WCVM research
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Easing the grief through memorial tributes
When Jim Dobie lost his golden retriever Angus to cancer in 1996, he was surprised and touched to learn that his veterinarian, Dr. Lloyd Abbey (WCVM ’77) of Edmonton, Alta., had made a memorial donation to the Western College of Veterinary Medicine’s Companion Animal Health Fund (CAHF) on his behalf. “I certainly never expected that and didn’t even know such …
May 15th, 2012 Full story »
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Quick tick facts
“Know your enemy” is a well-known military maxim that’s also good advice for people on the Canadian Prairies who are seeing increasing populations of tick species in the region. Here are some quick facts about ticks and tick-borne diseases: Ticks, like spiders and mites, have eight legs in their mature form (as adults) and are members of the class Arachnida. …
May 11th, 2012 Full story »
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The road from Barcelona to Saskatoon
An avid equestrian since the age of six, Dr. Imma Roquet had no doubt that her life would revolve around horses. “I just love them — I have no other explanation,” explains Roquet who grew up with horses and dogs in Tona, Spain – a small rural town near Barcelona. Roquet graduated from the University of Barcelona’s veterinary program in 2006. …
March 07th, 2012 Full story »
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WCVM survey targets Cushing’s disease
Cushing’s disease is considered one of the most commonly diagnosed endocrine disorders of horses — especially as the equine population continues to age. But just how common is the disease internationally? It’s one of the questions that researchers at the University of Saskatchewan’s Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) are addressing through a 16-question survey of international equine practitioners. “Our objective …
January 26th, 2012 Full story »
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Noor: “An incredible learning experience”
Veterinary surgeons weren’t the only WCVM specialists faced with “firsts” during the procedure on Noor, the Arab mare with a cancerous growth on her jaw. The veterinary college’s anesthesiology team also had the chance to break new ground during the horse’s lengthy surgery. “I learned that you can anesthetize a horse for 13 hours and everything can go well which …
December 12th, 2011 Full story »
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The art of collaborative research
Years of dealing with complicated, multifactorial diseases such as endotoxemia in horses has taught the Western College of Veterinary Medicine’s Dr. Baljit Singh that the best approach to finding solutions is multidisciplinary teamwork. “If you’re going to develop new ideas or find new treatments, it’s going to be through collaboration with people who are away from your field,” says Singh, …
December 11th, 2011 Full story »
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Under pressure
When your horse is undergoing major abdominal surgery for a condition such as colic the last thing you want to worry about is whether the surgical incision site may open up during recovery or in the early post-operative period. It can happen, but thankfully, acute incisional bursting (or dehiscence) following abdominal surgery is extremely rare in horses. “Acute incisional bursting is …
December 03rd, 2011 Full story »
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EHRF puts equine research teams to work
The Equine Health Research Fund has allotted more than $106,000 to six research projects that will ultimately help to improve veterinary health care for horses across Canada. The research will be conducted by researchers at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) over the next 18 months. As the work progresses, watch for more updates about some of these projects …
November 12th, 2011 Full story »
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Launching into research
When Dr. Imma Roquet arrived at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) to begin her equine surgery residency in 2009, the Spanish veterinarian had never worked on a research project. But two years after meeting Dr. James Carmalt — a WCVM associate professor in large animal surgery and her residency supervisor — research has become a big part of Roquet’s …
November 10th, 2011 Full story »
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EGUS prevalent in Saskatchewan racehorses
A study recently completed by WCVM researchers confirms that equine gastric ulcer syndrome (EGUS) is just as prevalent in Western Canada’s racehorse population as it is in other parts of the world. By conducting gastroscopic examinations on thoroughbred racing horses stabled at Saskatoon’s Marquis Downs, the research team determined that ulcers in the nonglandular portion of the stomach were present …
December 02nd, 2010 Full story »
