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\"Opens with a true story about a young girl and her bond with therapy horses and follows with the history of therapy horses, what breeds are used, the training involved, what the horses do on the job, and what happens to therapy horses when they retire\"-- Provided by publisher.

This book will help licensed professional counselors incorporate Equine Assisted Counseling (EAC) into their practices, even those who have little prior experience working with horses. It provides a strong research foundation for understanding the efficacy of equine assisted interventions and the potentially powerful impact that a horse can have in creating a new counseling dynamic. Chapters address using horses to help clients dealing with various traumas and abuse, anxiety, depression, atypical behaviors, and social skills and communication issues. Additionally, a chapter by the internationally renowned \"horse whisperer\" Pat Parelli offers a look at EAC from the horse's point of view and demonstrates developing a relationship with a therapy horse in a positive, safe, and respectful manner. Counselors will find this a valuable resource for understanding and utilizing EAC as a new resource in their own practices, as will students seeking to learn about this innovative approach.

Aplastic anaemia (AA) is a rare bone marrow failure disorder with a notably higher incidence in Asian populations, including India. Due to limited access to bone marrow transplantation (BMT) in resource-limited settings, immunosuppressive therapy (IST) remains the mainstay of treatment. However, the optimal combination of available IST regimens in low-resource environments remains uncertain. Therefore, we performed a meta-analysis to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of various immunosuppressive strategies—particularly equine antithymocyte globulin (eATG) combined with cyclosporine A (CSA), with or without eltrombopag (EPAG), as well as CSA and anabolic steroids-based monotherapies, for the treatment of AA in Indian patients. Fifty-nine studies (49 single-arm, 10 multi-arm) from PubMed, Google Scholar, and Indian Society of Haematology & Blood Transfusion (ISHBT) conference proceedings from December 1995 to December 2024 were included. The primary outcomes comprised overall response rates (ORRs) at 3, 6, and 12 months. Secondary outcomes included 5-year overall survival (OS), event-free survival (EFS), and treatment-related adverse events (TRAEs). Pooled estimates were calculated using a random-effects model, and heterogeneity was assessed with I² statistics. Meta-regression was used to explore sources of variability, and sensitivity analyses assessed the robustness of the pooled outcomes. Response rates (RR) varied significantly across treatment modalities and time points. In single-arm analysis, monotherapy with CSA or anabolic steroids showed limited efficacy, with pooled ORRs at 3 months of 26.9% and 19.77%, respectively. In contrast, dual therapy with eATG plus CSA substantially improved outcomes, achieving ORRs of 45.4% at 3 months and 62.99% at 6 months. A comparable trend was observed with THYMOGAM (an Indigenous eATG) plus CSA, with ORRs of 44.7% and 59.6% at the same intervals. The most pronounced benefit was noted with triple therapy regimens. The combination of eATG + CSA + EPAG yielded the highest ORRs—63.1% at 3 months, 80.7% at 6 months, and sustained 79.4% at 12 months. THYMOGAM-based triple therapy also performed well, maintaining an ORR of approximately 52% at 3 months. At 12 months, most combination therapies showed stable or slightly reduced responses, whereas monotherapy results remained poor or unchanged. A comparative analysis of double-arm studies further revealed differences in treatment efficacy. The RRs between THYMOGAM + CSA and ATGAM + CSA at 3, 6, and 12 months were not statistically significant (OR 0.69, p  = 0.13; OR 0.72, p  = 0.12, and OR 0.67, p  = 0.23, respectively). Similarly, comparative analysis of dual therapy (eATG + CSA) with triple therapy (eATG + CSA + EPAG) at 6 months showed no significant difference in ORRs (OR 0.67, p  = 0.50). In survival analysis, the eATG + CSA and THYMOGAM + CSA demonstrated 5-year OS rates of 74.90% and 73%, respectively. The 5-year EFS rate for eATG + CSA was 63.5%. Common TRAEs included febrile neutropenia and serum sickness. Mortality rates showed no significant differences among different treatments regimens: eATG + CSA vs. ATGAM + CSA (11.31% vs. 6.24%, p  = 0.15), THYMOGAM + CSA vs. ATGAM + CSA (13.15% vs. 6.24%, p  = 0.17), and eATG + CSA vs. eATG + CSA + anabolic steroids (11.31% vs. 15.03%, p  = 0.41). In conclusion, IST remains an effective frontline approach for AA patients in India, especially where transplant options are limited. Regimens incorporating EPAG offer superior response rates, and THYMOGAM presents a cost-effective yet clinically viable alternative to ATGAM. These insights support more tailored, accessible treatment strategies in resource-constrained settings.

