Products Help In Equine Oral ExamsApril 24, 2009 Equine dental technician Christine Griffin’s most essential tool is her new Enova Medical Technologies cordless headlamp. The device cost $800 and enables her to see inside a horse’s mouth better than any other lamp she’s used. "The lamp is brighter and it doesn’t get hot," she says. "You can really see so you won’t miss anything. And that’s much better for the horse." Griffin works in Ramona, Calif., with veterinarian Lisa Grim, who purchased a mobile dentistry unit from veterinarian Tom Allen of Missouri when he upgraded. The mobile unit allows horses to be treated more safely. They can be placed in stocks, which they can lean against. "They stay calmer, so you need less sedative," Griffin said. Horses are kept cleaner during procedures, as opposed to when services are performed in the stable or in the field. Exams are easier because the unit can be darkened so the veterinarian or technician can better see problems. Among the other benefits of the mobile unit are a state-of-the-art periodontal unit and a digital radiography machine. The rigs are custom-built by trailer manufacturers working with veterinary equipment companies. Turnbow …
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The Race They Couldn't WinMay 27, 2007 After all they had been through, the decision to euthanize 2006 Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro wasn’t made easily. But Dean Richardson, DVM, chief of surgery at University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine’s Widener Hospital at New Bolton Center, knew the time had come. “We said all along that our decision would be based on whether quality of life was acceptable and whether we had any reasonable prospect of getting him to live a reasonably acceptable life,” Dr. Richardson said. For the first time since Barbaro shattered his right hind leg at the Preakness Stakes in May and through the complications that followed, Barbaro had been uncomfortable the night before, Richardson said. He was unable to sleep and clearly distressed. “He was a completely different horse,” Richardson said. “We meant it when we said if we couldn’t control his discomfort, we wouldn’t go on.” Barbaro was euthanized at 10:30 a.m. Jan. 29 with Richardson and owners Roy and Gretchen Jackson by his side. Barbaro’s fractures had completely healed, Richardson said. But a deep bruise on that leg resulted in an abscess. Foundering severely in his back left leg and with laminitis …
