Equine (Horse) Services

As with small animals, we want to be a partner in your horse’s care. Yearly exams provide an opportunity for you to communicate any concerns or current issues. The focus is disease prevention, improving health and detecting unrecognized health problems. It is a comprehensive process, meant to analyze the whole picture. We start with discussing your horses’ medical history. This included pervious health problems or injuries, vaccination and deworming programs, and general management (nutrition, lifestyle, exposure to other horses). We then preform a complete physical exam. A physical exam has many steps including the general appearance of your horse, listening to them with a stethoscope (auscultation) and feeling specific areas of their body (palpation). We observe how your horse moves, their behavior, general body condition, coat, skin, eyes, ear, mouth, and teeth. We auscultate their heart, lungs, and abdomen. We palpate pulses, lymph nodes, joints, limbs, and the abdomen. Based on this, further laboratory tests may be recommended including a complete blood count, fibrinogen, SAA, lactate, and chemistry panel. We perform a fecal floatation for senior horses’ test for Equine Metabolic Syndrome and Cushing’s Disease. After all this information is gathered, we will make recommendations on vaccinations, deworming and any other areas of concern. Remember, the goal is to promote wellness, prevent disease and health problems, and detect problems while better treatment options are available. If you have questions or want to schedule an appointment, give us a call!

Blood tests and other laboratory tests are essential in aiding us to keep your horse healthy and diagnosing illness. We have certain tests that can be run at the time of your mobile appointment. We also have access to laboratory equipment that can provide further results in 24-48 hours. These tests let us know if there are any worrisome changes in your horse’s heath. Some of these include colic, extreme infection, dehydration, electrolyte imbalances, and exercise-induced muscle cramping. These diagnostic tests with quick turnaround helps us to quickly get on the right track to aid your horse. This can be included in annual exams or during a time of concern for your horse’s health.

Before purchasing a horse, a pre-purchase exam is conducted to identify any preexisting problems that may hinder the horse’s future performance and aid in reducing buyer risk. We offer different levels of pre-purchase exams that are tailored to your needs. The baseline exam can sometimes take a few hours, as even this is very thorough. It involves listening to the horse, palpating all the joints and tendons, and watching the horse move with or without a rider. (We can do radiographs of certain areas based on the horse’s movements and future discipline.) We can also add in baseline bloodwork, drug testing, and tendon ultrasound. We will give a brief recommendation at the time of the exam and thorough report within 24-48 hours.

Lameness exams are typically one of the longer appointments that we have with our horses and their owners. We start with a full physical exam, taking time to palpate the soft tissues of the limbs and the joints. We will then watch the horse move (sometimes even with a rider). We may perform different flexing and stretch of the limbs and then watch the horse move again. In some cases, we may strategically use injections to numb certain areas to help aid in locating the source of the pain/lameness. (We then use this information to establish where we should take x-rays or use the ultrasound.) Once final thoughts are confirmed about the cause of the problem, we will work with you to make a treatment plan. This can include physical therapy, acupuncture, injections, and medications.

A Coggins test detects antibodies against Equine Infectious Anemia virus (EIA). Once a horse becomes infected with this virus, they remain infected for life. Unfortunately, there is no available vaccine. A negative Coggins test is required for health certificates. We use an online program to aid in getting the paperwork to you as quickly as possible.

We understand that emergencies happen, and we aim to be available to provide consultation and/or care 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, year-round.  If unavailable, we will make sure you have the resources to contact another veterinary professional. Typical emergencies that we can aid in complete care include wounds and lacerations, colic, choke, distress during foaling, respiratory issues, and some toxicities. We can consult, begin care and aid in directing you to the proper resources for the remaining emergencies. Colic is by far the most common emergency a horse owner can experience. Colic indicates a discomfort occurring in the abdomen, and there are many underlying causes that may trigger colic. We start with an examination and make the best decisions for your horse from there.

With lameness and general care of your horse, proper hoof care and farrier work is vital. This is the building block for healthy movement and essential in managing any lameness problem. (We will utilize digital radiographs to make computer-generated measurements that allow us to formulate a specific trim and shoe for your horse.) This can be the most essential aspect of recovery from lameness and return to performance.