Trinity Veterinary Medical Center

09/05/2026

As summer winds down, remember that disease risks don't vanish with the warm weather! Fall is a critical time to evaluate your horse’s immune protection as routines shift toward winter travel, shows, and changing turnout conditions.
Key Fall Boosters to Discuss
🫁 Respiratory Protection (Flu/Rhino): Essential for horses that travel, show, or share pastures with horses coming and going. Protection from spring vaccines often fades after 4 to 6 months.
🦟 Mosquito-Borne Diseases (WNV & EEE/WEE): In warmer regions where mosquitoes remain active through the fall, a late-season booster ensures high antibody levels.

Why Fall Vaccinations Matter —
Increased Exposure: Fall brings more time in close quarters or increased travel to competitions.
Winter Stress Prep: Temperature drops and seasonal changes can strain immunity—a booster gives your horse a strong baseline before winter sets in.

🚑 The Mobile Vet Advantage
Skip the hassle of hooking up the trailer and hauling out in changing weather! Mobile veterinary visits make herd health convenient, keeping your horses safe, comfortable, and stress-free right in their own barn.

Ready to lock in your horse’s autumn wellness plan? Send a message or call today to get your barn on the fall appointment schedule! 🐴🍂

🍂 Fall doesn’t mean horse health takes a back seat.

Vaccine protection doesn’t last forever, and seasonal risks don’t disappear when summer ends.

Talk with your veterinarian about scheduling your horse’s fall booster vaccinations to help maintain protection through seasonal transitions, travel, training and turnout changes.

08/28/2026

It’s FriYay!!!

🐴 Case Challenge: What do you see? 🚨

Signalment & History:
A mature horse presents with chronic, progressive low-grade front limb lameness, exacerbated by working on hard ground or tight circles.

Visual Exam Findings:
•Firm, non-painful (or mildly sensitive) bony swelling localized to the pastern region.
•Prominent enlargement just above the coronet band.
•Asymmetrical appearance when comparing both legs.

What is your top differential for this presentation? What diagnostic imaging would you order next to confirm? 📸👇

Drop your guesses in the comments before we post the official breakdown and radiographs! 🐎💬

08/25/2026

❓Diagnosis Reveal —

Yesterday’s case presentation confirmed a diagnosis of Equine Canker (hypertrophic pododermatitis).

While often initially confused with severe, non-responsive thrush, canker is a chronic proliferative disease of the hoof's corium—marked by abnormal keratinization, exuding foul-smelling white/grey papillary masses, and friable tissue that bleeds easily upon probing.

🩺 Clinical Overview & Diagnostic Findings

•Pathophysiology: Characterized by hypertrophy and dyskeratinization of the epidermal layers of the frog and sole corium, driven by chronic inflammation and likely underlying bacterial involvement (including anaerobic species).
•Histopathology: Biopsy shows marked epidermal hyperplasia, acanthosis, and ballooning degeneration of keratinocytes with deep inflammatory infiltrate.
•Treatment Plan & Management Protocol
Successful resolution relies on aggressive radical debridement combined with rigorous topical therapy and absolute moisture control.
🔪 Radical Surgical Debridement: Under regional limb anesthesia or general anesthesia, surgically excise all abnormal hypertrophic tissue down to healthy, vascularized corium margins.
💊 Topical & Systemic Antimicrobial Therapy:
Application of topical astringent/antimicrobial formulations (e.g., Metronidazole paste, 10% Benzoyl Peroxide in acetone, or oxytetracycline powder) applied under pressure dressings.
Systemic antibiotics (such as Parenteral Penicillin or Metronidazole) targeted toward secondary anaerobic infection.
🩹 Bandaging & Pressure: Continuous, firm pressure wraps using waterproof boots or foot plates to prevent tissue granulation, minimize bleeding, and protect against environmental contamination.
🌳 Environment & Corrective Farriery: Strict placement in dry, clean turnout/bedding alongside regular therapeutic trimming to eliminate deep sulci and encourage normal frog function.

