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Goosnargh:
01772 861300
Lytham Road:
01772 718774
Kirkham:
01772 681992

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Our equine team and services

Oakhill Equine Vets is a 12-vet dedicated, equine-only team. We are extremely lucky at Oakhill to have a highly qualified equine veterinary team with 111 years experience between them! Guy and Rosie are both European and RCVS recognised specialists in Equine surgery and lameness. We also have two vets with RCVS advanced practitioner status, Jess and Leona. Leona has a certificate in Internal Medicine and the rest of our outstanding team are studying towards a further 7 certificate qualifications between them! 

Oakhill has a fully-equipped surgical facility including state of the art arthroscopy equipment, anaesthesia recovery box and advanced anaesthetic monitoring equipment. We host an array of specialist equipment including MRI, digital radiography, multiple endoscopes and a dental oral endoscope, in order to achieve the highest possible standards of care for your horse. 

Due to the depth of team experience and the quality of our equipment at Oakhill, we offer an extensive referral service to other practices across Lancashire, Cumbria and Cheshire. We have two vets on call 24/7 to ensure that we can attend any emergency promptly within our practice area. 

We are dedicated to providing a 5* level of service to you and your horse. Our team is also focused on providing education to clients regarding their horse’s care via phone advice, social media, informative newsletters and client talks. No matter what the problem is, we are here to offer a professional and compassionate service to our valued clients.

Laminitis

10 take home points about Laminitis

  • Laminitis is an incredibly painful and debilitating condition which, in severe cases, can result in the loss of the affected patient.
  • Laminitis is defined as inflammation of the laminae which in turn results in pedal bone instability meaning that the pedal bone may sink (founder) or rotate.
  • The primary clinical sign of laminitis is a gait abnormality which can vary vastly in severity from being foot sore or a little pottery (exacerbated on the turn), to those that are unwilling to move, to those the spend increased amounts of time lay down.
  • Other clinical signs include any or a combination of the following: increased digital pulses, heat in the feet, weight-shifting, rocking back into a ‘saw horse’ stance and sensitivity on hoof testers to name but a few.
  • Concurrent foot abscesses are a common secondary condition.
  • 90% of cases in the UK occur secondary to an underlying endocrinopathy- Equine Metabolic Syndrome (EMS) and/or Equine Cushing’s Disease.
  • Laminitis may occur at any time throughout the year although Spring turnout is a particularly ‘at risk’ time due to the sugar levels in the grass combined with many horses exiting the Winter months having gained weight and ultimately having some degree of insulin dysregulation (EMS).
  • This year, the corona virus pandemic provides further concern given the fact that many such patients are spending more time at grass or are being turned away to grass and are receiving less exercise meaning that weight gain is inevitable and the risk for EMS increased.
  • Weight management is vitally important to try prevent episodes of laminitis and may include limiting time at grass, use of a grazing muzzle, soaking hay, double netting hay and exercise provided there are no current clinical signs of laminitis.
  • If you have any concerns that your horse has clinical signs of laminitis, EMS or Cushing’s disease or if you want weight management advise, please call us for a chat. Further information on all three conditions will follow in future presentations.

Nematodirus battus

What are the effects of Nematodirus battus?

  • Causes diarrhoea, weight loss, dehydration and death
  • Usually in lambs eating grass at 6-12 weeks of age
  • High-risk lambs are ones challenged concurrently by coccidiosis, newly weaned, triplets or had low colostrum intake
  • On pasture grazed by lambs last spring
  • Lamb-lamb spread, adults are immune
  • A sudden cold snap followed by a warm period causes the eggs to all hatch together after over-wintering on the pasture
  • The faecal egg count doesn’t rise in a flock sometimes until days-weeks after exposure as it is larval stages causing disease, so a FEC in early spring can be a false negative if clinical signs are being seen
  • Acts rapidly and can cause high incidence of lamb mortality

What you can do to avoid Nematodirus affecting your flock:

Covid 19 Update

Following the Prime Minister’s announcements and advice from our professional bodies, we are moving to a service where we no longer provide any ROUTINE veterinary care. This is to ensure the health and safety of our staff and our clients, and to strictly adhere to social distancing policies as set out by the government.

We will be providing care to ANY ill or injured animal in order to preserve animal welfare. Please contact the surgery as normal with any concerns you have regarding your horses’ welfare. We may only need to offer phone advice, and any horses that require treatment in order to preserve welfare will be examined. These decisions will be made on a case by case basis and the handler of the horse will need to confirm they are free of COVID 19 symptoms prior to our attendance.

We will continue to offer our normal 24 hour emergency cover. Your horse’s welfare is paramount to us and we thank you for your understanding at this difficult time. If you have any questions or would like to speak to a vet, please contact the office on 01772 861300

Coronavirus update for our Small Animal Clients

In these uncertain times we would like to reassure you that providing care for our clients and their pets remains our top priority.

