A Conversation About Strangles

Hind leg proximal suspensory problems are a fairly common injury particulary in our performance horses but they can be diificult to get horses back to competitive fitness. In this episode orthopaedic equine vet Hugh Somerville answers some of the more common questions horses owners want answers for. 

The episode covers:

What the more common symptoms of hind leg proximal suspensory injuries are

Whether some horses are more predisposed to these problems

How we diagnose these injuries

What the treatment options are and the prognosis based on clinical evidence 

How we can try and prevent these types of injuries

Series 2 of The Podcasting Equine Vets is back and we are kicking it off with a topic that is getting a lot of air time at the moment. Kissing spines is a condition that horse owners are much more aware of now than a few years ago. At Loch Leven Equine Practice we are getting asked to x-ray more backs during vettings than ever before and it would be fair to say we’re seeing and treating more cases ourselves.

Luckily at Loch Leven Equine Practice we have exactly the right person to speak to it about! As an orthopeadic equine surgeon with additional qualifications in surgery and diagnostic imaging, and many years of experience of working with both performance and leisure horses Hugh Somerville MRCVS is very well placed to talk to us about this condition.

Keep listening to find out:

• What is kissing spines?
• How we diagnose kissing spines
• What are the different treatment options?
• What rehabilitation is needed?
• What is the prognosis or limitations for your horse if they are diagnosed?
• Should I buy a horse with kissing spines?

This week we absolutely delighted to welcome Sarah and James Oakden to the podcast. Sarah and James are the husband and wife team behind Team Oakden based at Dunbog Farm in Fife. James has his BHSI qualification and has ridden up to what is now 5 star level competing at both Badminton and Burghley. Sarah has her BHSAI qualification and has ridden at top level in the showing ring. A recent move into the dressage world saw her crowded Scottish Elementary Champion in 2019. From their base at Dunbog, Team Oakden provide coaching for all levels, full competition livery packages, breaking and schooling livery, outdoor school hire and ridden clinics. Here they share their story, including their systems, management and support team that have helped the business grow into a top class training facility that is home to some very happy horses, supported by a loyal client base. 

Coughing may seem like  a trivial subject especially as the odd cough really isn’t anything to worry about, but for those owners whose horses are coughing so much it is effecting their ridden work, or if they get regular coughs due to allergies it can incredibly frustrating. There can also be more than one thing going on which can complicate and prolong treatment. In this episode I talk to Jane Haden MRCVS about why our horses cough and the different causes, how we diagnose and prescribe the correct treatment as well as some management tips to reduce the environmental challenges for our horses 

In this episode we chat to Donna Case from The Horse Feed Guru about her job as an Independent Equine Nutritionist, how she came to be where she is now, and the best and worst bits of her job! She shares her top feeding tips as well as de-bunking some of the myths surrounding the labelling of feeds and the use of supplements.

Donna has over 15 years experience working in the equine feed industry and works with horses and ponies at every level from the high performance yards to the one horse owner. She has worked at some of the biggest events in the world as well as with British Equestrian and Team GBR 

Foot abscesses are relatively simple to treat if managed properly. They are also one of the most common things that we see as equine emergencies and are excruciatingly painful for our horses. It is not uncommon for a client to call because their horse is completely non-weight bearing, only for the vet to arrive and diagnose an abscess. In our latest episode I am joined by Jenny Croft MRCVS to chat about what causes an abscess, the clinical signs that our owners should look out for, the best treatment plan as well as what can go wrong if they are not treated quickly and effectively. 

This week we are delighted to welcome Maeve Sheridan - ACPAT Chartered Physiotherapist to the podcast. We have worked closely with Maeve for many years taking a team approach to treating and keeping our mutual patients fit, healthy and performing at their best.

In this episode Liz chats to Maeve about how she became an ACPAT Chartered Physiotherapist, how she splits her time between treating riders, horses and her latest project 'Activate Your Seat'. We discuss what being an ACPAT Chartered Physiotherapist actually means, how Maeve works with vet teams, what is involved in a physio assessment as well as the best and worse bits of her job. She shares some success stories and tells us where we can find some exercises to do at home with our own horses.

It's very obvious from chatting to Maeve how passionate and focused she is about her job and from personal experience and working with her at Loch Leven Equine Practice we would highly recommend you go and check out her website and social media channels. 

Equine Grass Sickness is a particularly devastating disease given the poor prognosis and how little we know about what actually causes it. In this episode from the Podcasting Equine Vets Liz Somerville is joined by Karen Wilson MRCVS. Listen in to learn about the disease including the different categories of Equine Grass Sickness, the potential cause, symptoms, prognosis, treatment and what you can do to try to prevent your horse from getting it.

This week Liz Somerville is joined by Hannah Hamilton MRCVS to chat about sore eyes. Most eye conditions should always be treated as a medical emergency so please don’t delay in calling your vet. The right diagnosis and treatment can be the difference between a quick recovery and your horse suffering painful, long-term consequences that can result in permanent loss of sight and enucleation. This episode covers how to identify if your horse’s eye is sore, some of the more common conditions that we see and the treatments that are available to us.

In our latest episode Jane Haden MRCVS and Liz Somerville chat about the minefield of horse insurance. If you want to find about more about the different types of cover, what to consider when choosing your policy including how the excess works, how to make a claim and some of the more common pitfalls that we see in practice then this is the episode for you!