Weitz Equine Veterinary Services

11/15/2024

Happy Friday!! Our office is officially moved to the clinic!! So if you need fo pick up meds etc it will be there! And we will be accepting horses into the building next week!!
Our new address is
31954 Jamaica Ave
Northfield MN

*Stay tuned for Open House event. It will likely be after the Holidays

11/13/2024

Office manager Katie’s dog Arthur is helping oversee the move!

11/12/2024

Look at our beautiful indoor at the clinic! Dr. Paul and Beau the dog are working hard to keep it nice as we continue our move in process.

11/12/2024

Attention! Our office phone is down temporarily as we relocate to the office to the new building! If you need immediate assistance call the pager 612-568-1458. Thank you!

11/02/2024

Don’t forget to fall back!

It's that time of year again when we turn back time. ⏰

Daylight Savings Time ends this Sunday, Nov. 3rd. at 2 a.m.

So, remember to turn your clocks back one hour before you go to bed Saturday night~

10/31/2024

Was it really 80 degrees just a couple days ago?! My how things have changed. Take the fly sheets off those horses and break out the winter gear! Stay safe everyone

10/29/2024

Weitz Equine experienced our first confirmed Pigeon Fever cases this year. Typically this disease has not been present in Minnesota but those days seem to be over.
Learn more about Pigeon Fever from this article

Early detection and treatment of this debilitating infection is vital for a positive prognosis. Learn how to reduce risk for your horse with tips from Dr. Sharon Spier.

10/23/2024

This could maybe just say “all ponies” 😂
We love all our shorter equine friends and their bold personalities!

10/21/2024

Please be mindful of seasonal pasture myopathy. It’s been very windy lately and seeds could blow into feed sources.
Clinical signs are muscle tightness, colic, depression and fever sometimes.
Calm immediately if your horse shows these clinical signs.

Horses that eat enough boxelder seeds can develop Seasonal Pasture Myopathy (SPM). SPM is a muscle disease that can cause death but is rare considering how common boxelder trees are ➡ https://extension.umn.edu/horse-pastures-and-facilities/seasonal-pasture-myopathy

Early signs of illness include stiffness, difficulty walking, dark urine, rapid breathing, and recumbency. Contact your veterinarian promptly if you suspect SPM in your horse. Rapid diagnosis and treatment are key to the horse's survival.

Simple management practices can help reduce the risk of SPM in your horse. Boxelder seeds usually drop from the trees between September and March. Not surprisingly, cases of SPM often occur in the fall before there is snow cover.

❌ Do not allow horses to overgraze pastures. Horses without adequate access to forage may seek less desirable plants or plant materials such as boxelder seeds.

🌾 If possible, remove horses from pastures when plant heights average 3 to 4 inches. If the horses must stay on an overgrazed pasture, provide them enough hay to meet their daily forage requirements (about 2 percent of their bodyweight).

⏰ Limit pasture turnout to less than 12 hours a day when grazing pastures with boxelder seeds during high risk periods.

🛑 Do not introduce horses to a new pasture with boxelders right before or during high risk periods.

🌳 Trim low-hanging boxelder tree branches to reduce the amount of seeds present.

🚧 Fence off access to areas with boxelder trees during high risk periods.

10/19/2024

We’ve got stalls!! We are just weeks away from moving in!!!

10/18/2024

Want to know more about acupuncture? Read about it on our website.
Or call and talk to Dr. Melissa. She is happy to answer your questions.

Weitz Equine is excited to now be offering acupuncture services for our patients. Having completed intensive training through Curacore Vet in Colorado, Dr. Melissa has learned the science behind how acupuncture can neuromodulate the nerves, muscles, skeletal system, and myofascia within the equine b...

10/18/2024

Every time! Happy Friday

Friday Funny! Hats off to a great weekend.

10/17/2024

And finally… introducing our newest veterinary assistant Hadley!

Hadley grew up in Lakeville, MN. She has been around horses her whole life but first started riding 17 years ago. She got her first horse at 12 years old and competed in multiple disciplines for several years, but primarily enjoyed barrel racing.
In 2016 she started training colts, later partnering with a rescue to help rehabilitate horses up for adoption. In the beginning of 2024 she received a certification in equine massage therapy and looks forward to learning more. Hadley currently resides in Burnsville with her boyfriend, Bully mix named Sunny and her 2 rescue cats Paris & Peter the Tripod.

Welcome to the Weitz Equine Team Hadley!

10/16/2024

A special Thank You this week to Diana! Diana has worked for Weitz Equine as a certified vet tech for 9 years! And we are so grateful to have her as a part of our team!

10/15/2024

Jessica, certified vet tech , and Ahsha, vet assistant, showing why we can’t get thru the day without them! Holding horses, entering medical records, organizing equipment, drawing up meds. They are the ultimate multitaskers!
Thank You! 🙏

10/15/2024

The frost has arrived. If you have metabolic disease horses now is a time to be cautious about grazing

❄🐴🌾 Is it safe to graze horses after a hard freeze? What do I need to consider before turning them back out on pasture? Also, what defines a hard freeze?

🌡 A hard freeze refers to a frost that is severe enough to end the growing season. The National Weather Service defines a hard freeze when temperatures fall below 28ºF for a few hours. Cool-season grasses commonly found in Midwest horse pastures go into dormancy for winter and conserve their energy stores (starches and sugars) following a hard freeze.

❄️ We recommend keeping horses off pastures for at least 7 days after a hard freeze. Frost-damaged pastures are higher in nonstructural carbohydrates (starches and sugars) because plants can not use up their energy stores as efficiently. It can take plants 7 days to return to more normal nonstructural carbohydrate levels. Higher levels of nonstructural carbohydrates can lead to an increase risk for laminitis, especially in horses diagnosed with or prone to obesity, laminitis, Cushings, and Equine Metabolic Syndrome.

The decision to graze again after a hard freeze depends on the condition of your pasture. After a hard freeze, no additional regrowth of the pasture will occur, even though the pasture might appear green in color. If your cool-season grass pasture is

✅ taller than 3 to 4 inches, then grazing can resume 7 days after a hard freeze and can continue until the pasture is grazed down to 3 to 4 inches.
❌ shorter than 3 to 4 inches, then no grazing should occur after a hard freeze. Grazing below 3 inches can harm the plant and may be a health concern for horses sensitive to nonstructural carbohydrates.

🌾 Plants rely on stored nonstructural carbohydrates in the lower 3 inches for energy. Therefore, the 3- to 4-inch minimum height recommendation is necessary to help maximize winter survival and can help predict a vigorous and healthy pasture come spring. We do recognize horses rarely graze uniformly and pastures tend to have areas of both over and under grazing. You will need to base decisions on the average appearance of your pasture

10/14/2024

Weitz Equine is excited to celebrate our vet techs and vet assistants this week! We could not do this job without them! So if you see Diana, Jessica, Ahsha, or Hadley make sure to say Thank You!!

10/14/2024

Dr. Ceara and technician Jessica spent this past weekend in St. Louis MO learning about equine nutrition. What an awesome trip!
And guess who they ran into there!! Dr. Mik Chari, our intern from 2021-2022. Yay Dr. Mik!!