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     (By Dr Rachel Roemer and Dr Omar Maher)

Nuclear scintigraphy, also known as a bone scan, can be a useful diagnostic tool in many difficult lameness cases. Nuclear scintigraphy helps identify areas of inflammation and changes in physiologic bone activity. This is particularly useful in cases when the lameness cannot be adequately localized with local nerve blocks or seems to be caused by pain high in the limbs or in the neck or spine. It can also be helpful when there may be more than one area of inflammation or if there are radiographic changes that may or may not be the cause of the lameness. 
 
Nuclear scintigraphy units are located at many veterinary schools and private referral practices. The bone scan process is an inpatient procedure and the horse is kept in the hospital at least overnight. An intravenous catheter is placed in the horse’s neck and a radioactive isotope, technetium-99m (99mTc), bound to a molecule with a high affinity for bone, is injected into the horse. The 99mTc emits gamma-rays, which are picked up by a specialized sensor to produce an image of the 99mTc uptake in the body. The more 99mTc that is located in a single area, the more gamma-rays will be emitted from that location. Within the first 1-2 minutes after injection the 99mTc remains within the vessels (known as the vascular phase) and images to compare blood flow to the distal limbs can be obtained. At about 3-10 minutes post-injection blood flow to soft tissues can be evaluated (soft tissue phase). Increased uptake during the soft tissue phase is indicative of edema or inflammation. Several hours later, the 99mTc distributes to bone (bone phase), particularly to areas of active boney turnover where bone is being broken down and replaced or where boney inflammation is present. If a horse has active bone disease, such as degenerative joint disease, boney sclerosis (increased bone density), septic arthritis, etc., the affected area will “light up” on the image. Typically, only the soft tissue and bone phases are imaged, unless there is a suspicion of compromised blood flow.
 
Nuclear scintigraphy is quite safe for the horse as 99mTc has a relatively short half-life of about 6 hours, so it breaks down quite quickly. About half of the radioactive material is excreted in urine within hours of injection. During the bone scan process the technicians working with the horse and obtaining the images wear protective clothing similar to that warn when taking radiographs (x-rays). The horse must be kept isolated for at least 24 hours after the bone scan when it is excreting radioactive urine. Radioactivity levels are monitored using a Geiger counter and once the levels are back within a safe range the horse is allowed to be handled and transported as needed. Bone scans also allow veterinarians to collect important information without having to anesthetize the horse, which eliminates a host of potential risks. Bone scans cannot replace the lameness exam, diagnostic nerve blocks, or radiographs. However, in certain cases nuclear scintigraphy is extremely useful finally identifying the specific cause of lameness.

Bone bruising, fractures that are not obvious on radiographs (including stress fractures on race horses, pelvic fractures), back issues and sacro-iliac disease, cervical pathology (neck arthritis), pedal osteitis.

New Hampshire’s beautiful country settings are drawing many persons to move into or

travel those areas to enjoy the countryside. Our rural neighborhoods still have farm

animals, and horses are a common sight in pastures and back yards. You are likely to see

these horses ridden or driven down New Hampshire roads attributing to the country

setting that others are seeking.

NH Horse Council wishes to remind motorists about NH RSA 265:104 Approaching

Horses. “Every person having control or charge of a vehicle shall, whenever upon any

way and approaching any horse, drive, manage, and control such vehicle in such a

manner as to exercise every reasonable precaution to prevent the frightening of such

horse, and insure the safety and protection of any person riding or driving the same.”

NH Horse Council advises to, “please slow down and pass wide, and allow as much room

as feasible between the horse and the vehicle. Slowing down allows the horse and rider

(driver) enough time to realize a vehicle is approaching and to make sure the horse is

prepared for the vehicle to pass. When approaching a horse from the rear, it is important

to know that the horse and rider (driver) is going to be less aware of your presence, so

please be cautious. Never sound the horn or create loud noises, as this might cause the

horse to spook.”

If a rider (driver) is moving a hand up and down with the palm down, he/she is asking

you to slow down more. If the arm is out with palm toward you, he/she is asking you to

stop so the horse can be moved to a safer spot so you may pass. These gestures help to

communicate with motorists when additional caution is needed.

Motorcyclists, box trucks or vehicles with trailers should be especially aware of how

easily they can startle a horse. All motorists should be alert to the actions of the horse and

rider (driver) and be sure to slow down and pass wide. Please help with safety when

sharing the road.

Horse owners do appreciate all motorists who show awareness, courtesy and

respectfulness with sharing the road! WE THANK YOU ALL! Remember we are your

neighbors whom you pass on your town roads. Let’s slow down and give each other a

friendly wave.

