted in the front feet, but the hind feet don't appear to be affected with disease of the internal structures as noted in the forefeet.

This difference may be due to the anatomy of the hind limbs and the propulsionary function of the hind feet. Damage to the structures of the hind feet may be well advanced before lameness is noted. Underrun or collapsed heels in the hind feet may lead to a subtle bilateral lameness, which is often attributed to hock, stifle or back pain.

Lameness issues in the hind limbs are often localized to the proximal suspensory ligament, the hocks or the stifle. Part of the therapy for lameness involving these structures is to raise the heels of the hind feet regardless of the conformation of the hind foot. Long egg bar shoes or egg bar shoes with wedge pads are generally used for this purpose.

Yet there is absolutely no documentation that confirms that heel elevation exerts significant influence on any part of the hind limb anatomy above the distal interphalangeal (DIP) joint.

Furthermore, heel elevation applied to the hind feet that have existing low heels or underrun heels appears to damage the heels further, leading to an additional lameness problem in and of itself. The lameness caused by damage to the heels is often diagnosed secondary to the affected ligament or joint for which the heels were originally elevated.

2. Clinical Examination Of The foot
Abnormal heel conformation of the hind feet is easy to recognize. When looking at the limb from the side, the digit will show a broken back hoofpastern axis. The slope of the coronary band from the toe to the heel will have an acute angle. The bulbs of the heels will have a bending appearance and can be seen lying against the shoe palmar to the end of the heel. The dorsal hoof wall begins to take on a "bull nosed" appearance

Looking at the foot from behind, the frog is situated well below the hoof wall and the frog can be seen to prolapse down between the two branches of the shoe.

The frog is generally large from the constant stimulation with the ground. The clinical appearance of a hind foot with the heels damaged by an egg bar shoe and a wedge pad are much the same. The broken back hoof pastern axis will not be as marked and the angle of the coronet will not be as acute, but the damage to the heels and soft tissue structures heel of the foot will be greater due to the continuous pressure exerted by the length of the shoe and the wedge pad.

Upon removing the shoe, the end of the heel of the hoof wall is located well forward from the base of the frog. The horn tubules will be parallel with the ground. The hoof wall at the heel will be thin, there will be no angle to the sole and the bars will be absent. The whole frog will be pushed down below the hoof wall

When the foot is placed on the ground, total weight bearing will be placed on the frog and many horses are reluctant to stand on it when the opposing limb is lifted off the ground.

Viewing the ground surface of the foot, there will be a "trough" noted between the apex of the frog and the inner branch of the shoe at the toe. Hoof testers placed on either side of the heel at the angle of the sole will elicit a painful response

3. Radiographs
A lateral radiograph of the hind foot will show a broken back hoof pastern with the second phalanx (P2) being pushed palmarly and distally relative to the distal phalanx (P3) during weight bearing. This places excessive stresses on the palmar section of the joint capsule.

The palmar margin (palmar angle) of the distal phalanx is lower when compared with the dorsal margin of the distal phalanx. Damage to the heels of the hoof capsule can be noted below the palmar process of the distal phalanx as lucent areas in the hoof capsule.

The sole depth below the dorsal margin of P3 is markedly increased relative to the heel and the perimeter of the distal phalanx can be seen migrating toward the dorsal hoof wall. This is what causes the "bull nose" appearance of the dorsal hoof wall. The soft tissue structures in the palmar section are noted to be lying against the shoe.

4. Treatment
Damage to the heels of the hind feet is often easier to improve than damage to the forefeet, possibly due to the difference of the load encountered on the hind limbs vs. the fore limbs. Two methods can be employed to treat this condition.

First, allowing a horse to go without hind shoes - if possible - for 4 to 8 weeks can be very effective.

This approach can also be used with horses that are resting due to proximal suspensory ligament disease. The shoes are removed and the hoof wall at the heels is moved palmarly until solid structures of the hoof wall are encountered. The hoof wall at the toe is lowered appropriately and the edges are rounded.

