Sunrise Equine Veterinary Services

10/30/2025

Take advantage of this FREE webinar from the AAEP on Care and Management of the Elderly Equine. See details below👇

DON'T MISS OUR LAST HORSE OWNER EDUCATION WEBINAR OF 2025! 📢

Join us next Wednesday, Nov. 5, for "Care and Management of the Elderly Equine".

Just like people, the needs of horses change as they continue to age. Members of the AAEP Horse Owner Education committee will present on a wide range of topics to help you properly care for the elderly equine in your life. Discussion points will include diet, dentistry, common diseases and illnesses, preventative care, and more. Do not miss this informative session on how to help your older horse live its best life!

Registration is FREE but required. A recording of the webinar will be available if you miss the live event.

Register here: https://events.zoom.us/ev/Ah5yOsCebSifxMhDsKU4IL28l58V2uXLCCZy2BJfr1cVGkPrhte-~AkTrbyktZL-X6LN0LpntEqMChUPte_sAlD_Vc22m-q6fZUf_K_Bby90XhQ

This informative session is brought to you by the AAEP Horse Owner Education Committee.

10/29/2025

🚨Choke, a Common Equine Emergency🚨

Choke occurs when feed becomes lodged in the esophagus. Horses can still breathe, but the condition is uncomfortable and can lead to serious complications if not addressed promptly.

👀Signs to Watch For:
- Drooling or feed material from the nostrils
- Coughing or gagging
- Neck stretching or repeated swallowing
- Restlessness or distress
- Some horses may present with colic type symptoms (pawing, trying to lie down, etc.)

📋What to Do:
- Remove all feed and water immediately
- Encourage the horse to keep its head low to allow drainage
- Gentle massage of the left side of the neck in a downward direction may help encourage your horse to swallow
- Contact your veterinarian if signs persist beyond 60 minutes

💪Prevention:
- Soak pelleted feeds and hay cubes
- Offer smaller meals and slow down fast eaters
- Ensure fresh water is always available
- Maintain regular dental care

🍁We see an increased number of choke cases the fall, especially in older horses transitioning off pasture, or receiving increased grain. Dental abnormalities often contribute to these cases.

🦷Now is a great time is a great time to schedule dentistry and wellness exams, especially for the older horses going into winter that may have weight or dental concerns!

10/23/2025

🌅 Expanding Our Services to Better Serve You and Your Horses 🌅

At Sunrise Equine, our mission is to provide the highest quality care to support every horse’s comfort, health, and performance — from top-level competitors to cherished companions.

This year, our team has been busy expanding our knowledge and adding new tools and therapies to better serve your horses.

Many of our doctors have advanced their training in dentistry, acupuncture, diagnostic imaging, and joint therapies, and we’re excited to now offer several new diagnostic and therapeutic options, including:

✅Incisor imaging and extractions for horses affected by EOTRH (Equine Odontoclastic Tooth Resorption and Hypercementosis)

✅Ultrasound-guided injections for the sacroiliac region, back, hips, and neck — for precise, targeted relief of pain and inflammation

✅Mesotherapy, a therapy designed to relieve muscle pain and tension while promoting long-term comfort and mobility

✅Expanded acupuncture services — offering a holistic approach to health and recovery for conditions such as:
• Osteoarthritis and muscle pain
• Ocular pain and chronic uveitis
• F***l water syndrome and colic
• Nerve paralysis and head shaking
• Allergies and heaves

We’re proud of our team’s dedication to continuing education and evidence-based care — ensuring that every horse receives the most advanced treatments available.

📞 To learn more or schedule a consultation, contact our office today. Our veterinary team is happy to discuss which options best fit your horse’s needs.

09/18/2025

Get ahead of the spring rush and consider moving your preventative care to the fall! 🍁

Here are the scheduled Routine Care Days for the remainder of 2025! Call soon to reserve your spot as these tend to fill up quickly. (50% discount on your farm call when you schedule your routine care on one of these dates)

08/07/2025

We've been busy over here at Sunrise Equine 🤩
See any new faces?? 👀

We welcomed Dr. Kelly Harrington, Dr. Kaitlin Watts, and our newest assistant, Trevor to our team!!

Some of you might have already seen them out and about but we figured it was time to officially introduce them. We hope this will help lighten the load between all vets and in turn we will be able to see more patients and help them feel their best.