From NH Horse Council “Thank You Again for your courtesy”!

(please feel free to repost this NHHC article and submit to local papers)

The horse was one of the most dangerous I'd worked with, as she operated on sheer reactive memories. Mostly, those reactions were conceived from terror. There were no warning signs - this filly would merely swing around and come at ya to save her life, ears flat back, teeth bared or hooves flying.
This past Friday as I drove to my appointment in RI, I was asking, "OK, Lord. So what do I do today with this horse and her owner? What are we going to work on today?"

The reply I got was, "Do what is."

And that's all I got ... "Come on, Lord! What kind of answer is that? I need a plan, here. You know - a goal and steps to help this gal reach that goal!"

"Do what is."

Great! OK, well, I guess I'll punt for the afternoon.

My appointment was for a hour - this was only the 4th time I'd worked with this gal and her young filly straight off the track. The horse was one of the most dangerous I've worked with as she operated on sheer reactive memories. Mostly those reactions were conceived from terror. There were no warning signs - this filly would merely swing around and come at ya to save her life, ears flat back, teeth bared or hooves flying. The past 3 sessions were merely trying to figure out just what is going to reach inside that terror and pull out the true spirit of this horse without getting myself killed in the process.

She's a pretty little thing but man, her mind? What a mess! This poor little girl, just 4 years old, had probably experienced more terrorizing treatment from humans than 10 horses experience in a lifetime. She is so sensitive that all I had to do was LOOK at her hind end with intent and that hoof would fly in my direction. Focus on her face and her teeth would expose with intent on ripping me to shreds. I spent the first two sessions with her from the outside of her paddock just trying to soothe her and reassure her, getting some focus from her using clicker training. I could get her attention for approximately 3 or 4 seconds before she'd rip at me again.

The 3rd session I got in the paddock with her just trying to direct her feet a little bit as she raced around the perimeter, staying as far from me as possible and throwing kicks out almost rhythmically - aimed at my head. Just my mere presence in her space terrorized her.

I stood, quietly, not moving, just 'thinking' and feeling, while she whirled around me.

Her eyes were wild - I don't remember the last time I saw such white showing. The owner watched from the outside of the paddock. I held a lunge whip down by my side (not for pressure but for *my* peace of mind as protection if needed) - no pressure on this little filly other than my presence in *her* paddock which was clearly enough to keep her moving.

I began to tell her that some of her stopping places (she did stop now and then to frantically snatch bites of grass) were really my places - I simply stepped towards her (lunge whip still down on the ground dragging behind me) and she'd take flight again. This went on for quite awhile and by the end of the hour she would stop and turn to face me with a questioning look in her eye but still coupled with frenetic, frightened energy.

My Lord! What had been done to this little girl at the track!?!?!?! I couldn't even begin to imagine without my heart beginning to ache and my breath being constrained.

I left that day after I felt she had settled down and was more relaxed. I wanted her to relax just a bit with me. She did. But only a fraction. But still, better than where we began that day.

So, back to this past Friday. - "Do what is. Do what is. Do what is."

The owner admittedly has had little time to spend with her girl. She has other horses and animals plus works a full time job. So her time with the filly was rushed and fragmented. No time to just BE with her. So, Friday? She was going to BE with her filly. That's what I decided. She was simply going to be with her filly. Body AND mind AND energy.

She entered the paddock and the filly immediately came right up to her, shoved her head into her back then proceeded to try to bite her arm - all of this in one frantic movement. She 'sushed' her away and looked at me. I said, "OK, so start to direct her feet but QUIETLY! and 'softly'. I want you to exude nothing but compassion and love out to this filly while you direct her with your energy. Breath in - now breath out, s-l-o-w-l-y. When you want her to move or change direction take in a breath to the count of 2 then exhale to the count of 6 while you LOOK at her back end. You LOVE this filly. You CARE for this little girl. Let her FEEL that. And let her feel your energy as you exhale and visualize her changing direction with caring. "

And she did.

For the first five mins. or so the filly raced round and round, kicking up her hooves at her human but without the frenetic energy of the past couple of weeks. She then began to settle as I 'coached" her human from the outside of the paddock.

"Don't move, just LOOK at her and follow her with your eyes. Direct her with your energy. Make those walls of energy slide out from your eyes to block her path. To the left now. Now, to the right. Change her direction now, please." LOVE her to the right." And so forth. I mostly, tho, stayed quiet, only speaking when I saw her losing her focus.

