11/04/2024
We have a big post and a small video to share with you, and we sure hope you take the time to read and watch. We want to tell you a bit about our big Vet Days here at Midwest Horse Welfare Foundation, which gives a good glimpse into some behind the scenes and some of the amazing people involved with MHWF.
In 2024, MHWF had two big teaching Vet Days; one back in April and one on November 2, 2024. These Vet Days consist of a wide variety of important vet work, with vets teaching students and everyone collaborating and learning from each other.
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When we talk about Vet Day, we are not talking about the regular days when the veterinarian comes out to help and get vet work done, but this event that happens twice a year is an educational day for vet students of UW Madison. This is a wonderful learning environment where UW Madison vet students get hands-on with real live horses in a non-clinical environment and get to see and do a lot of things that they would not be able to in a classroom, while at the same time doing so much to help the horses of MHWF. Real life situations that a day in the life as a veterinarian will bring. On these vet days a wide variety of things get done from dental evals, floating and tooth extraction, thorough lameness evaluations with a variety of radiographs on various horses, chiropractic work, ultrasounds, blood draws, vaccinations, and even a geld surgery. These Vet Days are the highlight of the year for MHWF in so many ways, and a big part of that is being able to spend the day with these amazing veterinarians and future veterinarians in training, which uplifts everyone involved and gives everyone hope for the future of equines and equine medicine. All these people are true heroes to us and to the horses. This all started as an idea from Dr. Suzanne McKichan and has turned into an amazing event that helps so many, and we are forever grateful.
๐๐จ๐ฐ ๐๐ข๐ ๐๐๐ญ ๐๐๐ฒ ๐๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ญ? - One Very Dedicated and Special Veterinarian
We must start off with Dr. Suzanne McKichan of Dells Equine Veterinary Service. We met Dr. Suzanne in 2015 when she adopted Clyde, the TWH gelding from MHWF. From that connection Dr. Suzanne took the reins and is the person who not only brought up the idea of a Vet Day, but she is also the person who put the entire thing together and made it happen. Since MHWF started in 2001, we have never had someone do this for us and we simply cannot put into words how much Dr. Suzanne has done for this program. She has contacted the other vets, got medications, dewormers and vaccinations donated, contacted the vet students, and did all the paperwork. This is no small feat and was a lot of work. The impact her hard work has on the MHWF program is huge. Vet Day has continued to grow each year and become more impactful for more people and equines! Thank you very, very much Dr. Suzanne, you are a hero to us and these horses without a doubt.
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A big round of applause for the veterinarians who drive all the way here from around the state and give their whole day and work hard for the horses along with teaching the vet students! All of them worked hard, did great work, did a fantastic job of helping the vet students and did all of this with a great attitude, professionalism and are so much fun to work with. It was such a pleasure to work with them and we are extremely honored to have had them here. All of these vets did this on their own time because they care and want to help horses in need as well as students who can use the experience. What a wonderful group of people. If you live near any of these vets, please feel confident in using their services if you need a good vet and please do not hesitate to send them a quick email thanking them for being the kind of people who are willing to give so much of themselves. That is truly something special these days.
Dr. Kayla Le, Clinical Assistant Professor โ Large Animal Surgery
Department of Surgical Sciences, UW Madison.
We are truly honored and grateful to you for being here and helping the horses and students. We appreciate you more than words can convey.
Dr. Carli Denton,
Country View Equine Clinic
It was an absolute thrill to have Dr. Carli here as a veterinarian, as she was once a UW Madison veterinary student who has come to MHWF Vet Days in the past. Itโs hard to put to words what an amazing feeling it was to see a vet student come full circle like this and want to come back and help. It really shows what these amazing people are made of. Not only was Carli a vet student turned Vet Day Veterinarian, she is also now an MHWF adopter too! Carli adopted little Fezzik back in 2023.
Website: https://www.countryviewequine.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/countryviewequine
Dr. Suzanne McKichan along with her amazing assistant, Dayna.
Dr. Suzanne had a dream, made it a reality, and keeps all of this going for MHWF and the horses. Dr. Suzanne has worked with MHWF on a lot more than these vet days, with a big heart for rescue and supporter of horse adoption. Dr. Suzanne has an adoption horse named Eli, who is thriving and a wonderful part of her family.
