Common Autumn Diseases of Horses, Donkeys and Mules: Prevention and Treatment Methods and an Analysis of the Relationship Between the Three
The horse, also known as baiju, feihuang and ji, is a herbivorous animal of the genus Equus in the family Equidae. It was domesticated by humans 4000 years ago.So what are the common autumn diseases of horses, donkeys and mules? How are they prevented and treated? What is the relationship between the three?
What are the common autumn diseases of horses, donkeys and mules? How are they prevented and treated?
1. Ascariasis is a parasitic disease caused by roundworms parasitic in the small intestine. It mainly affects foals under 2 years of age, and foals within 10 months of age are especially susceptible. Foals stop growing and developing and show neurological symptoms such as tonic spasms, paralysis of the hind limbs, and extreme restlessness. When there are large numbers of larvae in the lungs, it can also cause coughing.
Prevention and treatment methods: Maintaining stable hygiene and piling up manure to ferment it so that it does not contaminate forage and drinking water is the key to preventing this disease. Autumn is the golden season for deworming. Refined trichlorfon can be made into a 5% solution with warm water at a ratio of 30-50 mg per kg of body weight and administered by stomach tube on an empty stomach in the early morning. A 10% trichlorfon solution can also be mixed into an appropriate amount of bran, stirred evenly, and left for the livestock to eat freely.
2. Gastroenteritis. Secondary gastroenteritis is common during the course of intestinal constipation and gastrointestinal parasitic diseases. Affected animals continuously pass soft or watery feces mixed with blood and pieces of necrotic tissue. Animals with severe diarrhea show obvious symptoms of dehydration. The body temperature of most affected animals rises above 40°C, a small number of affected animals do not show fever until the later stages, and the body temperature of individual affected animals is never elevated.
Treatment methods: (1) Antibacterial and anti-inflammatory treatment. Administer sulfaguanidine orally, 20-30 g, 3 times a day. Or furazolidone at 0.005-0.01 g per kg of body weight per day, given orally in 2-3 divided doses. (2) Mild purging and antidiarrheal treatment. Prepare sodium sulfate or artificial salt 300-400 g into a 6%-8% solution, add 50 ml of alcohol and 10-30 g of ichthammol, mix well and administer orally. (3) Fluid replacement, detoxification and cardiac support. Before fluid replacement, first bleed 1000-2000 ml intravenously, then administer compound sodium chloride solution, normal saline or 5% glucose sodium chloride solution 1000-2000 ml, 3-4 times a day. To relieve poisoning, 500-800 ml of 5% sodium carbonate solution can be added during infusion. To maintain cardiac function, 10-20 ml of 20% caffeine sodium benzoate solution and 10-20 ml of 20% camphor oil can be injected subcutaneously alternately, each 1-2 times a day. Strongerxin solution 10-20 ml can also be injected subcutaneously, intramuscularly or intravenously.
What is the relationship between horses, donkeys and mules?
1. The relationship between horses, donkeys and mules. A mule generally refers to the interspecific hybrid born from crossing a male donkey and a female horse. It is relatively large in size, resembles a horse, has a bray like a donkey, long ears, and a mane and tail hair intermediate between those of a horse and a donkey, commonly known as a “horse mule”. Its hooves are small, and the tendons of its limbs are strong and tough. It is not only tolerant of coarse feed and hard work, with strong disease resistance and adaptability, but also has great and lasting pulling power. Therefore it is suitable for pulling carts and carrying loads, and mules very rarely can reproduce; if it is the interspecific hybrid born from crossing a male horse and a female donkey, its body shape resembles a donkey, so it is commonly known as a “donkey mule”.
2. Mules are divided into horse mules and donkey mules. The offspring of a male donkey and a female horse is also called a horse mule, while the reverse is called a donkey mule. The horse mule is immensely strong, far beyond what horses and donkeys can match, while the donkey mule is good at running, which donkeys also cannot match.
3. Mules have made great contributions to humans. In some remote mountainous areas, especially areas with underdeveloped transportation, mules are even more useful. They endure hardship and work hard without complaint, and from ancient times to the present, the mule has always been a byword for honesty and sturdiness. However, mules also have shortcomings. They themselves cannot reproduce, and they also have too stubborn a temper and are not very obedient, and for this they inevitably suffer physical pain in their lives. How to breed them into mules that can both endure hardship and work hard and are obedient and easy to use has cost our forebears great effort, and it is still necessary to keep crossing horses and donkeys. How to pass on the excellent qualities of mules from generation to generation and enable them to serve the people well is also a very important research topic at present.