Tweedie & Associates Equine Veterinary Services

03/04/2025

🐴✨ Say Goodbye to Joint Pain with Pro-Stride! ✨🐴
Is your horse slowing down, showing signs of stiffness, or just not moving like their usual self? Pro-Stride may be the solution you've been looking for!
Pro-Stride is a revolutionary, drug-free treatment that uses your horse’s own blood to fight inflammation and support healthy joints. 💉💪 It’s 100% natural, processed stall-side, and can start working in just a few days.
✅ Ideal for horses with: • Joint arthritis�• Performance-related inflammation�• Stiffness or lameness�• Age-related joint issues
We've seen fantastic results in horses right here on the Mornington Peninsula — from pleasure horses to high-level competitors. 🐎🏆
📞 Want to know if Pro-Stride is right for your horse? Give us a call today or send us a message to chat with one of our vets. Let’s keep your horse happy, sound, and moving freely!

27/03/2025

Heading to the Interschool State Championships? Read This First!

With less than 2 weeks to go until the Interschool State Competition, a quick but important reminder for all our competing clients:

Swabbing may occur at the event, so it’s essential you’re aware of any medications your horse is receiving that could result in a positive swab.

Even routine treatments can contain substances that are prohibited under competition rules. If you’re unsure whether something is safe, don’t guess—check first!

We’re here to help. If your horse is on any medication or supplement, or if you’re planning any treatments in the lead-up to the event, give us a call to discuss withholding times and ensure you’re in the clear.

Let’s keep it fair, safe, and stress-free!

Mornington Peninsula Equine Vets
Your partners in performance and horse health.

24/03/2025

🐴🗓️ Part 1 – Planning Ahead: 3-4 Weeks Before Competition
Preparation is the key to performance! At around 3-4 weeks out, make sure your horse has had a thorough health check to identify and manage any soundness issues early. Double-check medications your horse may be on, noting when they need to be withdrawn before competition to comply with rules (e.g., Pergolide/Prascend typically 14 days beforehand).
✅ Create your training and event schedule now to avoid last-minute stress.
Why planning early matters:
* Ensures your horse is fit and sound at competition time.
* Gives time to adjust training schedules or medications safely.
Stay tuned for Part 2 next week, where we’ll dive into your horse's management leading up to competition week!

20/03/2025

🔍 Heart Murmurs in Pre-Purchase Exams: What You Need to Know 🩺

You’re at the vet check, the horse is ticking all the boxes… until the vet hears a heart murmur. What now?

In this video, we break down what a heart murmur actually means, how it’s assessed, and whether it’s a deal-breaker. Not all murmurs are created equal—some are harmless, while others can impact performance and longevity.

A thorough cardiac evaluation, including auscultation and possibly echocardiography, can help determine if the murmur is just background noise or a red flag. The key is understanding the type, intensity, and impact on the horse’s future work.

👉 Watch now to learn what to ask your vet and how to make an informed decision when buying a horse with a murmur.

19/03/2025

📸 The Hidden Key to Soundness: Foot Balance X-Rays 🦶🔍

Did you know that even slight hoof imbalances can have a major impact on your horse’s long-term soundness? Whether your horse is a dressage star, show jumper, or simply in regular work, foot balance plays a crucial role in preventing injuries.

Many lameness issues start from the ground up—uneven weight distribution, incorrect angles, or delayed breakover can lead to joint strain, tendon stress, and long-term soundness problems. The tricky part? These imbalances aren’t always obvious to the eye. That’s where foot balance X-rays come in!

🔍 Why include foot balance X-rays in your horse’s routine care?
✔️ Early detection of subtle imbalances before they cause issues
✔️ Precision farriery – work with your vet & farrier for the perfect trim/shoeing plan
✔️ Improved movement & comfort – a well-balanced hoof = a happier, sounder horse
✔️ Injury prevention – reduce the risk of soft tissue strain & joint wear

📆 When was your horse’s last foot balance check? If it’s been a while, it might be time to take a closer look!

16/03/2025

Tweedie & Associates Equine Stable Staff

There has become a position available for an afternoon casual staff member to join our team. This is a position that is a stable staff position and is not a veterinary nurse position. It is for a Monday to Friday afternoon role from 3.30 pm to 5.30 pm.

The role will require someone with prior experience handling and working with high level performance horses. An ability to be comfortable handling all types of performance horses is a prerequisite for the role. An attention to detail also required.

As part of the role you will be required to do the following:

1. Feeding paddock based horses
2. Bringing horses in from the paddock and changing rugs
3. Feeding stables horses
4. Grooming in patient horses
5. Hand walking any inpatients.
6. Skipping out boxes and yards
7. Experience driving a UTV

Our ideal team member will be reliable, able to take direction and have the ability to work independently.

A job sharing arrangement would be considered for the right applicants. The job is based in Moorooduc.

