The WCVM voluntarily suspended its equine clinical services on June 21 following the confirmed diagnosis of EHV-1 in a horse from the Saskatoon area that was brought to the clinic on June 18. While tests results are still pending, WCVM veterinarians suspect the horse was suffering from the neurologic form of EHV-1, also called equine herpesvirus myeloencephalopathy (EHM). The horse was humanely euthanized due to the severity of the disease.

EHV-1 is not transmissible to humans and most animal species, but the virus is highly contagious among horses and camelids (llamas and alpacas). It’s spread by aerosol transmission — when affected horses sneeze or cough — or through direct contact.

“Because EHV is a contagious disease, we have placed all of our remaining equine patients under quarantine to minimize the risk of further disease transmission among horses,” says Dr. Chris Clark, a specialist in large animal internal medicine at the WCVM. “We’ve cancelled any routine elective appointments for horses at the WCVM Large Animal Clinic, but the WCVM’s equine field service is operating normally and we are still accepting any emergency equine cases.”

The WCVM’s Small Animal Clinic as well as all other services offered by the WCVM and its Veterinary Teaching Hospital are not affected by the voluntary suspension of equine clinical services. The WCVM will resume regular equine clinical services at its Large Animal Clinic once the risk to other horses has been resolved.

The WCVM is working closely with the affected horse’s owners who have voluntarily quarantined their farm. Other horses on their premises have not shown any clinical signs of EHV-1. Clark stresses that this is not an EHV disease outbreak and all measures are only being taken to prevent the potential spread to other farms.

In the past six weeks, provincial and state veterinary health authorities have reported multiple cases of EHV-1 in horses that attended or were in contact with other horses that competed at a national cutting horse competition in Ogden, Utah. The affected horse at the WCVM Large Animal Clinic did not attend the show and was not in contact with any horses participating in the event.

If horses are being transported to shows, clinics or other public events, Clark recommends that all riders and owners should thoroughly wash their hands after handling horses, minimize contact between horses from other herds and not allow horses to drink from communal water troughs or buckets.

For further information about EHV-1, horse owners are urged to contact their local veterinarian or visit the WCVM's EHV information page.

For more information, contact:

Myrna MacDonald, Communications
Western College of Veterinary Medicine, U of S
Tel: 306-225-4479 • Cell: 306-291-9950
sm.ridley@sasktel.net

“The Equine Foundation of Canada’s dedicated efforts to support horse health at the WCVM and at other Canadian veterinary colleges are exceptional,” said WCVM Dean Dr. Douglas Freeman. “Year after year, members of the EFC have put the long-term health and welfare of horses first by investing in veterinary education, research and clinical services across the country. We admire their commitment and thank them for supporting our veterinary college.”

ABOVE (back row): Fourth-year veterinary student Derk Pierik holds "Bonnie," one of the WCVM's teaching horses that's outfitted with the new overground endoscope. Front row (left to right): WCVM Dean Dr. Douglas Freeman, EFC vice-president Charlene Dalen-Brown, EHRF chair Dr. Fernando Marqués and Dr. Jacque Messier, director of the WCVM Veterinary Teaching Hospital. Photo: Debra Marshall.

AT RIGHT: Dr. Fernando Marqués (right) and Dr. Dave Wilson (centre) make adjustments to the overground endoscope's wireless controls while fourth-year veterinary student Derk Pierik holds "Bonnie," one of the WCVM's teaching horses. Photo: Debra Marshall.

With the EFC donation and the matched dollars, the WCVM has purchased two pieces of equipment that will be used for horse health research as well as for the clinical care of patients in the college’s veterinary teaching hospital:

• a Holter monitor that will allow veterinarians to continuously monitor a horse’s heart activity for 24 hours or longer. The equipment will help veterinarians diagnose and investigate cardiac arrhythmias and other cardiac-related symptoms that come and go without any predictability.

• an overground video endoscope that gives veterinarians the ability to examine a horse’s upper airway during exercise. Endoscopic evaluation of horses exercised on a high-speed treadmill or on a track is the gold standard for identifying dynamic abnormalities such as dorsal displacement of the soft palate (DDSP), laryngeal hemiplegia or other upper airway dysfunctions.

This is the second year that the EFC has qualified for the matching gift program. The organization contributed $10,000 in 2009 to support the WCVM’s studies of equine sarcoids — the most commonly diagnosed skin tumours in horses around the world.

While the EFC generally rotates its annual donation among Canada’s five veterinary colleges, its members decided to make an exception. “We had donated to the WCVM in 2009, but the chance to double the support for horse health programs was just too good of an opportunity to pass up,” said EFC President Eldon Bienert of Leduc, Alta.

