Navan Veterinary Services

03/28/2024

In the Ottawa area April 11th? Join us for a FREE workshop on raising Small Flock Poultry! 🐔🌟

Hear from experts and enhance your poultry raising skills! This FREE in person event features insights from OMAFRA Poultry Specialist, and feed professionals. Complete a workbook assessment to gain practical insights and get your poultry questions answered! Whether you’re an experienced flock owner or you're just starting out, this event is for you!

Key Takeaways:
- Practical biosecurity improvements
- Insights on HPAI & bird health
- Nutrition and housing tips
- Discover the Small Flock Ontario Hub and resources
- Learn how to find local vets

🗓️ Date: April 11th, 2024
🕖 Time: 7:00pm - 9:00pm *Doors open at 6:30
🏡 Location: Sarsfield Community Centre
📍 Address: 3585 Sarsfield Rd, Sarsfield, Ontario, K0A 3E0
Register here: https://bit.ly/3TIFeqQ

Presented by Small Flock Ontario in collaboration with Navan Veterinary Services

03/17/2024

03/08/2024

Celebrating these amazing women of Navan Veterinary Services today

02/06/2024

AgScape
On Tuesday, February 13 at 1:30 p.m. EST, celebrate the upcoming Canada's Agriculture Day and take your K-8 students on a free Virtual Field Trip to learn about Canada's rich history of dairy farming. From the comfort of your classroom, you and your students will have the opportunity to:

- Explore Gay Lea Dairy Heritage Museum in Aylmer, Ontario
- Discover the evolution of dairy farming in Canada
- Ask questions and participate in discussions in real-time

All registrants will receive a digital Dairy Activity Kit that includes various engaging educational activities your students can enjoy as they explore the exciting world of dairy.

Sign up for this free Virtual Field Trip today and give your students a memorable learning experience!

https://agscape.ca/virtual-field-trip-dairy-museum.php?fbclid=IwAR2cehKGYrXdOu9Jfdh-3VzX_61bU4u24bbvY65NyOZwx_l06eMZo9C4pLA

12/11/2023

Meet the Team featuring Sara McFadden

Sara McFadden was born and raised on a dairy farm in Navan. She graduated from Trent University with an undergraduate degree in business administration. Currently, she works for the Government of Canada and weekdays at Navan Veterinary Services since 2013. Sara is a sporting enthusiast as she plays hockey and baseball. She enjoys living in the country and spending time with her family, friends and her yellow lab/husky Buckshot.

12/07/2023

Meet the Team featuring Wenda Bradley

I began working with Navan Veterinary Services in 1988 as manager of both their large and small animal practices. When the small animal practice was sold I had to make the choice to either stay with small animal or move to the new building with large animal. I chose to move with the large animal crew and the rest is history as they say. It has been a pleasure to joining forces with the Rideau St. Lawrence team. I am married and my husband and I live just outside of Vankleek Hill where I have been involved in breeding, showing and competing in dog sports with purebred dogs. For 25 years I bred rottweilers and cairn terriers and now I have the pleasure of breeding the Portuguese Water Dog and I still compete in dog sports but on a much smaller scale. Of course we still own one cairn terrier to keep the porties in line. I also have a horse and like nothing better than to go riding with my dogs.

11/30/2023

Meet the Team- Navan Edition featuring Kim Spence

Hi I am Kim Spence, I have worked at Navan Veterinary Services for over 30 years. I began as a high-school co-op student when we were a mixed animal practice and I stayed working part time while finishing high-school and completing my Bachelor of Science in Biology at Carleton University. My full time career began in 1997 and by then Navan Vet had transitioned to a large animal clinic. My roles at Navan Vet include working on Dairy Comp, in clinic lab work, inventory, and trying to keep the vets organized and scheduled.

