2011 Vet Visit

We had Dennis Rach, our vet from Moore & Company, out today to check on a couple of the "boys" and to do Dexter's teeth. As you may recall, I've used Grant McKinnson, an equine dentist for the past couple of years. Dr. Rach specializes in equine dentistry and helped me understand that it was not a good thing that Grant has taken way too much off the incisors.There were other things about using anyone but a vet, that I hadn't previously considered (i.e. a horse reacts to the tranquilizer). Only a vet could help if a situation occured. Going forward, I will only be using my vet for dentistry. Dexter's teeth were in very good condition so that was good news. Jack and Nugget didn't fare so well however.

Just prior to spring arriving, I noticed that Jack was expelling a lot of liquid prior to pooping and he wasn't keeping the weight on as easy as is typical of "fat" Jack. The liquid went away when he went back to grass so we thought it could be the alfalfa that was causing him problems. The vet palpated him and discovered a tightening in his bowels that shouldn't be there. Unfortunately, without doing exploratory surgery, it is nearly impossible to detect what the problem could be and therefore - it is difficult to treat something we can't specify. Dr. Rach suggested doing some blood tests to see if that will show any infection, or abnormalities. If the blook work comes back normal, Dr. Rach suggested a 5 day panacure protocol to ensure it isn't a parasite infestation. What I learned is that when I do my fecal egg counts, there is a parasite that doesn't show up on the FEC. Unfortunately, if there is no improvement in his condition after the panacure protocol, the only thing we can do is monitor him for additional symptoms and distress.

My beautiful Nugget has been showing signs of lameness recently so I had the vet check him as well. After doing the flex test on the affected leg, it was apparent there is some inflamation (arthritis) in the pastern joint. We'll have him back out for x-rays to try and pin point the problem so we will know how to manage it going forward.

Needless to say, it wasn't a great horse day.

Tovie, Dexter, Jack & Nugget