Orrell Equine Veterinary Ltd

A New Years Quiz!! Can anybody guess what condition we are looking at here? Comment your guesses below and we will reveal the answer next year!!!

Merry Christmas Eve everybody! Here’s a reminder of our Christmas opening times: Christmas Day: emergencies only Boxing Day: emergencies only Friday 27th December: open as normal Saturday 28th December: emergencies only ... Sunday 29th December: emergencies only Monday 30th December: open as normal New Years Eve: open as normal New Years Day: emergencies only
Here’s a photo of Dave the goose in his Christmas outfit looking very fetching!
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A big thank you to all of our lovely clients for our Petplan veterinary award nominations!

With Christmas creeping closer and closer here's some more festive photos of our four legged clients. We think you'll all agree that they look extremely festive in their outfits!

Move aside Rudolph. Nothing says Merry Christmas more than a Shetland in a Santa hat

FIT & FABULOUS FRIDAY!!
Pictured below is one of our amazing patients, Isla! Isla unfortunately suffered from an episode of Laminitis earlier this year. She was diagnosed with EMS (Equine Metabolic Syndrome) and promptly began a strict diet programme. Her transformation has been amazing, with a starting weight of approximately 550kg in August; after correct management and dieting, Isla lost 40kg at home and became sound! She then went on a 3 week fitness holiday to Higher S...pen Equine Spa and Livery where she lost an additional 33kg and regained her fitness through daily swimming after several weeks of box rest! Joanne, Isla’s owner, reports that she thoroughly enjoyed her time at ‘fat camp’ and I think we can all agree she’s looking both FIT & FABULOUS now!
Congratulations to both Isla and Joanne on all their hard work and perseverance!
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To rug or not to rug??
It’s that time of year again... With the typical British weather recently, it can be hard to know which rug would be best for you horse. That is if they need a rug at all! This year we saw record levels of laminitis in Spring and early Summer which wasn’t helped by horses coming out of winter over conditioned. ... Pictured is a handy guide if you are struggling.
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Castration season is upon us. It’s cold so let’s get those baubles dropping!
Please note, your colt must have 2 testicles present and must have had at least the first tetanus vaccination.
... Call us to book on 01942 733989
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Happy Friday everybody! With the weekend just around the corner we thought we share some pictures of the super cute Diego. Diego is a 19 week old donkey who we had the pleasure to meet this week for a microchip and passport. Have a great weekend everybody!

Congratulations to our vet Jenny on the birth of her beautiful little girl.
Sylvia was born last Wednesday the 18th weighing 7lb 5. As you can see Wren is very proud of her little sister! Both Jenny and Sylvia are doing well.

Castration season is nearly upon us!
As soon as the weather turns colder we will be able to start booking in colt castrations.
In order to castrate your colt, it is essential that both of their testicles have dropped and that they have the necessary tetanus protection. The second tetanus or flu and tetanus vaccine can be given at the time of the castration but they must already have had their first. Your colt must also be in good health.
... What to expect? We usually perform castrations under standing sedation. We will put local anaesthetic in each testicle and the skin of the scrotum to numb the area.The incision will be left open to drain so movement either with turnout or walking in hand is essential. Before the procedure your horse will be medicated with antibiotics, anti-inflammatories and we will leave a course of oral medication to continue.
If you have any questions regarding castrations please call us for advice on 01942 733989.
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It’s getting to that time of year again... This is the beautiful Bella who is sporting a rather jazzy clip. We think you’ll all agree she looks great. What a neat job!

As the nights draw in closer and the weather gets colder the time that our horses spend stabled inevitably increases. As a result we see lots of cases of impaction colic...
What is impaction colic? Colic means abdominal pain. Impactions can be a common cause of colic and are usually a firm mass of food in the large intestine. This can be diagnosed by us upon rectal examination of your horse.
... What causes impactions? A reduction in temperature can reduce your horses water intake leading to dehydration. As a result, the food contents in the large intestine becomes dry and firm.
Increased feeding of hay. Hay has a much lower water content in comparison to grass.
Reduced activity whilst stabled can slow the movement of food along the intestines.
What signs should you be looking out for? Rolling Sweating Flank watching, pawing Stretching the belly
If your horse shows any signs of colic, please call us without delay on 01942 733989.
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As Summer comes to a close, Autumn and Winter bring with it a new host of problems for horse owners!
One of which we should all be aware of at this time of year is ATYPICAL MYOPATHY.
This is a disease that is seen in grazing horses commonly in Autumn. Atypical myopathy has been linked to a toxin, Hypoglycin A, in the seeds of the sycamore tree. This toxin affects the horses muscles by causing degeneration of the muscle fibres causing stiffness, tremors and collapse.
... Atypical myopathy is usually fatal and the signs can develop very quickly. The signs you should look out for are: Muscle stiffness and tremors, difficulty standing, colic symptoms, dark urine, depressed state and excess sweating.
How can you prevent it? Avoid grazing horses in fields with sycamore trees. Or fence off areas where the seeds or leaves may fall Ensure your horse has enough to eat when grazing is poor by supplementing with hay/haylage Avoid overstocking your fields so there is enough grazing for each horse If you see any of the symptoms listed above - contact us immediately!
If you suspect your horse has Atypical Myopathy, keep your horse warm and dry. Do not try to move of stress them until one of our vets arrive and remove other horses from the pasture.
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Equine Flu Myth Busting
MYTH 1: My pony doesn't leave the yard so I don't need to vaccinate. Equine influenza is an airborne virus which has the ability to spread over a wide area so even if your pony doesn't leave the yard, there is still a chance of coming into contact with the virus. Additionally, if others from the yard are regularly leaving the premises there is a chance they could bring the virus back. ADVICE: Ensure all animals are up to date with flu vaccines and cons...ider 6 monthly boosters especially for those leaving the yard.
MYTH 2: Vaccines don't work. Even vaccinated horses can get flu. Vaccination does not give 100% protection against contracting the disease however it does reduce the likelihood of it happening. Furthermore, if the disease is contracted, it will reduce shedding and will also reduced the severity of any clinical signs. ADVICE: Vaccination is critical for disease prevention and minimising spread during an outbreak.
MYTH 3: We are over-vaccinating our animals. Vaccination protects our horse's welfare. Earlier this year, an unvaccinated horse was put to sleep despite intensive treatment. Equine influenza is a potentially life threatening disease so every measure should be taken to prevent it.
MYTH 4:Most horses are already vaccinated. Far from it! It is thought that only 40% of the entire equine population is vaccinated. ADVICE: If your horse is unvaccinated, we would advise restarting their vaccines asap.
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Transformation Tuesday! Pictured below is the beautiful Marley. The first picture is from earlier this year just before Marley unfortunately suffered from a bout of laminitis. The second picture shows Marley’s transformation after a strict diet and exercise regime where he has lost over 70kg. In addition to his diet, Marley has been away swimming too. We think you’ll all agree he looks fantastic! Marley’s management is a testament that hard work with diet and exercise does indeed pay off!

Happy Friday everyone!
Here’s a photo of the beautiful Poppy modelling our equine gait analysis system!
The EquiGait is a fantastic piece of kit that is very helpful for subtle lameness issues or horses with multi-limb lameness problems. The system is made up of 5 sensors that give a reading wirelessly to a laptop. We get information about weight bearing on each leg and also how much force each leg is pushing off with in trot!
... If you have any questions about the use of our EquiGait system then feel free to get in touch.
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Going away this August? Here the BHS have outlined some very important points for you to consider if you are going on holiday and leaving your horse in the care of somebody else.