Dec 19, 2015 | Castration
Castration Clinic 2015
Dear intact, neutered, and spayed followers,
This past Saturday I supervised our annual castration clinic, and it was a huge success! 12 former stallions left here as happy geldings (well, the happy part is subjective, but I know their owners will thank us later). The vet students did an awesome job, and hopefully gained a lot of useful experience for their future careers.
I’m not clear on all the scienc-ey details, but here’s the Springhill Equine castration protocol as I could tell from my distant vantage point:
Step 1- catheter placement: Wary vet student attempts to hold untrained weanling still, while other vet student stabs a 2-inch needle in weanling’s neck with trembling hands.
Step 2- inducing anesthesia: 90lb vet student attempts to guide 800lb horse to the ground gracefully. It usually isn’t all that pretty. Students tie lots of knots around horse’s legs because they don’t remember exactly how to do that neat rope trick that Dr. Lacher or Dr. Vurgason taught them.
Step 3- surgical prep: senior vet student suddenly forgets how to don sterile gloves, and how to put a scalpel blade on a handle. Junior vet student scrubs surgical site way more thoroughly than necessary. Meanwhile, half of anesthesia time has passed, and horse already needs another dose.
Step 4- castration: All I heard was Dr. Vurgason and Dr. Lacher saying over and over, “cut deeper, push harder, make your incision longer…” Bless their hearts, they are just learning. I tried chanting “Be aggressive! B-E-aggressive!” to help them along.
Step 5- power tools: Tomcats, you may not want to read this part. Basically they attach a scary-looking clamp, it makes a sickening crunching noise, and an excited vet student runs a DRILL which more or less twists the testicle off. Job done!
After watching one or two of these, I thought it best to take a nap in Dr. Vurgason’s truck for the rest of the day. Of course the best part was all the pets and treats I received from 30 eager vet students! Made all the blood and gore worthwhile.
If you have a stallion who yearns to become a gelding, be sure to keep an eye out for next year’s castration clinic! It’s always a good time (don’t ask the horses).
-Tony
Dec 8, 2015 | Ailments, FES, Leg issues
Tuesdays With Tony and FES Awareness
The weather outside is perfect. I love nothing more than to lie in the middle of the driveway, soaking up the sun, and watching the humans drive around me. Good times. I have noticed that my favorite weather coincides with more work for the horses we see here. It seems the humans like being outside more when it doesn’t feel like some horrible gym sauna that got the worst Yelp reviews ever. This means it’s time to get those equine athletes fit and ready to go. Best way to get your horse feeling great: FES
Want even more information? Read this article about an Olympic Event Horse
FES. What the heck is that you ask? This cat says it’s pure amazingness. FES stands for Functional Electrical Stimulation. This magic machine sends electrical pulses into your muscle causing it to contract and relax. But the feeling!! FES feels like one of those massaging chairs turned on inside your muscle. As the power goes up, the feeling goes deeper and the muscles contract harder. When the session is done I am left purring, making biscuits, and maybe, just maybe, drooling a bit on my pillow. Any muscle soreness I had, is gone. That pesky left hip pain is a thing of the past. The best part is the next day: I can leap from the counter to the top of the dryer and on to my favorite spot on the cabinet with ease.
What does all that mean for horses? Well like me, most horses have done something less than smart in their lifetime. I said something mean to Teannie once and she broke my leg. This left me weaker on my left side. I was supposed to do special exercises to strengthen the leg, but I didn’t and it left me a little uneven behind. We all know our horses can do the same thing. Ok maybe not break a leg, but get a small injury or strain and end up a little crooked. This FES thing fixes all of that.
Does your horse regularly put their hip or back or ribs or neck or poll out? You can fix the bones repeatedly but until the muscles will hold them there they won’t stay. The FES retrains the muscles on a cellular level. It tells them they need to stop spasming and go back to normal. Once the muscles are back to pulling evenly on the bones: VOILA!! They stay where they are supposed to.
