Mulligan Mobile Veterinary Services

20/08/2024

A small navel hernia can sometimes be repaired with a simple elastrator band. I’ve shown posts of a hernia repair whereby the body wall is sutured closed under anesthesia but this is another way to repair smaller hernias. It’s important to have the horse laying on its back so that the rubber band doesn’t trap any abdominal contents in the sac. The rubber bands will fall off within 2-3 weeks and the underlying skin and hernia will be scarred over. In this case we also castrated the stallion

15/08/2024

How does a peice of wood get into a coronet band? From a downward facing spike on a log.
The puncture site in the coronet band will seal over and fester as if it were a hoof abscess. But be careful, no amount of poulticing will remove the offending stick. How can you tell the difference between a hoof abscess and a puncture wound Generally an abscess will break through the coronet band and create a horizontal slit whereas a puncture wound will be round and appear like a bullet hole. If in doubt call your vet

11/07/2024

A wise surgeon once told me that "A chance to cut is a chance to cure." Too bad in this case he would be out of a job , because a sarcoid tumor located on the eyelid is no place to use a scalpel blade especially when they are so large.
To avoid having a large defect of the upper eyelid the ocular sarcoid is best removed by injecting it with a special drug made out of bacteria!
That's right, scientists discovered that by taking a species of bacteria called "mycobacterium phlei" and using an emulsified fraction of its cell wall they could inject the 'cell wall fraction' into the tumor and have a 73% cure rate.
The way it works is that the 'cell wall fraction' once injected into the tumor will signal to the white blood cells (macrophages and lymphocytes) of the body to kill the tumor cells of the sarcoid, leaving the normal skin cells alone. This is a type of drug called an immune stimulant and has been around for quite some time.

In this case a young rescue horse was presented with a very large golf ball sarcoid on the left upper eyelid. After a single injection with the drug the sarcoid reduced in size by 80% and then 2 months later another injection was done to further reduce the tumor in size.
The horse was happy, the owner was happy, the vet was happy, and the surgeon wont talk to me anymore! Oh well 3 out of 4 ain't bad😆

26/06/2024

We will be taking a holiday from June 28-July8 for some R&R. If you need any prescriptions refilled please call the office
250 361-1658

05/06/2024

When this little guy was a weanling I put a wire and screws in his tibia growth plate to help straighten his hindlimb. NOW, two years later he had another wire removed from his tongue, but this one he did on his own!

It seems that he picked up a very small piece of wire in the field that worked its way into the base of the tongue, almost at the back of the throat. Like a porcupine quill the wire was not coming out on its own and the tongue was starting to get very infected and painful. He would not eat and he wasn't his usual teenage self!

It wasn't until an x-ray showed a small, thin metallic object that I was able to pinpoint the wires location in the tongue and with a bit of luck, a lot of sedation and a lidocaine tongue was I able to pull out the offending object with a good old needle nose plier.
Like a rabbit pulled out of a hat, I had performed a magic trick and couldn't believe it myself. By the next day he was eating again and back to his old ways. I wonder what he has in store for us next!

27/05/2024

We are very proud to have Weston Lougheed represent MMV at the B.C. High School Rodeo finals. He didn’t miss the opportunity to win “Rookie of the Year” and even qualified for the National Finals in team roping, goat tying and breakaway roping! This young man is a gentleman, natural athlete and even pulls in good grades….we enjoy watching him develop his skills and hope his father is busy framing a new room to hold all of his kids trophies🤗

24/05/2024

If you’ve ever had a hangnail you may know what this horse feels multiplied by a factor of 100! I suspect he got his leg caught in either wire or a board and pulled the top of the coronet band and hoof wall away as he tried to escape.
The anatomy of the pastern is mostly bone, tendon, ligaments and blood vessels . Luckily for him the tendons that run down the back (palmar) aspect of the pastern were unscathed and the wound was fairly superficial. The white tissue seen on the picture is the lateral cartilage of the hoof , (not bone )and is responsible for the flexibility of the heels as the hoof bears weight.
Normally I would place a hoof injury like this in a slipper cast to immobilize the heel and eliminate bandage changes but the horse was not the right candidate ( needs to be confined to a stall for 4 weeks ).
So with a very diligent owner and daily bandage changes you can see how the wound has progressed through the stages of healing and niw has a healthy bed of granulation tissue
With any luck the coronet band will be able to grow a new hoof wall and he should be sound to ride again

07/05/2024

The majority of a large animal vets work is done with a mad rush over the months of March to June. I can say that I’m looking forward to summer and longer days. Here are a few pics of what I’ve been up to over the past few weeks !

