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Equine

Information and services for Equine Owners

Forth Valley Vets offers a dedicated equine service staffed by equine specific vets. We offer a range of services, and many of our vets have undertaken advanced practitioner courses in order to further their knowledge in certain fields.

Our practice covers a large area within central Scotland, and our zonal visit scheme means that we can offer reduced prices on set days for each location, and helps to ensure minimal waiting time for visits. The map below shows roughly the area we cover but if you are on the outskirts please phone the office to discuss, as we need to make sure we feel we can adequately meet your needs, and be available quickly for emergencies.

We offer a round the clock out of hours service staffed by our own vets, meaning that in the event of an emergency you will be seen by one of your regular vets.

We are very proud of the service we offer, both in terms of animal care and client relations, and have a large range of equipment and services available.

We are an RCVS accredited practice.

Our friendly vets and receptionists are always happy to chat, so if you have any questions please give us a phone or pop in to see us!

Equine Services

  • Dentistry
  • Diagnostic Imaging
  • Emergency Services
  • Equine Care Plan
  • Lameness
  • Routine Visits
  • Vettings

Dentistry

We advise that horses receive a dental check at least annually, and for older horses or those with any dental disease we may choose to see them more frequently. We advise that dental checks and procedures are carried out under standing sedation to ensure a thorough, safe and stress-free examination.

The dental procedures we offer include routine checks, removal of wolf teeth, retained caps and incisors, treatment of diastema, and assessment of many other common conditions such as caries, fractures, wavemouth and other abnormalities. We have a selection of hand rasps, power tools, and diastema burrs.


Diagnostic Imaging

Ultrasound

We have a portable ultrasound scanner which we use to investigate tendon injuries. We advise scanning approximately 1 week after the initial injury in order to get the most accurate assessment. We are also able to scan for pregnancy in mares.

Digital X-ray

We offer a digital x-ray service which can be carried out at your yard, eliminating the need for transport. This generates a very high-quality image, which is available immediately meaning that further decision making and work up can be done while our vet is still at the yard.

Gastroscopy

Our gastroscope can be used to diagnose a number of conditions affecting the stomach, most commonly Equine Gastric Ulcer Disease. Our team is experienced in dealing with and treating complex and persistent ulcers, and this can all be done on your yard. We will ask for your horse to be starved for 12-16 hours prior and for water to be removed around 4 hours prior. This means we usually aim to get to your yard in the morning so you can remove hay etc the night before and avoid your horse standing without food all day.

Endoscopy

We also have a respiratory scope which we use for guttural pouch washes in strangles testing/investigation. We can also use this to investigate respiratory issues including equine asthma and other inflammatory airway issues, problems with the throat, windpipe and guttural pouches.

 

Emergency Services

Because our team is comprised of dedicated equine vets, we are fully equipped with the knowledge and equipment required for most equine emergencies.

In case of an emergency, dial the usual number and you will be directed to an out of hours answering service who will forward your call to the duty vet who will then phone you back.

Equine Care Plan

The Equine Care Plan provides for your horse’s preventative healthcare needs and allows you to budget in convenient and affordable monthly payments as well as giving you access to discounts on other products and services from our Practice. Find out more here.

Lameness

Our vets are experienced in dealing with a wide range of lameness/back problems and offer full lameness work ups. This will start with an initial assessment of the leg and foot at rest, followed by a trot up and lunging to assess gait. This will require an area of hard, even ground and an arena/soft area big enough to lunge. The vet will carry out flexion tests to see if flexion of a particular joint exacerbates lameness. We will then decide if your horse requires nerve blocks (methodical application of local anaesthetic into a certain region/joint of the leg starting at the foot and working up, to numb each area one after another). This helps to locate the region of lameness, and further work up and diagnostic imaging can then be undertaken.

Please see our 'diagnostic imaging' section below to see what we offer.

Routine Visits

Our practice offers a wide range of routine services, including vaccinations, dental checks, worming protocols, strangles testing and much more.

Vettings

We offer 5 and 2 stage vettings

The 5 stage vetting comprises the following steps:

Stage 1 Preliminary exam. This is a thorough examination at rest. We will require a darkened area to allow proper examination of the eyes.

Stage 2 Walk and trot in hand with flexion tests. We will require a hard flat surface.

Stage 3 Exercise phase. Ideally ridden. If this is not possible then lunging will be undertaken.

Stage 4 Period of rest and re-examination to evaluate cardiovascular and repiratory systems as they return to resting levels.

Stage 5 Second trot up. This allows us to look for any lameness made evident by the previous stages.

A blood sample may also be taken for storage in case we need to use it for future analyis to detect any substances in the blood which may have affected the suitability for purpose.

A 2 stage vetting comprises the first 2 steps.

Equine Care Plan

Equine Care Plan

An Equine Care Plan provides for your horse’s preventative healthcare needs and allows you to budget in convenient and affordable monthly payments.

Looking to Pay an Invoice?

Looking to Pay an Invoice?

Pay for your Equine services online.

Practice information

Forth Valley Veterinary Practice Stirling

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  • Mon
    8:30am - 5:30pm
  • Tue
    8:30am - 5:30pm
  • Wed
    8:30am - 5:30pm
  • Thu
    8:30am - 5:30pm
  • Fri
    8:30am - 5:30pm
  • Sat
    8:30am - 12:30pm
  • Sun
    Closed
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Find us here:

Falleninch Farm Dumbarton Road Stirling FK8 3AB
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