I have been listening to Dr. Lacher talk about lameness a lot recently. Veterinarians, human doctors, and researchers are shifting their ideas about how injuries work. There has long been a focus on finding the arthritis and treating it. But there’s a better way. Arthritis is the end of the process not the beginning. The problem starts when there is a small injury causing the horse to travel crooked which loads the joints unevenly which strains the supporting structures causing them to lay down extra bone to shore up the connections. That extra bone is arthritis. Injecting the joint treats the final stages but doesn’t address the problem that got it there. FES is one powerful tool Dr. Lacher uses to treat the crookedness that eventually leads to arthritis.
Get rid of sore muscles, get more sit, more power, and more straightness. Sign up for FES sessions today!
Dec 1, 2015 | Allergies, Feed, Leg issues, Pests, Skin Funk
Being the jolly cat I am, it is my favorite time of year. Bright, shiny stuff called Christmas decorations to play with, the Castration Clinic at the Hospital, paper and boxes from presents delivered to the Hospital, and general good cheer among all. In keeping with the season, I have spoken with many of our patients, and our Docs and technicians and compiled Springhill Equine’s Top 5 list of things your horse wants from Santa.
1. Fly Sheets: Mosquito Mesh Flyshield Sheet
Why this one? It is super light for our hot summer but the mesh is fine enough to keep those dangs gnats away. For added airflow, trim out the lining at the shoulders and mane. Removing the lining hasn’t created any rubbing issues and has kept the horse cooler. This sheet also held up well to horseplay and fit a wide variety of horses. Beware of the similar non-Flyshield version. It fit no horse well.
2. Grazing Muzzles: Tough 1 Grazing Muzzle or Harmany Grazing Muzzle
OK, so a grazing muzzle may not be on your horse’s wish list, but it is at the top of your veterinarian’s wish list. Our poor Docs see lots of horses with a weight problem. I can sympathize. My large stature caused me to have diabetes until a diet and exercise program helped me reverse it. While horses don’t get diabetes, they do get laminitis, or founder, when overweight. Obese horses are also pretty much guaranteed to develop Cushings later in life. These two grazing muzzles provide the best combination of comfort, breathability, and portion control.
3. Socks for your horse: Equiflexsleeve or Silver Whinnys
Tired of wrapping legs? Worried about all that heat under quilts and wraps in the summer? Need to decrease swelling or cover a wound, but you still want to turn your horse out? Seriously, the greatest things since sliced tuna (humans say bread, but I really don’t like bread very much). Equiflexsleeves reduce swelling in the lower legs, your horse can wear them inside or out, they breath, and they are stupid easy to put on and take off. Oh, and they make a lot less laundry than all those quilts and wraps! Sox for horses is the name of the silver impregnated bandages Coby is wearing. These work similar to Equiflexsleeves but, go higher and lower on the leg and have the added advantage of being antibacterial. If you need to cover a wound, or if your horse is prone to scratches, dew poisoning, greasy heel, or whatever you want to call it, then you need a pair of these!
4. Fly Mask: Nag Horse Ranch fly masks. Dr. Lacher owns the Queen of Fly Mask destruction. And while these don’t last forever with her, they certainly hold up pretty darn well. In addition, when they do lose a right ear (and they do, it just takes 3 months instead of 3 minutes), back they go for repair. They block more UV light than any other mask on the market and can be custom made for your horse pretty easily.
5. Small hole hay nets: HayChix or Big Bale Buddy
Save yourself a ton of money, reduce waste, and help control your horse’s weight. Small hole hay nets for your big bales are AAHHMAZING. Added bonus: your horse won’t have their entire head stuck in the hay bale breathing in all that dust and mold.