I was raised and reside 10 min from the office so Navan has always been my home. In my off work time I help my parents manage our cow-calf herd of Blonde d'Aquitaine along with our Australian Shepherd, Rosie. I also enjoy spending time with my nephews and niece and family. I like to work in my flower gardens, camp with my RV and play 3 pitch ball and slow-pitch ball.

11/27/2023

Meet the Team- featuring Dr. Elisabeth Begley

Hi! I'm Elisabeth Begley and I grew up in Ottawa and completed my bachelors degree here before moving to Guelph to complete my veterinary education. I spent another 6 years in Southwestern Ontario practicing large animal medicine with a short lived stint in mixed animal practice. My main interests lie in bovine medicine, surgery and herd health as well as in small ruminant herd health.

I moved back to the area with my 3 year old dog, Esmeralda, to be closer to my family. Outside of work I enjoy spending time with her as well as staying active. I also partake in a multitude of crafting hobbies. This year I started competing in trail races, it is such a beautiful way to enjoy the outdoors, just don't trip!

11/23/2023

Meet the Team- featuring Dr. Val Higginson

Hi everyone. My name is Val Higginson and I am one of the large animal veterinarians at Navan Veterinary Services. I am originally from Vankleek Hill, ON where I grew up on my family’s sheep farm. I attended the University of Guelph to complete my Bachelor of Science degree before attending McGill University for my Master of Science degree, focusing on dairy cattle nutrition.

This spring I graduated from the Ontario Veterinary College with my DVM degree. While at OVC, I was able to travel to many practices for external rotations, most memorably to Cornell University for their Summer Dairy Program, to Alberta for a feedlot health management rotation, to a large dairy practice in California as well as an equine referral hospital in Florida.

I have been loving my time so far working with producers and meeting new clients! Outside of work, I can usually be found at the barn with my horse, Brava or helping my partner Andrew with our beef cattle. I also enjoy kayaking with my dog Daisy and anything outdoors.

11/20/2023

A successful meet and greet in Quyon last week. thank you to all who took the time to come and see us!!

11/20/2023

Meet the Team featuring Dr. Chelsea Allan

My name is Chelsea Allan and I am one of the large animal veterinarians at Navan Vet Services.

Since I was 4 years old I wanted to be a vet and this dream came true in 2015 when I graduated from the Ontario Veterinary College. In my years as a practicing vet I have had the fortune of working with both amazing veterinarians and clients while practicing in Eastern and Southwestern Ontario.

To complement my work as a vet, I started volunteering my time with the Ontario Association of Bovine Practitioners and this year have been appointed president of the organization.

In 2020 I returned home to the Ottawa Valley with my partner Arjan to rejoin the team at Navan. Since returning to Navan we bought a farm of our own. Arjan kindly tolerates my need to be surrounded by animals and as such we share our space with two German Shedders, Tess and Tilley and four cats, Jack, Fred, Frankie and Jasper.

We also have a cow calf operation and get great enjoyment out of working with our beef cattle. Most of my time outside of work is spent working on our farm, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. When I do have the time, however, I love a good hike, time on the water sailing or traveling and exploring new places.

I am inspired daily by the connections that I am able to make with our clients and their animals. I look forward to continuing to support the Navan/RSL community for years to come!

11/16/2023

Meet the Team featuring Dr. Jean Cyr

Hi, my name is Jean Cyr and I am one of the partners at Navan Veterinary Services. I graduated from the University of Western Ontario way back in 1987 and went on to finish vet school at OVC in 1994. I have been working as a large animal veterinarian in Navan since graduation. My main interest has always been practicing food animal medicine in the dairy sector and I’ve been lucky enough over the years to accomplish this alongside a fantastic group of producers. Equine work has also been a pleasure and a great way to round off large animal medicine. I live in Clarence Creek with my fantastic wife Twyla. We have four grown-up (ie. off the deficit side of the ledger….woohoo! ) children Joseph, Kathryn, Luc and Sarah. Two dogs, Dexter and Maggie and Sgt. Pepper, a cat that lives in our house, round up the crew! When not at work, I love to be outdoors, hunting, fishing, adventure motorbiking or just hanging out in the woods!