02/05/2024

02/05/2024

Performing an abdominal hernia repair on a yearling c**t. One of my favourite surgeries. The key to success in any invasive surgery is to minimize the three T’s: Time, Tissue and Trauma.

Time: Be as quick as you can, as the risk of infection, anesthetic complications and muscle compression in the recumbent horse increases after one hour. Like a bank robber, get in and get out!

Tissue: Be gentle when handling tissue, don’t manhandle the tissue as bruising can occur after the surgery and create a lot of problems with swelling. Using gauze to handle intestines is a “no no”as the surface will tend to form scar tissue if handled roughly. I Make sure to suture closed any pockets or ‘dead space’ left in the subcutaneous tissue where blood and serum can collect. A pocket of blood is a banquet for bacteria !

Trauma: Avoid surgical procedures around traumatized areas of skin and muscle. The inflammation that is already present will make healing much slower and increase the risk of your sutures coming apart (dehiscence).

Somebody recently asked me where a large animal vet gets all his surgical experience. I can tell you it’s not at college as you spend most of your time seeing banana peels and orange skins or cadavers. The best place I learned surgical skills was in a small animal veterinary clinic that was operating in Clearwater BC. The countless dog and cat spays, neuters and puncture wounds helped me in all of the above three T’s.

21/04/2024

Its that time of year when calves are vaccinated and castrated prior to their eventual turnout to grass. Castration is a painful but necessary procedure to prevent unwanted aggression in bulls and if performed at a young age the pain is shown to be less than if done later in life.

Thankfully the beef industry has taken proactive steps to reduce this pain with the advent of anti-inflammatory medications that can be injected at the time of castration, and last for 72 hrs. The difference in the calf's behaviour when given this medication is noticeable to even the most skeptical critic.

In a further effort to reduce the pain after 72 hrs, there has been the development of a lidocaine infused elastrator band that slowly releases the local anesthetic 'lidocaine' into the sc***um. The lidocaine kicks in at 2 hrs and lasts up to 42 days at which time the scotum sloughs off.

I have stock of these elastrator bands and they can be used for both lambs and bull calves from 1 day to 3 weeks old . Give me a shout if you're a current client and would like to be one of the first to try these.🙂

18/04/2024

A horse generally has thin skin but over the back and hip the skin is actually very tough and thick. Somehow this guy must have found a low lying branch and poked his buttock causing a big pocket in the muscle. Because the pocket is unable to drain I have to remove the dead muscle tissue and allow for drainage ventrally (at the bottom). A lot of wounds in horses heal well even without antibiotics but this is definitely one where the risk of tetanus and cellulitis warrants such use. Fortunately there was no stick or debris in the wound and after two weeks it had pretty much filled in level with the skin.

09/04/2024

A horses tongue is an important tool in the process of chewing and is often prone to injury when it gets caught where it shouldn’t be. On the left is a normal tongue in the oral cavity and on the right is a tongue that has been severed, leaving behind only the base.

In this case it was a freak accident in which the tongue became entrapped in a hay net and the owner noticed blood coming out of the mouth. The tongue is made of many muscles and even more blood vessels and nerves. Needless to say it was very painful and it took weeks for him to learn how to chew properly again. Not all hay nets are dangerous but do be aware that this can happen!

03/04/2024

I had some good helpers last week with a calf surgery in the field. With university reading break and a lull in the calving, both Levi Kempter and Tanner Schilling lent me a hand as we removed a large navel hernia in this month old beef calf. I enjoy teaching the pre veterinary students about the job and they renew my passion for work so it’s a win win 😁

27/03/2024

Coco got caught in a feeder and unfortunately fractured her distal tibia at the growth plate just above the hock. As the break had just occurred we were able to heavily sedate her and reset the bones to an almost perfect position. My favourite discharge instruction: “pretend that it never happened”. In 4 weeks the cast comes off and she should be as good as new 🙂

21/03/2024

People ask me if I’m keeping busy. I tell them I’m up to my armpits in my work and thats the way I like it !

