Bay Equine Service

08/19/2024

Dr. Kelly loves being able to treat farm animals and teach at the same time. The following is an Interesting farm animal case of the day, which veterinary student Nicole was able to scrub in on and help Dr. Kelly:

This goat pictured had a severe foot abscess that turned into a toe bone infection. This process can happen even when we are treating aggressively and abscesses can occur any time bacteria invades normal structures of the hoof (and in goat cases- claws).

Dr. Kelly did attempt medical management with antibiotics and pain meds at first. When that wasn't enough to fight the infection, surgical removal of that toe was the next best treatment. The x-rays show how the bone looks when it gets infected- it's called a "Moth Eaten" appearance. The needle pictured was taped to goats leg for a reference point for Dr. Kelly before surgery.

Under general anesthesia and after numbing the goats leg, Dr. Kelly removed the very last toe bone and then sutured it closed. The goat was comfortable during the whole surgery and went home on pain meds, antibiotics, and a leg wrap while the sutured skin heals.

Surgeries like these can be more easily done in the field with farm animals compared to horses, which is why Dr. Kelly was willing to help this goat.

After recovery, the goat had already returned to walking on that leg. So, everyone was very happy with the outcome!

Dr. Kelly and the owner will continue to monitor this goats healing along the way.

08/13/2024

After a long, hard day- views like this make it worth it ❤️

08/05/2024

Well said Miamitown vets 💔

Our clinic was sent this unsigned letter today.

Do you wonder why equine vets are leaving the profession at staggering rates, and there is an extreme shortage? This. Right. Here.

$150,000-$200,000 of veterinary school student debt is common. Equine vets have lower salaries and longer, less predictable work hours compared to small animal colleagues. We love horses so much that we have dedicated our lives to helping them. Yes, we absolutely do need to have that "almighty dollar" to pay our student loans, stock our truck with meds and equipment to help the horses that horse who colics at 11pm (right when we are climbing into bed!), and to pay our wonderful, dedicated employees who deserve to be compensated for their hard work.

Wellness/preventative care services (annual exams, vaccinations, dentistry) are the bread and butter of an equine general practice. The revenue from those services is the reason that we are able to financially support having 3 trucks stocked and ready to go, with one of our three veterinarians always on call 24/7/365 to help our current patients in an emergency. If everyone ordered vaccines from a magazine and never involved their vet in preventative care, only calling in an emergency, vets would need to charge 10x as much for emergency services just to keep their practice afloat. (Not to mention that the annual exam is so important, and always saves money in the long run when we can catch problems early.) Please use your vet for routine care if you expect them to be available for emergencies.

Do you wonder why veterinarians end their own lives at 4 times the rate of the general population?

After dedicating our lives to helping horses, spending 8 years studying in college and vet school, sacrificing family time to be out on cold rainy nights tending to emergencies after already long, hard days, and then being told we don't have a heart and don't really want to help animals....THAT is the problem.

I considered just throwing this letter in the trash without giving it much thought. Our clients are wonderful, appreciative, and I know that we make a difference in their horses' lives, so I can shrug it off. But what if the person who received this letter was in mental distress after losing a patient that they tried everything to save, and this letter pushed them over the edge to quit, or worse? The reason I decided to post this is because this is not an isolated incident. Reviews like this are posted every single day directed at all types of vet practices, or it's an off-handed comment at the barn about vets just being in it for the money. If you hear those comments, please don't let it go- speak up for your vet's sake. This has GOT to stop. Or there will be none of us left.

06/29/2024

Started Friday at 8am , just got home at 2:20 am.
I know I must have had an 18 hour plus working day in the past 40 years since starting veterinary school in 1984, I just can’t remember when.
I do love what I do. But a challenging day.
Good morning, and good night.

04/26/2024

Gastroscopy Clinic sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim with our rep Pam Milkman and Dr Scott Hancock was a huge success today.
We scoped nine horses and diagnosed some small minor ulcers and some more severe cases, and one normal horse.
Everyone learned a lot, including Dr Molesworth and Dr Quesinberry and all our clients that participated.
We will be getting our own gastroscope any day now and be scheduling regular scoping appointments in a few weeks.
We followed up with a wonderful dinner at Mama Lucia’s in Dunkirk and an informative presentation by Dr Hancock.
We can’t thank our sponsors enough for such a wonderful day.