Nov 24, 2015 | Cold weather, Colic, Feed
Thanksgiving Day
Hello all….so last year at this time I was pondering what “I” would be doing for my Thanksgiving. The humans were around here discussing their plans for dinner with their family. So I decided to go on my own adventure. One of our clients came into the clinic with a trailer. I saw an open opportunity to make the great escape. After all the discussion about dinners, I wanted some turkey, giblets, mashed potatoes, and all the other wonderful food they were discussing. So, I hopped into the trailer in the stealth mode that I can do from time to time. I remained silent in the trailer, and then off we went. I was on my own holiday adventure and I was going to have me some turkey and not be stuck alone with my sister in the clinic. I arrived with all kinds of anticipation but I could not let the humans know I had made the great escape. I am sure they were extremely worried about me at the clinic but I did not care, I was going to have turkey dinner. I decided to make my grand appearance a day or so later and wow were they surprised to see me! They kept asking, “What I was doing here”? “How did you get here”? Silly humans and their questions…..a cat will never tell! So this year, unfortunately, they are onto me and I won’t be making the great escape again this year. Maybe someone can bring me a taste of turkey this year….If not, have a Happy Thanksgiving!
However, being inside for the weekend isn’t all bad. I sure would hate to be out and about with the cooler temperatures that have arrived in North Central Florida. I have seen and heard some strange things around the office about SALT and horses! Ya don’t say?? From what I understand, you add salt to the horse’s feed in the evenings (yuck not a cat thing) and according to Dr Lacher, this should stimulate them to drink more water because it makes them thirsty. The key thing here is keeping these guys and gals hydrated in the cooler temperatures so that you don’t have to call us out in the middle of the night because your horse is colicing. We have had several phone calls this past week with horses needing our help. I can get on board with the Docs recommendation to keep lots of food in front of the horses. Hay in particular but I’m not sure about that nasty stuff. The Docs say hay acts as an internal heater when the horses digest it and, if it is alfalfa or peanut hay, it keeps the poop moving. I can’t believe how difficult it is for horses to perform this basic operation: moving poop. So on really cold or wet nights throw an extra flake or two of hay to your horse, and they will stay toasty warm.
And now my feline opinion on blankets: I love them! Soft, warm, fluffy, great to curl up in, and purr. Yep, love blankets. Horses sometimes love blankets. Most horses handle our cold weather just fine. Older or fine haired horses may need blankets on the coldest nights. If they are shivering, our Docs recommend a blanket but if not then they are happy frolicking naked through the winter’s eve. Clipped horses definitely need blankets since not only have we taken off all their hair (appalling thought for a cat) but what little hair they have left doesn’t work like the natural stuff to block rain and wind.
I have generously closed the office Thursday and Friday for Thanksgiving. But Dr Lacher is still reachable at 352-474-5007 for emergencies.
Nov 17, 2015 | Feed, Hay
Tuesday’s With Tony – Hay Seminar
I have decided a contest is in order. I have also decided this hashtag thing is here to stay. Furthermore, I have scheduled an opportunity for my adoring fans to come see me and learn about hay this evening at 6:30 pm at the Clinic. Put all that together and you come up with: Put a post on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter with #SpringhillEquine and you at our Hay Seminar. On Wednesday I will choose one lucky hashtagger to win an awesome prize package. So attend the Hay Seminar, #SpringhillEquine while you are here, bribe the cat to pick you, and win an awesome prize. The most important part is the cat bribery. I am very picky. I like meat, preferably tuna or turkey.
In other fun around here we just started with a new online pharmacy. Why is this exciting for the cat? It isn’t really, other than the humans had a training session on it and I got to stand in front of the screen and push random keys on the keyboard. That was a seriously good time. Prescriptions have been a bit of a trial for us. Our Doctors are all for prescriptions but it turns out most places just aren’t very good at it. We get faxed a prescription, our Doc signs it, sends it back, we get faxed again, we sign again, they lose it again. It’s a vicious circle. As it turns out, some of the catalogs don’t use properly labeled drugs. It all just ends up being a mess. So in an effort to make life easier we are using a new and improved pharmacy: Vet’s First Choice
It’s super easy to get to: http://springhillequine.com/ and the button at the top left corner. Simply press the button and you will go to our pharmacy. They offer free shipping on lots of different items and you can use the coupon code WELCOME25 on your first order for $25 off. Check it out and let us know what you think.
