Brigitte Gravitt DVM

15/07/2024

Since the recent case of Eastern Equine Encepahlitis (EEE) in Florida, there have been some questions regarding the frequency by which we vaccinate for EEE. While it is understandable that we do not want to over- vaccinate our horses, this disease is devastating and usually quickly fatal. It is recommended by the vaccine manufacturer, the University of Florida, and Dr. Maureen Long who is an arbovirus expert, as well as the veterinarians at Van Roekel and Associates to vaccinate at least twice a year for EEE. Some veterinarians also recommend vaccinating 3 times yearly for horses less than 5 years of age.

Similar to EEE are two other viruses transmitted by mosquitos- Western Equine Encephalitis and West Nile Virus. We also recommend twice yearly vaccination down here in Southwest Florida.

Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns about our recommendations. Thank you, sincerely, for letting us partner with you in the care of your horse.

Here is a great article by the University of Florida.

Information provided by Dr. Robert MacKay, Veterinarian of UF Large Animal Internal Medicine, Professor, DACVIM, PhD, BVSc (Dist). What is Eastern Equine Encephalitis? Eastern Equine Encephalitis is a viral disease caused by infected mosquitoes. When an EEE-infected mosquito bites a non-immune horse...

15/05/2024

This is great information. I often ask what a horse is being fed, and the response is often “a 14%.”

Did you know? The percent of a nutrient is relative to how much you feed.

Let’s say we have a 14% protein feed. One handful, one 3 qt scoop, and one 50lb bag each provide 14% protein.

But does the horse actually consume the same amount of protein in all three?

(Insert a collective chorus of “no” 🙃)

If the horse ate the handful, they would eat significantly less total protein in grams than if they ate the scoop.

However, 1lb of a 30% protein and 2lbs of a 15% protein actually do provide the same grams of protein!

I’m unsure why the feed industry only talks about percentages; ask any fitness person what their daily protein intake is, or read the label on any protein shake, bar, etc, and you’ll find out the protein in GRAMS. An 1100lb horse in light work requires a minimum of 700 grams of protein per day.

Moral of the story, percentages are meaningless without knowing how much is being consumed.

26/03/2024

Every little bit helps, right? Here is a discount on Adequan!
https://www.adequan.com/rebate

02/02/2024

This is a frequent discussion with clients…

Did you know?

Although protein is normally listed as a nutrient, horses actually have a requirement for amino acids, the building blocks of protein, rather than for protein itself. Protein is the least efficient energy source for your horse, so high protein does not automatically equal high energy. Carbohydrates, fats, and fiber are more readily digestible energy sources, so chances are a horse with too much energy is being fed more calories than the animal truly needs.

As always, remember that all horses have different nutritional needs based age, stage of development, metabolism and workload. Be sure to work with your veterinarian to determine the correct protein and energy requirements for your equine friend based on your horse’s individual situation!
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Courtesy of the AAEP Horse Owner Education Committee

09/01/2024

This is from my friend and Vet School classmate. Great picture, Dr. Phillips! 

You may wonder why we pull back into the syringe when giving injections in the vein. This picture explains why. We don't pull back to make sure we're in the vessel, we do it to make sure we're in the RIGHT vessel. Today I went to give an injection and pulled back and saw blood brighter than I wanted. I decided to go and get a new dose of sedation and once again pulled back and then gave my dose of sedation. The syringe on the left was my first injection and the syringe on the right was my second injection. Does anyone know why I shouldn't have injected that first syringe? And had I injected that first injection, what would have happened?

13/12/2023

02/12/2023

On my way to the next emergency. I wish we could drive Batmobiles, but unfortunately, I have to abide by the laws of physics. We only have one veterinarian covering emergencies for all of Southwest Florida. So if you think you might have an emergency developing, it’s always a good idea to call and give me a heads up. That way if I am in your area, I can call and check on you before I leave to make sure you aren’t going to need me. 