08/25/2026

⚠️ GRAPHIC IMAGE WARNING ⚠️

WHAT’S YOUR DIAGNOSIS? 🩺🐴

We presented this case recently, and it’s a classic example of why early identification and aggressive intervention are so critical in equine podiatry.

Case Presentation:
Take a close look at the solar surface of this hoof. We’re seeing significant hypertrophic tissue growth, extensive destruction of the normal frog and sole architecture, and hyper-vascular, easily friable tissue that bleeds profusely upon debridement. The foul odor and characteristic "cauliflower-like" proliferation are huge clinical clues here.

Differential Diagnoses to Consider:
- Severe/Nectrotizing Thrush
- Equine Canker
- Keratoma
- Squamous Cell Carcinoma / Neoplasia
- Deep Sole Abscess with exuberant granulation tissue

Drop your top differential in the comments below! 👇

Stay tuned!

08/21/2026

🐎 If you guessed Shivers to yesterday’s video, you are CORRECT!

Shivers (or Shivering Syndrome) is a chronic, progressive neuromuscular disorder seen primarily in horses—most commonly in draft breeds, Warmbloods, and tall light breeds. Here is a clear breakdown covering what it is, what causes it, and how to manage it.

What is Equine Shivers?
It is a Movement disorder characterized by involuntary muscle spasms, trembling, and abnormal posture, primarily affecting the hindlimbs, tail head, and occasionally the face or forelimbs.
Clinical Signs are most evident when —
Backing up: The horse hyperflexes or abducts one or both hind legs, holding them in the air with trembling muscle spasms.
Picking up feet: Particularly during farrier work or routine cleaning.
Initial movement: When first asked to move after standing still.

What Causes It?
While the exact underlying trigger remains under study, current veterinary consensus points toward a specific neurodegenerative cause —
Cerebellar Pathology: Research from the University of Minnesota indicates degeneration of Purkinje cell axons within the cerebellum—the region of the brain responsible for coordinating movement, balance, and fine motor control.
Genetic Component: There is a strong breed predisposition (Drafts, Warmbloods, Thoroughbreds, Warmblood crosses, especially over 16.2 hh), suggesting a hereditary linkage, though a single genetic mutation has not yet been isolated.
Distinction from PSSM: While Shivers can co-exist with Polysaccharide Storage Myopathy (PSSM type 1 or 2), it is a distinct neurological condition, not a metabolic muscle disease.

💊 Possible Helping Treatments & Management
There is currently no known cure for Shivers, but targeted management strategies can slow progression and improve the horse's quality of life —
1. Exercise & Daily Routine
Turnout: Maximize daily pasture turnout. Continuous turnout prevents stiffness and reduces the severity of involuntary spasms.
Consistent Work: Regular, moderate exercise helps maintain muscle mass and motor control. Avoid long periods of stall confinement.
2. Specialized Farrier Care
Work with an experienced farrier who understands the condition.
Keep feet low to the ground during trimming; avoid pulling the hind legs high or out to the side.
Allow frequent breaks so the horse can rest its leg between steps.
3. Dietary Adjustments
Low-Starch / High-Fat Diet: Switching to a low-sugar, high-fat ration (similar to a PSSM diet) often yields clinical improvement by reducing excitability and supporting muscle physiology.
Vitamin E Supplementation: High doses of natural Vitamin E (dl-alpha-tocopherol or water-dispersible formulations) act as a neural antioxidant to help slow axonal degradation.
4. Medical & Supportive Therapies
Acupuncture & Electro-Acuscope Therapy: Targeted neuro-stimulation and electro-acupuncture can help manage compensatory muscle soreness along the lumbar spine, pelvis, and hamstrings.
NSAIDs & Muscle Relaxants: Used transiently during flare-ups or before farrier visits to relieve discomfort from secondary muscle tension.

08/20/2026

Here’s another one! Sorry this video isn’t as dramatic as some others.

What’s Your Diagnosis? 🐴🩺

Take a close look at this video! Notice the sudden involuntary hyperflexion, muscle trembling in the hindlimb, and difficulty setting the foot down smoothly.
This characteristic twitching or elevation also classicly flares up when asking the horse to back up or holding the hind leg up for the farrier.

