Integrity Equine

04/10/2026

IT'S TIME FOR A MYTHBUSTER! 📢

Many people think that horses can safely eat grass clippings (grass is grass, right?) but that is a pretty common misconception and grass clippings actually pose a number of dangers to our equine friends.

While grass is meant to be slowly picked, ripped and chewed by the horse, grass clippings can quickly clump and cause choke if the animal ingests too many too fast. Grass clippings are also prone to fermentation which can cause colic, stomach and intestinal impactions, founder and laminitis.

Take-home message: Keep your horse away from grass clippings and in general never feed horses any food without the owner’s permission.

Thank you to the Horse Owner Education Committee for providing this information.

03/28/2026

03/27/2026

HORSE OWNER WEBINAR ALERT! 📢

Join us for our upcoming Horse Owner Education Committee webinar! Our topic will be "Oh Sugar! My Horse is Foundering!"

Join AAEP-member veterinarians Drs. Allie Catalino and Chelsea Folmar for an in-depth discussion about the two most common metabolic disturbances in horses: Cushing's Disease and Insulin Dysregulation. They will take you on a deep dive into diagnosis, treatment and management of these diseases, followed by discussion about laminitis, a common sequela.

Registration is FREE but required. A recording of the webinar will be available if you miss the live event. Register at https://events.zoom.us/ev/Aqk4QqZ8CSEZVzoTjoed1OchP7YIDfrDxmN7sn3bmdtN0eMBkO1X~AhLXYhuX8F4hYAwaFVb5RYYV903KHqLrJKTrAP-zT2spI-fUNInOwEr12A

This informative session is brought to you by the AAEP Horse Owner Education Committee.

03/27/2026

🔥 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐚 𝐜𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐜. 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐝. 🔥

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐆𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐇𝐨𝐫𝐬𝐞 𝐂𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐜 with Mark Lyon of Lyon horses is coming to River Valley Horsecamp | Farmington, Iowa on 𝗠𝗮𝘆 𝟮𝟴 & 𝟮𝟵—and if you’ve been looking for direction, purpose, and real results in your riding… this is it.

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗸𝘀 𝗼𝗿 𝗴𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀.
𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗲—𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮 𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗿—𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘆, 𝘁𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿.

👉 𝘙𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘱𝘶𝘳𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦
👉 𝘉𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵
👉 𝘗𝘶𝘵 𝘪𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬

𝗬𝗼𝘂’𝗹𝗹 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹-𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁𝘀 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲:
• Groundwork that actually translates to the saddle
• Softness, body control, and timing
• Garrocha pole work for precision and alignment
• Roping fundamentals for real-life use
• Obstacles with purpose—not just patterns
• 𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁, 𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗲

💥 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗻𝗲, 𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘂𝗽, 𝗼𝗿 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗮 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗿 𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹—𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗰 𝗶𝘀 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼.

📅 May 28 & 29
📍 River Valley Horse Camp – Farmington, Iowa

💰 $475 (2 Days - early bird rate)
💰 $325 (1 Day)
⚡ Early Bird Rate available through May 1

𝘙𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘬: https://latigocollective.com/good-horse-clinic-at-river-valley-registration-2026/

📞 Contact: KT Kotz – 563-599-6528
📧 [email protected]

02/17/2026

Did you know that February is ? 🦷

Your equine's dental health is an essential part of their overall health and well-being. Therefore, it is imperative that your veterinarian perform AT LEAST one dental exam on your horse per year to ensure that their teeth, gums, and other oral structures are healthy. Poor dental health can also have adverse effects on other areas of the body if not addressed.

This graphic offers a quick overview of things you might not know about equine teeth and tooth wear.

If you're interested in learning more about equine dentistry, check out the recording of the webinar for horse owners that was presented last week on the topic of dentistry here: https://youtu.be/ABqWu9XMAi8?si=_O-L_OGFbyfaIh3p

Thank you to the Horse Owner Education Committee for providing this information.

If you have questions or concerns about your horse's dental health, contact your veterinarian.

02/02/2026

HORSE OWNER WEBINAR ALERT! 📢

Join us for the first Horse Owner Education Committee webinar of 2026! Our topic will be "Equine Dentistry – A Closeup Look Inside Your Horse’s Mouth."