Combined, the two EFC gifts and the matching dollars will result in a $60,000 addition to the WCVM’s equine health program. After more than four years, the matching gift program has helped to increase funding for WCVM’s horse health activities by more than $450,000.

“I think the matching gift program is a wonderful motivator for anyone who owns and works with horses. We rely on our animals for so much, and this program inspires horse owners and organizations like ours to dig deeper for the sake of horse health care,” said Bienert.

Supporters of the EFC include members of all types of equine breed organizations and sport groups across Canada. Through fundraising trail rides, raffles and individual gifts, EFC members have raised more than $200,000 in support for scholarships, research grants and the purchase of medical equipment over the past 28 years.

ABOVE: A closeup of the overground endoscope's wireless control system that provides clinicians with digital video images as the horse is moving. Photo: Debra Marshall.

Located at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, Sask., the WCVM is the centre for veterinary education, clinical expertise and research for Western Canada. The veterinary college’s Equine Health Research Fund annually invests nearly $200,000 in equine health research grants, equine fellowships and a summer research program for undergraduate veterinary students at the WCVM.

For more information or to access photos, please contact:
Myrna MacDonald, Communications
WCVM, University of Saskatchewan
Tele: 306-225-4479 • Cell: 306-291-9950

Eldon Bienert, President
Equine Foundation of Canada
Tele: 780-986-6652

In recognition of his concern for animal welfare throughout his distinguished career as a veterinarian, Rothwell has earned The Equine Welfare Leadership Award of Distinction. He is well known for his work with CFIA and his enthusiasm for horses. Rothwell has provided his expertise in livestock care and management to 4-H clubs as well as many other organizations and is respected across the country for his dedication to equine welfare.

Heather Ryan and her husband, L. David Dubé, contributed $1.2 million toward the expansion of the college's existing equine performance centre. The Government of Saskatchewan, Marg and Ron Southern of Calgary, Alta., and the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) provided the remaining funding for the $2.8 million project.

“Our focus is supporting research — not bricks and mortar. But when this opportunity came up, we felt that this expansion would give the WCVM enough flexibility to cover all aspects of horse health. It’s important for this veterinary college to be a centre of excellence for horse care, so when it comes to lameness, they really needed a new facility where they could do the diagnosing, the research and the teaching all in one spot.”

Construction will begin in February 2011. The project will add nearly 1,000 sq m (10,600 sq. ft.) to the centre, as well as vital resources to the WCVM’s equine education, clinical and research programs.

“In particular, this building will be a focal point for diagnosing, treating and investigating different lameness issues,” explains WCVM Dean Dr. Douglas Freeman. “Through those activities, it will also be a place where our veterinary students can learn more about how to recognize and accurately diagnose the causes of lameness in horses, and provide their future clients with the best treatment options.”

Built in 1998, the original facility includes a high-speed treadmill and a computerized force plate system — two invaluable tools for detecting and diagnosing equine lamenesses. The centre’s new features will include:

• a paved indoor runway that will allow clinicians and students to conduct examinations on a smooth, even surface — 365 days of the year. Besides its diagnostic value, the runway will be used for teaching demonstrations and lameness-oriented research.

• a permanent longeing arena that’s critical for the accurate diagnosis and detection of many subtle unilateral or bilateral lameness issues in horses. The arena will also become a focal point for horse handling labs, teaching demonstrations and continuing veterinary education seminars.

• a multi-purpose area with two semi-permanent restraint stocks that will provide a safe, secure place for faculty and students to undertake physical examinations and various technical procedures that are performed daily by equine clinicians.

Ryan and Dubé’s previous contributions to the veterinary college include a $1.07-million gift to the College’s equine and companion animal health programs. They also created a matching gift incentive program in 2006 that has helped to raise more than $450,000 for equine health research at the WCVM in the past four years.

Located on the University of Saskatchewan campus in Saskatoon, Sask., the WCVM is a Canadian centre of veterinary education, expertise and research with nearly 450 students enrolled in veterinary and graduate degree programs. The college’s Equine Health Research Fund annually invests nearly $200,000 in equine health research grants, equine fellowships and a summer equine research program for undergraduate veterinary students at the WCVM.

For more information, please contact:
Myrna MacDonald, Communications
Western College of Veterinary Medicine
University of Saskatchewan
Tel: 306-225-4479 • Cell: 306-291-9950
sm.ridley@sasktel.net

Download background information on the Ryan/Dubé Performance Centre and the donors (PDF 92 KB)

The long-time veterinarian will be honoured on January 15 during the annual 4-H Leaders’ Conference in Red Deer, Alta.