Make sure to give them a big welcome if you have the pleasure of seeing them 😀

From Left to Right: Desirae, Anna, Dr. Kirsten Frederickson, Dr. Kate O'Conor, Dr. Jill Deets, Trevor, Jamie, Dr. Kelly Harrington, Dr. Kaitlin Watts, Dr. Katie Luoma, Mackenzie, Bailey, Elizabeth, Angie and Brinley down in front 🐶

05/16/2025

**we're back up and running and caught up!! Thank you all for your patience 😄

Just wanted to give everyone a heads up that our internet and software is down today.
We can still take phone calls but cannot access the schedule like normal or do certain things without our main computers up and running. Please keep phone calls to either emergencies or urgent medication pick ups. We will update this status once we know more or once it's up and running again. Thank you all for your patience and understanding! 🤗

04/19/2025

Tis the season for creepy crawlies! Groom and check your horse often, use topical tick preventatives, and get familiar with your horses normal behaviors so you know when they’re not quite right. Below is some information about Lyme Disease in horses, the other condition we often see is Anaplasmosis. Horses with Anaplasmosis usually develop a high fever, so make sure to have a thermometer handy! 🌡️

WARMER WEATHER = TICK SEASON! 📢

As the weather warms up, ticks are becoming more active — which clearly means more chances for your horses (or yourself and your family pets) to encounter this parasite. Despite their diminutive size and appearance, ticks are highly equipped to carry and transmit many serious diseases including Equine Piroplasmosis, Lyme Disease, Equine Granulocytic Anaplasmosis (Ehrlichiosis) and Tick Paralysis, so tick control remains an important management practice for horse owners.

Because ticks infected with serious diseases do not usually transmit those pathogens immediately and often must feed for a period of time before disease transmission, removing them from your horse as soon as possible is important. Check your horses for ticks thoroughly after a ride, and at least daily if they’re out on pasture in order to prevent disease transmission.

From a pasture management perspective, you can decrease the number of ticks your horse may pick up by removing brush and mowing tall grass where ticks like to live and discouraging wildlife such as deer that tend to reintroduce ticks to grazing areas.

Additional facts about Lyme disease in horses is available on the�Equine Disease Communication Center's website at: https://www.equinediseasecc.org/lyme-disease

And as always, if you have questions on tick control or the diseases they can transmit to your horses, talk to your local horse doctor!

04/16/2025

Take a moment to listen to this great podcast discussing a common condition we diagnose - Vitamin E deficiency! 🌾

Could your horse be vitamin E deficient without you knowing it? New research suggests this vital nutrient deficiency might be far more common than we realize, even in horses with access to fresh pasture.Drs. Amy Johnson and Megan Palmisano join Ve...

04/09/2025

⚠️ Pasture Safety Tips for a Happier, Healthier Horse! ⚠️

Spring is here, and that means more time out in the pasture for your horses! Here are a few essential safety tips to help keep your herd safe and injury-free:

‼️ Use Breakaway Halters: If your horse must wear a halter in the pasture, always opt for a breakaway style. In the event of entanglement, it can reduce the risk of serious injury. If halters are left on, they should be checked daily to make sure that they are clean, dry, and not rubbing or causing wounds to the horses face.

‼️ Cap Those T-Posts: Sharp metal T-posts can cause devastating injuries. A simple plastic cap can make all the difference and help protect your horse from unnecessary wounds.

‼️ Ditch the Barbed Wire: While it may be common in cattle fencing, barbed wire poses a high risk for horses. Replace it with smooth wire, wooden fencing, or safer alternatives to prevent cuts and lacerations.

‼️ Remove Burdock Plants: Burdock may seem harmless, but its burrs can tangle in manes, tails, and even eyes, causing discomfort or injury. Regular pasture checks to remove this and other harmful plants are key.

Keeping your pastures safe is one of the best ways to prevent emergency vet calls—and ensures your horses enjoy their turnout time to the fullest!

03/06/2025

Equine Asthma (Heaves): What You Need to Know

Heaves, currently known as equine asthma, is a chronic respiratory condition triggered by allergens like dust and mold. Symptoms include coughing, nasal discharge, labored breathing, and exercise intolerance. Without proper management, it can severely impact a horse’s quality of life.

The first step in managing heaves is a clear diagnosis. Broncho-alveolar lavage (BAL) is recommended for the most accurate diagnosis, especially in mild cases. This is a procedure performed under short-acting sedation where a tube is passed up the nostril into the lungs, a small amount of fluid is introduced into the airway, and then collected for analysis. This documents the inflammation, mucus, and immune cells in the airways to confirm the diagnosis and severity of heaves. Determining the specific type of cells present helps to target treatment.

Managing Heaves:
✔ Environmental Changes – Reduce allergen exposure by soaking or steaming hay, using dust-free bedding, and maximizing turnout. Small square bales generally have less dust and mold than large round bales. If a round bale is necessary, use a small diameter hay net to limit the amount of direct exposure to dust and mold particles within the bale.

✔ Dietary Support – Supplementing with omega-3 fatty acids & MSM can help reduce inflammation.

✔ Medications – Bronchodilators and corticosteroids (oral or inhaled) provide relief, but should be used judiciously. Long-term or frequent use of steroids, particularly corticosteroids, can have various side effects, including; a suppressed immune system, laminitis, weight gain, and muscle wasting.

✔ Therapies – Immunotherapy, acupuncture, and shockwave therapy may help improve respiratory health.

✔ Inhaled Medications – Devices like AeroHippus and Flexineb deliver targeted treatment directly to the lungs. For established clients, we have a Flexineb unit available at the clinic that we will rent out for treatments.

Early diagnosis and a customized treatment plan are key! If your horse shows signs of heaves, contact us to discuss the best options for their health and comfort.