At Claresholm Veterinary Services Ltd., we care about your horse's health as much as you do! We have created Stay Well Plans to provide your horse with comprehensive health care that is convenient and affordable for you. These plans are designed for your horse to receive optimum care while allowing you to have predictable monthly payments. We hope these plans help to keep your horse healthy longer and that you will never have to choose between your bank account and your horse's well being. For more information on our stay well plans, check under the "Stay Well Plans" tab at the top of the page or call our office.
Equine Dentistry
Did you know that many issues in the saddle may not be due to your horse "just acting out"? Horses should have their teeth checked yearly to determine if they require a flotation of their teeth. Based on the mechanical nature of how horses chew, they wear down their teeth into sharp points on one edge. These sharp points can cause ulcerations within the mouth, which, as you can imagine, is extremely painful. Also, as horses age, certain teeth acquire ridges or ramps which can make the mouth uncomfortable. Our veterinary team makes dental procedures for your horse easy and painless. Appropriate sedation is used to allow us access to your horse's mouth. After looking at the mouth, we are able to determine what problems are there (ulcers, sharp points, ridges, etc.) and tailor the float to your horse's needs.
In House Diagnostics
We are proud to offer a full range of in house laboratory testing. We offer fecal analysis, urine analysis, complete blood counts, and much more. There are many tests that we can run in clinic using state of the art diagnostic technology that can provide results quickly and accurately. These tests and equipment help give us an accurate picture of your horse's health, allowing us in many cases, to begin treatment for many conditions and diseases immediately.
Castrations
We have a fenced off grass area to preform castrations at the clinic under injectable anesthesia or if it is more convenient we can come to you! We can castrate horses of all ages and will remove wolf teeth while they are anesthetized. Vaccinations and deworming can also be done at the time of their visit. Some umbilical hernias (depending on severity) can be repaired at the same time as their castration if present. Depending on the location of the testicle we can perform some cryptorchid castrations, these are ideally done at the clinic.
Pre-Purchase Exams
If you are considering purchasing a new horse, you may want to consider having a pre-purchase exam done. A pre-purchase exam can give you insights to help ensure you are making a smart, informed decision to whether or not the horse will be suitable for your needs. We can customize the exam to maximize its usefulness to you depending on what you will be using the horse for. The exam is meant to assess general health, soundness and conformation. Call us to discuss your options.
Lameness Exams
Lameness in your horse is a scary thing. It is important to act quickly and figure out the cause of the lameness to ensure that it does not become a chronic problem. At Claresholm Veterinary Services, we are able to perform a comprehensive lameness exam that includes flexion testing, local nerve blocks and joint blocks. These together will help to localize the area in question. Treatment plans are tailored to you and your horse because we know you are as much of a team together as we are!
Reproductive Exams
So you want a baby?!? Well, not you specifically, but your horse! The planning and preparation of this can be very exciting but also stressful. Our team offers equine reproductive exams and consultations to help ease this stress. A breeding soundness exam includes a reproductive exam of internal reproductive organs as well as external genitalia and a full physical exam. It is important to perform these exams during the breeding season so that we are able to get an accurate picture of your horse. Our veterinarians are also trained to help you plan an artificial insemination program and to perform the artificial insemination on your mare.
Therapeutic Laser
Laser therapy accelerates the body’s natural healing process through photo-bio-modulation. This means that the laser acts at a cellular level promoting biological and photo stimulation of cells, decreasing pain and inflammation while promoting healing. Our Therapy Laser is effective in treating both chronic and acute conditions such as strains, sprains and osteoarthritis, and reducing post-surgical pain and inflammation. Therapy laser has been shown to be beneficial in small and large animals. In our equine patients the therapy laser has been effective in aiding in the treatment of back pain, sacroiliac inflammation, arthritis, disease of the tendons, healing lacerations, and with torn muscles and ligaments. Benefits may include:
Pain relief
Decreased swelling and inflammation
Faster healing times after an injury or surgery
Easy, comfortable, non-invasive treatment option
Emergency Services
We know that emergencies can be a stressful time for you, so we will do our best to help make the process easier for you. We offer 24 hour emergency services for all our clients. To contact a veterinarian outside of regular business hours call (403) 625-3608.