Sandberg, who has contributed to Alberta 4-H since 1987, has been involved with the Fort Macleod Midnight Riders 4-H Light Horse Club, the Willow Creek Wranglers and the Fort Macleod 4-H Beef Club.

After earning her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) degree, Sandberg practised veterinary medicine for 27 years before her retirement in 2002. An active community member, she is currently president of the Fort Macleod and District Agricultural Society and is a school board trustee for the Willow Creek and Livingstone Range. She is also on the Board of Governors for the University of Lethbridge.

Since its creation in 1971, the Alberta 4-H Hall of Fame has recognized 73 men and women for their contributions to Alberta’s rural youth and agriculture and their commitment to the 4-H pledge of service and commitment to club, community and country.

Candidates for the award are nominated by members or leaders from their local clubs and councils. Each nomination is evaluated by a selection committee comprised of members from the provincial 4-H council and the 4-H Foundation as well as representatives from Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development.

Here's an overview of what you will find inside this issue of Horse Health Lines:

• $76,000 for 7 Studies: The EHRF earmarks $76,000 for seven equine research studies that will be conducted by WCVM researchers during 2010-11.
• Pergolide’s Dose Strength Critical to Health: PhD student Dr. Katherine Ball shows that concentrations of pergolide are lower than expected in compounded doses.
• Dr. Claire Card: Equine Baby-maker: WCVM’s Dr. Claire Card has helped to bring many foals into the world that wouldn’t have been born without a helping hand from science. 

• Putting a Prairie Spin to Deworming: A WCVM study will investigate the intestinal parasite load of horses living on the Prairies so clinicians can establish Prairie-based deworming programs.

• Young Equine Steward: Horses and equine welfare have a special place in the heart of third-year veterinary student Taryn Holtby of Marshall, Sask. 

• Genetic Study Spot On: A new study confirms that a single gene causes congenital stationary night blindness and leopard complex spotting in Appaloosas. 


ON OUR FRONT COVER: Third-year veterinary student Taryn Holtby received the 2010 Equine Welfare Young Steward of the Future Award of Distinction this spring. Visit page 13 for more details.

Freeman, who begins his five-year term on March 1, 2010, will become the regional veterinary college’s sixth dean in its 45-year history. He will replace Dr. Charles Rhodes, the WCVM’s dean since 2002. Rhodes is retiring after 39 years of service with the college.

“Dr. Freeman’s broad experience, his approachable personality and his collaborative manner will make an excellent fit with the Western College of Veterinary Medicine and the University of Saskatchewan,” said Brett Fairbairn, the university’s provost and vice-president. “These qualities will serve him well in his new role as one of Canada’s key leaders in veterinary education, animal health, public health and food safety.”

"I am thrilled to be the next dean of the Western College of Veterinary Medicine. It is an outstanding veterinary school with tremendous talent in a broad range of programs,” said Freeman. “I look forward to working with the faculty, staff, students and friends of the veterinary college in addressing current challenges and opportunities in veterinary medicine.”

Freeman completed a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree, a clinical residency and a Master of Science degree in theriogenology at the University of Minnesota. He received a PhD in reproductive physiology from the University of Idaho and is a diplomate in the American College of Theriogenologists.

Freeman has worked in the clinical science and basic science departments of academic institutions in the United States as well as overseas. His experience also includes private veterinary practice and veterinary professional services in the animal health industry. Freeman is a past president of the American College of Theriogenologists and is a current member of the Board of Directors for the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC).

During his term at North Dakota State University, Freeman served as director of the NDSU’s Great Plains Institute of Food Safety for two years, and led multi-disciplinary research programs in disease surveillance, public health and food safety. He was selected as an American Council on Education Fellow in 2006, and spent one year at the University of Minnesota where he gained experience in academic leadership and administration of the university’s Academic Health Center.

Located at the University of Saskatchewan, the Western College of Veterinary Medicine is Western Canada’s premier centre of veterinary education, research and expertise, and an integral member of Canada's veterinary, public health and food safety network. More than 400 undergraduate and graduate students are enrolled at the internationally-recognized institution that includes a veterinary teaching hospital, provincial diagnostics laboratory and research facilities.

For more information, contact:

Brett Fairbairn, Provost and Vice President Academic
University of Saskatchewan
Tel: 306-966-8489

Myrna MacDonald, Communications
WCVM, University of Saskatchewan
Tel: 306-225-4479 • Cell: 306-291-9950