04/19/2024

***UPDATE*** Gastroscopy and Equine Gastric Ulcer Dinner and Educational Meeting

Bay Equine Service along with Boehringer Ingelheim is sponsoring a gastric Scoping clinic on April 25, at Fresh Meadows in Huntingtown.
We are booked for gastroscopy spots, BUT we also are hosting a free horse owner dinner and talk on Gastric ulcers in horses at 6pm APRIL 25th. We do still have RSVP spaces for this dinner and talk.

For more information and to RSVP for the DINNER, EMAIL
[email protected]. Comments on the post will NOT reserve your spot.

04/17/2024

More than one case of EHV-herpes virus recently confirmed in Maryland. With news of this and the recent confirmed cases of Strangles in southern Maryland is is more important than ever to get your yearly examinations and vaccinations and to discuss your particular risks and recommendations.
Give Bay Equine Service a call.
410-535-9700

04/15/2024

My mangled muzzle case has healed nicely!
Injured March 29, and after photo today April 14.

04/13/2024

Washington DC Cherry Blossom Festival pre parade.

03/30/2024

What did I do on Good Friday night?
Horses find all the sharp objects, even in good stables.

03/28/2024

Gastroscopy clinic April 25, 2024.
“EQUINE ULCERS, A REAL PAIN IN THE GUT “

Bay Equine Service along with Boehringer Ingelheim is sponsoring a gastric Scoping clinic on April 25, at Fresh Meadows in Huntingtown.
We have a limited number of spots still available for Horses to be scoped.
We also are hosting a free horse owner dinner and talk on Gastric ulcers in horses at 6pm on the same date.
RSVP is required for the dinner meeting as space is limited.
If you are interested in having your horse scoped, please email and include your Horses history and reason for Scoping. There is a fee to have your horse scoped.
Regular clients of Bay equine service have preference for both Scoping and the dinner meeting.
We will take a waiting list for both events . 
For more information or to reserve your place EMAIL. Comments on the post will not reserve your spot.

[email protected]

03/26/2024

Strangles last post, Maybe…
Politics, no way around it
Everyone wants to know what farm is infected. Take a breath…
Not the most important question.
Strangles is out there all the time. Nothing is new. Social media today lets the public know quicker and more frequently than ever before. You should always be aware.
Know where you are going, reduce your exposure as possible, take reasonable precautions.
The PG county report is just one of many. Next time it could be your farm or mine.
Once a farm name is “published” or “shared” that poor farm and boarders can be put out of business as no one wants to go there.
Like the old story of a Scarlett letter..
Let’s not go there,

03/26/2024

Strangles post six
What can you do to protect your horses?
Contact your vet and decide if vaccination is appropriate for your situation.
Be aware when going to events.
If you see symptoms, call your vet for an exam, especially if you have had exposure to new horses either at an event or new horses at your farm in the past 3 weeks.
Take temps regularly.
Quarantine new horses at your facility.

What do I do?
I have a boarding facility with 20 or so horses at any time. Many of you know I endurance ride and go to events with many horses from all over. My boarders do go to local shows.
I vaccinate my horses for strangles and vaccinate my boarders as appropriate. That means my minis, my 30 year old, my donkeys,and some boarders do not get vaccinated for strangles.
Yes, horses that leave the farm for events could bring the disease back, but we weigh the risks and benefits and make a decision.

New horses: I have bought rescue horses from an auction and they were quarantined for 3 weeks.
New boarders: if I know where they came from, have a vaccination history, know the previous veterinarian, and is healthy on an admission physical exam, I do not quarantine them.
Endurance riding: I do use community water troughs both camping at rides and on trail. Our endurance community is very special. Nothing against any other equine sport that all have many very experienced and competent horsemen. Of all the horse sports I’ve been involved in personally and professionally, endurance has the most veterinary exams and cooperation between veterinarians and competitors for the good of the horse. Endurance riders have to be very aware of their horses health to ride 25-100 miles in one day. We are not in stalls, but camped outside. We bring our own buckets though do use community troughs. So I have made the educated decision that my risk is low.

