Diseases of Horses State Exam

Today we had our Diseases of Horses State Exam which went really well; we all passed and I got a B!

I’ve never wanted to be an equine vet but I’ve really enjoyed this rotation and learnt loads from it.
The first horses I worked with were the Heavy Horses at Ash End Farm who, looking back, were amazing and really easy to work with. 

Topolčianky Slovak National Stud

We had a trip at the end of our Equine block to Topolčianky, the Slovak National Stud.

They have 550 horses over five sites, mostly Lipizzaner, Arabs and some Slovak breeds. We were really there just to have a look at the horses, facilities and the work they do.

Indoor riding school...

We saw a pair of horses being trained to pull a carriage and then met their vet, who graduated from Kosice and has been there ever since, who spoke to us about his role in disease control with vaccinations, disinfection and parasite control.

They have a Lipizzaner stallion, a gift from when Queen Elizabeth II visited Slovakia in 2008.

Farriers room...

Equine Skills

Two things I learnt to do today, place a nasogastric tube and a urinary catheter in a mare

Luckily Nora was very patient with me and was rewarded with apples and scratches afterwards

It took me three attempts to place the urinary catheter as you have to palpate and go in blind so I was about to give up but persevered and finally got it.

Don’t ask me to do another one for a while though!