MU VHC Equine Hospital

September 2020: COVID Policy Update: We wanted to first start by saying thank you to our clients who have been so understanding over the past few months with respect to our COVID policies. We recognize things still look very different, but together we can get through this Our policies mainly remain largely the same as they did at the beginning of the summer. We are bringing back students in phases, and are maintaining social distancing and wearing masks both in and outside of... the clinic. Following best practices, no clients will be allowed to enter the hospital but instead will be asked to wait in their car/outside. All client communications, payments, etc, will be done over the telephone. We will continue to ask screening questions of clients with emergent veterinary care needs, and for clients deemed to be at increased risk of COVID-19 infection (eg, known exposure, flu-like symptoms). If the client is deemed at increased risk, we have safety protocols in place. If you need to bring your horse to us and answer "yes" to any of these screening questions, we encourage you to find someone else to transport the horse and we will contact you via telephone. If you are an ambulatory client, try to keep the amount of people helping limited (no large groups) and wear a mask whenever possible to help protect our staff and clinicians (we will be wearing them also). We thank you for your continued support during these difficult times. More information can be found at: http://vhc.missouri.edu/new-vhc-policies-pertaining-to-cov/

Vesicular Stomatitis in Missouri: Update

September 7, 2020 The hospital is closed today in observation of Labor Day. If you have an emergency, contact us at 573-882-4589.

A big thanks to MFA Oil, which donated a 1-ton Chevrolet pick-up truck to the CVM Mule Club!

What are a few of the top vaccinations for ? Horse owners - be sure to contact your veterinarian during #NationalImmunizationAwarenessMonth to ensure your anim...als are vaccinated against these diseases and any others. You can find more information on the importance of vaccines here: https://bit.ly/3gkU0Oj See more

Think National Check the Chip Day is just for cats and dogs? Think again! #ChecktheChip #usef #microchipyourpets

The answer is...all of them! Tendons are fibrous tissues that connect muscle to bone, transmitting muscular effort into skeletal motion. A rider's choice of ri...ding techniques and conditions can have critical effects on tendon health: tendons not sufficiently strengthened by progressive training are unable to withstand upward leaps in work demand; uneven and slippery footing sets the stage for missteps, while deep going greatly increases the workload of the tendons. Finally, hard, jolting stops override the limbs' shock-absorbing system to the detriment of the tendons. For more information about tendon injuries and care, be sure to consult your equine veterinarian! Source: Equus Magazine | https://equusmagazine.com/horse-care/eqtendons1171

Although most horse owners hope to never have to think about it, understanding what colic is and strategies for management and prevention of colic are critical for responsible horse ownership and management. Colic is defined as any abdominal pain and can come from any abdominal organ, not just the gastrointestinal tract. The signs of colic can vary from very mild to severe, but it is critical for owners and care takers to know what is normal for their horse, so that abnormal behaviors can be recognized as soon as possible and your vet can assess whether or not referral is warranted quickly. Find out 5 more things you need to know regarding colic in the video below:

July 27, 2020 Vesicular Stomatitis Cedar and Jasper County, MO Alert ID: 1711 Confirmed case(s): Official Quarantine... Source: United States Department of Agriculture Notes: The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has released a new situation report on July 23, 2020 confirming vesicular stomatitis in the following Missouri counties: 1 new premises in Cedar County and 4 new premises in Jasper County. Additional suspect premises have been identified in Jasper and Newton County. For more information go to https://www.aphis.usda.gov//animal/vsv/sitrep-07-23-20.pdf See more

It's that time of year where we introduce our new interns! These doctors will be working for us in the next year and have chosen to receive specialized training in equine beyond what they learned in vet school. They are some amazing women and we are excited for you to meet them! They will be working on all three main services offered by our hospital (internal medicine, surgery, and ambulatory). Our third and final new intern this year is Dr. Kari Means. Dr. Means is originall...y from Fort Myers, Florida where she learned to ride both hunter/jumper and Western performance horses. She received her bachelor’s degree in biology and a minor in communication studies from the University of Florida. She attended veterinary school at Texas A&M University in 2019. After graduation, Means completed an equine internship at Oakridge Equine Hospital in Edmond, OK. She is interested in completing an equine surgical residency after her equine rotating internship at the University of Missouri. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with friends and family and riding her horse See more

S is for Summer...and (Vesicular) Stomatitis Over the years, the Southwestern and Western United States have experienced a number of vesicular stomatitis (VS) ...outbreaks during the warmer months. Kansas in particular is getting hit pretty hard this year, with 105 premises identified (64 confirmed positive and 41 suspect) in 10 counties: Butler, Chase, Cowley, Greenwood, Marion, Miami, Montgomery, Morris, Sedgwick, and Sumner. Vesicular stomatitis is a viral disease that primarily affects horses and cattle, but it occasionally affects swine, sheep, goats, llamas, and alpacas. People handling infected animals without proper biosecurity precautions can also contract the virus and experience symptoms of fever, headache, muscle aches, and severe fatigue. While we don’t yet know how big this year’s outbreak will get, horse owners in historically affected states should be aware of the current situation and work with their veterinarian to establish the proper preventative, isolation and response procedures to keep people and animals safe. Learn more about VS on our website at https://aaep.org/horsehealth/vesicular-stomatitis-horses Current disease outbreak reports are available on the Equine Disease Communication Center's website at https://www.equinediseasecc.org/alerts

In addition to our 3 new interns, we are also welcoming a new resident to our team, Dr. Kelly Sandelin. Some of you may already know Dr. Sandelin, as she graduated from MU’s vet school in 2019 and was one of our rotating interns last year. Dr. Sandelin is starting an ABVP-Equine Practice residency. Both of her mentors, Drs. Scharf and LaCarrubba, are ABVP board certified. What does it mean to be board certified through the ABVP (American Board of Veterinary Practitioners)? ... ABVP Diplomates choose to undergo a rigorous process of additional studies and examination to become board certified specialists recognized by the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA). This process takes a minimum of two-three years to complete. This is a similar process to our internal medicine (ACVIM) and surgery (ACVS) specialists. ABVP Diplomates have proven knowledge and expertise above and beyond what is required to practice veterinary medicine. ABVP Diplomates are certified in clinical practice for the species in which certification is granted. Clinical practice, as it pertains to veterinarians, is the art and science of applying medical knowledge to animals for their care and the alleviation and prevention of their diseases. ABVP Certified Veterinarians are among a very small group of specialists who have earned the Diplomate title one of only 900 in the United States and abroad. Welcome back, Dr. Sandelin! https://abvp.com/