\"Provides comprehensive information on how horses provide help to people with injuries and illnesses through therapy\"-- Provided by publisher.

The practice of prophylactic administration of a macrolide antimicrobial with rifampin (MaR) to apparently healthy foals with pulmonary lesions identified by thoracic ultrasonography (i.e., subclinically pneumonic foals) is common in the United States. The practice has been associated epidemiologically with emergence of R. equi resistant to MaR. Here, we report direct evidence of multi-drug resistance among foals treated with MaR. In silico and in vitro analysis of the fecal microbiome and resistome of 38 subclinically pneumonic foals treated with either MaR (n = 19) or gallium maltolate (GaM; n = 19) and 19 untreated controls was performed. Treatment with MaR, but not GaM, significantly decreased fecal microbiota abundance and diversity, and expanded the abundance and diversity of antimicrobial resistance genes in feces. Soil plots experimentally infected with Rhodococcus equi ( R. equi ) and treated with MaR selected for MaR-resistant R. equi , whereas MaR-susceptible R. equi out-competed resistant isolates in GaM-treated or untreated plots. Our results indicate that MaR use promotes multi-drug resistance in R. equi and commensals that are shed into their environment where they can persist and potentially infect or colonize horses and other animals.

\"This book will help licensed professional counselors incorporate Equine Assisted Counseling (EAC) into their practices, even those who have no prior experience working with horses. It provides a strong research foundation for understanding the efficacy of equine assisted interventions and the potentially powerful impact that a horse can have in creating a new counseling dynamic. Chapters address using horses to help clients dealing with various traumas and abuse, anxiety, depression, atypical behaviors, and social skills and communication issues. One chapter is written by the internationally renowned \"horse whisperer\" Pat Parilli and offers a look at EAC from the horse's point of view and describes the process of developing a relationship with the horse in a positive, safe, and respectful manner, an important topic to ensure the well-being of the horse throughout a session. Counselors will find this a valuable resource for understanding and utilizing EAC as a new resource in their own practices, as will students seeking to learn about this innovative approach\"--Provided by publisher.

Abstract Background Many horses receive firocoxib over multiple years, and studies evaluating hematologic and biochemical values in these animals are lacking. Objective To describe the hematologic and biochemical values of horses receiving long-term firocoxib. Animals A total of 79 horses receiving long-term firocoxib and 153 horses not receiving long-term firocoxib and not presenting for a specific medical problem. Methods Retrospective study comparing horses receiving firocoxib (F group) and no firocoxib (NF group). Signalment, hematologic, and biochemical values were compared between the two groups. Simple linear regression was used to evaluate the relationship between the duration of firocoxib administration and specific laboratory variables. Results Horses receiving long-term firocoxib (F) were 19 (5–33) years as compared to 15 (1–33) years for the NF group (p < 0.0001). The most common reason for receiving firocoxib was osteoarthritis in 44/79 (56%) of the animals in the F group. Horses in the F group had a total protein concentration of 6.6 (5.8–8.0) g/dL as compared to 6.5 (5.1–8) g/dL in the NF group (p = 0.03). The sodium concentration for F horses was 139 (133–143) mmol/L as compared to 138 (129–145) mmol/L for NF horses (p = 0.01). Total white blood cell count was 6.11 (2.82–14.36) 103 cells/uL in the F group as compared to 6.46 (3.04–14.71) 103 cells/uL in the NF group (p = 0.03). None of the laboratory variables were associated with the duration of firocoxib administration. Conclusions and Clinical Importance Many horses receive firocoxib for multiple years, and equine practitioners should be aware that expected changes in laboratory values are minimal.

\"An examination of autism, its characteristics, and how working with horses (equine-assisted activities and therapies) can help those with autism gain independence, confidence, and means of communication\"-- Provided by publisher.

Despite (or perhaps, because of) its induction of a more profound level of immune suppression, rabbit ATG was significantly less effective than horse ATG in producing hematologic remission in patients with aplastic anemia. Acquired aplastic anemia in its severe form is fatal without treatment. The disease is characterized pathologically by an “empty” bone marrow, in which hematopoietic precursor cells are replaced by fat, resulting in pancytopenia. 1 Severe aplastic anemia was first definitively treated with the development of stem-cell transplantation in the 1970s. The serendipitous observation of autologous marrow reconstitution in a few patients with rejected grafts suggested that the conditioning agents required for transplantation might themselves be therapeutic. 2 Purposeful immunosuppression induced by the infusion of antithymocyte globulin (ATG), polyclonal antibodies generated in animals by inoculation with human thymocytes, proved to be effective, with . . .