15/03/2024

Does anyone know whose mouth this belongs to? Species?

07/03/2024

Do you remember the 3D images hidden in pictures, that were popular in the 90s? Have a look at the X-ray of a goats abdomen and see if you can see the single fetus. (Sorry not in 3D)We were taking an X-ray to look for any signs of foreign metal as this goat had been losing weight unexpectedly. As it turns out the X-rays were normal and the likely culprit were two molars that had to be removed as they were not developing properly.

24/02/2024

If you want to look into the mouth of a cow there’s a few rules to follow:!
1) don’t use a halter , the mouth won’t open with a tight halter, instead a pair of nose tongs will allow you to open the mouth
2) never stick your hand into the mouth without a drink water gag between the teeth. Getting bit by the molars is very painful. They’re as sharp as razor blades.
3) use your sense of smell, if there’s a rotten tooth or abscess you will smell it before you see it. This cow had a swollen masseter muscle and inside her mouth was evidence of an injury where she must have ingested a piece of stick that became stuck.
4) if you decide to stick your hand in a cows mouth it is advisable to remove your wedding ring as the saliva is very slippery and sifting through cow s**t could take all week !

22/02/2024

A young mare had weaned her foal 2 months ago with no problem and suddenly she developed an unexplained high fever while at the trainers barn. While talking on the phone with the owner I asked them to look at the udder and sure enough she had an infection of the mammary gland (mastitis). In cattle this happens quite commonly but in a mare it is much less common and can be a very serious condition that can lead to sepsis. I quickly got to work installing a jugular catheter and starting her on a course of intravenous antibiotics and antiinflammatories. With hot compresses the affected gland softened and we were able to express the milk and pus from the teat. A sterile solution of antibiotic was also infused into the udder via the teat to treat the infection locally. A sample
Of the milk was sent to the lab for bacterial culture and it showed a pure growth of Streptococcus zooepidemicus, a normal skin bacteria that had somehow gained entrance into the gland and subsequently the blood stream. This horse was fortunate to have been treated early and she responded well to the antibiotics over 7 days. By the time I returned in a week she was back to her mischevious self and no trace of an infection could be found. It’s not common for horses to get mastitis but it’s usually soon after they’ve weaned a foal and surface bacteria of the skin gain entrance through the teat into the udder. As the udder in mares is small and tucked up high in the flank it is often not noticed. The two month delay from weaning to the onset of mastitis in this mare is unusual as most symptoms occur soon after weaning. I suspect she may have had a small infection simmering that became a bigger infection once the stress of travelling and training weakened an immune system.

06/02/2024

I have to be honest when I first saw this condition as a new graduate I had no clue that ducks had one of these. Can anyone tell me what it is and why it’s in my hand?!🫣

02/02/2024

Hello everyone. Holidays are coming to an end and we will be back to work on February 5 th. Thank you for your patience and if you’re looking for an interesting video to watch in the meantime may I recommend the following documentary: “Transmission”, which talks about the disease Mycoplasma ovipneumonia that can be transmitted from BC domestic sheep flocks to the neighbouring wild bighorn sheep with devastating effects.

Doctors, farmers, biologists, & volunteers come together to fight a deadly disease threatening both wild & domestic sheep in this feature-length documentary....

22/01/2024

Some interesting facts to consider courtesy of my colleague and friend, Dr Green

How DO they do it?!

07/01/2024

Just before Christmas I had a look at a very sore 4 yr old gelding. He had been on and off lame for the past two years and wasn’t getting any better. He was sore to walk especially on hard ground and turning a tight circle and when asked to trot he refused. Examination of his hoof shows a short dished toe with bruising of the sole and a very tall heel. He had the classic appearance of a club foot and X-rays confirmed the diagnosis.
A club foot can develop at birth or be acquired later in life during growth. Essentially the deep digital flexor tendon (DDFT) which courses down the back of the leg is abnormally shortened in length and causes excessive flexion of the coffin joint. The result is that the hoof grows abnormally upright and the toe is “pulled” into the ground causing the horse to land toe first and the heels continue to grow without wearing. Over time the sole becomes so bruised that the coffin bone inside the hoof starts to change (osteolysis) in response to the repeated stress.
There isn’t much that can be done short of surgery in the early stages of life to correct this deformity. In a mature horse with a severe club foot it is best to trim every 4 weeks. The goal is to protect the toe with a shoe and pad and to lower the heels gradually and achieve weight bearing on the frog and heels once again. In this geldings case a wide plastic shoe was glued onto the hoof after lowering the heels and an epoxy poured into the sole for added protection.