Over the next few weeks, the pressure on the frog will compress and displace the frog until it assumes the same plane as the heels on either side

If the horse needs to continue in work and wear shoes, the approach will be different. The shoes are removed and the heels are moved palmarly until solid horn is established. Excess dorsal hoof wall is removed from toe quarter to toe quarter. The pr*****ed frog needs to be compressed in order to have a flat, even plane that includes both the heels and the frog. The back section of a degree pad is cut out to fit over the frog as a mirror image. A thin strip extending across the toe is left attached to the frog wedge and two 4.5 race nails are placed through this strip into the hoof wall at the toe quarters to hold the frog wedge directly over the frog

An Animalintex self-contained poultice is saturated with water and applied so it envelops the whole foot. It is secured to the foot with brown gauze and elastic tape. The horse is now placed in a stall with a firm surface for 24 to 48 hours. During this time, the feet are submerged in a bucket of water a few times to keep the poultice saturated.

At the onset of applying the frog wedge, the horse is given 2 grams of phenylbutazone (Bute), as some horses will show mild discomfort and develop a digital pulse. Therefore, when medication is suggested and used, both authors contend that veterinary assistance should be solicited when performing this procedure.

When the poultice is removed, the frog will be compressed between the heels forming a flat even surface that includes the frog and both heels. The horse can be shod immediately, or can be placed in a stall bedded with sawdust for an additional day to let the feet dry out.

The frog will be soft and can be shaped further. Any additional horn at the heels can be removed so the heels of the hoof wall are solid and approach the base of the frog - being careful to keep the frog and both heels in the same plane. A shoe can now be fitted and applied.

We fit shoes on the hind feet the same as the front where a line is drawn across the widest part of the foot and the shoe is fitted so the line is placed in the middle of the shoe.

In the hind feet, the branches of the shoe may extend marginally beyond the end of the heels. If additional heel elevation is necessary, a wedge pad or a bar wedge can be placed under the heels as long as the shoe is fitted in the manner just described. This will concentrate the load under the frog and heels rather than behind the heels, which is the case with a long shoe.

5. Conclusions
The authors have used the frog pressure and soaking technique on 15 horses with low heels and pr*****ed frogs. The results have been excellent in all cases.

Damage to the heels of the hind feet are much easier to resolve or improve than the fore feet. This could be due to the anatomy of the hind limb along with the shape and function of the hind feet. Once the frog has been repositioned and the heel structures have grown, attention to the foot prep is necessary to keep the frog and heels in the same plane. The size and placement of the shoe are equally important in maintaining the health of the heels of the hind feet.

Equipodiatry.com

02/02/2026

Considering Tissue Types When Treating Equine Joint Disease

Veterinarians regard the equine joint as an organ, composed of articular cartilage, the synovial membrane lining the inside of the joint capsule, the synovial fluid filling the joint space, the subchondral bone underlying the cartilage layer, and the supporting soft tissue structures. Viewing the joint as an integrated organ has important implications for how veterinarians approach diagnosis and treatment.

“Veterinarians need to consider the origin of joint inflammation and/or cytokine-driven damage to develop more effective and targeted treatment plans for their patients,” said Cricket Russillo, DVM, ISELF-Cert, of High Performance Equine, in Northern Virginia and Florida, during her presentation at the 2025 American Association of Equine Practitioners Convention, held Dec. 6-10, in Denver, Colorado.

Joint disease causes 60% of equine lameness problems, often leading to substantial economic losses for horse owners, both direct (medical costs) and indirect (loss of performance). When treating joint disease, practitioners should assess the different joint tissues and essentially “reverse engineer” a targeted treatment plan based on what joint tissues are likely affected, said Russillo.

Articular Cartilage and Equine Joint Disease
Articular cartilage facilitates smooth movement and absorbs shock. It has limited repair ability, and its breakdown leads to pain, inflammation, and impaired joint function.

The horse’s body produces immunoregulatory proteins called cytokines, which coordinate and shape inflammatory and healing responses. In response to injury, articular cartilage releases pro-inflammatory cytokines such as interleukin-1 beta (IL-1b), IL-6, and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFa). These cytokines promote cartilage matrix degradation by upregulating matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and aggrecanases, which are both enzymes that contribute to cartilage degradation. “If we suspect cartilage injury, the goal should be to protect cartilage integrity and arrest the inflammatory cascade and stabilize the matrix,” said Russillo.

