Abscess: A pocket of infection located deeply in the muscles or elsewhere in the body, surrounded by a thick wall of tissue.
Alveoli: Tiny “sacs” within the lungs, where oxygen is absorbed and carbon dioxide is eliminated.
Anabolic: Promoting growth and development.
Analgesic: Substance which controls pain.
Androgenic: Pertaining
Anemia: Lower than normal number of red blood cells.
Anthelminthic: Drug used to treat for intestinal worms.
Antibody: A protein produced by the immune system cells that attacks an infectious organism or other foreign substance in the body.
Antihistamine: Class of drug which blocks allergic reactions.
Antitoxin: An antibody against a toxin/poison produced by a bacterium.
Bleeder: Horse who experiences bleeding form the lung during exercise.
Brittle Feet: Hooves prone to cracking, splitting and peeling.
Bronchi: The large airways of the lung.
Bronchial: Pertaining to the bronchi
Bronchioles: Small airways that branch off the bronchi.
Bronchitis: Inflammation of the bronchi.
Bronchodilater: Drug
Buccal: Next to the mucous membranes lining the mouth. Bursa: A fluid filled sac, located at areas where tendons must run over bone, to cushion the tendon.
Bursitis: Inflammation of the bursa.
Carbohydrate Loading: A process developed for human weight lifters and runners to increase the supply of muscle glycogen.
Choke: Food caught in the esophagus.
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: A condition where the lung is less flexible than normal and alveoli collapse when horse is trying to exhale, trapping the air within the lung. May be caused by long term allergic disease/allergic bronchitis.
Clearance Time: The time it takes for a drug to be completely eliminated from the horses body.
Colic: Pain in the abdomen.
Colostrum: The yellowish first milk produced by a mare, rich in antibodies that the foal under 24 hours.
Contaminate: To allow infectious agents or foreign material (e.g., dirt) to enter the body e.g., through wound.
COPD: See Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.
Creep: An adjective used to describe the process of feeding the foal grain before it is weaned.
Cubic Centimeter (CC): A metric measure equal to one milliliter.
Curb: Swelling of ligament just below point of hock.
Desmitis: Lameness. Heat, swelling and pain of a ligament such as the suspensory or curb.
Diuretic: Drug which causes increased urine formation.
Edema: Swelling caused by an accumulation of fluid in an inflamed area, by heart or kidney failure or following damage to the veins, arteries, or lymphatic drainage system of an area.
Electrolyte: Salt that is normally present in the body and/or fed or injected to replace salts lost (e.g., sodium, potassium, chloride, bicarbonate).
Emphysema: Disease of lungs characterized inability to completely empty out the air when breathing out.
Encephalomyelitis: Inflamation of brain and spinal cord.
Endotoxemia: Potentially fatal body wide illness resulting from absorption of toxins produced by bacteria in the intestine.
Epiphytis: An inflammation of the growth plate, the region where the bone grows.
Epistaxis: A nosebleed
Estral Cycle: Reproductive cycle in the mare.
Esterified Vitamin C: A form of vitamin C where the natural high acidity has been reduced.
Estrus: Period of sexual receptivity in the female, “heat”
Expiration: Breathing out.
Feed Bumps: Hives believed to be caused by type of feed.
Founder: Laminitis, inflammation of the sensitive/live tissues of the hoof.
Foreign: Not normally found in the body.
Glaucoma: Disease of lens of eye.
Gram: (gm org): A metric measure equal to 1000 milligrams.
Hard Keepers: Horses that have trouble gaining and holding weight.
Hay Belly: Swollen, rounded appearance to the lower abdomen; seen in horses eating large amounts of hay and/or with poor digestion.
Heaves: See Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.
Heel Scratches: Cracked or open skin on heels pastern.
Hematinic: Drug used to increase number of red blood cells.
Hypothermia: Temperature below normal.
Hypothyroidism: Abnormally low levels of thyroid hormone.
Icterus: See Jaundice.
Ingested: Eaten.
Inspiration: Breathing in.
Intramuscular: Into a muscle.
Intravenous: Into vein.
Iris: Colored portion of eye.
