High Desert Veterinary Service
Chrysann Collatos VMD,PhD,DipACVIMLA
hidvet@gmail.com HighDesertEquine.com
Building Healthy Partners
Ø Clinic Schedule
Ø Smoke and our Horses
Ø Balance and Performance
What a
summer,
The new COVID world, devastating FIRE conditions and weather events have impacted us all this summer. Maintaining a positive attitude can be a challenge, and the time we spend with our animals is more cherished than ever. All great reasons to protect the health of your equine friends with a fall preventive care clinic appointment.
Always here
to help. See you in September!
Dr. Chrysann
Fall Clinic Schedule
Routine Fall exam
includes flu/rhino vaccination, deworming or fecal examination, annual
dentistry consult, and sheath cleaning.
Also consider Microchipping!
To reserve an
appointment, call 775 969 3495 with:
- Your Name, Phone # and Clinic Date
- Number of Animals, and Services wanted
Your call won’t be returned until three days before your clinic when we will give an estimated time of arrival at your address. Please be sure horses are caught and haltered
30 minutes beforehand!
Location Date
Rancho Haven/Sierra Ranchos1
Fri Sep 4
Rancho Haven/Sierra Ranchos2
Sat Sep 12
Red Rock
North/Silver Knolls 1 Fri Sep 4
Red Rock
North/Silver Knolls 2 Sat Sep 12
Span Springs/Palomino Valley 1 Fri Sep 11
Span Springs/Palomino Valley 2 Sat Sept 19
Antelope/Golden/Lemmon Valley 1
Fri Sep 25
Antelope/Golden/Lemmon Valley 2
Sat Sep 26
South & West Reno 1 Fri Sep 18
South & West Reno Sat Sep
26
Discounted
prices ONLY AVAILABLE Clinic Day
Farm Call (per location) $14.00
Wellness Exam (mandatory) $17.00
West Nile $33.00
FluRhino $30.00
Strangles
Intranasal $34.00
Rabies $23.00
Tetanus/
Encephalitis $19.00
Ivermectin
Deworm $16.00
Coggins
Test $32.00
Sheath
Clean w/sedation $45.00
Fecal
parasite exam $19.00
Pre-registered microchip $39.00
The simplest thing you can do to limit the damaging effects of smoke on your horse’s airway is to limit your horse’s activity when smoke is visible. Increased airflow and turbulence that accompany athletic activity can significantly increase the inflammation and damage to delicate cells lining the respiratory tract. In addition, if possible, misters and fans can be used to improve air quality in your horse’s environment.
Human air quality advisements can be applied to your horse as well. If your eyes are burning and you smell and taste smoke, then assume that your horse is feeling as uncomfortable as you are.
Most
importantly, when smoke has been particularly heavy, remember that it takes
time for airways to recover fully. Four to six weeks can be required for
airways to recuperate from severe smoke exposure, and early return to exercise
can delay healing and increase the risk of long term airway damage.
- Provide clean, fresh water at all times
- Water your horse’s hay and feed grain as wet
mashes
- Put sprinklers out in turn outs to reduce dust
and smoke and increase moisture in the air
Over the years we have bred horses to be balanced
to best suit their intended use. When
you choose a horse, consider your equestrian discipline.
Draft horses were built to pull – they are very
“uphill” with short, strong high set necks, powerful shoulders and weaker
hindquarters.
Quarter horses are built to work cattle – they need
to keep their heads low and turn with exceptional speed and quickness from the
hindquarter – therefore they are quite “downhill” with tremendous power in the
sacrum, hip and thigh to dig in, turn and go.
Thoroughbreds are built to run – they are a more
level breed, but frequently have a croup that is slightly higher than the
wither.
The arab is the ultimate long distance athlete –
generally beautifully balanced front to back, but with lean muscle mass and a
relatively straight shoulder, making them extremely efficient at moving across
the ground, but not well suited to elevating the wither or forearm.
The warmblood breeds have been developed to have a
combination of elevation and length.
They are balanced generally uphill, with a neck that comes out of the
wither relatively high, a moderately sloped shoulder, and a very powerful
sacrum and pelvis.
And
don’t forget, the horse in motion always trumps the horse standing still. For example, consider a “downhill” quarterhorse
with contracted heels in front but a strong, symmetrical, well conformed pelvis
and hind limbs. The contracted heels and
forehand balance may predispose this
horse to foot lameness. However, if the
horse is trained to move with impulsion from behind, raise the withers and
engage the core, this will result in an overall “lighter” movement, and reduce
concussive force on the heels. The
result: forelimb lameness resulting from imperfect conformation may be avoided.
Your horse’s overall balance is extremely important in maintaining athletic longevity and compensating for conformational defects in the lower limbs. However, training that develops excellent core strength and flexibility can greatly enhance the horse with less than ideal balance. Here is the bottom line: stand back and look at the whole picture, the entire horse, not just the offset knee, or base narrow stance, or turned out toes. If you develop your horse’s entire body to be strong at the center and balanced from front to back, you will successfully overcome the majority of his/her conformational problems.
Call today to schedule your Fall Clinic appointment!
HighDesertEquine.com
Building Healthy Partners