That is all we can do. If we are concerned about strangles, herpes virus or Covid. Proper education, heigene, reduce exposure, vaccinate

03/25/2024

Strangles post five
Sources of infection
The bacteria can live in the environment for months, especially in water. Temperature and humidity do make a difference. Wood stalls can be a source as they are difficult to clean and disinfect. Warm moist environments and crevices in wood that can hide organic material like pus will be riskier. If you can see manure or pus, it is a risk.
You can clean with dilute bleach solution and scrub walls and equipment.
Don’t forget the shoes!
There have been multiple reports of repeated strangles outbreaks on well managed breeding farms. These farm cleaned and disinfected well, and still had cases year after year. Research found sources of strangles in horses with no symptoms with the bacteria hiding in the guttural pouches of resident horses. The horses gutteral pouches were treated or the horse removed, and no more outbreaks

03/25/2024

Strangles post four
Prevention
Horses at home with no exposure to new horses won’t get strangles.
Horse events and horse movements spread the disease.
What can you do?
Bring your own water buckets. Bring water or get it from a spigot directly. Don’t dip your bucket in a big trough that others have used.
If you use a stall at an event, bring a spray bottle with a bleach solution and spray it down. Stay away from horses you don’t know at an event, no nose to nose contact.
Know your neighbors at events. Know the events. This is one of the reasons health certificates are required and last 30 days. Horses are examined by a veterinarian and have shown no symptoms of disease. Not perfect as the horse could be exposed the day after the exam, but you would know no one is coming from a known infectious barn. If you are not asked for a health certificate, neither are your neighbors…

Vaccination: there are two equine strangles vaccines. One is intramuscular killed vaccine and I don’t use that one. It has a very high local reaction rate and poor immunity from the vaccine. The second one is an intranasal modified live vaccine. If your horse has been recently exposed or sick from strangles and has a high blood titer to the disease from a past infection, the vaccines will make the horse sick. After a strangles infection no one exposed gets a vaccine for at least a year without a blood titer taken first.
We use the intranasal vaccine in horses at risk of exposure. The very first time the horse gets a series of two vaccines 2-5 weeks apart, then once a year. Like any vaccine, immunity develops over the 2-8 weeks after vaccination and boosters, and is not immediately protective.
Vaccination for strangles does not completely prevent the disease. Horses vaccinated for strangles and exposed to the disease might not get sick, may get less sick, and recover faster.

03/24/2024

Strangles post three
How is strangles spread?
Direct horse to horse contact happens if a horse coughs directly on another horse. If a horse has equipment on its head and that is directly put on another horse. Equipment, brushes, blankets can all get the bacteria on it and be spread.
The pus from nasal discharge or ruptured abcesses are particularly contagious.
Water troughs can be a source of infection as the bacteria can live in water for long periods.
People can spread the disease on their hands, clothing, shoes, gloves.
Prevention is cleaning! Bleach solution will kill the bacteria. As veterinarians we wear gloves and protective clothing with a suspected case.
If we are surprised by a case, we don’t go to another horse without proper disinfection.
Cleaning shoes and using a foot bath is very important.
If you have a suspected case, postpone the blacksmith. If you have a case let them know to disinfect their tools.
Boarders and guests to your farm need to be minimized and foot baths, gloves used.
Stall cleaning and tools need to be separate and have a plan.
And remember symptoms show up 3-14 days after exposure!
Horses can spread the disease before you see the symptoms. So a lot has happened already once you see the disease.
Look back at horses that have come or gone from your facility and notify them.

03/24/2024

Strangles Post two
First signs of infection are fevers of 103 and higher. Sometimes this stage is missed as no one takes the temp. Horse might just a be a little off.
Horses are depressed, might not eat, have fever, they cough and have a thick sometimes yellow nasal discharge. Swollen lymph nodes in the throat area can be painful and also break open with abcesses.
Diagnoses is made from clinical signs and history. We can culture the abcesses to confirm the disease. We confirm with a culture as other infections can mimic the same symptoms, but don’t have the same contagious qualities as strangles.
This is very common in horses sales and auctions. So if a you have a new arrival from an unknown history, quarantine it for 3 weeks. That way signs will show up before the horses expose anyone else.

