WCVM Veterinary Medical Centre
What makes horses tick?
January 23rd, 2020
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In mid-February, western Canadian horse owners will have the chance to meet Dr. Sue McDonnell and learn more about equine behavior during the 2020 Saskatchewan Equine Expo in Saskatoon, Sask. The Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) has invited McDonnell to visit Saskatoon for several educational events — including a public seminar from 4 to 6 p.m. on Friday, Feb. …
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‘No bad horse’
Unlike many who spend their careers working with horses, Sue McDonnell wasn’t always so keen on the equine species. “I was familiar with horses, but it wasn’t really my sport or activity as a kid,” says McDonnell, who grew up on a dairy farm in rural Pennsylvania. “I first got involved seriously with horses as a professional when I went …
January 23rd, 2020 Full story »
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WCVM to pay necropsy fees on WFFS cases
During the 2019 foal season, the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) will cover the cost of conducting equine necropsy (post-mortem) examinations on aborted fetuses, stillbirths or euthanized foals that are suspected to be cases of warmblood fragile foal syndrome (WFFS). Canadian horse owners and referring veterinarians can submit cases to Prairie Diagnostic Services (PDS), the provincial veterinary laboratory based …
April 08th, 2019 Full story »
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EHV-1 case dies of other health issues
A Saskatoon-area horse that was diagnosed with the neurologic form of equine herpes virus 1 (EHV-1) has been humanely euthanized after developing other health issues. The horse was the first of two local equine patients diagnosed with EHV-1 in the past two weeks. Veterinarians from the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) were providing treatment and supportive care for the …
March 31st, 2016 Full story »
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Horse survives after stick impales chest
On a dark October night, Les and Darlene Leer pulled into the parking lot at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine’s Veterinary Medical Centre in Saskatoon with their horse trailer in tow. It was late, and they were worried. They had made the three-hour drive from St. Walburg, Sask., to bring in their injured 18-year-old Appaloosa gelding, Tuffy, for emergency …
January 10th, 2015 Full story »
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WCVM alumnus returns as VMC director
The Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) has selected Dr. Duncan Hockley, a veterinarian and University of Saskatchewan alumnus, as the new director of its Veterinary Medical Centre (VMC) on the university’s Saskatoon campus. Hockley, who is originally from Saskatchewan and a 1992 graduate of the WCVM’s Doctor of Veterinary Medicine program, is returning to his alma mater with a …
March 20th, 2013 Full story »
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Coggins test still vital cog in EIA screening
The standard in equine infectious anemia (EIA) screening is a test known to horse owners everywhere as the Coggins test. A “negative Coggins” is required for import and export of horses and is recommended for any situation in which horses are gathered together, such as a competition or boarding stable. But what exactly is a Coggins test, and how is …
July 12th, 2012 Full story »
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Controlling EIA’s spread has its challenges
Those in the horse industry all share a stake in maintaining vigilance over the spread and control of equine communicable diseases, and this is perhaps most true with equine infectious anemia (EIA), a disease whose only control is through regular screening. But the politics of disease management inevitably bring forth questions. Why do certain competitions require EIA screening but not …
July 12th, 2012 Full story »
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The tick factor
Like many Saskatchewan residents, I’ve have had to resign myself to dealing with ticks in recent years. Slowly but surely, ticks appear to be creeping into parts of the province that were previously (and blissfully) tick-free. The first tick I ever encountered was flung clear across the room in horror (never to be seen again). But I’ve since become a …
July 02nd, 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 »
