Keep up to date with all our latest news, articles and case studies from the veterinary world around Hawke’s Bay, Dannevirke, and the Wairarapa.
Wolf teeth are technically known as the first premolar teeth in horses. They usually erupt into the mouth at between five and twelve months of age, but do not continue to grow or erupt into the mouth as do the rest of the cheek teeth. It has been estimated that approximately seventy percent of horses…
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There are a number of conditions of the hind leg in the horse that cause very specific, atypical type lameness and gait abnormalities. These include stringhalt, shivers, upward patella fixation, fibrotic myopathy and rupture of the peroneus tertius muscle. Dave Kruger outlines each of these medical conditions and what to look out for below. STRINGHALT…
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The transportation of horse to events in NZ (such as HOY) is commonplace but in saying that it needs to be managed to maximise athletic performance, and minimise the risk of any negative impact on horse health. After all it is a long expensive and disappointing trip to an event to have your horse perform…
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Stomach ulcers (gastric ulcers) are a hot topic! Stomach ulceration is a somewhat confusing syndrome – the syndrome can have a multitude of clinical signs, ranging from very subtle performance issues, or picky eating, to weight loss and colic. There is also a multitude of products on the market which claim to help with ulcers,…
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WHAT IS LAMINITIS? Laminitis is a very serious disease of the equine hoof that can lead to a disastrous loss of function. It occurs when there is failure of the attachment of the pedal bone to the inner hoof wall. The inner hoof wall is attached by sensitive laminae or folds to the pedal bone…
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As many of you know, the foot is a common source of lameness; up to 90% of lameness can be located within the foot. The heel region of the foot can be blamed for up to 1/3 of chronic (long-term) lameness. This makes sense, as the hoof is the part of the body that receives…
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It’s a question that’s come up time and time again for me over the last year or two. Often, clients will explain that their horses or ponies are not worth very much money, and so they don’t think it’s worthwhile. I thought I’d put together some of the aspects to consider, and some of the…
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Vet Services Hawke’s Bay is proud to be a locally owned business which has provided over 70 years of trusted animal care in the Hawke’s Bay region. First established in 1949 as the ‘Central Hawke’s Bay Farmers’ Veterinary Club’ the business was renamed Vet Services Hawke’s Bay in 1967 and has continued to grow, improve…
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With the equestrian season kicking off in most disciplines, Spring is a good time for your horse to have its annual “warrant of fitness”. Parasites: A faecal egg count is a simple way of getting an idea of the parasite load in your horses. Many horses that are drenched at routine intervals probably do not…
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