11/15/2023

Reminder for everyone to RSVP by this Friday for our beef producer meeting that is on Nov. 23/23.
We look forward to seeing you all!

11/13/2023

Meet the Team- Navan Edition Featuring Dr. Dave Douglas

I’m Dave Douglas and I’ve been at Navan Veterinary Services for 41 years. Navan provided me with a great opportunity to work with Dr Alan Rathwell and become a partner in the practice. My interest in dairy health and nutrition was well received and we were able work with many clients helping improve production through rations and management decisions. Improving production and working with our great clients has been a motivating force in my career.

I grew up in the Eastern Townships in Quebec on a dairy farm. I have a degree in Animal Science from Macdonald College and then attended Ontario Veterinary College. I’m married to Shelley (42 years), we have two daughters and five grand children. We are blessed that that they all live close by. We are an active family and love the outdoors- skiing, skating, hiking, golf, and swimming. I have backpacked the Long Trail through Vermont- 275 miles, carrying a tent and food.( not with Shelley)

I am semi-retired and looking forward to travelling more and improving my golf game, that's not going to happen is it?

I have been very fortunate to work with some wonderful veterinarians over my career. Early on I was fortunate to work with older seasoned veterinarians. Their expertise and guidance were invaluable. Now I am fortunate to work with and mentor younger veterinarians. They push me to keep up and stay relevant.

This is a great group to work with. A dedicated team of veterinarians providing a wide range of service to clients across Eastern Ontario.

11/11/2023

We’d like to acknowledge the courage and sacrifice of all those who served for their country and for the peace they fought to achieve. Thank you to all the men and women who bravely served their country.

10/23/2023

Meet the Team featuring Jessica Peeters

Hi everyone, my name is Jessica Peeters and I am the farm animal technician for Rideau-St.Lawrence Veterinary Services and Navan Veterinary Services. I graduated from the veterinary technician course at College Boreal, University of Guelph, Campus d’Alfred in Dec. 2011. I have been with RSLVS since Sept. 2018 and in between there I worked for multiple dairy farms (calf/heifer manager, relief milking, AI tech, etc.) and as a small animal technician at Williamstown Veterinary Services, who is now part of the same big family that RSLVS is part of. Part of my duties at RSLVS and NVS include going out on farms and performing multiple different tasks such as calf wellness programs, dehorning, data collection, vaccinations, ketone testing, etc. When not out on farm calls you can find me at the Prescott clinic doing office duties, lab work and assisting with in-clinic patients and surgeries. On top of having an awesome work family to be surrounded with everyday, my favourite part of my job is that every day is different. I have herds that are on my schedule regularly and I love getting to know our clients in the farming community but I also can never fully predict what my day will look like or maybe what species I will end up working with that day and that is so much fun.

When not at work you can find me in Glengarry where my roots are. I live with my boyfriend Shawn, his son Zackery, our labrador Diego and our three cat’s Cash, Brutus and Oscar. My hobbies include making a huge vegetable garden in the summer, riding my horse Amy, thrift shopping and doing various crafts. If I am not doing any of those things, then I am most likely at my parents working on our small beef herd which is probably one of my proudest projects. My goals are to hopefully one day be able to have purebred Simmentals and maybe bring back my horse show days and get back into the show ring, this time with a cow.

Agriculture is a huge part of my history and of who I am day to day. I strive everyday to make that world better and thank everyone who lets me come on their farms and work with their animals. I look forward to a lifetime of working within the eastern Ontario farming community.

10/12/2023

This summer three of our veterinarians passed the Quebec licensing board exam and are now providing services to the Hull/Gatineau (and more) region. We received this awesome gift basket from a group of about 30 horse owners thanking us for taking the necessary steps to be able to offer them prime veterinary care. Thank you to each and every one of them!