Nov 10, 2015 | Drugs
What better to do on a dreary Monday than help Beth with inventory? After spending late last week bugging Dr. Vurgason with “Is she here yet? Is she here yet?” (the answer is no) and supervising Dr. Lacher while she performed lameness evaluations at the clinic, I was looking for something a little more low-key to start my week off.
Beth is in charge of making sure we have all the stuff the Docs need to do their jobs, and boy is she serious about it! I’m going to warn you not to nap in a box she hasn’t unpacked yet. She gets a little angry about it. My supervision on Monday did lead me to a greater understanding of all the stuff we have. Generally I limit my time in the pharmacy to finding the best sleeping spot. It is in the VetWrap box, in case you were interested.
Let’s start with things that put stuff in horses. We have 10 different kinds of syringes and another 8 different kinds of needles. On top of that, we have 4 different sizes and kinds of catheters. Beth said the Docs have to be able to give different quantities of medications and give them in different way. For instance, injecting a joint uses a smaller needle than an IV injection, and some horses get so many IV injections we put a catheter in them. Foals need smaller catheters than big horses, and if the catheter is going to be in longer than 7 days, we use a different kind. Several different kinds of suture for all those cuts horses get were over in this area as well. It got very complicated very quickly!
Near the sharp stuff we had plastic tubes, which had me baffled. Turns out that was the breeding equipment area. Being neutered, this isn’t my area of expertise, but I learned we use different things for frozen semen vs. shipped, cooled semen, vs. live cover. We also have longer tubes to put fluid and treatments in to the mare’s uterus. There was also an AV (artificial vagina) for collecting stallions for breeding. Beth told me some treatments we keep for use in the mares includes antibiotics, treatments for mucous and something rather gross sounding called biofilm, and just plain fluids.
Next we moved on to lots of lotions, potions, pills, and pastes. From this I learned that horses have delicate stomachs, they like pain medication, and their skin gets very funky in this lovely Florida heat and humidity (see my earlier post about why I live indoors). Oh, and they like to poke their eyes on stuff. Heck, we keep 4 different kinds of eye ointment in stock, and there are times we can’t order it fast enough! Beth told me horses really, really like to poke their eyes and with all that eye stuff I don’t think I could argue.
Last but not least, on the shelves we had all the injectable products. This covers an array of equine ailments. Beth told me some of the stuff was also sedation. Sedation sounded nice… especially with a catnip chaser!
Our pharmacy also has bandaging stuff, hoof stuff, vaccines, more antibiotics, emergency drugs, stuff to make horses sleep, stuff to wake horses up, and drugs that make mares come in heat. Personally I find the bandaging stuff to be the best part, since napping is great in that area. Moral of my day with Beth is that we have a lot of things in that room. Our Docs have to be prepared for just about anything to happen, anytime. We have foaling, surgery, bandaging, antibioticing, anti-inflamming, bellyache treating, life-saving and more so that our Docs are ready. And Beth has my admiration for keeping it all in-stock and ready to go!
Nov 3, 2015 | Ailments, Feed, Leg issues
Tuesdays with Tony – November 3, 2015
Ok, I am all for summer. Really I am, even as a black cat. Sunshine until 9pm, green grass, afternoon thunderstorms. It’s all great. Then Fall is supposed to come. Even in North Central Florida there is a season which is less hot and humid than the one called Summer. Some people call it Fall, Winter, or Spring. Around here, it’s really just not Summer but at least it’s not Summer and that doesn’t seem to be happening. Luckily, as the smart species, I just hang in the air conditioned office where I can kick Renee out of her chair and sleep in comfort.
