Captain Mark Phillips Onstage

Captain Mark Phillips delivered a fun, inspiring speech at the Red Hills Horse Trials fundraising event October 9, 2003. Standing on the front porch of the prestigious Beadel House at Tall Timbers Research Station in Tallahassee, Florida, Phillips waxed eloquent on a dozen quick equestrian stories that had patrons laughing at his dry wit and motivated to continue supporting horse sports in the United States. Phillips is the Red Hills Horse Trials cross country course designer, as well as the Chef d’Equipe and Technical Advisor for the United States Equestrian Team, former member of the Great Britain Olympic team and former husband of Princess Anne. The Red Hills Horse Trials, known worldwide for hosting the evening World Cup East Coast qualifier, will be held March 12-14, 2004, in Tallahassee. Visit www.rhht.org for more information.

Did you know?
Precisionist, owned by Floridian Fred W. Hooper and winner of the 1985 $1 million Breeders’ Cup Sprint, was inducted into the prestigious National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in Saratoga Springs, New York. Precisionist’s lifetime earnings were $3,485,398. Precisionist thrived on Seminole horse feed.

Another Chance at the Future
Colic episode brings heightened awareness to horse’s diet.
Photo: Kyle Cox and Face The Future look forward to exciting days ahead. (photo courtesy of Shannon Cox)

Shannon Cox and her 13-year-old son, Kyle, will never forget the day in June 2003 when their beloved Quarter Horse gelding, Face The Future, “Levi,” was stricken with severe colic.

“It seems like I’ve been through 100 colics,” Shannon says. “But never anything like this. Levi was throwing himself against the walls with severe thrashing and was in so much pain.”

At the advice of their local veterinarian, Shannon and trainer Andy Moorman of Venice, Florida, managed to load Levi into their trailer during a downpour and headed to the Equine Hospital at the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine in Gainesville.

“I can’t believe we even made it,” Shannon says of the 3-hour drive. “When we got there, they prepped him for surgery and he was on IV fluids, but he fortunately ended up not needing surgery.”

Veterinarians were unable to pinpoint precisely what prompted Levi’s colic and severe pain.

“We’re still not sure exactly what caused the colic, but we do know that we don’t want to go through it again,” Shannon says. “I was just so happy to be able to pick up a live horse – we were so worried. Since the day we brought Levi home after that, we’ve practiced every precaution possible to hopefully prevent anything like it in the future.”

One of the most important decisions was to locate the best feed for Levi. At the recommendation of veterinarians, Seminole Senior Formula was chosen.

Just five weeks after Levi’s colic episode, owner Kyle showed him at the Florida 4-H State Horse Show, winning the 13-and-under hunt seat equitation.

“I’ve got a healthy horse and a happy 13-year-old kid,” Shannon says. “We’re doing everything we know to keep it that way!”

Shannon Cox and Andy Moorman purchase Seminole Senior Formula from Hunsader Farms feed store in Bradenton, Florida.

New Science Reveals High Equine Tapeworm Exposure in U.S. Horses
Research Shows Protection from Tapeworms Critical to Horse Health

A study by Dr. Craig Reinemeyer of East Tennessee Clinical Research has broken new ground in equine parasitology by uncovering the high prevalence of equine tapeworms throughout the United States. Reinemeyer's work indicates that anywhere from 12.7% to 95.8% of horses in the U.S. have been exposed to tapeworms, depending on their geographic location.

These figures confirm that the tapeworm is a significant threat to horses in the U.S. Research shows that tapeworms can cause potentially life-threatening colic conditions in affected horses.

To determine how many horses in the U.S. have been exposed to tapeworms, Dr. Reinemeyer used a blood test on over 3,300 equine serum samples submitted by 19 laboratories throughout the U.S. He found that the prevalence of tapeworm contact ranged from a significant rate of 12.7 percent along the Pacific coast to 95.8 percent in the upper Midwest. East of the Mississippi, exposure rates exceeded
60 percent in all areas. On average, more than 54 percent of horses in the U.S. have been exposed.

Until recent years, the tapeworm had been considered an innocent bystander inside the horse. This may be because previously used fecal flotation methods were extremely unreliable in terms of tapeworm discovery – some as low as 3.1 percent accurate according to a 1993 study published in the American Journal of Veterinary Research by Lyons, Tolliver, Drudge. Advanced testing methods, like those employed by Dr. Reinemeyer, now allow researchers to pinpoint the tapeworm's current or prior presence in the horse via blood tests.

In the past 10 years, veterinary researchers have developed ELISA blood tests that use tapeworm antigens to detect the presence of tapeworm antibodies in the horse. This means of discovery has proven exponentially more effective and has allowed for increased research opportunities related to tapeworm damage.

While research will continue, Reinemeyer's work makes one thing clear: horses across the country are now exposed to the serious threat of tapeworm infection. Owners can protect horses from this significant danger through the use of Equimax™ (ivermectin/praziquantel), an apple-flavored deworming paste that kills tapeworms and all major equine parasites in a single dose. Equimax offers safe, effective, proven protection: 2.5 million doses have been given to horses in more than 25 countries for more than two years.