Time melted into no time.

We were ... just, we were.

The transformation in the filly as her owner sent her love and direction with merely thoughts and 'doing what is' was amazing to watch. It was amazing to FEEL! Her body softened. Her muscles released and in a short time, her mind released.

The filly stopped running.

She turned to look at her human who shyly turned away, mirroring the actions of the horse.

The filly begin to blink as her head relaxed and started to come down and down and down. She began to chew quietly, just watching her human - wondering, what IS it that she wants? What IS it ???

And then - time stopped entirely. As if we were suspended in existence, the filly's owner reached her hand out, softly balled, and began to walk to her filly. Inviting her to reach out to her hand.

The filly's head came up slightly and then -- she extended her nose to sniff the lightly balled human hand that was extended to her. She sniffed then exhaled a huge, long, sigh and dropped her head down again. Her human took ahold of the halter and invited the horse to follow.

Time continued now to go on but in very slow motion as the two, the once terrified filly and her confused owner, walked around the paddock quietly, tentatively. The gal stopped; the filly stopped right behind her. The filly's eyes had become like liquid pools of trusting innocence. Her body had softened and her energy, that previous frenetic, terrified energy had released - it was gone. It was now relief and willing and soft.

"Do what is."

I did, we did and now, just a mere 1/2 hour later, I walked out of the farm gate to go home and as I turned back I saw a chestnut filly's head enveloped in the arms of a human who streamed tears down her face.

Just the two of them.

Suspended in time.

"Do what is."

What is the opposite of bucking? “Not bucking” you say? Nope, that’s not it. What is the opposite of “jigging”? Nope, wrong again. It’s not “not jigging”. What is the opposite of shoving? Hmmmm, “not shoving”? Nope … read on, my Friend.
What is the opposite of bucking? "Not bucking" you say? Nope, that's not it. What is the opposite of "jigging"? Nope, wrong again. It's not "not jigging". What is the opposite of shoving? Hmmmm, "not shoving"? Nope ... read on, my Friend.

For every action there is a reaction and for every action there is a counterpart that is the opposite. The opposite of "bucking" would be walking forward. The opposite of shoving would be backing up. The opposite of jigging would be standing still or walking forward quietly. Instead of "punishing" an unwanted behavior in a horse why not think in terms of changing the negative behavior to a positive one and being able to reward your horse for doing something "right". In essence, teaching the horse to do something else INSTEAD OF the offensive behavior? Give the horse a choice between the behaviors and making the "right choice" a rewarded experience. Sound pretty funky to you? Well, let's take this scenario;

Susie has a 10 year old QH that is highly bred and extremely versatile. Susie has good riding background but limited ground training. (Notice that I said "Susie" has limited ground training vs. the horse having limited ground training!) ... Roger, the QH, INSISTS on flying out the stall door whenever its opened, completely disregarding poor little Susie who tries desperately to stay out of his way yet at the same time, hang onto him. Susie's trainer has suggested that everytime Roger begins to bolt out of the stall that Susie whack him on the chest with the crop. Susie's TRIED to do this but Roger seems to be totally oblivious to Susie and her crop and manages every time to just keep on bargin' through, dragging little Susie behind him. By now you're thinking "I'd get a chain over that horse's nose and that horse would learn a lesson or two!" Ah ha! What KIND of lesson would he learn? To be more respectful of Susie or the human standing in his way? Or would he learn to respond to pain, confusion, frustration and determination to get out of the stall and the experience even more quickly?

Horses naturally want to get along with their herd members. Part of their social interaction is learning to get along. Learning their own place within the herd and learning to respect those above them in rank. Horses are, by nature, gentle animals with extremely strong ideas about "fairness". Doesn't seem fair to me to punish Roger for barging out of the stall when all he wants to do is be a horse and get outdoors to move!
By whacking, or "punishing" Roger everytime he heeds his natural instinct as a horse without giving him a BETTER choice that helps him to stay safe and comfortable, Susie is doing nothing more than helping Roger build up his resentment and fear of humans and to learn to respond to a situation that gives him pain. So let's think on this a bit. ...
What could Susie DO, proactively, to 1. stop Roger from barging through and over her and 2. to keep Roger's sensitive respect intact without adding fear or resentment to the equation? (You know that fear causes the horse to flight. That's one of his primary behavioral standards.)