Horses, not being as smart as cats, are stuck outside in this heat and humidity. Even worse, many of them think that they should grow a winter coat. Mother Nature gave them an internal clock which says come August 15th it’s time to get ready for winter. This worked fantastic on the steppes of Mongolia
(horses evolved there) where summer was often a balmy 65 degrees but here in Florida where it is 90 degrees on November 1st, not so much. All this adds up to some very hot horses.
What’s a horse got to do to stay cool around here? Well, as a cat, I recommend moving in to the house, supervising the humans, and demanding food at all hours of the day and night. However, if you can’t move inside have your human get out the clippers. Just like us cats, especially Teanie, my cohort in crime at Springhill Equine, horses have more than one layer to their coats. When they grow a winter coat they not only grow longer hair, but they grow more undercoat. Undercoats are awesome…if you live somewhere with Winter! Undercoats hold on to body heat, offer water resistance, and puff up your upper coat making even more insulation. None of that is good if you are trying to cool off. Clipping removes the long hairs and shortens the undercoat so the heat can leave the skin. The trade-off is no more waterproof layer. The answer: the ever-artistic trace clip. Trace clips take off the hair where most of the body heat needs to leave. Most commonly this is the underside of the neck and belly, and up the flank a bit where horses sweat the most. Depending on what your horse does you can increase or decrease the size of the clipped area. This leaves hair, and thus waterproofing, on the top-line. Most horses in Florida can get through an entire winter without a blanket with a trace clip.
Having really embraced domestication I find the temperature controlled environment of the clinic to be ideal for this cat. Horses just haven’t quite moved in to the house and are stuck outside in the weather (eww, I mean all that nature). Need help sorting out if your horse is sick, hot, or lame? Give us a call. Oh, and Baby Vurgason, you can get here any time now 😉
Nov 2, 2015 | Events
Sooo, let me start by saying, I am the star of this show! ME, Tony, that’s why they call it Tuesdays with Tony. The humans ran around here all last week talking about some event happening on Saturday. It sounded like it was going to be an exciting time and I was looking forward to meeting a multitude of people with some really strange names.
Saturday Mallie came in to poke and feed me yeah….that was the highlight of my day. However, there was nothing going on here at the clinic. She said she had to be off and running to go to a thing called a Wedding? WHAT you say? (Yes my response exactly). Seems our infamous Dr Lacher got married and that was the event of the day!
Now why am I so upset about this? Because I am supposed to be the star of the show around here (at least that is what they keep telling me) and from what I hear, Dr Lacher and Justin stole the day away! Then there was Gandolf (preacher), Lara Croft (Dr Lacher) and King Arthur (Justin). I hear they said some pretty awesome vows to each other devoting their love, friendship, future and happiness together.
I found it very curious that she climbed a tree and descended down upon her guests and groom with her Maid of Honor Michele the spider, while King Arthur galloped to his lovely bride to be with Kristen the Jedi Knight.
There were many other guests that arrived to witness this wonderful event: Curious George and his Handler, Juno and Bleeker, Batman and Robin, Mork, Indiana Jones, Luke Skywalker, Caesar and The Fairy God Mother, Elmo and Cookie Monster, Dr Who #10, Fred and Wilma, Bonnie and Clyde and the list just goes on. How I would have loved to have met all these people. But no,
I spent my Saturday napping instead of enjoying the festivities as you can see from the picture of the Springhill Staff Members.
I heard that it was a good time had by all and congratulations are in order for our good Dr! I did get to see the pictures of this amazing event and very happy for them and their turnout.
Now I hear, I will be upstaged again in a couple of weeks by Baby Vurguson…..