03/23/2024

Strangles post one:
With recent social media news of positive strangles cases in PG county here in southern Maryland, it is a good time to review this infection in our horses.
Outbreaks are not uncommon. This is nothing new. This disease is out there and we will continue to see cases.
Handled properly we will see less cases.
Proper handling is quarantine!!
No way around that. And it is difficult. Often from time of diagnosis, until all animals on farm are showing no symptoms and then another 2-4 weeks. This can translate into an entire summer.
Quarantine means NO movement of horses on or off farm, even horses with no symptoms as they can be exposed and be contagious even when looking healthy.
The incubation period, time from exposure to the disease and showing clinical signs can be 3-14 days.
So one horse shows up sick, gets diagnosed and treated. 3-15 days later more get sick, then you may see another wave. All horses must have no symptoms for at least 2 weeks before releasing a quarantine.
Problems frequently arrive at boarding barns where one person says I have a show and my horse is not sick and they leave, taking the disease with them. Or I’m moving before my horse gets sick.
Stay tuned for more!

01/31/2024

Happy international Zebra Day! My beautiful girl ZENA

11/13/2023

We are looking for one or two team members at Fresh Meadows. Must be horse experienced, able to work alone, and have own transportation. Afternoon shifts 3-5pm and weekends am 7-10am and 3-5pm. Times are until work is done and those are estimates . But start times are set. Shifts include feeding horses, cleaning stalls, moving horses in and out, cleaning barn and helping around farm. Roughly 23 horses on farm, and half have stalls and half on field board. If a student, must be able to do afternoon weekday shifts and arrive by 3pm. Job will be 2-4 shifts per week.
Huntingtown.
Please message me or text 443-532-7669
Comments on post are NOT best way to contact me for an interview.

10/17/2023

Purina Nutrition Conference Post 3:
Prebiotics. These are a form of dietary fiber that provides a benefit to the good bacteria in the gut.
These are fiber, so not affected by heat, cold, acid or time.
Purina has developed a great product called ActivAge. It acts as a potent antioxidant and immunomodulator. It also reduces measurable markers of inflammation in blood and joints of horses. Horses have lower levels of glucose and insulin response when fed feed with ActivAge in it. Right now it is included in many of Purina senior feeds.
You need to be sure the feed is the right one for your horse, but having ActivAge included is certainly a Big Benefit.
If you want a nutrition consult, call us at Bay Equine Service to set up an appointment.
410-535-9700.
We will need a form filled out ahead of your appointment with type and amounts of hay and grain in pounds, and details of use, housing and medical history if we don’t already have that.
Very exciting new research and products from Purina!

10/16/2023

Purina Nutrition POST 2:
What is in my horses guts?
Lots of bacteria, both good bacteria and bad bacteria. All together the bacteria are known as the microbiome. With probiotics we are specifically dealing with the hindgut, or large intestinal, microbiome. There can be roughly 20 species of bacteria present.
The microbiome of the foregut, the stomach and small intestine, is different from the microbiome of the hind gut, or large intestines.
Things that affect the microbiome are age, housing, diet, medication, exercise, and stress of any kind.
A sick microbiome will show up as Colic, colitis, diarrhea, obesity, laminitis and others.
Purina is working on feeds and supplements to keep our horses microbiome healthy.
This involves identifying what bugs are normally present, being able to grow them in the lab, and process them in a form that can be fed to horses and cause a sustainable benefit .
Hopefully they can develop a probiotic that will work for our horses.
And you can help! Purina wants samples to develop a database . No cost to you. Request a kit on line, take a swab and send it back. You and your horse will NOT get any report or feedback or treatment plan. This is just for research that will hopefully help us in the future.

10/15/2023

Purine equine veterinary conference 2023.
On my way home from a great nutrition conference. Purina is an amazing company and is doing a lot of research to help our horses stay healthy and perform to their best abilities. I’ll post multiple highlights in the next week.

Purina Nutrition POST ONE :
Probiotics and Prebiotics
Do you what they are and how they work?
We will start with Probiotics.
They can be very effective. However, many things must occur for a Probiotic you buy and feed to be effective.
Probiotics are LIVE bacteria, if they die before they get to the large intestine they are useless.
So they need to be packaged, sold, fed, and survive the digestion in the equine acidic stomach, and small intestine to be useful.
Most products do not fulfill even the first two requirements. And a study showed many probiotics on the market had labels that did not even spell the name of the bacteria correctly .
Research has also shown that the same bacterial recipe in a probiotic is not good for everyone. The type of bacteria needed is specific to the individual horse.
It is unrealistic to believe one probiotic recipe will treat a multitude of diseases. If the right recipe for a specific horse is made, and fed alive and makes it to the large intestines , it needs to be fed continuously.