For more reading : https://thehorse.com/117078/managing-the-club-foot/

04/01/2024

Happy New Year!, We hope it was a nice break. A reminder for those who need to refill their prescriptions, our office will be closed from Jan 16-31 for annual holidays😁. If you are a client and need to order more medications please contact us by email: [email protected] or give us a call at 250 371-1658

22/12/2023

Merry Christmas from the Mulligan family to your family. Thank you everyone for your support this past year and we hope that the holidays are restful for everyone! Don’t forget presents for the pets😁

16/12/2023

I forgot how curious and friendly turkeys can be🙂These two gentlemen followed me around at the appointment and asked me to take their pictures.
No word of a lie, I have actually performed turkey surgery on a Gobbler that had been attacked by a neighbours dog. I anesthetized him and amputated the damaged wing and he went on to live a good life. This happened right around Christmas if I remember correctly and when I phoned the vet college to ask for advice on turkey anesthesia they laughed for 5 minutes before helping me !
Lucky for these two guys, they are pets and will not be the main guest of honor at Christmas dinner😅

08/12/2023

On December 1, 2023 a positive case of "Equine Infectious Anemia" (EIA) was diagnosed in a Canadian horse being exported to the United States. The animal was not displaying clinical signs at the time of sampling. It was noted on several Facebook posts that the horse was from Thompson Nicola Subdivision B, a large area extending from North of Vavenby, to Blue River, and as far as Albreda.

In speaking with the CFIA District Veterinarian I can confirm that the "positive test horse" was actually tested in the Kamloops area , and had been purchased from the Thompson Nicola Subdivision B. For obvious privacy concerns the exact location and details of the horse will not be released to the public as the CFIA performs its trace out and quarantine testing of any other horses on the premises.

I would like to provide some general information on Equine Infectious Anemia (Swamp Fever) so as to abate any fear or misinformation:

EIA is a viral disease that affects horses and can be carried for life. Acute cases present symptoms very quickly and some horses will recover and become asymptomatic carriers, while some horses will become gravely ill and die. There is no treatment for the disease, nor is there a vaccine. EIA is not a new disease in our area, and has shown up in isolated areas of the province over the past 50 years, albeit I have never had a positive case while working in the Kamloops area for 17 yrs.

Veterinarians test for the disease by performing a "Coggins" test on the horses blood. The virus is spread primarily by blood sucking flies of the Tabanidae species - namely horseflies, deer flies and stable flies- as well as by blood transfer from contaminated needles or sometimes through pregnancy when an infected mare gives birth to an infected foal. When a horse becomes infected with the virus, the incubation period can range from a week to 45 days.

Clinical signs can include:
anorexia
depression
general weakness
intermittent fever up to 41 C
jaundice
swollen extremities
weight loss
death

Since the mode of transfer is through biting flies, and the virus only survives for a short period on the mouthparts of the insects, the disease is mainly transmitted to nearby horses within the farm. The reason for testing horses that are crossing into the US and into Canada is to prevent this incurable disease from spreading across borders. The testing for EIA in North America is aimed at controlling the disease and not eradicating the disease. In the case of a positive result, the horse will sadly be euthanized.

In this case, all of the surrounding horses on the property are undergoing testing and all horses that have had contact within the past 30 days will also be tested. If you are concerned that your horse may be displaying symptoms of EIA or have come into contact during fly season with a symptomatic horse, contact your veterinarian and arrange for a Coggins Antibody blood test.

For more information:

https://inspection.canada.ca/animal-health/terrestrial-animals/diseases/reportable/eia/fact-sheet/eng/1329554028418/1329554166646

https://www.cfsph.iastate.edu/Factsheets/pdfs/equine_infectious_anemia.pdf

30/11/2023

The last days of preg checking cattle are spent in the Robson Valley and mark the end of a long season of work. To all of the cattle producers that endured the challenges of the past year, my hat is off to you.