Dr. Robert Miller's Articles

I will be forever grateful to the Spalding Labs company for their Fly Predators. I have previously described how our relationship began many years ago. It was 1978. I had read about the Predator Flies, and my practice partner, Dr. Larry Dresher, was using...

The most heartrending case for me (and there were many) was when I had to put a horse down because of a hopeless fatal colic. Sadly, this is not an unusual event in an equine practitioner’s career. However, the client in this case was a woman with...

Thirty-seven years ago I was on a call to a well-known boarding stable. I can’t remember why I was there, but I do remember that it was a hot August day. I was bending over, working on a horse’s right forefoot. The temperature was over 100...

The Thoroughbred horse is so inbred that every horse is more closely related to all other Thoroughbreds than first cousins. Inbreeding of course, in any species tends to fix desirable qualities such as size, color, temperament, agility, strength, intelligence...

I assume that most of you horse lovers attend, each year, at least one of the many Horse Expos held all over the U.S.A. I am fortunate to have been invited to lecture or demonstrate at nearly all the big ones in the country, some for multiple times. ...

By the time I graduated veterinary school at thirty years of age I felt very knowledgeable about horses. After all, I had driven draft teams at 15 years of age, judged Quarter Horses as a student in the University of Arizona, spent 10 summers working...

The most fascinating book I have read in quite a while is Riding Home by Tim Hayes (St. Martin’s Press, 2015). The subtitle explains the theme of the book. The Power of Horses to Heal , with a forward by Robert Redford, ultimately proclaims the...

I never could imagine in 1959, when I discovered that foals can be trained quickly, effectively and lastingly, that it would change my life and that, after practice retirement, it would result in a second career. I have taught at all but five veterinary...

My horse farm, where I have lived for 40 years, is only 5 acres. Behind us is a mountain. Across from us is a lake. To the West there is a large ranch. East of us are two small 5 acre places, one with horses, the other with other animals. East of them...

Ronald Reagan was one of my clients before he went into politics. He owned a horse ranch just a few miles from my clinic. I only saw him twice, both times when he was riding and jumping in his arena. I never spoke to him. I dealt with his ranch manager...

Unlike some traditional cowboy horsemanship methods, this one is humane, gentle, and easily done. The photo shows how I teach horses to accept hobbles. A soft burlap sack is cut up to form a large square cloth. It is then folded to make a long multi-layered...

In 1998 I celebrated my retirement from practice by signing up for a veterinary C.E. and camera safari in Kenya. As a boy, reading the books written by naturalist and explorer Carl Akeley left me with a passion to see the wild animals of east Africa...

I am a frequent speaker at horse expos, schools of veterinary medicine and equine science, veterinary conventions, and other horse related events. I meet a lot of horse people and I have often been asked, “You endorse Spalding’s Fly Predators...

I started veterinary school at what was then known as Colorado A&M in 1952. I had already acquired a Bachelor of Science degree in Arizona in 1951, but, primarily because I was not a resident of Colorado, I had already been rejected by Colorado as...

Just A Dog “From time to time, people tell me, “lighten up, it’s just a dog.” or “that’s a lot of money for just a dog.” They don’t understand the distance traveled, the time spent, or the costs involved...

It is easy to understand why so many horses are “Barnsour” or “Herdbound”. They are reluctant to leave home. Going out for a ride means a slow pace. Conversely on the way home, they are in a hurry, have to be restrained, and want...

We all recognize the physical hazards of horsemanship. It is not just due to falling off while riding. Most injuries to people occur on the ground and are inflicted by horses considered gentle. Why? Because the horse is a prey species, not equipped with...

The anatomy of the horse’s lower forelimb is identical with that of the hind limb. Why then is lower forelimb lameness so much more prevalent than hind limb lameness? I am referring to such common unsoundness as high ringbone, low ringbone, splints...

Pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction (PPID) of horses, commonly known as Cushing’s Syndrome is gaining more and more attention, and that’s because it is becoming more common. Affecting usually older horses, with a predisposition for certain...

Because horses are flight animals, when they get involved in accidents they often worsen the situation and increase the damage that is done because of their frantic attempts to flee. Every veterinarian who does horse practice is familiar with this fact...

The modern horse, and its evolutionary cousins, originated in North America as Eohippus, a multi-toed mammal about the size of a lamb. Domestication occurred in several parts of the world and, once domesticated, the equine species had a profound effect...

Attending Bishop Mule Days has become a Rite of Spring for Debby and me. It is held the week before Memorial Day in Bishop California, the largest town in the Owens Valley. Bishop has nearly 4,000 residents. Sandwiched between two 14,000-foot mountain...

I have been using Spalding’s Fly Predators since 1978 or 1979. I forgot the year but it was shortly after we moved to this small acreage, which provides pasture for our horses and mules. It is March and I am writing this at a resort in California’s...

Blindness is not uncommon in horses, sometimes the result of trauma, but more often caused by “Moon Blindness”. I am doing theses stories to show how remarkably well many totally blind horses get along. The horse’s other senses are...