Virginia Equine Surgery & Sports Medicine

06/08/2026

Fun facts for National Dairy Month

Did you know…

According to a study, eating cheese after a meal can help prevent tooth decay.

Eating just 2 slices of cheese a day can help reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes by 12%.

Milk has long been called “nature’s most nearly perfect food.” It contains a long list of essential vitamins, minerals, fats, sugars and proteins, for maintaining health.

Fresh milk will stay fresher longer if you add a pinch of salt to each quart.

Dairy cows produce more milk when listening to REM's 'Everybody Hurts', Simon & Garfunkel’s ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’, or Lou Reed’s ‘Perfect Day’.

Cows can smell something up to 6 miles away!

Cows can munch their way through 154lbs of grass and drink more than 18.5 gallons of water a day

Low-fat chocolate milk is often used as a source of protein for athletes! With calcium, electrolytes, vitamin A, potassium, vitamin B and more.

06/06/2026

06/04/2026

Here's a quick reference guide made by our Doctors. Hang one in the barn for quick basic Equine First Aid and how to be prepared when emergencies occur.

06/01/2026

June is National Dairy Month, established in 1937, National Dairy Month is celebrated to highlight the dairy industry's economic contribution and the nutritional benefits of milk.

So this month celebrate all of the hard working dairy farmers and their families. They are behind milk and dairy productions and work tirelessly to ensure that it makes its way to our grocery stores so we can enjoy our favorite dairy products each and every day. 🐄🥛🧀🐄

05/28/2026

What can you do to keep yourself, your horse, and your veterinarian (and your farrier!) safe during your appointment?

● Have your horse caught, clean and ready for the veterinarian in a clutter-free and safe area.

● Always hold the lead rope with two hands (and never coil them around your hand).

● Always wear close toed shoes when handling horses (no flip flops, no crocs!).

● Ensure your horse is wearing a halter that properly fits, the same goes for other tack if an under saddle evaluation is being performed.

● Stand on the same side of your horse that the veterinarian is on unless otherwise instructed.

● No distractions - no cell phone usage, or coffee sipping while also holding your horse.

● Let your veterinarian know if your horse is needle shy (another post coming on how to work with needle shy horses)

● Let your veterinarian if there is anywhere you have noticed them being sensitive or exhibiting signs of pain when touched, prior to the veterinarian approaching your horse

05/25/2026

Our office will be closed today, Monday, May 25 to celebrate this Memorial Day Holiday. We will be back in the office tomorrow, Tuesday, May 26 at 8:00am. As always, we have a doctor on call if an emergency should arise, 540-955-5551.

05/18/2026

Coggins testing - what is it and why do we do it?

Coggins is a required test for Equine Infectious Anemia which is a viral disease which can affect horses, donkeys, and mules. This disease can be devastating to an animal, its herd and the local horse population. Therefore it is required for all horses travelling and leaving their farm; whether that's just down the road, or crossing state lines for any reason. Each state has their own requirements, some require it yearly, some every two years, and some have a specific timing requirement prior to entry of the state; in Virginia it is a yearly requirement for all horses who travel. This disease is reportable for efficient disease outbreak management and case tracking.

Below is information on EIA itself from AAEP, on how it's transmitted and the symptoms seen in horses who have contracted the disease. Prognosis for horses who contract the disease is poor - it is usually fatal for symptomatic horses, and many horses who are positive but asymptomatic have to be euthanized due to the risk they pose to uninfected horses. There have not been any cases in this area in many years, but in 2026 there have been outbreaks in CA, TX, NV, CO.

EDCC is a useful tool for identifying outbreaks: https://www.equinediseasecc.org/alerts?disease=72

05/16/2026

Get ready, today is the 151st running of the Preakness Stakes. For the first time in the race's history, it will be run at Laural Park due to construction at Pimlico Race Course. Good luck to all of the contenders. We can't wait to see who wears the Black Eyed Susan Blanket this year. Who is your bet on?

05/11/2026

Spring is here! Don’t forget to think about internal parasite control for your horses.

Internal parasites can affect horses by inhibiting their ability to absorb nutrients, cause anemia (blood loss), cause damage to internal organs, blockage of the intestinal tract, slow growth rates in young animals and suppress the immune system. Some common signs of parasitism include; dull, rough hair coats, slowed growth, colic and diarrhea, loss of body condition, pot belly appearance.

Deworming recommendations have changed over the years - we no longer recommend blindly deworming every horse on a set schedule and indiscriminately changing dewormers. This can cause parasitic resistance to our dewormers, so they don’t work as well when we really need them!

Our deworming recommendations should be tailored to each horse; we recommend performing a f***l egg count annually or biannually to evaluate our deworming protocols. This is where we test the f***s, deworm based on the results, and make sure there is a reduction in shedding by testing again.

We do recommend deworming all horses at a baseline of 2xyear (Spring and Fall) then targeting select horses who are known to be high shedders of parasites (which we identify via a FEC) for deworming as needed additionally.

It is also important to consider environmental management to keep your parasite levels down in your herd. We can do this by removing f***l waste from stall and pastures regularly to keep the lifecycle of the parasite from perpetuating, rotating pastures with other species (this also interrupts the lifecycle of the parasites),house horses who are similar together (age, immune status), elevate feed off the ground to reduce egg ingestion, remove bot eggs on your horses legs when noted.