Our practice REMAINS OPEN FOR BUSINESS but as you would expect we are putting in place a number of steps to protect the health and wellbeing of our patients, staff and the wider community.

  • We would encourage that only one person attends with the pet – this will help minimise the number of people in our waiting rooms.
  • If possible once you have let reception know that you have arrived it may be more suitable to wait outside or in your car.
  • It may be possible that follow up appointments, including repeat prescriptions, could be conducted via telephone consultation with /without emailed photos/videos- please contact the reception team to discuss appointment slots and payment options.  

Unfortunately, not all conditions can be assessed in this way and after discussion with the vet you may still be required to bring your pet in. Routine preventative healthcare appointments may not require you to attend the surgery our team will help guide you with this. In most instances medicines will need collecting from the branches but a postal service may also be available if necessary.

  • If you are in self-isolation but your pet needs treatment, please allow a family member or friend to bring them in. If this is not possible, we can meet you outside our entrance to receive your pet.
  • House visits are now only possible in exceptional circumstances and will require discussion with a vet before arrangement.
  • Take as many preventative measures before, during and after your visit -this includes washing your hands regularly and thoroughly with soap and water , please make use of the hand sanitisers in our branches and avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth. Use tissues to catch coughs and sneezes, then throw the tissue in the bin.
  • For hygiene reasons, we would encourage payments by card rather than cash.
  • Please allow at least 48hrs for orders of repeat prescription medicines and foods as our suppliers are running with reduced staffing and deliveries are at reduced frequency.
  • Our Saturday morning surgery at Kirkham will not be running until further notice, however all our other opening hours remain unchanged.

We will update our plans regularly based on information released by the UK Government, NHS and the RCVS and will keep you updated on our Website and via Facebook.Please share this information with others that have pets that may not have access to technology.

Thank you for your support over the coming days and weeks – we will continue to be here for you and your pets.

Notice: Saturday Surgery Kirkham

Due to unforeseen circumstances, we are very sorry to announce but until further notice, we are unable to hold our usual Saturday morning surgery at our Kirkham branch.

There will still be a surgery held at our Conway Drive branch at 93 Conway Drive, Fulwood, Preston, PR2 3ER (Call: 01772 718774) from 8.00am-2.30pm (by appointment only).

Our other opening times remain unchanged at present:

Mon- Fri 8.00am – 7.00pm at all branches
(by appointment only)

Sunday 9.00am-12.00pm at 220 Watling Street Road, Fulwood, PR2 8AD (Call: 01772 700671 – by appointment only)

Bank Holidays 9.30am – 11.30am at Conway Drive

Thank you for your understanding

Equine Standing MRI – what to expect

What to expect when your horse has a standing MRI.

Using the right tools early in the lameness process to get a definitive diagnosis will allow you and your vet to devise the right treatment plan, hopefully getting your horse back to full fitness as quickly as possible.

The clear images from MRI allow vets to make an accurate and precise diagnosis in 90% of cases.

If you’ve considered requesting an MRI for your horse but wondered what actually happens, an MRI scan will usually include the following steps:

  1. Initial examination

    On arrival for the scan the horse’s overall health is evaluated for sedation and our clinic vets will briefly examine the horse’s lameness.

  2. Horse shoes

    Metal horse shoes would degrade the quality of the images if left on as the MRI scanner contains a large magnet. Normally just two shoes, on the leg to be scanned and the adjacent leg, are removed.

  3. Sedation

    The standing MRI eliminates the need for anaesthesia, so removes the mortality risk and often allows for day patient scheduling. Top up doses may be applied during the scan, either on a drip or via a catheter in the horse’s jugular vein.

  4. Equine Standing MRIPositioning

    The horse is walked into the MRI scanner, with the lame leg placed between the poles of the magnet. A radiofrequency coil is fitted around the injury site and the operator makes careful adjustments to ensure the horse and magnet are both in the right place.

  5. The Scan

    equine MRIThe scan takes around 2 – 4 hours, producing around 300-500 images at multiple angles of the limb or hoof, highlighting different types of tissue and pathology.

  6. Recovery

    After the scan the horse is given time to recover from the sedation, and in most cases can return home the same day.

  7. Interpretation

    One of our specialists responsible for scanning will carefully review the images to arrive at an opinion about likely pathology or injury. The findings are then communicated to you or your vet.

  8. Treatment

    The findings from the scan will enable an accurate diagnosis to be made. With precise information available the vet can prescribe the best possible treatment for the horse.

Should your horse be suffering with lameness or poor performance issues, please discuss with your usual Oakhill Equine Vet or call the practice on 01772 861300.

If you wish to be referred to us from another veterinary practice, please contact your own veterinary surgeon in the first instance.

Why MRI?