10/12/2023

Meet The Team featuring Dr. Jennifer Reynen

I grew up in rural southwestern Ontario. I went to University of Guelph for my undergraduate and subsequent Master’s degree; where I studied epidemiology focusing my research on factors predicting survival following LDA surgery. I completed the Summer Dairy Institute in 2017 and graduated from vet school at OVC in 2018 and came to work at RSLVS (with no intentions of leaving). My main passion in vet med is mental health for both farmers and veterinary staff; however I also enjoy helping our clients reach their goals on the farm, and transition cow health. I love surgery, and the variety of getting to work with all sorts of four-legged animals.

I currently live in North Gower with my better half, Derek, our son Sullivan and our three dogs (Samson [11], Knox [5], Indy [5]). Outside of work, I enjoy cooking and working out and any time I can spend on the water.

10/09/2023

Happy Thanksgiving from our RSL family to yours.

10/03/2023

Our October newsletter discusses Salmonella dublin. All of our previous newsletters can be found at https://www.rideauvet.com/newsletters

10/02/2023

Hi all! I grew up in Nepean, minus the one year abroad in London England during high school. I attended the University of Guelph, first at the Agricultural College (OAC 2000) followed by vet school (OVC 2004). Following graduation, I came back to Eastern Ontario to work at Grenville Dundas Veterinary Clinic which later morphed into RSLVS; where I've been happily employed since graduating! In 2011, I started a position with Health Canada in the Veterinary Drug Directorate while still remaining a part of the RSLVS team doing some on call weekends and small ruminant work.

Pastimes include playing hockey and playing the banjo, plus driving kids to hockey and dance and music lessons etc. Currently we live in Kemptville where we are renovating a house built in the early 1900s just because we found we had extra time on our hands ;)

When we're not busy with regular life stuff we spend our spare time on Manitoulin Island relaxing.

09/28/2023

Meet the Team featuring Dr. John McKend

John was born and raised in Brockville, Ontario. John graduated with an honours degree in Animal Biology from the University of Guelph in 2016. He then moved to Sydney, Australia and obtained a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree in 2021. John then spent a year in Texas, completing a 1 year equine internship at Brazos Valley Equine Hospital, advancing his skills in equine internal medicine, reproduction, preventative care, emergency medicine and sports medicine. John is very excited to be back home, closer to family and is very passionate in helping others try to obtain their goals.

09/25/2023

Meet the Team Monday featuring Dr. John Donovan

John graduated a long time ago (before some of our vets were born) from the Ontario Veterinary College and then signed his life away to RSLVS. John specializes in equine medicine with a passion for dentistry. When not working he enjoys Pina coladas and getting caught in the rain. He has also been known to shave his head like a wrestler to be more intimidating so clients pay their bills.

He currently resides in Brockville with his wife Cheryl, and his daughters Alisha and Daron. In his spare time he enjoys boating, playing and coaching hockey, skiing, traveling and socializing with friends.

09/21/2023

Meet the Team featuring Dr. Teresa Reitz
Hi everyone! My name is Teresa and I am one of the large animal veterinarians at Rideau-St. Lawrence Veterinary Services. I grew up on a hobby farm in Erin, Ontario, competing in a variety of equestrian sports, eventually settling on eventing. I studied at the University of Guelph for a bachelor's degree in Biology and Statistics and competed on the Guelph Gryphons Varsity Rowing team. I received my veterinary degree from the Ontario Veterinary College, graduating in 2017. I then completed an equine internship at Delaney Veterinary Services in Sherwood Park, Alberta, where I was able to gain additional experience in equine medicine, ambulatory care, surgery, and reproduction. I moved to Kemptville and joined RSLVS in 2018. Since then I've had a great time building relationships with our clients and travelling beautiful Eastern Ontario providing care to their large animals.
Outside of being a vet, you can find me enjoying any outdoor adventure with my partner Tyler, including nordic skiing, cycling, running, hiking and camping. I also have endless knitting and sewing projects on the go.

