Rufford Veterinary Group LTD - Equine

23/04/2025

21/04/2025

🌸🐣 We thought we would share with you our special Easter delivery 🐣🌸

This little c**t was born and attended to by our vet Steph. He needed a bit of help early hours Easter Sunday morning. He was struggling to feed and his owners phoned as they knew how important it was for him to receive his mum’s colostrum.

🍼Colostrum has much higher levels of protein, fat, vitamins and minerals than regular milk. It is filled with immunoglobulins from the mare which are the building blocks for the foals immune system. Unlike some other species, immunoglobulins are not transferred from the mare to the foal during pregnancy. This means foals are born extremely susceptible to infections found in the environment. Foals have the greatest absorption of these immunoglobulins during the first 6-8 hours of life. After 24 hours absorption rapidly declines, hence why it is so important the foal receives it to fight off infection 🍼.

Steph attended and milked off some colostrum from his mum Bramble and administered it via stomach tube to the foal. This helped him to feel stronger and with guidance he then learnt how to latch and feed himself. Well done to his owners for acting quickly as this certainly made all the difference.

Now this little bouncy chap needs a name! His owners would be super grateful for any suggestions! If you have one please pop it in the comments, we would love to hear them!

We hope you have all had a wonderful Easter! 🐰🐣💐🍫

17/04/2025

🐴🐴 For our Equine clients! 🐴🐴

14/04/2025

🎬 Behind the scenes 🎬

We appreciate it can be daunting to drop your ponies off at the vets, so here’s a little behind the scenes look at what goes on.

Leo came in for laser surgery to remove 2 very large sarcoids under general anaesthetic. We elected to anaesthetise Leo because of age, temperament and the location of his lesions.

We always put patient and staff safety first and Leo’s surgery went off without a hitch! He’s home now, recovering from his adventure.

Thanks to his owners for letting us share this footage and make Leo a STAR 🎬🤩

10/04/2025

🐎☯️Did you know we offer Acupuncture?☯️🐎

Acupuncture works by stimulating specific points of the body with thin needles. This activates nerves and muscle fibres to promote the release of natural anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects. It also encourages endorphin release and is often a relaxing experience for the horse as you can see from the video!

Acupuncture can be used to treat many musculoskeletal problems such as:

- Back pain
- Neck pain
- Sacroiliac pain
- Muscle soreness
- Osteoarthritis / degenerative joint disease
- Laminitis

The treatment can also be used to influence the function of internal organs in problems such as:

- Respiratory problems eg Equine Asthma
- Dermatology problems eg Sweet Itch
- Digestive problems eg Equine Gastric Ulceration Syndrome
- Headshaker Syndromes
- Poor immunity / post viral lethargy

Acupuncture often works well alone or in conjunction with other conventional veterinary treatments. It is also safe for competition horses as there are no drug withdrawal times.

Acupuncture may only be performed by a qualified veterinary surgeon. Our vet Steph is a member of the Association of British Veterinary Acupuncturists. Watch out for some upcoming acupuncture clinics!

07/04/2025

🩸💉 Another wound case 💉🩸

This is Willow. Willow's owner called our 'Out of hours' phone number after she found Willow in her stable with this wound to her bottom.

Our on duty vet visited immediately. Luckily for Willow, although the wound had extended through the full thickness of her skin, no important underlying structures were affected.

Willow kept a close eye on Martha, the attending vet, while she stitched up her wound. A tension relieving suture pattern and some drains were placed to prevent the large wound breaking down.

Willow recently attended our clinic and we think she looks fantastic!

Our vets are on hand to deal with any and all emergencies whenever you need us! Ring 07977714095 out of hours to speak to the on duty vet.

07/04/2025

Seamus and Steph have been busy working at the Grand National Festival this weekend.

They have worked hard as part of the fantastic veterinary team to provide first class care for all the horses there. Here they are with Grand National winner Nick Rockett 🐎🏆🐎

03/04/2025

🐎 It’s a beautiful day for it here at Aintree! 🐎

It’s a pleasure as always to be on the vet team at Aintree for the Grand National Meeting! Seamus is on duty all weekend. See if you can spot him on the TV! 🐎

01/04/2025

😃 Smile!! 😃

It’s Equine Health Plan day!

Ring our office to discuss with the equine team! 01704 821204 option 2.

31/03/2025

⏰It's Finally here! ⏰

Tomorrow is our first day of the Equine Health Plan!

Ring the office or visit https://www.ruffordvets.com/equine-health-plan tomorrow to sign up!

30/03/2025

🌸🌷💐 Happy Mother’s Day! 💐🌷🌸

A lovely sunny day to celebrate all the mums in our lives, equine and human!

Especially these two new mummys from Abram’s Farm, who’ve given us 2 beautiful, happy, healthy foals this weekend! Congrats to all at Abram’s 💗

28/03/2025

An annual membership to our Equine Health Plan includes:
⭐️A Visit, annual health check & vaccination (including weight check)
⭐️Annual dental including sedation
⭐️4 x Faecal worm egg counts
⭐️1 x red worm test, including Cushing test if required
⭐️1 x tapeworm saliva test
⭐️1 x worming treatment if required
⭐️10% off diagnostics fees
⭐️10% off visit fees
⭐️10% off selected lifetime medications
⭐️10% off supplements

To sign up or get more information Ring 01704821204 option 2 to speak to a member of staff or visit our website https://www.ruffordvets.com/equine-health-plan

26/03/2025

🪻🌷🐴 It's foal season! 🐴🌷🪻

Is your mare expecting this spring? Are you prepared?

Mares and Foals have some key milestones they should hit after foaling. Remember the 1-2-3 rule:

🚶‍♂️ Foals should stand and be alert within 1 hour of birth
🍼 Foals should nurse within 2 hours of birth
🩸 Mares should pass their placenta within 3 hours of foaling

If your ponies haven't followed these rules ring us immediately! Quick action is crucial for newborn foals!

We recommend scheduling a newborn foal check between 12- 24 hours post foaling even when all has gone well to double check your foal has the best start to life!

If you have any concerns regarding preparing for foaling speak to any of our vets. We're here to help at this special time! Here are a few foals were helped out last year! 🌷🍼🩷

25/03/2025

💥Laser clinic day 💥

10th April is our next half price laser surgery day!

Book in to have any lumps and bumps removed quickly and easily with our laser. This special offer includes sedation, local anaesthetic, the procedure and pain relief to go home with for half the normal price!

Ring up to book in on 01704821204 option 2 or email a picture to [email protected]

24/03/2025

🚨UPDATE: The road is open!! 🚨

21/03/2025

🎱 It's castration season! 🎱

It's the perfect time of year for castration, warm and dry with no flies! If you've got a c**t to castrate this year take advantage of this good weather, who knows how long it will last!

Colts can come into to our our clinic or be castrated at home as long as they fit certain criteria. Ring us on 01704821204 option 2 to discuss your options!

20/03/2025

💉 Strangles Vaccine Amnesty 💉

As always, Strangles and other infectious diseases are a worry for horse owners. Protect your horses by keeping them vaccinated. We offer a Strangles vaccine that can benefit busy yards with horses coming and going regularly. Horses need a primary course of one vaccine followed by a second 4 weeks later and a booster at 6 months.

Any strangles vaccines booked between 17th March and 17th April will get the second vaccine free of charge! The first vaccine in the course is £50.55.

*This does not include a visit charge however, remember with 4 or more horses on one yard the visit is free! So why not get a few of your yard pals together and get booked in!

Ring the office on 01704821204 to book in!

19/03/2025

Visit our website https://www.ruffordvets.com/equine-health-plan to find out more!