She recommended veterinarians select systemic chondroprotective agents such as hyaluronic acid (HA), polysulphated glycosaminoglycans (PSGAGs), pentosan polysulfate (PPS), and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) for milder cases or younger animals. These medications can be combined with a reduced workload for longer-lasting effects.

“We also want to focus on the root cause of the inflammation and blunt the activity of the pro-inflammatory cytokines,” said Russillo. “This is where orthobiologics such as hemoderivatives and stem cells come into play.” Orthobiologics might also contribute growth factors that can be beneficial for slowing cartilage degradation, she added.

Treating the Synovial Membrane in Equine Joint Disease
The synovial membrane plays a critical role in the onset and progression of inflammation. Specialized white blood cells called synovial macrophages adopt different phenotypes—essentially, functional states cells adopt in response to their environment—based on signals in the joint. Macrophages in healthy joints express the M2 phenotype, whereas macrophaes in unhealthy joints express the M1 phenotype, which is pro-inflammatory, producing high levels of TNFa and IL-1b.

When regulatory M2 macrophage activity can no longer counterbalance pro-inflammatory M1 signaling, inflammation escalates and stimulates MMPs and aggrecanases. In this environment type B synoviocytes—specialized cells that line joints, tendons, and bursae—undergo hyperplasia (an abnormal increase in cell number), resulting in joint stiffness and dysregulating the production of healthy joint fluid.

“When we suspect inflammation of the synovium is the primary issue, then there are two avenues of therapy: Blunt inflammation or manipulate the interplay of M1 and M2 synovial macrophage polarization,” said Russillo.

Referring to intra-articular therapies, or those introduced to the joint, she added, “Corticosteroids are extremely effective at mitigating inflammation, orthobiologics can decrease the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines and stimulate the release of growth factors, and the polyacrylamide (hydro)gels are theorized to drive synovial macrophages to the M2 response.”

Synovial Fluid and Equine Joint Disease
Synovial fluid plays a crucial role in providing nutrients to cartilage, lubrication, and removing metabolic waste. Joint inflammation results in excess production of abnormal synovial fluid, with high levels of inflammatory cytokines and reactive oxygen species that damage cartilage.

“Therapies directed at this joint tissue are aimed at manipulating the level of HA,” said Russillo. “Directly injecting HA is not often considered beneficial as a sole therapy. But intravenous HA does improve synovial fluid and joint health, and systemic administration of PSGAGs may also help improve synovial fluid quality. These therapies are most likely to benefit young patients with minimal joint pathology (disease or damage).”

Treating Equine Subchondral Bone Problems
The dense, structural subchondral bone beneath articular cartilage plays a pivotal role in joint stability and load distribution. It is a highly adaptive tissue that responds to mechanical loading. Excess repetitive stress can contribute to the development and progression of joint disease that is common in equine athletes across disciplines. Subchondral bone disease might precede and drive cartilage degeneration.

“The main treatment is exercise modification, which may not be a well-received recommendation by clients,” said Russillo. “Extralabel bisphosphonates may be considered, and intra-articular orthobiologics may have a beneficial effect (in these cases).”

Take-Home Message
“If we consider the specific tissue involved in our patient’s joint disease, it then becomes possible to curate a treatment plan for that particular target tissue and to improve outcomes and client satisfaction,” said Russillo. Veterinarians might weigh a combination of treatments in addition to modifying the horse’s workload.

The Horse

01/31/2026

Dr. Sisk will be out of the office 2/11-2/27. Regan and Brittany will still be available for health certificates, med refills, general questions, and vaccine/coggins appointments.

We have some limited appointment availability prior to 2/11 if you would like to be seen before Dr. Sisk is out of town. Please text the clinic to schedule 417-448-0131.

01/28/2026

Joint Therapies for the Endocrine Horse

As horses live longer and remain active well into their senior years, veterinarians face the increased challenge of managing joint disease in patients that don’t fit the traditional athlete profile. One of the most important, yet previously overlooked factors influencing treatment decisions is a horse’s metabolic status. Common metabolic disorders in horses include equine metabolic syndrome, pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction (PPID, formerly called equine Cushing’s), or insulin dysregulation.

