Seminars held at Veterinary clinics are a great way to access information that you can trust. The hosting clinic values the words and experience of the presenters they invite, and you get the opportunity to fire away with questions, in person, at the source.
The Seymour Equine Clinic invited me to attend seminar, focusing on breeding, as a speaker and in mid-August I jumped in the car and headed down to Victoria. It was a great time of year to be travelling, healthy lambs and calves were dotted amongst the lush green pastures and the trip down was very pleasant.
The vets at Seymour equine clinic delivered timely, hands on practical presentations and Dr Meredith Platt gave the finer details and moment to moment management of mares at the time of parturition. Dr Claire Brown spoke on the care of the neonatal foal and there were lots of useful, helpful and practical tips and red flags to watch for in the first 48hrs after birth. During both presentations there many real life stories and questions from the packed house of attendees.
A full house at the Seymour Bowling Club.
Up next was Dr Richard L’Estrange. With so much information and hearsay opinion on the internet and social media it can sometimes be difficult to sift out the wheat from the chaff. On the subject of Hendra virus, there is no greater or trusted source for reliable information and facts than Dr Richard L’Estrange. Richard spoke at length about all things Hendra and it was fantastic to hear the facts and latest up to date knowledge straight from the horse’s mouth. If you ever get the chance to see and hear him speak it is well worth attending, he is very generous with his time and he leaves plenty of time for questions.
A real problem for pregnant mares is pre-foaling colic’s and this was the topic of my presentation. Ongoing research shows the starch and sugary feeds can affect the all important biome and when confinement of stabling disrupt the normal, frequent and synchronised gut contractions there is an increased risk for twist, torsions and displacements. This is especially the case for mares in the weeks either side of birth.
The very inviting prize table!
The nurse and staff did a fantastic job putting together this informative event. Not only was it free entry, there was tea, coffee and $300 worth of prizes up for grabs! All done with a busy schedule, it was a hectic, rewarding August and I haven’t even touched on my Japan trip! I’ll leave that for another time later in the year….
Dr Jennie Stewart
Equine Clinical Nutrition