Please join me in congratulating them both! (I need my food bowl full)
Left to Right: Charly, Mallie, Beth, Dr. Vurgason, Dr. Lacher, Justin, Nancy, and Renee
Oct 13, 2015 | Dentals, Events, Leg issues
Tuesdays with Tony
Holy busy week Bat Cat!! This has been one really busy week around here. Not only did the Docs stay super busy but also I had to make sure everything was ready to go for our annual See Tony event the humans call Open House. I have included some pictures for those of you who didn’t make it. Just know that I know who you are and I am judging you for not stopping by to see me.
Let’s start with cases.
We had a few older horses that needed some teeth removed. Unlike cats, horse’s teeth continue to erupt as they age. This means when they get older they have a really short tooth with no root holding it in. This week the Docs saw three horses for routine dentistry that had loose teeth. Luckily these teeth are very easy to extract and it doesn’t seem to bother the horses much. They still get a local Novocain block, and some pain medication but usually once the teeth are out they feel much better.
The horse we cut all that nasty Pythium stuff off of is doing pretty darn well. I got to do a brief cat scan on her when she came by for a checkup. The Docs are using some really cool silver impregnated socks on her legs to help cover the wounds while letting them air out but not exposing them to flies. So far they are feeling pretty good about the socks. Personally I think the horse looks rather silly wearing them and I would never tolerate that as a cool cat.
On Friday while I was trying my best to supervise See Tony 2015, I mean Open House; the Docs were in my way all afternoon working on putting this funny camera thing they called an endoscope up the nose of a horse to see inside a thing they called the guttural pouches. I asked why horses have this crazy pouch in the back of their throat and the answer was no one really knows but they think it works to cool blood on its way to the brain during high speed exercise. That explains why cats don’t work that way: no high speed exercise here thank you very much. Turns out guttural pouches like to get infected and it can be hard to fix. The endoscope let them get a sample directly from the pouch and test it for different bacteria and fungus so they could treat exactly what the problem was. Then Dr. Lacher was busy working on lameness. This horse had a tear in the check ligament. I asked what she was checking the ligament for and she said no it’s called the Check Ligament. I knew that all along; I was just messing with her. It’s what a cat does. Dr. Lacher told me this injury is usually one of the easier ones to manage in horses. A bit of rest and some rehabilitation and off they go. Unfortunately, this horse has re-injured his check ligament. Good news is this ligament isn’t 100% necessary so a little bit of surgery, a little bit of rest, and a little bit of rehab and he should be fine.
Finally, on to the most important day of the week: See Tony Saturday. I kept the humans here late in to the night on Friday and got them here early in the day on Saturday so that all would be perfect for my day. I was so happy to see you all and I trust you learned lots from my minions, I mean humans. I also have to give a big shout out to Bross Hogg’s Lunch Wagon for some seriously good food!
Oct 6, 2015 | Events
Tuesdays with Tony
What am I doing you ask? Getting ready for Open House 2015 on Saturday from 10am to 2pm.
That’s right it’s time for our Annual Come Meet Tony Festival. Some people in the office call it our Open House. Call it what you want but I know everyone really comes to see me. I like to give back to you, my adoring fans. We are giving away a Complete Wellness Package for 2016, polo wraps, pallet art, hats, sweatshirts, baskets of goodies, and more. Of course there will be food (if you share it with me don’t tell since they have me on this crazy diet for my diabetes), if you want to talk to my staff I will allow it, and there will be all kinds of cool stuff to learn.
While not supervising preparations for the Open House on Saturday between 10am and 2pm I have been watching over Dr. Vurgason. We sent Dr. Lacher off on what some say was a well deserved vacation so I had to take over all management duties. Luckily for her Dr. Vurgason does a great job so I only had to watch from my perch on the desk. Dr. V rechecked our horse who fell through the trailer. He is looking great thanks to my regular CAT scans. Along with vaccines, dentals, fecals, and the general routine stuff, Dr. V. sutured up a great eyelid laceration. Those are always fun!
In case I haven’t mentioned it yet we are having an Open House on Saturday from 10am to 2pm. Be there or incur the wrath of a black cat!
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