If you've ever wondered what your veterinarian is looking for inside your horse’s mouth, this is your chance to find out! Learn what makes horse teeth unique and why oral exams and odontoplasty, or “floating,” are performed. We’ll also review what to expect during a dental appointment, common pathologies and diseases, and how dental management will often change as your horse ages.

Registration is FREE but required. A recording of the webinar will be available if you miss the live event. Register at: https://events.zoom.us/ev/Au79KIEGlUQNYp3MIwhImixtX96-V_4BY6zUczb-JyUAmnaMAMOO~AmWA7Q-adjl446fnk29Fr5TyD20L79wemxDsn628LwZjZ4BHVqqEh-rjTA

This informative session is brought to you by the AAEP Horse Owner Education Committee.

11/12/2025

WHAT IS VESICULAR STOMATITIS?

Vesicular stomatitis (VS) is a contagious virus that affects horses, cattle, donkeys, mules, as well as some other animals. It causes painful blisters, crusts and ulceration of the lips, muzzle, nose, tongue, ears, sheath, teats, and/or coronary band.

What are the Signs?
• Blisters or sores on the tongue, lips, or around the mouth (the tongue is often the most severely affected)
• Crusty scabs on the muzzle, nostrils, and/or inside the ears
• Drooling or excessive salivation
• Trouble eating or chewing
• Lameness due to painful erosions on the coronary band.

How Does It Spread?
VS is mainly spread by biting insects like black flies and sand flies. It can also spread through direct contact with infected animals, shared water or feed buckets, or contaminated equipment.

Why is VS Important?
• It’s a reportable disease. Veterinarians must notify animal health officials if they suspect it.
• The sores can look like other serious diseases, so it’s important to get a proper diagnosis.
• Outbreaks can lead to movement restrictions for horses and other animals.

What Can You Do?
• Watch for signs of sores or blisters, especially during warm months when insects are active.
• Protect your horse from insects by using fly sprays, keeping stables clean, and bringing horses inside during peak insect activity.
• Don’t share equipment, feed buckets, or water buckets between horses, especially if one is showing signs of illness.
• Handle healthy animals before sick animals. Anyone handling infected animals should follow proper biosafety measures to protect themselves and other animals.
• If you see symptoms, contact your veterinarian right away.

Note that VS can also affect people, but it usually causes only mild, flu-like symptoms. Wearing gloves and practicing good hygiene when handling affected animals is recommended.

Learn more about VS on our website at: https://aaep.org/resource/vesicular-stomatitis/

Current disease outbreak reports are available on the Equine Disease Communication Center's website: https://www.equinediseasecc.org/vesicular-stomatitis

09/07/2025

08/06/2025

As temperatures and bug populations remain high, it is critically important that horse owners take steps to protect their equine friends (and their families) from mosquito bites. If you live in a region where mosquito populations persist well into the fall months, your veterinarian may recommend additional fall booster vaccinations against EEE/WEE and WNV (West Nile Virus).

If you don't know your horse's vaccination history or you are unsure whether they have received a certain vaccine, it's not too late to start from scratch with an initial series of inoculations followed by the appropriate boosters, as recommended by your horse doctor.

So, what is Eastern Equine Encephalitis?

EEE is a severe, viral disease affecting the central nervous system, and is transmitted to equids (and humans) by infected mosquitoes. There is no cure for EEE, and the mortality rate is 75-95% (in horses). Prevention through vaccination is key.

Contact your veterinarian for more information and learn more about EEE with the following resources:

USDA Equine Arbovirus Dashboard: https://www.aphis.usda.gov/livestock-poultry-disease/equine/arbovirus-dashboard?fbclid=IwY2xjawL93phleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFoZWhDbm9DQXJkUDJ2UXQ4AR4LQFqAZgJ-l6okRNSB5gb3W22O2wch3hTNfUrdWkYu5vr4vsPs5dO8_fchtg_aem_AJ5BEuDhbfiGxQTJgInt4A

Equine Disease Communication Center (EDCC): https://www.equinediseasecc.org/eastern-equine-encephalitis

AAEP EEE Guidelines: https://aaep.org/resource/eastern-equine-encephalitis-eee/?fbclid=IwY2xjawL93rRleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFoZWhDbm9DQXJkUDJ2UXQ4AR53Fr5KFEMaKqGIwpZV4z428WzO0A1N4K8_PoKQ6D4QKlzJqNkHJ6YDd6qnqg_aem_fitQxeORLIU_v3AW-kzK1Q