If you are interested in this position please submit a CV to Dr Mike Tweedie at [email protected]. PM applications will not be accepted.

Applications for this position will close on 31-3-25.

03/03/2025

Colic prevention in horses is all about consistent management, proper nutrition, and minimizing stress. Here’s a solid, practical approach:

1. Maintain a Consistent Feeding Routine
• Feed high-quality forage: At least 1.5–2% of body weight in hay or pasture daily.
• Limit grain and concentrates: High-starch diets increase colic risk. If needed, use multiple small feedings.
• Avoid sudden feed changes: Any change in hay, grain, or pasture should be gradual over 7–10 days.

2. Ensure Proper Hydration
• Always provide fresh, clean water. Dehydration increases impaction risk.
• Encourage drinking in winter. Use warm water if necessary and add salt to feed to stimulate thirst.

3. Turnout & Exercise
• Maximize turnout: Horses on pasture have lower colic rates.
• Encourage movement: Regular exercise helps gut motility. Stalled horses should have daily turnout or hand-walking.

4. Prevent Sand Ingestion
• Avoid feeding on sandy ground. Use mats or feeders.
• Supplement with psyllium if needed. A monthly 7-day course can help clear sand.

5. Dental Care & Deworming
• Routine dental checks (every 6–12 months) prevent poor chewing and impaction.
• Follow a strategic parasite control plan. Base deworming on f***l egg counts.

6. Reduce Stress & Gastric Ulcers
• Minimize sudden changes in environment or routine.
• Avoid long fasting periods. Provide access to forage at all times.
• Consider ulcer prevention strategies (alfalfa hay, gastric protectants) for high-risk horses.

7. Recognize Early Signs
• Know your horse’s normal behavior—watch for reduced appetite, changes in manure, or mild discomfort.
• Act fast if you suspect colic. Delays can be fatal.

By keeping management natural and consistent, you significantly reduce colic risks. Prevention is always easier (and cheaper) than treatment.

02/03/2025

Lameness awareness

Good morning. Beautiful Monday morning in Victoria. Still no rain unfortunately on the Mornington Peninsula. I think we're all crying out for it. But we are seeing a lot of lameness issues at the minute and it's something we're seeing a characteristic of a lot of these lameness is horses have not been willing to go forward. Some of them are struggling with lateral work. Some of the show jumpers are struggling to make distance. And it is something to be aware of.
One of the things we are seeing is that they've often been rumbling for a little bit of time. If you do have a query on your horse, it is probably best in your interest and your horse's interest to get it sooner rather than later. Leaving it longer means that often it's harder to fix.
If we can get in quickly, we have a lot more therapies than just rest alone to try and speed up recovery and get a better quality of recovery. So, if you guys are struggling a bit, just do give us a ring, have a chat and we can see what we can work out for you. Thanks, guys.

23/02/2025

Today marks the end of Dr Melissa’s time with us. She has been a valued vet as part of the team for the past 4 years.

She has decided the time is right for a new challenge and we offer her our thanks for the last 4 years and wish her very well for the future.

19/02/2025

Why do we perform a gastroscope?

Performing a gastroscopy on a horse instead of simply treating for gastric ulcers is crucial for several reasons:

1. Accurate Diagnosis

Gastric ulcers can have varying severity, locations, and causes. Gastroscopy allows visualization of the stomach lining, confirming whether ulcers are present and identifying their specific type (squamous vs. glandular). Without it, treatment may be ineffective or unnecessary.

2. Appropriate Treatment Plan

Different types of ulcers require different treatments. Squamous ulcers often respond well to acid suppressants like omeprazole, whereas glandular ulcers may require additional medications such as sucralfate or misoprostol. Treating blindly may lead to suboptimal results.

3. Rule Out Other Conditions

Clinical signs of ulcers—such as poor performance, weight loss, and girthiness—can overlap with other gastrointestinal issues (e.g., colitis, delayed gastric emptying, or even non-gastrointestinal conditions like musculoskeletal pain). Gastroscopy helps confirm ulcers as the actual problem.

4. Monitor Healing and Treatment Success

Without gastroscopy, there’s no way to know if the ulcers are healing or if treatment needs to be adjusted. Some horses may require prolonged treatment or changes in medication.

5. Cost-Effectiveness in the Long Run

While gastroscopy has an upfront cost, it prevents wasted money on unnecessary or ineffective treatments. Treating blindly for ulcers can become expensive if the wrong medication is used or if treatment is prolonged due to lack of improvement.

6. Prevent Overuse of Medications

Prolonged or unnecessary use of acid suppressants can have downsides, such as rebound acid hypersecretion when stopping treatment or potential negative effects on digestion. A confirmed diagnosis ensures that medications are only used when necessary.

In short, a gastroscopy provides clarity, ensures effective treatment, and prevents wasted resources, making it the gold standard for managing suspected equine gastric ulcers.

18/02/2025

Melanomas in horses.