And just a reminder, Van Roekel and associates only sees emergencies for our regular clients. It’s a common misconception, it seems, that we are an “emergency veterinarian”. We actually are not considered an emergency veterinarian, but we do provide emergency services for our regular clients since there is no emergency veterinarian close by. The closest ones are in Tampa and Palm Beach.  this often means our veterinarians are working four days straight without a break, as we see regular appointments all day and work and emergencies 24/7. 

I hope y’all have a great weekend!

09/11/2023

We loved our canine assistant!

A quiet Wednesday in the rings...a busy Wednesday in the barn aisle with our amazing veterinarian and her team making sure all of our equine partners are feeling their very best. Carole's fathead boy Baby Henry is apparently aspiring to become a large animal veterinary assistant or perhaps he is secretly studying to become a vet tech, today's lesson "sterilizing an area for a growth removal"
Thank you Dr Gravitt and your team.

31/10/2023

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

31/10/2023

Be careful what eye drops you are using on your horse as well as yourself! The FDA has published a list of multiple brands of lubricating eye drops that came from a substandard manufacturing facility.

Eye Drop Recall

19/10/2023

I’m in West Palm for a continuing education conference, and I’m so excited for the topics being discussed this year. If you need anything urgently, please don’t hesitate to call the office at 239)694-7177. The cell phone is not being monitored currently. I’ll be back at the office on Wednesday the 25th. I hope everyone has a great rest of the week!

17/10/2023

Eyelid lacerations are one of the most common emergencies that we see. Horses often snag their eyelids on bucket handles. An easy preventative measure is to wrap the handles with electrical tape!

16/10/2023

I don’t know what I would do without these ladies!

19/09/2023

West Nile Virus is a disease we are on the alert for all year round due to our unwavering mosquito population. Here in SWFL, we recommend vaccinating for this twice yearly.

This is backed by the literature and the AAEP. See below: “more frequent boosters (i.e., twice or three times yearly) are recommended in areas with year-round mosquito seasons in endemic areas.” -AAEP

Summer and fall are prime time for arbovirus infection as these diseases (which include Eastern Equine Encephalitis [EEE], West Nile Virus [WNV], Western Equine Encephalitis [WEE] and Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis [VEE]) are transmitted by many different species of mosquitoes and biting insects.

With more states reporting cases of West Nile Virus (70 cases were reported in August alone), here is your reminder that keeping all horses up to date on vaccinations with the guidance of your veterinarian is the best protection you can offer your equine friends.

Read more and download the arbovirus factsheet on the Equine Disease Communication Center's website at https://tinyurl.com/ukaa3zwv

08/09/2023

Van Roekel and Associates Inc has finally got the page up and running properly. Check it out!

🚨 PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT 🚨

After a long battle with Meta, We were finally able to regain access to our page, which now allows us to respond to your messages and publish unscripted content. Thank you for sticking with us, and we look forward to engaging with you on a more personal level going forward.

To end the week on a positive note, we would love to see a picture of your furry family members in the comments! Have a great weekend!!

*Pictured is Vet Techs Morgan and Rachel with one of our sweet equine patients after a procedure.

15/08/2023

There has been a confirmed case of rabies in a horse in Florida. You’ll notice that signs started in June, but rabies wasn’t confirmed until August. The signs were subtle at first and this was a nice show horse. You can imagine how many people were exposed during this time. A rabies vaccine is not expensive.

https://thehorse.com/1128495/florida-warmblood-positive-for-rabies/?fbclid=IwAR3H9k_X-NizuEp5dKFy_C-RzIK5edBA5PdTdHGooA_7Axyg_r1yLd-N6gk_aem_ASh2knOICRgRSfrXK0Io69TYKlpSOzRAeBtH6-tP8XKZuJxNLvxpb0kJOqmI2HiVSDY

A 5-year-old, unvaccinated warmblood gelding in Marion County, Florida, was confirmed positive for rabies and euthanized.