09/18/2023

Meet the Team featuring Jaimee Gardner

I'm Dr. Jaimee Gardner, your little-bit-of-everything vet. I graduated from OVC in 2016 and have been with the Rideau - St. Lawrence team for 5 years now working in both large and small animal medicine. I love the variety and challenges that come with mixed animal medicine - I'm living my best James Herriot life!
Outside of work, if I'm not out travelling the world, I'm usually found around the curling clubs, out on the lakes in my kayak, camping in the backwoods, and spending time with my Rottweiler Jenkins and my Canadian Griff.

09/15/2023

Eastern Equine Encephalomyelitis (EEE) and West Nile Virus (WNV) are neurologic diseases that can have devastating impacts on affected horses including extremely high mortality rates. In recent days there have been several confirmed and suspected cases of EEE in our practice area. Birds are the natural reservoir for the Eastern Equine Encephalitis and West Nile viruses and mosquitoes (and sometimes other bloodsucking insects) that feed on infected birds can transmit the viruses to horses, humans, and other birds. Infected horses are not contagious to other animals or humans. This time of year, these neurologic diseases are more common due to the conditions of the mosquito population.

There is no cure for EEE and WNV and treatment is focused on supportive care. Vaccination against EEE and WNV remains the most effective way to reduce the risk of disease in horses.
The articles linked include important information on the transmission of EEE and WNV and how you can protect your horses. Please contact our office if you are looking for more information or would like to discuss your horse's vaccine plan.

EEE Quickfacts
https://www.merck-animal-health-equine.com/styles/images/programs/ELRDDJ~E.pdf

EEE Omafra
https://www.ontario.ca/document/animal-health-updates-and-veterinary-advisories/veterinary-advisory-eastern-equine

WNV Quickfacts
https://www.merck-animal-health-equine.com/styles/images/programs/WNV_Infographic.pdf

WNV Omafra
https://www.ontario.ca/page/west-nile-virus-and-horses

09/14/2023

Meet the Team

Starring: Dr. Brian Keith

Hello. My name is Brian Keith. I’ve been a veterinarian at RSLVS for the past 15 years, and 6 years ago I became a partner in the business. It’s been a huge privilege being a team member here at RSLVS. This is due to the amazing clients that I have been able to work with and get to know on a personal level, having the best veterinary and support staff a practice could ask for, which has made my job very enjoyable and a whole lot easier, and finally, the ability to live out my dream of being a dairy veterinarian.

I spend the majority of my time providing herd health services for a number of our dairy producers, but I also enjoy working on other farm species such as horses, sheep and goats. For the majority of the dairy farms I work in I’m there every 2 weeks. This has allowed me to develop friendships with my clients and get to know their wonderful families. Over my career I have gained special interests in dairy barn design, transition cow nutrition and management, lameness prevention, and calf health management. My goals as a dairy practitioner have always been to try and provide my clients with the highest quality service possible and help them reach their herd performance goals. Words can’t explain how rewarding it is to help my clients achieve success.

I live in Prescott with my loving wife Deena, my beautiful daughter Madeline, our dog Echo and our two cats Frisco and Edward. During my spare time I try to spend as much of it as possible with my family, but I also enjoy playing sports, so during the summer months I play a little golf and during the winter I play hockey and downhill ski. This past winter I was fortunate enough to do a heliskiing trip out in BC, which was the most amazing skiing of my life. The helicopter dropped us off at the top of a mountain in BC’s backcountry and we skied to the bottom in over a meter of fresh powder. The feeling of floating on top of the snow with powder spraying up over your head with every turn, combined with the beautiful back drop of snow-covered mountain tops as far as the eye can see makes this a truly irresistible experience for any skier. One I hope to someday enjoy with my daughter.

I look forward to steering RSLVS into the future alongside my business partners and our amazing team, and continuing to service my clients for many more years. My hope is these years will be as rewarding as the first 15.