Tack Box Talk

Send us Fan Mail Dr. Mike Fugaro and Dr. Singen Elliot, both equine surgeons in New Jersey discuss how osteochondrosis develops, and how it can be relatively straightforward to address.   Not just a young racehorse problem, OCs can lie undetected and asymptomatic for years. 

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Dr. Jason Bruemmer, retired CSU professor and current wildlife population management expert for USDA, discussed the current management process for keeping wild horses healthy and in balance.  We dive into which horses are managed by BLM and why the horses may be doing well for their own good.  For more information: FREES webpage. Bureau of Land Management Wild Hor...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Robyn Stewart of University of Georgia Extension, and Laura Beth Kenney of Penn State Extension discuss just what extension has to offer. They share what drew them to the field and their favorite stories of helping others.  If you are not reaching out to your county educator - do so today! Questions? Please email: khiney@okstate.edu

Send us Fan Mail In this personal episode, Dr. Nettie Liburt and Dr. Carey Williams share their stories of when they knew their horses needed to step back in activity levels. They discuss the importance of truly tuning into your horse, and allowing them to have a voice in their activity level. They also stress the importance of keeping those seniors moving.  Plus, we get updates on ET and Mickey!...

Send us Fan Mail Dr. AJ Manship, DVM, DACVIM, at Oklahoma State University College of Veterinary Medicine, shares his personal experience with the EHM outbreak in 2025. We discuss how EHV can manifest as EHM and best practices for prevention.

Send us Fan Mail Jennifer Patterson of Oklahoma State University Cooperative Extension, provides advice for horse owners on how to make sure their pastures are ready for grazing.  We talk a bit about uniqueness of Oklahoma but her advice is applicable to all horse owners!

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Dr. Colleen Brady shares her experience as serving as a judge for a novel judging contest - welfare judging. Created by Michigan State University initially, the American Veterinary Medical Association now hosts this international event.  Learn how this unique contest works, and check out the links to past scenarios! Past welfare judging scenarios

Send us Fan Mail Dr. Erica Macon of Texas A&M University joins us for an in depth talk on recent research and feeding guidelines to navigate the tricky job of managing insulin dysregulated horses.  And remember, it isn't just the obese horses that you have to worry about!

Send us Fan Mail Dr. Carey Williams, of Rutgers University, and Dr. Kathy Lackey, DVM and certified acupuncturist share their thoughts on which horses can be helped by a little needling.  From subtle behavior changes to routine maintenance, or finding hidden pains - acupuncture may be a tool to considered in your tack box of tricks to maintaining horse health and well-being.

Send us Fan Mail Join Dr. Krishona Martinson and her daughter Montana Martinson in this episode that reveals the depth behind the crown.  Montana shares how her rodeo queen duties and aspirations are helping to transform her into a confident professional, and mom Krishona agrees!

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Dr. Krishona Martinson shares her personal story of changing her mind about how big a deal slobbers really is.  An unseen mold in legumes can cause big headaches, and owners need to be aware of risks, and how to manage properly to reduce the chance that your horse can be severely affected.

Send us Fan Mail Dr. Craig Wood with the University of Kentucky discusses his recent decision to retire from the judging and professional horseman world. A respected judge, Dr. Wood decided he wanted to have fun for himself for a change and focus on showing in his "golden" years.

Send us Fan Mail In this wide ranging episode, Dr. Reed Holyoak, theriogenologist with Oklahoma State University College of Veterinary Medicine, discusses preparing for the breeding season.  But we go way beyond turn the lights on to discussing microbiome, genetics and uterine biopsies.  Join us for this episode where even experienced breeders can gain new insight! Nutritional considerations for b...

Send us Fan Mail Dr. Betsy Greene, Extension Specialist at the University of Arizona, and Dr. Christina Brownlee, University of Arizona College of Veterinary Medicine, discuss the recent EHV-1/EHM outbreak in southern barrel horses and roping horses.  We discuss best practices and how this outbreak may be unique. For more information: Equine Disease Communication Center .

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, recent horse shoppers Robyn Stewart from the University of Georgia Extension, and Dr. Kathy Anderson with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln,  share how they found their new equine partner.  From savvy shopping to kicking some tires (or hooves), the key to finding a new horse - don't be in a rush! Extension Horses Caveat Emptor – Let the buyer beware: How to...

Send us Fan Mail Kyla Szemplinski, county extension agent for Shelby County and the University of Tennessee and her all star 4-H member, Serenity Green, join us to discuss the many benefits of 4-H on shaping young people's lives. 

Send us Fan Mail Dr. Ron Gill with Texas Agrilife, helps to alleviate some of the fears horse owners may be feeling with the news of New World Screwworm making a journey northward. Good news - most likely we just need to keep doing what we have always been doing - monitoring our horses and treating wounds like normal.

Send us Fan Mail Dr. Jonathan Cammack, livestock entomologist with Oklahoma State University,  covers the big mistakes horse owners make in their battle with flying pests.  There is more to winning this war than picking up the fly spray bottle.

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Dr. Brian Nielsen, of Michigan State University shares what 35 years of being in the "research business" have taught him to spotting bad science. Don't worry, science is still good - we just need to know what to look out for!

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Dr. Tania Cubitt, of Performance Horse Nutrition, returns to take a deeper dive into a topic we brought up at our live taping at the Equine Science Society meetings in Fort Collins, Colorado.  We provide owners strategies on how exactly to "do your own research" and explain what types of information are out there.  So listen to this buyer beware episode!

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, we again visit some abstracts from the Equine Science Symposium, this time with Dr. Sara Mastellar, Associate Professor of the Ohio State Agriculture and  Technology Institute.  While tradition may say feeding twice a day is best, what does the data really say?

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Dr. Colleen Brady and Dr. Camie Heleski share their thoughts on what horses really need to make them happy.  We discuss whether we even know if a horse is happy, and how much time does a horse need to feel just okay.  This one gives you a lot to think about. Interested in learning more about horse emotion: Check out RAiSE: Recognizing Affective States in Horses.

Send us Fan Mail Dr. Danielle Smarsh from Penn State University, shares some new research from Kentucky Equine Research that finally settles all arguments on proper ways to cooll of horses.  Using imbedded microchips, researchers tried all the ways - now you can learn the absolute best ways to cool your hot horse. For more information: Cooling research from KER

Send us Fan Mail In this special episode, we chat with members of the Equine Science Society, about their favorite abstracts presented at the graduate and undergraduate student competition.  Join Dr. Brian Nielsen from Michigan State University as we chat about salt, Dr. Burt Staniar, from Penn State University whose love of fiber is easily apparent, and Dr. Tania Cubitt, from Performance Horse Nu...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Robyn Stewart, the county extension coordinator for the Northwest District for the University of Georgia Extension Service, shares the story of Web and his journey through losing his eye.  We talk about how Web adapted, and how Robyn made the tough decision to remove his eye.