Jaundice: Yellow discoloration of the skin and mucus membranes (e.g., lining of the mouth) by pigments which accumulate in the body, liver failure or starvation.
Jug: Bottle of liquid given intravenously usually electrolyte rich fluid with other agents often added.
Jugging: Administration of electrolytes and other medications intravenously.
Kilogram: Metric measure equal to 1000 grams.
Laceration: Rip/tear in the skin or other tissue.
Lactating: Producing milk.
Lactation: Milk production.
Lactate Accumulation: Build up of lactic acid in the blood or tissues.
Laminitis: An inflammation of the live tissue inside the hoof. Also know as founder.
Lasix: A drug (furosemide) which helps most horses with lung bleeding. This diuretic also decreases pressure on the right side of the heart.
Liter: A metric measure equal to 1.0567 quarts in conventional measure.
Lung Bleeding: Symptoms include decreased exercise tolerance, coughing after work, blood seen at nostrils or during exam of lungs with endoscope.
Membrane: An outer covering.
Metabolic Acidosis: Body-wide condition where the pH of the blood is more acid than normal.
Metabolites: Substances produced when another substance is broken down.
Microgram (mcg): A metric measure representing 1/1000 milligrams.
Milk Tetany: Muscle weakness and hyperexcitability caused by sudden drop in blood and tissue calcium when mare starts to make milk.
Milligram (mg): a metris measure representing 1/1000 gram.
Mucus Membrane: Fluids and mucous – secreting linings of the mouth, nose, throat, reproductive tracts.
Myelitis: Spinal cord inflammation.
Nasal: Pertaining to the nose.
Neoplasm: Abnormal growth, tumor.
Obstetrical: Referring to the pregnancy and delivery.
Ocular: Pertaining to the eye.
Ophthalmic/Ophthalmologic: Pertaining to the eye.
Osteochondrosis Dessicans: A congenital disease that results in improper formation of the joint cartilage.
Ovulation: Release of an egg by mare’s ovary.
Periodic Ophthalmia: A disease of the eye characterized by extensive inflammation of all ocular structures, which comes an goes in cycles.
Peritonitis: Inflammation of the peritoneum, the lining of the abdominal cavity.
Pharyngeal: Pertaining to the pharynx or “throat”.
Pharyngitis: Inflammation of the pharynx.
Pharynx: Throat.
Pneumonia: Inflammation of the deep tissues of the lung, usually caused by an infection.
Polysaccharide storage disease Dessicans: A muscle defect that can cause Tying-up.
Red Blood Cells: Erythocytes. The cells that carry oxygen throughout the body.
Renal: Pertaining to the kidney.
Respitory System: Nose, sinuses, throat, larynx, trachea and lungs.
Rhino/Rhinopneumonitis: A common respitory viral infection in horses.
Roarer: Horse with paralysis of one or both vocal chords.
Salmonella: A common bacterial infection in the intestinal tract.
Sclera: the “white” of the eye.
Septicemia: Bacteria in the blood stream.
Stocking Up: Swelling of the lower legs.
Subcutaneous: Under the skin.
Summer Sores: Areas of thickened, irritated and open skin, often the midline of the belly, caused by larval forms of stomach worms in the tissues under the skin.
Tetanus: A rigid paralysis caused by toxins produced when a wound is infected with an organism Clostridium tetani.
Therapeutic Drug Level: level of drug in blood high enough to produce a beneficial effect.
Toxin: a poisonous, harmful substance.
Toxoid: A “tamed” version of a toxin that is injected into the animal to stimulate his immune system to produce antibodies that guard against specific poison.
Trachea: Windpipe
Tying – Up: A syndrome of muscular cramping, pain, and varying degrees of muscular breakdown associated with exercise but having several possible causes.
Ulcer: Any defect in the surface of a tissue, usually caused by surface tissues being injured and defective in someway.
Vasoconstriction: The constriction or narrowing of blood vessels.
Vasodilation: The relaxing and dilating of blood vessels.
Vitamin A: Retinyl palmitate or other retinyls.
Vitamin B1: Thiamine.
Vitamin B2: Riboflavin.
Vitamin B3: Niacinamide or Niacin
Vitamin B5: D-Pantothenate or Pantothenic acid.