Dells Equine Veterinary Services and Clinic
Website: https://www.dellsequine.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DellsEquine
Dr. Stephanie Miesen
Dr. Stephanie is a returning rock star who has been a big part of vet days for years now and we are honored to have her in our corner for the horses and on this amazing team.
Country View Equine Clinic
Website: https://www.countryviewequine.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/countryviewequine
Dr. Mike Graper
Dr. Graper is no stranger to MHWF having helped in many situations over the years. Dr. Graper instantly turned into an integral part of Vet Days and we are truly honored and grateful to have him on this amazing team of some of the best veterinarians in Wisconsin.
Cornerstone Equine Services
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CornerstoneEquineServices
Dr. Jennifer Lorenz
Dr. Jennifer has been a part of Vet Days since the beginning, and we were so happy to see her back this fall! Dr. Jennifer also adopted a horse named Molly back in 2017, after she had done vet work on her at MHWF a couple of times, including chiro and acupuncture. Molly is still doing great too!
Capital Performance Veterinary Services
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CapitalPerformanceVS
Our Amazing Farrier, Mike Kissack
A special thank-you to our amazing farrier, Mike Kissack, for making the trip up on a weekend to be here for Vet Day! You have helped so many horses over the years at MHWF and we are grateful for your continued help and dedication to all of the equines that come in so many shapes, sizes, temperaments, and variety of issues.
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Thank you to the UW Madison Vet Students! We share our gratitude and want to thank each and every one of the vet students who made the long 2+ hour drive to come and work with us. We loved seeing a few familiar faces from previous Vet Days, and look forward to seeing all of them again in spring! All of these students are hardworking, really fun and great to work with and we could not be prouder and more honored to have each of them here to help us out. It is no coincidence that each of these very selfless and giving people ended up in veterinary school, a true testament to their love for animals and the drive to help make the world a better place, one animal at a time. You are heroes to us and the horses! We have a great amount of respect for each of these students and hope you all go on to great new careers doing what you love, helping people and animals. A huge thank you and round of applause to each of you! Thank you!
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The ones behind the scenes that make everything tick for Midwest Horse Welfare all year, day in and day out, always ready and willing to lend a hand whenever and wherever it is needed, no matter the task at hand. ๐ด๐ฏ๐พ๐ญ ๐๐ ๐๐๐% ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐. The MHWF volunteers that were here for the day always give it their all, traveling from near and far to be here to help whenever the horses need them. These volunteers donate their time, work and energy on a regular basis and MHWF simply could not survive without them. Each of them is very special to us and they are as much friends as they are volunteers. So, to Christine A., Cassandra P-S., Pam C., Desmond, Ainsley, Deb W., Jerri M., Len and Donna R., Nancy P., and Terri M., thank you from the bottom of our hearts, not just for your help this past year, but for the continued help, support and friendship. The reason we are all still here doing this kind of volunteer work is in no small part because of you. You make it fun, more like hanging out with friends than work, and that is a big deal to us, thank you!
An extra thank-you to Cassandra for catering in the sub sandwiches and other delicious food for the event! It was an amazing treat and sure took a load off of our plates.
๐๐ฎ๐ซ ๐๐ฆ๐๐ณ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ฉ๐จ๐ง๐ฌ๐จ๐ซ๐ฌ: Bimeda and Boehringer Ingelheim.
A huge thank you to Bimeda for the Equimax dewormer and Detomequin sedation, and to Boehringer Ingelheim (BI) for the vaccines! We are extremely grateful for your generosity which helps so many horses who come to the Midwest Horse Welfare Foundation.
So, as you see, Vet Days are monumental for MHWF and for the horses here. So much gets done, a lot of unanswered questions about some of the horses get answered, an invaluable amount of teaching and learning takes place, and we could not have had better company for the days. What inspiring and uplifting days for MHWF, for us on a personal level, and for the horses. Saving livesโฆit takes a very large team, and the horses are grateful to all of you. You make this whole thing called Rescue and Adoption work!
Please enjoy the video we put together of the Vet Day with various photos and video clips for a small glimpse of Vet Day November 2024.
