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Spring Client Evening - 1st March 2012
"The Farriers Approach to the Lame Horse"
Come along to our Spring Client Evening on 1st March 2012 with Mr Andrew Poynton FWCF. www.andrew-poynton.co.uk
The evening will be followed by question and answer time.
The evening starts at 7pm at The Brinsop Country Inn, A6, Blackrod, Bolton. BL5 3NJ (close to J6 of the M61)
All are welcome but please ring the office to book your place as places will be on a strictly first come first served basis.
**NEWSFLASH**
Alarmingly, we have seen several cases of tetanus over the previous few weeks. It is a very serious disease & even if it is treated in the very early stages, the horse is unlikely to survive.
Horses are very susceptible to getting tetanus which is caused by the bacterium Clostridium Tetani. Symptoms become progressively worse starting with general muscle stiffness, reluctance to eat as they have restricted jaw movement (lockjaw), flared nostrils, their third eyelids come across their eyes, increased heart & respiratory rate, colicky & eventually they are unable to stand.
Thankfully, tetanus is easily preventable through vaccinating your equines.
The vaccination protocol consists of two injections 4 - 6 weeks apart, a booster 12 months later, then a booster every two years. The tetanus vaccine is also very affordable, with the primary course costing under £30. We strongly recommend that all horses are vaccinated against this often fatal disease.
Worming your Horse
Here at Gillivervet our vets recommend a strategic approach to worming your horse. Current estimates suggest that approximately 20% of horses carry 80% of the worm population. This means that by blanket worming all horses on a yard results in unnecessary treatment of horses without a worm burden, is an unnecessary cost at a time when every little helps, and most importantly increases the risk of resistance in the worm population. By performing a worm egg count which currently costs £11.40, and or a tapeworm blood test, our vets can advise you on the best possible strategy to worm your horse.
Please contact us at the practice for further details or to arrange a visit by one of our vets.
Eventing Vet
We would like to congratulate our eventing vet Alison Spooner. Alison recently won her section at Bold Heath, finishing on her dressage score of 23.5 and 10 penalties ahead of the 2nd placed competitor. Alison also received a mention in the Horse & Hound.
FACEBOOK
We now have a Gillivervet facebook page so if your on facebook, please take a look and let us know what you think.
We are delighted to announce that Gillivervet has been approved as a member of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons Practice Standards Scheme.
As an accredited practice, we have passed an inspection carried out by an experienced veterinary surgeon focusing on a range of areas, including hygiene, health & safety, clinical governance and the facilities we provide. to name just a few of the many criteria.
The practice will be reinspected every four years and we will be subject to spot-checks in the meantime, so we have to keep on our toes.
The Practice Standards Scheme is a voluntary initiative - not all practices are part of it yet. RCVS accreditation means that as a client you can rest assured that our practice offers a high quality of care - in those bits of the practice you can see - and those that you can't.
This practice has been accredited as an RCVS General Practice - Equine. This means that, in addition to complying with Core Standards, such as health & safety. hygiene and legal requirements and the provision or 24-hour cover, we also have access to laboratory facilities for diagnostic testing, have a system for monitoring the outcome of treatments and show commitment to the education and training of our staff.