News
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WCVM hosts research discussion
Click here to view recording of the Feb. 8 panel discussion on equine health research. Horse health research is the focus of an upcoming virtual panel discussion that’s asking for input from horse owners about current and future research studies at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM). The online discussion, which will take place at 7 p.m. CST on …
February 03rd, 2022 Full story »
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WCVM alumna new AAEP president
Dr. Emma Read, a 1998 graduate of the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM), is the new president of the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) for a one-year term. Read, who is associate dean for professional programs at The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine, was installed as AAEP president on Dec. 7 during the organization’s annual convention …
December 08th, 2021 Full story »
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Putting laminitis on ice
A Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) research team is gathering information for the development of a new device for cryotherapy (extreme cold therapy) — one of the few treatments available for the painful equine disease known as laminitis. Also described as digital hypothermia, cryotherapy involves submerging an affected horse’s limb and foot in ice and cooling them to four …
December 07th, 2021 Full story »
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Cardiac drugs in comparison test
The list of current treatment options for horses with heart disease isn’t very long, and the cost of certain heart medications is out of reach for many Canadian horse owners. [Heart failure in horses is] just not very common, but when they get it, it’s severe … a lot of times [they] die a terrible death of pulmonary edema, and …
December 03rd, 2021 Full story »
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Cresty necks flag metabolic issues in horses
While University of Saskatchewan (USask) researchers are still hunting for a diagnostic biomarker that predicts equine metabolic syndrome (EMS), results of their study substantiated the cresty neck score (CNS) as a reliable visual marker of abnormal insulin metabolism in horses. The study, which was recently published in the Journal of Equine Veterinary Science, was conducted by a team of USask scientists from …
November 25th, 2021 Full story »
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Safety vital around portable X-rays
A recent study by University of Saskatchewan (USask) researchers highlights the importance of regularly reviewing radiation safety practices for the use of portable X-ray machines in equine practice. The study, which was published in the April 2021 issue of Canadian Veterinary Journal, surveyed three separate veterinary practices that use portable X-ray equipment and observed the clinics’ radiation safety practices. Dr. …
November 09th, 2021 Full story »
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Dual-degree vet receives equine award
At first, Dr. Jane Westendorf didn’t want to be a veterinarian. As the daughter of two practitioners — both 1991 graduates of the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) — Westendorf witnessed first-hand some of her parents’ daily frustrations when they came home from their veterinary clinic in Mission, B.C. Westendorf eventually recognized that despite the occasional struggles or difficult …
July 22nd, 2021 Full story »
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Funds back training and new research
Two longtime research funds at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) are investing nearly $270,000 for supporting equine and companion animal health research, education and training for the 2021-22 academic year. For more than 40 years, the Companion Animal Health Fund (CAHF) and Townsend Equine Health Research Fund (TEHRF) have supported pet health and horse health research, specialized training …
June 16th, 2021 Full story »
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Helping horses breathe easier
Canadians have access to the first licensed and approved inhalation therapy specifically developed to help horses with severe equine asthma without causing unwanted side effects. Developed by Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health (BI), the Aservo® EquiHaler® is an inhalation therapy available through veterinarians. It’s used to treat equine asthma, formerly known as recurrent airway obstruction (RAO) or heaves. Like humans, environmental triggers such …
April 15th, 2021 Full story »
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The point of no infection
A team of University of Saskatchewan (USask) researchers from the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) and the College of Medicine are striving to find a reliable method for verifying when a horse with septic arthritis no longer has a joint infection — and no longer needs treatment. Who is on the team? WCVM researchers Dr. Joe Bracamonte and Dr. …
April 15th, 2021 Full story »