1. Barging through and over human - represents lack of respect for one *supposedly* higher ranking. Represents the need to get out of confinement is greater than the need to be respsectful. Represents the "punishment" is not as strong of a stimulus as getting outside and responding to a natural instinctive call. -- Issue of repecting higher ranking individual: Not the horse's fault. Human needs to establish rank in a manner which the horse can understand. -- Issue of the stronger instinctual behavior: There is no other motivator involved to override the instinctual need to get out of confinement. If confinement is associated with a pleasant experience that overrides the desire to leave, the horse will stick around! Food rewards, scritch rewards, etc. for a "right" behavior can override as motivators to initiate desired response in behaviors.
What is the opposite of barging? Standing still. Sub-Opposite behavior = waiting for appropriate cue to respectfully walk as leader requests.
Food as motivating behavior modification = MARKING the horse's appropriate behavior at the INSTANT of that behavior then rewarding with a small enough tidbit as to motivate the horse to want more. (Please note that food rewards CAN be given from small bucket instead of hand if so desired. The transporter of the reward is not as important as the reward, itself.)

Bribery, you say? No. M-o-t-i-v-a-t-i-o-n. Every mammal needs motivation to execute a behavior. The level of motivation must exceed other motivators in strength in order to prompt behavior. In other words, would you rather "work" for a pat on the head or a homemade chocolate cookie? Personally, the chocolate chip cookie wins hands down for me!

How to teach the opposite of Barging ... that is, standing still or stepping backwards away from human at stall door (better choice of behavior to teach)

Behavior desired = stepping backwards 3 steps when stall door is opened and waiting, respectfully, for human to request forward motion. Must break down the behavior as it is comprised of several "steps". 1st step would be to step backwards instead of barging forward.

Set up a cue that you can use consistently when asking the horse to back up for you. Choose your "marker" of behavior, that is the audible sound you will use to indicate to the horse that it has executed the proper behavior. A mechanical clicker will work, a tongue click, a "kiss" sound, a "cluck" sound ... a verbal Good! ... whatever works for YOU but sound must be clear, crisp, short and easily identifiable by the horse. (I'll use "click" just as the marker word for this article)

Begin teaching the horse what a marker is:
"click!" and give 1 or 2 Cheerios as "reward". Repeat this process until your horse associates your marker sound with the reward. Now you're ready to begin simple exercise of backing up 3 steps.

Ask horse to back up - use pressure and voice command. Instant the horse even thinks to back up, "click" and reward. Repeat several times until you're receiving 100% result.

Ask horse to now actually move body backwards (vs. merely indicating he's "thinking" about it) ... give the cue to back and keep the pressure on the horse until he actually MOVES his body back one step. Click! Reward. Repeat until horse is responding 100%.

Now, do the same again but ask for 2 steps back. Then 3 and ... now you've taught the horse the OPPOSITE of barging through you - you've taught him to respectfully back up 3 steps away from you! You've given him a CHOICE of behaviors to execute when you open that stall door. (Susie, this really isn't difficult - just takes a bit of time and patience.)
Ready to teach him to stand still? (2nd part of the overall behavior that you're trying to reach)

Now that you have the horse backing up, ask him "Whoa" ... if he moves forward, ask him to back up and CLICK! and REWARD the second his stands without moving. Repeat and gradually request that he stand longer and longer until YOU say, "OK! Good job! NOW you may walk through the stall door!" ...

So now you've added more to the exercises by teaching the horse another opposite of "barging" behavior. You've taught him to stand still. Standing still is a CHOICE the horse makes which makes the behavior a decision and not an empty, thoughtless behavior.

Think of the difference between, "I'm not doing anything!" and ... "I'm doing nothing." Two completely different behaviors. "Doing nothing" is a decision based behavior. "I'm not doing anything" is a thoughtless, lacking in thought, of doing anything. So, the opposite of "I'm not doing anything" is ... "I'm doing *nothing*." In essence, I'm also saying that we're teaching the barging horse to "do nothing" while standing quietly and waiting for his human to request forward movement. So, another "opposite" of barging would be to do "nothing".

Whenever you're working around a horse it is imperative to always think of the consequences of what YOUR behavior and requests will reap from the horse. Every action has a reaction. Our requests have reactions from the horse. They can be thoughtless reactions or they can be thought-FILLED choices that the horse makes.

Every action has an opposite. Think of the opposite actions that your horse chooses to execute today for you and start teaching him the proper action/behavior that you REALLY want.

Bucking? Move forward. Rearing? Move forward. Barging? Step back and wait. Jigging? Walk quietly. Doesn't lift hoof? Lift hoof! Doesn't lead? Give to pressure.

Think of your opposites and start working on them today. You'll have a safer day and a much more pleasant relationship with your horse.