Equine melanomas

Had an interesting conversation yesterday with a purchaser regarding Melanomas in a grey horse. Came to realise we have very different reactions to the name melanoma as we all know the human form. Main thing is it is very different in horses versus humans.

Commonly occur in several sites. Parotid salivary gland, a**s , tail or sheath. All need to be monitored and you should measure their size regularly and chart them.

16/02/2025

Good morning

Good morning, everyone. We've had a little bit of rain over the weekend, which has been great, but not quite enough to really affect things. So we are seeing a lot of lameness at the minute. A lot of it's related to feet and that's because we're not getting much hoof growth. The feet are dry, hard and we've had this long, coming up five months now, dry period where the feet have got really hard, soles are exfoliating and we're losing sole depth.
So something if you're starting to see some issues with the feet, it's a really hard job at the minute for the farriers because the feet are not growing that much. So we're using a lot of foot balance X-rays to help. We're also having to use a lot of pads at this time because of the foot balance issues and the lack of growth.
So if you've got a soreness, just have a think about what might be the cause and yeah, foot balance X-rays at this stage, this time of year, are really useful to help us set up heading into winter.

26/01/2025

Public service announcement

We are seeing an increase in impaction colics at present.

Some reading here also on our website of why and also what to be done to avoid this happening.

We are seeing a slight increase in impaction colics at present.

22/01/2025

Foot balance again

Foot balance is one of the most important things that you as an owner can keep on top of. If it doesn’t look right it probably isn’t and this is really a time when you need to advocate for your horse.

Here is a single horse presented with a foot issue. On the first image we can see that there is a negative palmar angle here - significant.

The second image is after I have removed the shoe and done a very simple trim myself. I am no farrier but removing a bit of toe from the sole and bringing back the heels makes all the difference. We can see a change of almost 6 degrees in angle change with removing very little of the foot.

Taking balance X-rays is so important and often it can be forgotten or neglected depending on what is going on. You don’t need to complicate things you just need to keep it simple and balance the foot. Nothing more or less and you can see the difference.

So please 🙏 don’t forget about foot balance with your horses.

23/12/2024

Merry Christmas to all our clients from all the team.

We wish you a happy Christmas and safe Christmas and new year.

In the event of an emergency please call the clinic on 0359775250 and select option 3 for the on call vet during this period.

24/11/2024

Ross River Virus

Good morning. We've been notified that in the local area, there's been a diagnosis of Ross River disease already this year. So what is Ross River virus? It's a virus spread by mosquitoes, and it's something as horse owners, we need to be aware of. Horses can present with very nondescript symptoms, and it's really important just to exclude other things before we jump to the Ross River diagnosis because they can be a crossover, a very big crossover between some of the symptoms we see for Ross River virus and what we see for other conditions such as laminitis, peritonitis, colic, enteritis. There's so many things there is a crossover. So for more information, please visit our website or watch the video. Thank you very much for your time.

https://www.tevs.com.au/tevs-blog/ross-river-virus-in-horses

11/11/2024

Refer or not

One of the things that we often get asked about is when do we refer? When do we not refer? Some things are really clear cut, like a bad wound that needs surgery or colic surgery, those are real black and whites. Where we have more of an issue is the medical management, medical cases that we might think, when do we refer? When do we not refer?

Sometimes that's when it comes down to a decision process on what we can do on farm, what we may need for the horse, what we feel is the most advantageous for the horse, and to get the best outcome. IV fluids are very hard to administer on the farm. It's really hard to hook them up, get them going, and then to monitor them. They need to be monitored constantly because they can suddenly kink or something can come loose, and we get air running into the bloodstream, which is not going to be ideal. It's going to potentially kill the horse.

These are all things that we have to really consider when we start to talk about referrals. It's often a process we discuss with you. We think it might be better. It might be even cheaper, believe it or not, than us coming back 4 or 5 times a day to administer oral fluids. It might be cheaper to have them in the hospital where that can be done very easily. You just have to consider this, and it's often a discussion process of where we think is the best place to manage the horse to get the best outcome.

07/11/2024

Beautiful blue skies

The sun has definitely arrived on the Mornington Peninsula. 32-degree day yesterday and beautiful blue skies looking ahead. What an awesome time to be around and to have horses, but this brings with it its own fresh set of challenges.
Obviously, we still have grass growth and concerns with laminitis, but the next thing we're going to have to deal with is sore feet. The ground's going to get really hard, so any horses that have had a history of foot imbalance issues or thin soles, now is the time to be proactive so we don't have to miss any work, and we don't let any pain or inflammation build up in the feet.
So if you have a query or question, just think about it. Have you had a history of foot problems? Do you need to consider foot pads? Do you need to get rebalanced X-rays? All those things are really important, so just have a think about it now. With these beautiful blue skies, we can hopefully avoid having lameness issues.
Hope you have a great day, and we'll speak soon.