Drop your thoughts in the comments below:
What classic neuromuscular condition are we looking at here?
What key visual signs gave it away for you?
Have you ever managed or worked with a horse showing these symptoms?

Let’s see who can name this classic presentation! Check back tomorrow for the full diagnostic breakdown, underlying cause, and management strategies.

08/14/2026

Please be patient with us today as our phones and internet are down. We are still open if you need to come by to pick up any medications or need to schedule an appointment. Thank you!!!

08/13/2026

☀️ Farewell to Our Summer Student Rockstars! 🐴

From early morning barn calls and portable X-ray/ultrasound setups to learning the ropes, flexing through the Texas heat, and cuddling every pony, farm cat, and patient along the way… these students absolutely crushed it!

They’ve done it all:
📸 Mastering imaging & diagnostics
🩺 Hands-on patient care and barn-side medicine
🚜 Carrying the team (literally!)
☀️ Surviving the Texas heat with huge smiles on their faces!

We are so proud of the hard work, curiosity, and unmatched energy they brought to the truck every single day. The future of veterinary medicine is in amazing hands! 🎓🐴

Wishing our summer crew the absolute best as they head back to school! Go tackle this school year—we’ll keep the truck running for you! 🩺❤️

07/31/2026

💡 What's Your Diagnosis? Answer Reveal

Correct Answer: C. Fibrotic Myopathy

🔍 Case Breakdown & Clinical Findings
In this patient, physical examination and palpation revealed a very thickened, dense fibrous band extending from the gastrocnemius muscle up into the hamstring group (primarily involving the semitendinosus musculature).

🐎 What is Fibrotic Myopathy?
Fibrotic myopathy is a classic mechanical lameness in horses caused by dense scar tissue (fibrosis or ossification) replacing normal, elastic muscle tissue in the caudal thigh.

The Cause: It typically develops secondary to trauma—such as a muscle tear from a sudden stop/turn, kick injury, intramuscular injection site reaction, or severe strain. As the acute tear heals, non-compliant fibrous scar tissue forms in place of flexible muscle fibers.

The Clinical Sign (Gait): Because scar tissue cannot stretch, it acts as a tight physical tether. During the swing phase of the stride, as the hindlimb advances forward, the fibrous band abruptly limits extension. This pulls the limb backward and down prematurely, creating a characteristic "slapping" footfall or sudden jerky gait just before the hoof touches the ground.

📋 Key Takeaways for Diagnosis & Management —

Note: Fibrotic myopathy causes a mechanical restriction rather than an active painful lameness once the initial injury has fully healed.

Palpation: A firm, non-painful, cord-like fibrous mass or band can usually be felt in the semitendinosus/hamstring area or near its insertion points (as seen here extending from the gastrocnemius).
: Useful to assess the extent of fibrosis, fibrous band formation, or focal ossification within the muscle bellies.

Treatment Options -
Surgical: Semitendinosus tenotomy or transection of the fibrous band (myectomy/tenotomy) can relieve the mechanical tethering and dramatically improve gait aesthetics, though recurrence is possible if scar tissue re-forms.
Conservative: Physical therapy, controlled exercise, and stretching routines if the mechanical defect does not severely impair the horse's function.

Thank you to everyone who participated and dropped their guesses in yesterday's post! 🐴✨

07/30/2026

🐴 WHAT’S YOUR DIAGNOSIS? 🩺
Take a close look at this gait evaluation video! Pay special attention to the movement of the right hind limb as the horse walks forward.

🔍 Case Presentation
Observation: Notice the characteristic "goose-stepping" or hoof-slapping gait where the forward swing of the leg stops abruptly.

💬 Drop Your Guesses Below!
Which condition are we looking at here?
A. Stringhalt
B. Upward Fixation of the Patella (UFP)
C. Fibrotic Myopathy
D. Shivers

Tell us your guess in the comments below! We’ll share the answer and dive into the breakdown in our next post! 👇