Meddleton Equine Hospital

Following a Chiropractic Adjustment, Dr. Meddleton recommends a number of postural exercises and stretches to help maintain the adjustment and to help reduce the need for repeat adjustments. The following article describes these in detail.

Is your horse difficult to catch when you want to ride? Does your horse sink in his back when brushing, or cringe when you approach with the saddle, fidget when trying to tighten the girth, or worse, try to bite or kick? Does he (or she) lift or throw his head away from you when you try to bridle him? Has he started to refuse jumps or started bucking after a landing?

Horses are not always well adjusted. While we may think some need an attitude adjustment, many may just need a chiropractic adjustment. Animals respond to pain in different ways. They can seem depressed, lose weight, or simply become less active. Some animals respond through behavioral changes; they may become more aggressive, less cooperative, or fearful.

Equine Chiropractic science focuses on the biomechanical relationships between the vertebrae, surrounding structures, and their effects on the nervous system. The role of the vertebral column is to support the framework of the body, and to protect the spinal cord.

Breeding your Dressage horse can be a complicated matter and one needs be prepared for a considerable investment of time, effort, and money before that perfect foal can be a reality. Horses do not have very high conception rates when compared to other animals. This already low conception rate becomes even lower when we start to factor in common management practices

While not all mares have read the textbook on foaling, most mares do progress according to the following chain of events. Two to four weeks prior to foaling, the mare's udder starts to develop in preparation for nursing. In the last few days before foaling, the teats will become engorged with milk, and a small waxy plug develops at the tip.

When it comes to sick newborn foals, a few hours can be the difference between a good and a bad outcome. Foals are born with no immunity to disease as the maternal antibodies are unable to cross the placental barrier. Foals obtain their immunity for the first 3-6 months of life by ingesting colostrums (dam’s first milk). If this fails to happen within the first 12-18 hours of life, the foal will succumb to infection unless it is given a plasma transfusion

Below is a timetable of what to expect when your mare foals. If anything does not occur in the time frame below CALL OUR OFFICE IMMEDIATELY!!!

1. The mare will break water first - she is now in labor. The foal should be on the ground within ½ hour.
2. The foal should stand within 1 hr of being born.
3. The foal should nurse within 2 hours of being born.
4. The mare should pass the placenta in one piece within 4 hours.

Digital ultrasound is complementary to digital radiography and allows for high quality visualization of soft tissue structures (radiography is used to evaluate bone). When compared to conventional (analog) ultrasonography, it offers higher quality imaging and ease of file sharing.

Meddleton Equine will be holding a Fall Vaccine Clinic and Seminar On October 16th at the Taos Equestrian Center!