Our equine clinic has the most technologically advanced standing MRI machine available, used for both clients and those referred from other veterinary practices.

Often during a lameness work-up, your vet will use ‘nerve blocks’ to locate where the pain is coming from. This may then be followed with X-ray or ultrasound examinations, but because these imaging tools only show bone or some soft tissue your vet may not be able to see abnormalities, particularly those within the hoof capsule.

Standing equine MRI offers unique insight into equine lameness, identifying the specific cause in over 90% of cases.

With no general anaesthesia required the inherent risks associated with anaesthesia and recovery can be avoided and an early, safe and accurate lameness diagnosis will save you time, money and worry.

We’re often asked….

equine MRIWhat is different about MRI?

MRI images show information about both bone and soft tissue, whereas x-rays only show bone and ultrasound only shows soft tissues. The many, clear images from MRI allow vets to make an accurate and precise diagnosis in 90% of cases.

Foot Lameness Cycle

Oakhill equine MRI referral serviceIs it the same as a human MRI scanner?

The underlying principle is exactly the same but the Hallmarq Standing Equine MRI system has specifically designed for imaging the standing horse, not a human! The scanner operates close to floor level and the horse can immediately step out of an opening in the magnet if it needs to.

Is it safe for my horse?

MRI is widely used in both human and veterinary medicine as it is valued for it’s high image quality of both bone and soft tissue with no ionising radiation. The technology used is unobtrusive and poses no known risk to the horse.

Unlike high-field scanners where the horse has to be anaesthetised, our Hallmarq low-field system uses a smaller magnet that fits around the leg, allowing us to image the horse while standing and under mild sedation.

Hallmarq equine MRI systems have been used for over 60,000 standing sedated horse examinations, during this time there have been no fatalities.

The benefits of having an MRI scan at Oakhill Equine Clinic include:

  • Expert interpretation of images by our ECVS & RCVS recognised surgery specialists, Rosie Owen & Guy Hinnigan and imaging specialist, Meredith Smith.

  • Precise diagnosis

  • Rapid results

  • Specific prognosis

  • Optimum treatment

Using the right tools early in the lameness process to get a definitive diagnosis will allow you and your vet to devise the right treatment plan, therefore getting your horse back to full fitness as quickly as possible.

It is also very useful in establishing an accurate prognosis, to save you time and money worrying about what is likely to happen in the future.

Click here to find out more about what to expect when your horse has a standing MRI.

Should your horse be suffering with lameness or poor performance issues, please discuss with your usual Oakhill Equine Vet or call the practice on 01772 861300.

If you wish to be referred to us from another veterinary practice, please contact your vet in the first instance.

Mission Christmas Gift Appeal

Once again Oakhill Veterinary Centre will be taking part in Rock FM’s Mission Christmas Gift Appeal 2019, in aid of Cash for Kids, who make sure Christmas gifts get to disadvantaged children in the area.

All 4 of our branches will be gift collection points.

If you’d like to donate a gift, it should be new and unwrapped (no food or chocolate please) and be with us by Monday 16th December at the latest so we can get them to Mission Christmas HQ in time.

Further information is available on the link below, including gift ideas (from birth to 18 years):

https://planetradio.co.uk/rock-fm/charity/events/mission-christmas-lancashire/

Thank you!

Keeping your horse safe on Bonfire Night

Bonfire Night can be stressful for both horses and horse owners.

The calmest of horses can become frightened by the unfamiliar loud noises and flashes of bright light.

There are some things you can do to prepare….

  • Find out when and where the firework displays will be in your area. You could look in local press, social media and shop notice boards.
  • Inform local firework display organisers and neighbours that there are horses nearby, so they can ensure fireworks are set off well away from them.
  • Decide whether to stable your horse or leave it in the field. Horses like routine, so try and keep as close to your usual routine as possible. If it is usually stabled, keep it stabled. If it is normally out in the field, keep it there as long as it is safe, secure and not close to the firework display area.
  • Check for anything that could cause injury to your horse:
    – If stabled, look for things such as protruding nails.
    – If your horse is to stay in the field, check that fencing is not broken and that there are no foreign objects lying around.
  • Ensure that you, or someone experienced, stays with your horse if you know that fireworks are being set off.
    If you have to leave your horse in the care of another person during a firework display, then be sure to leave clear instructions with contact details for both you and your vet.
  • Discuss with your vet about sedation or perhaps consider moving your horse for the night.
  • Playing music on a radio positioned outside the stable can often mask sudden noise, distract attention and be soothing.
  • Stay calm, as horses will sense that you are anxious and that could increase their fears.
  • A startled horse can be dangerous, so try not to get in the way if a horse becomes frightened as you could easily be injured yourself.
  • Remember that Chinese lanterns (also known as sky lanterns) can cause harm to livestock and wildlife.

If you wish to discuss concerns about your horse with us, please call 01772 861300