Nantwich Equine Vets

10/09/2025

‼️Road closed from Reaseheath to Bluestone‼️
Please plan your route and allow plenty of time for your appointments at the clinic today 🐴

08/09/2025

Congratulations to local rider Evie and her lovely pony Paddy who won at the Riding Club Championships last weekend representing Nantwich Riding Club🥇🏆

05/09/2025

✨ Meet Harriet Fairhurst – Our New Equine Vet

Some of you may have already met Harriet over the past month, but we’re excited to officially introduce her to our clients! 🐴

Harriet holds a certificate in equine medicine and has a particular interest in equine reproduction and carrying out gastroscopes and airways scoping. She brings a wealth of knowledge and passion for providing the very best care to your horses.

Outside of work, Harriet enjoys competing her own horse, so she understands first-hand the joys (and challenges!) of horse ownership.

Please join us in giving Harriet a warm welcome to the team – we’re delighted to have her on board! 💚

04/09/2025

A great local livery yard 🐴🐴

04/09/2025

✨🐴 Time to get your horse looking smart for the winter season! 🐴✨

Our experienced equine nurses are offering clipping here at the clinic. Simply drop your horse off with us and let our team take care of the rest.

💡 Why not make the most of your visit? Combine clipping with a dental appointment with one of our vets – we can clip while your horse is comfortably sedated.

✅ Stress-free for your horse
✅ Convenient for you
✅ Two jobs done in one visit!

📅 Call the clinic today to book your horse in. Spaces are limited!
📞 01270 628888

27/08/2025

🌧️🐴 After the much-welcomed rain, the grass will begin to shoot up again!
As lovely as that sounds, it’s also the time to be extra careful—lush new growth can increase the risk of laminitis and colic.

💚 Keep a close eye on your horses and ponies, and manage turnout carefully to keep them happy and healthy.

30/07/2025

🌾 It’s Nantwich Show Day! 🐄

If you’re heading to the show, we hope you have a fantastic time — it’s always a great day out! 😄

For anyone with an appointment at the clinic today, please allow extra time for your journey as local roads may be busier than usual.

Enjoy the show! 🐴🎪🚜

23/07/2025

Thank you On Point Equine Transport 💙

Oops I cut her ears off.
The lovely Betty in for a pregnancy scan with the team here.

09/07/2025

🚧 Road Closure Notice – Plan Ahead 🚧

Please be aware that the A51 road will be CLOSED on Thursday 10th and Friday 11th July, with no access from the Tarporley direction.

If you have an appointment with us on these dates, please plan your route accordingly and allow extra travel time to avoid delays.

We appreciate your understanding and cooperation – your horses’ care is important to us, and we want to make sure everyone gets here safely and on time!

🐴 Thank you,
Nantwich Equine Vets

28/06/2025

🌟 This weekend, our lovely vet Eadaoin will be the attending vet at Bradwall Horse Trials, looking after all the amazing eventers! 🐴💪

If you’re heading to the event, keep an eye out for her – she’s there to help keep the horses happy, healthy, and competition-ready. 👩‍⚕️💙

Best of luck to all the competitors – we’re wishing you safe and successful rounds! 🍀🏇

18/06/2025

🚨 Emergency Call-Out 🚨

Our vet Campbell Thompson was recently called to a trailer accident involving a much-loved horse, Ted. We’re incredibly relieved to report that Ted walked away without injury — a very lucky outcome from what could have been a serious situation.

This is a timely reminder to check your trailer regularly, and make sure all quick-release safety measures are clean, oiled, and in full working order. In an emergency it can make all the difference.

Huge thanks to Campbell for his calm expertise in these stressful moments, and we’re so glad Ted is safe and sound! 🐴💙

06/06/2025

𝐒𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡, 𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐚𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐬


The sheath of a horse is the pocket in which the p***s resides when it is not extended for urination or breeding. A product called sm**ma is a substance which helps to lubricate the movement of the p***s. A bean is a hard mass build up of sm**ma, skin cells, dust and urine that develops at the tip of the p***s in a small pocket around the urethra (where urine exits the body) called the urethra fossa. Beans can get so big (like the one in our photo!) that they interfere with the urethra and the horse finds it uncomfortable to urinate. It can even lead to infections and kidney issues.
The horse may show colic signs when he is trying to urinate such as kicking, posturing and then not urinating, flank watching etc.

Having a sheath clean means the p***s and surrounding tissues can so can be examined for growths such as squamous cell carinomas or melanomas and general health. Sometimes a change in colour of consistency of the skin is the first sign of an issue developing. The build-up of sm**ma within the sheath can attract flies in the summer. In extreme cases flies may even lay eggs within the sheath which hatch into maggots causing discomfort and irritation.

However, it is important to find a balance as if sheath cleaning is carried out too frequently the natural balance of “good bacteria” may be disrupted causing dry irritated skin. For the same reason antiseptics or soaps should be avoided. Once yearly cleaning is generally enough for most horses.

Depending on the temperament of your horse sedation may be necessary for this to be carried out. We would recommend combining this with other annual procdures such as vaccinations or dental examination.

We would advised wearing gloves and using warm water and cotton wool. A water-based lubricant such as KY Jelly may help loosen debris from the area and dislodge a bean from the pocket. Removal can be uncomfortable for the horse and care must be taken not to get kicked.

Eadaoin McLoughlin DVM PgCert CertAVP MRCVS