PG . 38
AQHA HORSE HEALTH
PROTECTING GROWING JOINTS ©
ARTICLE BY : DR JENNIFER STEWART BVSC BSC PHD EQUINE VETERINARIAN , CEO JENQUINE AND CONSULTANT NUTRITIONIST EQUINE CLINICAL NUTRITION
Developmental orthopaedic disease is one of the greatest risks in foals and weanlings . The term ‘ Developmental Orthopaedic Disease ’ ( DOD ) was coined at a symposium sponsored by the American Quarter Horse Association in 1986 . It was used to describe any orthopaedic problem that involved tendon , joint or bone tissue in growing horses . The diseases encompassed by this definition are osteochondrosis ( OCD ), physitis and epiphysitis , angular limb deformities ( ALD ), flexural deformities ( including contracted tendons ) and wobbler disease . Although these diseases differ significantly , they were included under the umbrella of DOD because it was observed , nearly 40 years ago , that studs that had a high incidence of any one of these conditions , inevitably had evidence of the other conditions as well .
The causes of DOD remain obscure for the following reasons :
• the serendipitous nature of the condition , in that lesions may appear and disappear on both radiographic and arthroscopic examination
• many forms are self-resolving or treatable
• the disease is invariably present long before clinical signs become apparent
The most common age for development of OCD is from 3-10 months and stifle OCD is a major problem for Quarter horses . Biomechanical influences ( related to body weight , height and conformation ), excessive exercise and nutritional imbalances comprise 75 % of the risk factors - and the insult need only be present for a couple of weeks before joint damage occurs .
AUSTRALIAN QUARTER HORSE ASSOCIATION - WWW . AQHA . COM . AU