Columbia Equine Hospital

09/29/2026

FALL WELLNESS 🐴🩺

Has your horse had the following yet this year? If not, now is a great time to schedule! 503-663-1515
- vaccinations
- f***l egg count / deworming
- oral exam / dental float
- bloodwork
- musculoskeletal evaluation

Did your horse travel a lot this summer? Worried they may have developed gastric ulcers? Now is a good time to consider gastroscopy.

09/22/2026

What do YOU think the most common horse names are that we see at Columbia Equine? ⬇️ Comment below

09/16/2026

*Fall Hoof Balance Radiograph Special*

✨ Now through October 31, 2026, Columbia Equine Hospital is offering 20–25% off hoof balance radiographs! ✨

Horses interact with the ground through one essential structure: the hoof. A valuable tool in the toolbox for achieving and maintaining a well-balanced hoof is the hoof radiograph.

Digital radiographs, or images, allow your horse’s care team, including your veterinarian, farrier, and other care specialists, to see what is happening inside the hoof. They can evaluate important measurements such as sole depth, palmar or plantar angle, toe-to-heel ratio, and other parameters related to hoof balance. The images can be used to establish a baseline, guide hoof-care decisions, track progress over time, and help diagnose certain orthopedic conditions involving the joints and associated structures.

Front feet:
In clinic: $75 off
At your farm: $60 off

All four feet:
In clinic: $150 off
At your farm: $120 off

Call the office to schedule your horse’s hoof balance radiograph appointment!

**The standard hoof balance series includes a lateromedial (side) view and a dorsopalmar or dorsoplantar (front) view of each hoof. Additional views may be recommended with the owner’s approval and will be charged at the regular rate. Farm calls, sedation, unrelated radiographs, and other services are not included in the special.**

09/04/2026

SURGERY PREP 🤗 We have Dr. Sarah Smith prepping our precious patient with some pre-op meds into an IV catheter. Call in to inquire about your equine's surgical needs. 💉🪡

09/03/2026

🤔 Do you actually know how much hay you are feeding?

One of the simplest ways to make sure your horse is getting the right amount of forage is to weigh the hay you feed. A hanging scale can make this quick and easy, helping you measure portions accurately and adjust feeding based on your horse’s individual needs.

🤷🏻‍♀️Why weigh it? A flake of hay can differ significantly in weight depending on type and size of the bale. Even flakes within a single bale can be quite variable. Zero your hanging scale to adjust for a light bag to hold the hay - a large grocery bag, tote or mesh laundry bag all work quite well - load a flake or however much you were planning on feeding into the bag and then hang it back on your scale and see if it weighs what you should be feeding

🌾 But do you know how much you should be feeding?

For weight maintenance of the average horse in light to moderate work fees 2% of body weight daily - this is 20 to 22 lbs total for the average 1,000 to 1,100 lb horse, ideally split into at least three meals spread throughout the day (around 6.5 to 7.25 lbs per meal)

Easy keepers may only require 1.5-1.75% of body weight daily for maintenance

For an overweight horse, aim to feed only 1.25-1.5% of body weight daily for weight loss

Hard keepers, underweight or highly active horses often need 2.25-2.5% of body weight in total daily forage to maintain or gain weight. These horses may also require additional calories supplied via concentrates such as grain or fats.

💡 Tip: Weigh your hay regularly, especially when switching hay types or sources. If you’re unsure how much or what your horse should be eating, talk with your veterinarian.

08/31/2026

Please welcome Dr. Sarah Smith to the Columbia Equine Team! We are so excited to welcome her to the Portland area and have her as part of the clinic!

Dr. Sarah Smith grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, where she competed in dressage and three-day eventing.

She attended Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington, earning a bachelor’s degree in biophysics, biochemistry, and molecular biology before receiving her veterinary degree from UC Davis.

During veterinary school, Dr. Smith gained extensive experience in emergency and surgical care, working as an after-hours large animal surgery technician and equine hospital treatment nurse. She also served with the California Student Veterinary Emergency Response Team, assisting with local emergencies and wildfire evacuations. Through UC Davis’ One Health initiative, she collaborated on research investigating the relationship between wildfires and disease spread among wildlife.

After graduation, Dr. Smith completed an equine internship at Bend Equine Medical Center in Bend, Oregon, where she further developed her skills across a broad range of equine medicine and surgery. Her professional interests include emergency medicine, surgery, sports medicine, and wellness.

Outside of work, Dr. Smith enjoys hiking, skiing, backpacking, crafting, and spending time with her cat, Shrimp.

08/21/2026

Earlier this year a 5 year old draft cross gelding presented to Columbia Equine for approximately one week duration of fevers and left sided nasal discharge (sinus infection) which was improving with broad spectrum oral antibiotic treatment.

On sedated speculum oral exam a sagittal crown fracture of tooth #210 was present through pulp chambers 1 & 2 with feed packing between the fragments. The cheek side fragment was loose and causing a significant ulceration to the inside of the cheek.

On dental x-ray, sclerosis (increased bone density) surrounded one of the tooth roots of #210, indicating root infection secondary to the open pulp chambers created by the fracture.

Under standing sedation and a local nerve block, the diseased tooth was extracted by intra-oral elevation. The horse received peri-operative pain medications and was continued on a course of antibiotics. He recovered well with no recurrent signs of tooth or sinus infection.

* posted with owner permission

08/06/2026

As the air quality improves you may be getting anxious to exercise your horse again, but their lungs actually need a little more time than you might think to recover from the smoke. Remember while you were able to wear a mask and go indoors to filtered air, your horse was breathing in small particles 24/7. The amount of recovery time required for their lungs to clear and heal depends upon the severity and duration of poor air quality they were in, and whether or not they had any previous underlying respiratory issues (such as asthma). Even for mild brief exposure we still recommend a few days off and a few days of light work with close respiratory monitoring prior to returning to normal activity. 🫁

Wildfire smoke exposes horses to harmful particles in the air. Make sure your horses are recovered before working and riding them.

08/05/2026

Two lots (24416 and 25265P) of Adequan® i.m. Injection (for horses), 500mg/5 mL single-dose 5mL vials have been recalled

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – July 31, 2026 – Shirley, NY, American Regent, Inc. Animal Health is conducting a nationwide recall of two lots (25011 and 3369) of Adequan® Canine Injection (for dogs), 100 mg/mL 5mL multi-dose vials and two lots (24416 and 25265P) of Adequan® i.m. Injection (for horses...

08/04/2026

Next time you see Dr. Caitlyn Higginbotham ask her about her experience last weekend as a volunteer for the UC Davis’s Equine Medical Strike Team at the 2026 Tevis Cup 100 mile Western States Trail endurance race. Their team, in coordination with Nevada HEART and the Butte County Sheriff’s Office, rescued via helicopter an endurance horse that had been separated from his rider during the race becoming stuck in the thick wilderness. Both the horse and rider recovered well from the incident. 🚁