PS. Susie? If that's you, drop me an email if you're still getting "stuck" in front of your barging horse and I'll see what I can do for you! Simply write to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.!

The copyright of the article Opposite Illusions is owned by Gwenyth Browning Jones Santagate. Permission to republish Opposite Illusions in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Fantasy – What Horseman hasn’t dreamed of galloping along the shoreline astride their majestic steed? You’ve become a centaur silhouetted against a breathtaking sunset. Cares of the world that once held you hostage, must submit giving way as surely as the tiny grains of sand, helpless against mighty hoofs that swept them behind the joy that lies ahead.
Unbridled freedom takes command settling deep within your soul with every breathtaking stride. Locks mane and tail, blow recklessly as ocean waves crashing where they will, seeking permission from no one!

Reality Check – You’ve approached the shoreline and Mr. Majestic instantly morphs into a prancing snorting smoke bellowing runaway express locomotive! He’s full steam ahead! Or is it behind?? It’s so hard to tell as all those spins left you a little dizzy.

The funny thing is (Come on you can laugh about it now) you never saw the switchman throw the switch! Ole Crazy Horse has really made a mess of a horseman’s ultimate fantasy, but we can trust him for one final act of desperation. He’s headed back to the station faster than the Orient Express!

You’re hanging on for dear life, because you knew the warranty on his brakes were just about to expire before you left the barn. You knew full well he needed a tune up before setting out on this great adventure.

Come on be honest, did you really expect him to offer him-self up as an equine sacrifice just so you could fulfill your little fantasy?

The Real World - Set yourself up for success. Don’t become an idle passenger at high risk for de-railment. Why not take an active role to help insure that the outcome of your first beach riding adventure more closely resembles the ride you’ve actually envisioned. Prepare your horse at home. Create a formidable water hazard that rivals your horse’s worst nightmare.

Be creative it’s your baby, find a large tarp or dig a pit and add water. You could always wait for rain and allow nature to design it. Finally, add a few more scary things around it. My personal favorites are those shiny little pinwheels, but any whirly gig will suffice. How about a few cones or jump standards with plastic bags duct taped to the top? The options are endless.

Seriously, you know your horse so start small if the accoutrements you’ve scattered are too over whelming. The goal is to build trust in your leadership not totally scare the heck out of your horse.

I would put a rope halter on Ole Crazy Horse to prevent him from escaping; it offers you a little more control than a chain over the nose. If a horse is already afraid, the chain grabbing his nose and not releasing is just going to confirm his fears that crossing water is not only scary, but extremely painful as well.

Using the tail end of a 12-14 foot rope, start sending your horse toward the water, the moment he hits the brakes, leave him be, don’t add any pressure. If he changes directions on his own just send him rapidly toward the water again, so you add pressure when he is going away from the water, take it off when he’s close. Soon he will want to investigate the water. He may snort, reach his head down, paw and splash. Leave him alone this is try. When he stops thinking about going into the water, change directions again, make him trot toward the water. 10 feet before you get to the water, take the pressure off. He will quickly figure out being near water is easier then being away from it and that he can trust you to not pressure him at the water so he can use his head and think about going in.

Don’t allow him to come into your space at my time if he only puts his front foot in that’s great! Take him away and praise him. Continue until he goes all the way through or until you are satisfied he has made progress. There are several other ways to approach water crossings this is just one. Once you have been successful add additional scary objects around your water hazard. Put your horse to work away from the obstacles, allow him to rest near them. He will soon realize that anything unusual to him will provide a resting spot, a place where he can relax and get a good scratch from you.

Time to hit the beach!

It’s certainly best to go with a friend that has a seasoned horse that has no fear of the ocean. If that’s not possible approach the beach, ride as close as you can. If your horse refuses to go any closer ride parallel to it asking much of your horse. Leg yields, rein back; trotting in a circle, then approaching the beach again. Quickly ride your horse away from the water before he wants to leave on his own.

If you are not able to go into the water, don’t be discouraged just riding along the beach should make you smile!

End on a good note and your horse will want to try for you next beach ride!

Happy Surfing!

Cathie Hatrick Anderson is a Professional Trainer specializing in starting colts and rehabilitating problem horses. She is a member of the Cowboy Mounted Shooting Association.

Cathie trained Shesa Faint Echo to attain her “Certified Shooting Horse” status and the pair rode to level three. She rides all her horses bitless.

She lives in Upton MA with her Husband Robert Anderson.

For more info visit www.bobcatfarm.com, an EquineSite Member!