Regardless of the therapy, the goals of equine joint treatment remain the same: Decrease inflammation, repair or protect the articular surface, lubricate the joint, restore homeostasis, and prevent further injury, said Kyla Ortved, DVM, PhD, Dipl. ACVS, ACVSMR, associate professor of large animal surgery at the University of Pennsylvania’s New Bolton Center, in Kennett Square. Ortved discussed joint therapy options for treating endocrine horses with Lauren Schnabel, DVM, PhD, Dipl. ACVS, ACVSMR, professor of equine orthopedic surgery at North Carolina State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, in Raleigh, during their table topic at the 2025 American Association of Equine Practitioners Convention, held Dec. 6-10, in Denver, Colorado.

Corticosteroid Use in Endocrine Horses
Intra-articular corticosteroids—those injected into the joint—remain a common choice for veterinarians when the goal is controlling joint inflammation, said Ortved. However, their use requires careful consideration of total dose, cumulative exposure, withdrawal times, and long-term effects on joint tissues.

The presenters said laminitis risk continues to be a central concern for veterinarians when addressing joint issues in the metabolic horse. Laminitis is a painful inflammatory condition of the tissues that connect the hoof wall to the underlying coffin bone and can lead to lasting structural damage within the foot. In a review of approximately 2,000 horses, only a small number developed laminitis following steroid administration; however, some surveys report nearly 75% of veterinarians consider the corticosteroid triamcinolone likely or very likely to contribute to laminitis, particularly in at-risk horses.

Researchers have shown that even in metabolically normal horses, certain corticosteroids can increase insulin concentrations, said Ortved. In horses with elevated baseline insulin due to insulin dysregulation, that response can be exaggerated, with insulin levels rising dramatically after joint injection. Betamethasone and methylprednisolone acetate appear to have a less pronounced effect on insulin than triamcinolone in a small number of studies. Schnabel and Ortved advised practitioners to use steroids with caution in horses at risk of laminitis and that more studies need to be performed.

These concerns remain especially relevant given the prevalence of metabolic disease in the sport horse population, said Schnabel. Researchers in the Schnabel Laboratory using oral sugar testing have identified insulin dysregulation in nearly 25% of sport horses, though only a fraction were diagnosed based on baseline fasted insulin levels. The Schnabel Laboratory also identified radiographic evidence of laminitis in more than 40% of sport horses, regardless of known metabolic status, underscoring the need for routine radiographic monitoring of horses’ feet in addition to testing a horse’s insulin levels regardless of appearance.

Alternative Joint Therapies for Metabolic Horses
For horses with known or suspected metabolic disease, veterinarians often look beyond corticosteroids. Hyaluronic acid and polysulfated glycosaminoglycans continue to be common components of joint therapy protocols.

Veterinarians are exploring the use of polyacrylamide hydrogels (PAAGs) in metabolic horses. Ortved said the 2.5% PAAG has been associated with integration into synovial tissue and modification of the synovial membrane.

Schnabel added that the 4% PAAG functions primarily as a viscoelastic to reduce friction within the joint and can bind to sites of damaged cartilage. The presenters described on-label intra-articular PAAG use as safe, particularly in cases where corticosteroids might be less desirable.

Orthobiologics in Endocrine Horses
Orthobiologic therapies such as platelet-rich plasma (PRP), autologous conditioned serum (ACS), autologous protein solution (APS), alpha-2-macroglobulin (A*M), and mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) offer treatment options for managing horses with joint disease, said Ortved. However, because some of these products are produced using the individual’s blood or stem cells, a horse’s metabolic status might influence how they perform.

Certain medications used to manage PPID can affect platelet function, raising questions about the consistency and efficacy of platelet-based therapies.

Finally, the presenters noted that little research exists into the use of orthobiologics for equine axial skeletal pain—that of the neck, back, and pelvis—but research in humans leads veterinarians to believe they are an effective option in horses, said Schnabel.

Take-Home Message
Managing joint disease in metabolic horses requires a nuanced approach. Insulin testing, rather than reliance on appearance, plays a critical role in identifying at-risk patients, said Schnabel. From there, therapy selection should prioritize safety while addressing pain, inflammation, and long-term joint health.