10/13/2023

Purina nutrition conference.
You know you are in the right profession when you get excited to take a photo with a horse. And there is a long line for 2 hours for other equine vets and vet techs to do the same.
Budweiser Clydesdales on the red carpet.

09/12/2023

Please fill out the survey!
Help keep our trails open to horses

LAST CHANCE to take our DNR Survey of Trail Riding in State Parks! Please take this survey If you ride in any Maryland state park. The survey will close at the end of September, at which point MHC will send the raw data to DNR for their analysis. We will also prepare our own analysis for publication in The Equiery.

https://us4.list-manage.com/survey?u=2fe08f04b40870ac936d1232e&id=172ab1a570&mc_cid=0504600b17&mc_eid=8e79629d8a&e=8e79629d8a

08/21/2023

Fresh Meadows is looking for our next team member! Huntingtown Md
MUST have horse experience and be able to work alone. Feeding horses, turning out, cleaning stalls and barn.
Part time, Mostly weekday mornings and weekends. Starting September. Shifts 3-4 hours long and mornings start at 7am.
3-4 shifts a week. Starts at minimum wage.
We are a veterinary facility as well so some opportunities for learning.
Can call or text Dr Molesworth if seriously interested. Facebook messages are the slowest and worst way to get me.
443-532-7669

08/02/2023

Every once in a while Dr. Kelly will do some minor injury appointments for small animals. Tonight was one of those nights.

This patient was in a fight with its housemate and did not win. Sometimes these things do happen and, even under the best circumstances, are unavoidable.

Dr. Kelly assessed the bite wound after clipping and cleaning the area. While the puncture itself is small, there was a lot of open space between muscle and the skin.

The patient was lightly sedated and numbed. A drain was placed and sutured in to allow Dr. Kelly to close the bite wound, but still allow fluid to drain and help prevent an abscess. He's now on antibiotics and pain meds and the owner is aware of what to watch for.

He did VERY well, was a happy boy, and was able to get home quickly.

07/23/2023

Following up from the first dehorn post- this is one reason why we dehorn goat or cattle breeds that grow horns....

This jersey steer (jersey is a breed of cow, and steer is a castrated male bovine/cow) either was playing rough with his pasture mates or caught his horn in some fencing.

As a result, he pulled off the hard keratin capsule that protects the vital growing horn structure underneath. What is exposed in the picture is still his horn, but it's a much softer portion of the horn. If bumped or hit again, it bleeds very easily.

To fix this, we allow the softer horn structure to scar down and heal on its own. If it doesn't heal well, the horn will need to be removed due to continual bleeding concerns.

Today, Dr. Kelly aseptically scrubbed the area, put some iodine solution on, and then wrapped the steers head to protect everything. Antibiotics and pain meds were also given to protect him. He was back to grazing and playing with his friends as soon as we let him go.

07/15/2023

We have been busy again this week! There have been a variety of cases, some of which include some routine goat work.

This week Dr. Kelly dehorned and vaccinated 2 groups of goats. Dehorning goats is routinely done between 3-4 weeks of age. These young goats were sedated and the horns clipped, cleaned, and numbed. Once the horns are removed, green clotting powder is put on each spot and their head is wrapped to help prevent any bleeding. The dehorn spots are left open to heal on their own.

All of these goats are now doing very well and the last picture is after 48 hours of healing.

If you need any vet care for your goats, please reach out to us!

07/11/2023

Busy weekend and Monday.
Two Lacerations: one lost a fight with a fence, and a suckling foal that caught its mouth In something. First time I had to lay on my belly in a stall to suture up a wound! Glad the owners had a spotless clean stall.
Then a poor sick mini that did not make it and now getting tested for rabies, and also lost a sweet old goat and a pet pig. Did have time for a few hours with my new mare at Jimmy Wagner’s clinic.
Now waiting on the minis rabies test as well as my rabies titer.
Hug your babies ❤️