Articles
Stay informed with our topical articles, all written by our equine vets.Sweet Itch
Sweet itch is a common disease of horses in summer causing them to rub their mane, tail and body. It is caused by a hypersensitive reaction to the saliva of the female Culicoides midge. Affected patients can suffer from frenzied itching of the mane, tail, head, poll and abdominal areas. This results in loss of […]
Read MoreAnaesthesia with ‘Womble’
Under a general anaesthetic, concsciousness is lost preventing pain and stress to the horse before, during and after major surgery. Horses that are to undergo surgery under general anaesthesia are admitted to the clinic the day before their procedure. They will be thoroughly assessed to detect any potential risks. This involves examining the heart, lungs and […]
Read MorePreventing gastric ulcers
Squamous ulceration and glandular ulceration are considered separate disease entities and whilst the risk factors for squamous ulceration are well publicised, further research is required for glandular ulcerative disease. By knowing the risk factors for ulcerative disease, we can endeavour to develop prevention strategies. In some horses, it is impossible to ascertain the trigger factor […]
Read MoreMRI provides the key to the diagnosis for Toby
Toby, a 7 year-old, Cob cross pony presented to Oakhill with a several week history of mild, right forelimb lameness. Despite a short period of box rest and pain-relief, the lameness did not resolve, and a veterinary opinion was sought. Nikki Platt, our senior lameness veterinary surgeon examined the pony and noted that the pony’s […]
Read MoreWhy is my horse’s sheath swelling and how can I tackle the winter worm burden in my horse?
To continue our series on Winter medical conditions, in this newsletter, we are going to cover swollen sheaths and worming your horse at this time of year. Swollen Sheaths It is quite common for geldings/stallions to present to us with swollen sheaths over the Winter months. More often than not, sheath swelling results from the […]
Read MoreIs my horse’s poor ridden performance due to discomfort?
We’ve all been there! Feeling frustrated that your horse won’t pick up the correct canter lead, or does he/she disunite behind in canter? Will your horse perform lateral work happily one way and not the other way? Does it struggle to use it’s hindlimbs correctly to provide power to the gait? Or does it have […]
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