The Horse

01/26/2026

The Hardy Horse: How Horses Handle Winter

How horses are inherently designed to cope with cold weather.
After a ride across the mountain to check my horses on winter pasture, the sun had set and the temperature was dropping toward zero. I didn’t want to leave my mare wet and chilling; she needed her coat dry and fluffy for it to be effective insulation. My fingers were stiff with cold, but I had to rub her sweaty long hair dry with towels and turn her out in her pen before I could go indoors and soak up the welcome heat of a wood stove.

Our horses handle winter much better than we do, and my ranch horses in Idaho have managed nicely outdoors, even at 40 below zero. They have several unique ways to stay comfortable in severe weather and do well if allowed to adapt to colder temperatures gradually.

Winter Hair Coat
As days get shorter and nights become cooler, horses grow a new, longer hair coat. These winter hairs stand up, trapping tiny air pockets between them. The effect is like that of a thick, down-filled comforter, with tremendous insulating quality.

“When I lived in Wyoming, occasionally someone would bring horses from Texas,” says Bruce Connally, DVM, who owns Wyoming Equine, a mobile veterinary practice in Berthoud, Colorado. “Their first winter in Wyoming would be traumatic because their bodies weren’t programmed to grow that much hair. They’d lose weight and get sick. If you get these horses through the first winter, however, and let them go through a Wyoming summer, then the next winter they are able to adapt and grow hair.”

The horse also needs a full mane and tail if he’s spending time outside. Standing with his rump to the wind, his tail protects his delicate underparts, and he can lower his head so it’s shielded from the wind by the rest of his body.

Oils in the hair coat help it shed moisture. A snowstorm in cold temperatures is comprised of dry snow; moisture freezes on the outer surface of the hair coat and never reaches the horse’s skin. The insulating air pockets don’t allow body heat to escape, so snow on a horse with a normal winter hair coat won’t melt or make him wet.

“A spring storm can be worse (than a winter blizzard), at warmer temperatures, because the snow is so wet. The hair gets soaked and loses its insulating quality,” says Connally. If wet snow or rain is prolonged, it eventually soaks through the horse’s coat. The hair loses its insulating quality when lying flat, and the skin becomes wet and cold.

In cold, wet weather, horses should have shelter where they can escape the rain or snow. “If it’s wet, horses need some trees or an open-sided shed they can get under,” says Connally. “If there’s no shelter, a waterproof blanket could be very useful.”

Newborn foals also need protection from the elements (via shelter and/or blanket), especially when they are still wet after birth. Their circulatory systems are focused on conserving heat and keeping the body core warm (for survival) rather than the extremities. And because a newborn foal has a short hair coat and very little body fat for insulation, he is at high risk for cold stress or frostbite.

Feet and Legs
The horse’s feet and lower legs are designed to handle cold without freezing and without chilling the rest of the body. Therefore, a horse can stand in deep snow and not suffer frostbite. Pamela Wilkins, DVM, MS, PhD, Dipl. ACVIM, ACVECC, professor of equine internal medicine and emergency/critical care at the University of Illinois, says horses do not have muscle masses below the knee or hock. “The lower leg is mostly tendon and bone, which resist the effects of cold much better than muscle. These are not energy-requiring tissues, in comparison with the rest of the body,” says Wilkins.

There’s an old saying that the horse has an extra heart in each hoof. The frog, digital cushion, and a mass of veins are all part of this elaborate system. Each time the foot takes weight it pumps blood back up the limb.

“The blood flow in the foot is also part of the cushioning effect when the foot hits the ground; it creates a hydraulic, fluid cushion like a gel pad,” says Connally. “If there’s enough blood to create a hydraulic cushioning effect for a 1,200-pound horse’s foot hitting the ground, there’s a lot of blood going through there.”

Julia Wilson, DVM, Dipl. ACVIM, executive director of the Minnesota Board of Veterinary Medicine and past president of the Equitarian Initiative, points out that the shunting mechanisms in horses’ feet also benefit them in cold weather. “According to my spouse, Dr. Tracy Turner (DVM, Dipl. ACVS, ACVSMR), horses intermittently shunt the blood away from their feet. This may be a coping mechanism that keeps their cold feet from chilling the rest of their body when standing in snow. It also may be one of the reasons we sometimes see laminitis in winter. If you have a horse with chronic or subclinical laminitis (perhaps due to metabolic syndrome), and he needs to intermittently shunt the blood away from his feet in cold weather so they don’t get too chilled, this may be what exacerbates laminitis flare-ups,” says Wilson.

