It’s a chilly December in Florida and I’m celebrating the season by finding the warmest patches of sunshine in the Springhill Equine parking lot and knocking holiday decorations off the counters. Meanwhile, my clinic humans are busy preparing for the new year, and that includes a lot of talk about Wellness plans.

 Wellness plans are the discounted healthcare packages available from Springhill Equine to take care of your horse’s routine healthcare. Because the needs of an active show horse differ somewhat from the pasture pet that never goes further than the greenest patch of grass in your back yard, we have 3 different plans to best fit your horse’s lifestyle. Personally, I don’t understand why anyone wouldn’t sign up for one of these plans, unless they like shredding up dollar bills as much as I like shredding potted plants.

 The Pasture Pet plan is for the homebody. You rarely take your horse off property and there’s not much horse traffic on and off your farm to expose your horse to diseases carried by other horses. But don’t give me the excuse that your horse doesn’t travel so he doesn’t need vaccines. Mosquitoes travel on to your property and so can a rabid raccoon. They carry deadly diseases and they’re not going to respect your property lines. The Pasture Pet plan is perfect to take care of your horse’s basic healthcare needs. It includes wellness exams and the EWT/WN vaccine twice a year, and the rabies vaccine, coggins, dental float, sheath cleaning, fecal exam, and deworming once a year. This plan is $430 a year.

 The Weekend Warrior plan is great for the horse that heads out to trail rides or small horse shows occasionally. Because he’ll be exposed to other horses, his risk for diseases such as rhinopneumonitis and influenza is increased. In addition to everything on the Pasture Pet plan, the Weekend Warrior plan also includes vaccination against Rhino and Flu to keep your partner well protected. This plan is $500 a year.

 If you’re actively showing in any discipline, the Performance Plan is designed for your horse. In addition to all that other stuff, we include an extra visit to identify and address any minor problems and a 3^rd EWT/WN/Rhino vaccine, since your horse has a significant exposure level. This is also a good plan for horses younger than 3 years old who need extra vaccines to stay safe. Bonus – you even get a $10 discount off each Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) session! Don’t get me started on how awesome FES is for treating muscle pain and giving your horse that extra competitive edge. That’s a topic for another day. The Performance plan is $620 a year.

 If you add up all the services in any of the Wellness Plans, the discounted package price of the plan is significantly cheaper than if you paid for all the things separately. You want your horse taken care of? Yes of course you do. And who would want to pay more for that stuff than necessary? I feel sure you could find better things to buy with the money you save. Like cat nip, or that salmon filet you left out on the counter the other day. Puurrrrr.

 One of the best things about being on Any of our Wellness Plans is that you pay NO EMERGENCY FEES! That’s a $100-$150 value for each emergency! You really want to pay an extra hundred bucks every time you need one of my docs on emergency? Do you enjoy shredding $100 bills in your spare time? It’s not like your horses are going to give you a break from colics, or lacerations, or hoof abscesses. I mean, you have met horses, right? You know they will find any way imaginable to get hurt. Our Wellness Plans are literally handing you back the $100 that your horses are definitely planning to cost you. They are plotting this right now. I can hear them plotting, can’t you?

 I know you forget stuff. You have notes taped up on your fridge or you have lists on your phone. Or maybe you do neither of those things and you just accept that you are hopeless at remembering things. The last thing you need right now is more stuff to remember, like when your horse is due for his vaccines or his dental float. I mean, we just had to live through 2020…I think you’ve had enough stress, right? But guess who is still planning to visit your horse even though you forgot to schedule his vaccines? Good ol’ Mikey Mosquito, zooming around your horse’s field, giving the gift of West Nile Virus with every bite. The vaccine lasts 6 months, but in Florida, mosquitoes are forever! Do yourself a favor and let my awesome Springhill office staff remind you when it’s time for your appointment.

 You can find the link to the Wellness plan sign ups right here on the Springhill Equine website. Now is the time – we’re signing up for 2021 Wellness right now!

 Until next week,

 Tony

P.S. I almost forgot to mention we have a Wellness 2021 contest going on! Check out the flyer below and be sure to sign your horse or donkey up to be entered. A FREE Pasture Pet Wellness Plan or a FREE SPA DAY are up for grabs.