11/08/2023

I’m always complaining that my pens and highlighters disappear, and I usually blame the techs for stealing them. Well, Morgan cleaned out the truck for me and this is what she found under the seats…

Check out bbg_dvm's video.

04/08/2023

So many horses struggling with the heat this year. We are trying to schedule vaccines and floats in the cooler parts of the year. I hope y’all have a cool weekend!

02/08/2023

I’m getting a lot of questions about the positive Coggins case.…here is some information.

A horse in Lee County, Florida, is confirmed positive for equine infectious anemia (EIA), and six horses are exposed.

26/07/2023

Beware of temperature + humidity. We are at about 145 today.

"HOT" TIPS FOR SAFE SUMMER RIDING

As you enjoy some fun in the sun with your favorite equine, make sure you understand how the combination of heat and humidity can take the fun part out the equation — and potentially even turn into a dangerous situation for your horse.

When riding in hot weather, remember to take precautions and use your common sense. Remain vigilant for dehydration and for signs of heat exhaustion, as the situation can quickly escalate into heat stroke. If your horse looks hot and tired, it's time for a drink, a cold bath and a break in the shade.

Consult your veterinarian for more information, or learn more about the signs of heat stroke on our website at https://aaep.org/issue/heat-stroke
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16/06/2023

I have the dream team today! Rachel is here for a visit after completing her first year of vet school! 🥳😃👏🏻

05/06/2023

CASE OF THE DAY!
It’s graphic…

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A horse came in for a non healing wound. X-Rays and ultrasound revealed a foreign body. We were able to get that out. Hopefully this sweet girl can get to healing up.

01/06/2023

This is how we feel about rainy days. Havin some fun at WinStar Farm.

What we do on rainy days

18/05/2023

We have a visiting veterinarian from Chile. Dr. Geraldo is working on becoming lisenced in the United States and will be visiting us a few times over the next few weeks. We are excited to have her!

03/05/2023

The newest recommendations for Cushings testing is to diagnose from January through June with a TRH stim test. If you have been considering testing your horse, I recommend getting them on the schedule ASAP! Otherwise, you’ll have to wait until next year for the most accurate results.

Picture of a book written about a local horse and dear client.

26/04/2023

Good MISTY morning, SWFL!

16/04/2023

This is one of my favorite things to talk about and it’s explained well here! “Farrier views” x-rays of all feet can provide very helpful information which can affect the your horse’s entire body.

09/02/2023

I really love this graphic. Horses don’t continually grow teeth, they have teeth that continuously erupt throughout their lifetime. This is why it is so important that dentistry is done by a veterinarian. With horses living so long now, we need to preserve their teeth as long as possible, and take off only what is absolutely necessary when floating.

In vet school I took multiple dentistry courses, including equine dentistry. Took equine dentistry rotations during clinics, trained under a board certified veterinary dentist, and participated in multiple dentistry wet labs through the AAEP. By the time I graduated I was already confident in my dentistry skills, but I continued developing them during my internship. Along with general dentistry, I worked with a board certified surgeon and assisted in dental surgeries. Since my internship, I travelled to Wisconsin to complete an advanced equine dentistry course for veterinarians.

This is a great field and I enjoy helping keep your horse’s teeth the best they can be!

06/02/2023

Did you know Triple Crown has a rewards program? You can rebates for sending in proofs of purchase!

https://www.triplecrownfeed.com/frequent-buyer/?fbclid=IwAR33_flWdz1j4VcAITRy4FXC_yyYD6NA3cFZe_W30qL76WkPg1JZfJSvnMs

With our Frequent Buyer Program, when you send in 15 proofs of purchase, receive a $30 visa gift card.

04/02/2023

This is a great series for horses with behavioral issues which put your vet at risk. My favorite is the one for needle shy horses.

Equine vets have one of the highest injury risks of all civilian professions. To help address this serious issue the British Equine Veterinary Association (B...