Respiratory System
The horse’s respiratory system is designed to warm incoming air. “It is extremely well-adapted for air warming, just as it is for dissipating heat in summer,” says Wilson. Cold stress on the lungs, therefore, is minimal. By the time the air gets through the upper airway (and the moderating effect of the guttural pouches, the two air-filled cavities at the base of the horse’s skull), the air is warmer and not as abrasive to the lungs

Body Condition
Horses with adequate nutrition start building a layer of fat under the skin as days get shorter and nights grow colder. Some horses put on fat readily, while others need more nutrients to gain the extra weight and body fat.

“Wild horses, or even horses that run on large pastures on ranches year-round, eat all spring and summer and go into fall with body condition scores of about 6 on a score of 1 to 9—with 1 being extremely thin and 9 being obese,” says Connally. “Mother Nature wants them to have extra fat for winter, to serve as insulation as well as calorie reserves. By the time they come out of winter in the spring, they’ve dropped to a body condition score of 3, but they survived. Then they gain weight again through summer and are fat by the time winter comes around again.”

Connally says modern-day horsemen have disrupted this natural cycle. “We want to ride horses in summer and grain them because they’re working and get them up to a body condition score of 5 or 6,” he says. “Then winter comes and we put them in the barn, put a blanket on them, keep the barn warm, and feed them extra because it’s winter—and by spring they are too fat to ride, which can usher in a host of other obesity-related problems.”

Connally says the natural thin-fat-thin-fat cycle is better for horses than just getting them fat and fatter. The horse’s fat layer holds heat in during winter and is gone by spring. The horse can then more readily dissipate heat when working hard.

Monitoring body condition is important during winter to know whether horses are gaining, losing, or holding their weight. At the end of a working season, horses that have been in fit, athletic condition without much fat need time in the fall to gain more body fat. Wilkins recommends letting those horses gain at least 5% in body weight (50-60 pounds) to give them some reserves to draw upon for heat energy.

Wilson also recommends feeding fat to older horses to help provide them with the extra calories needed to maintain their body condition. “Geriatric horses are hard to keep weight on, with the need for extra heat generation combined with an aging digestive tract that’s not efficient anymore,” she says. “High-fat supplements are a wonderful tool to help horses in that stage of their lives.”

Digestive System
Fermentation of roughage such as grass or hay, on the other hand, takes longer and the hindgut creates heat more steadily as a byproduct of that microbial fermentation. Therefore, if a horse grazes most of the day or eats hay several times a day (keeping the digestive tract full of forage), he will have a constant source of heat energy.

“In cold weather (horses) should have fibrous food in front of them at all times and be able to walk around—which also helps with gastrointestinal motility,” says Wilson. “Horses have their own internal furnace, due to being hindgut fermenters. You should increase the proportion of hay in the diet as outdoor temperature becomes colder.”

Circulatory System
The horse has a huge circulatory system, which helps move the heat around the body. If heat needs to be dissipated, blood vessels are right under the surface of the skin, and heat escapes into cooler air around the horse. In cold weather the physiology of the horse is programmed to retain heat, rather than dissipate it.

The horse’s muzzle is richly supplied with blood, so these tissues rarely freeze. Ears, on the other hand, are most prone to freezing because those tissues are thin, but there is a lot of hair around the ears to help protect them and a lot of blood circulating in the skull—which also helps keep the ears warm.

Shivering
We often worry about horses that shiver, but this is just another mechanism to generate warmth, burning fuel in the muscles. “If they only do it for a little while, they’ll be fine,” says Connally. “They shiver, then maybe run and buck and do whatever it takes to get warmed up. But if they can’t stop shivering for hours because they are soaking wet, you need to help them.” Otherwise they’ll eventually run out of “fuel” to keep up their body temperature.

Take-Home Message
This combination of physiologic features makes the horse uniquely prepared to handle the chilly months. “As horse owners, we need to respect their adaptations and not try to monkey with Mother Nature too much,” says Wilson.

If you have lingering questions about your horses’ management during the winter, especially in particularly frigid climates, ask your veterinarian for tailored advice for your situation.

The Horse

Kaydence Sports Medicine & Rehab

02/04/2026

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