F9 Equine Clinic

03/05/2024

Here’s a handy how-to video for Dr. Fitzgerald’s famous hoof bandages.

23/04/2024

Another awesome career day today! Thank you Saint Anthony’s Catholic School for hosting a fun event and letting us share our field with all of the kiddos. We’re hoping we inspired some future equine veterinarians 🐴

14/02/2024

Check out these cheeky valentines from our polo friends ♥️

09/02/2024

Truth!

26/01/2024

Morning sunshine was a welcomed sight today, as our resident mare herd enjoyed a beautiful break from the rains. These pretty girls are being prepared to be potential recipients for embryo transfers. Call us to learn more about our breeding services!

12/01/2024

Great winter weather advice as we all prepare for next week’s arctic temperatures. Dr. Fitzgerald likes to remind everyone to be extra vigilant with blanketing: remove when temps rise during the daytime and especially if they get wet. Give us a call with any questions, and please stay safe ❄️

As a storm threat of freezing rain and snow marches across the U.S. and Canada ❄️🌨🫧🌬, below are some tips for keeping your horses safe during extreme winter weather events:

1. While lots of hay is ideal for horses to eat to keep warm, now is NOT the time to introduce a round bale if they’ve never had access to one before. It may be more work, but keep throwing them their normal hay source—just more frequently.

2. Similarly, if your horse is not used to being locked up in a stall now is NOT the time. The stress of a major change and the decreased activity can be risk factors for colic. Be sure your animals have access to shelter, hay, and drinkable water but let them move around if they choose to do so.

3. Horses that are thin, older, or fully body clipped are those most at risk in extreme weather.

4. Well fitting blankets are great but be sure horses do not get sweaty under them or that the blankets don’t soak through if snow or rain covered. Wet, cold, and covered is worse that dry, cold, and naked.

5. Some of the highest risk times are when the temperatures hover right around freezing, as that can result in sleet/freezing rain/ice that can make horses wet and therefore colder. Slippery footing is a concern, too.

6. If using electric water heaters, be sure they are functioning and not shocking horses. Take your gloves off and stick your hand in the water (briefly!) to double check.

7. “Trick” your horses into consuming extra water by flavoring a bucket, adding electrolytes to their meals, or soaking their meals in warm water. If you’ve never fed beet pulp before, be sure to add LOTS of warm water. Dry beet pulp is a common source of choke.

8. Tips of ears can be at risk for frostbite. Putting a jumper-style ear bonnet or other ear cover can protect them from wind chills.

Stay safe, friends!

10/01/2024

You know it’s cold when you see us in our coveralls! What’s your favorite winter barnwear- bundled up, lots of layers, or dashing out in pajamas and muck boots?

01/01/2024

Fun fact:
When horses don’t have a verified foaling date, they are assigned a DOB based on their approximate age. We are able to make an educated guess based on their teeth, but have to give them the official birthdate of January 1st for their year. Happy happy birthday to so many of our great, grade patients. We look forward to seeing everyone this year! 🪩🎉

19/12/2023

Can you spot Dr. Fitzgerald? He snuck away last week to get some great practice at this training seminar! He’s excited to bring his new skills back to our patients. Thanks BVEH for hosting everyone!

Gratitude is in full swing as we kick off the hands-on portion of the 4th Annual Lonestar Sports Medicine Symposium! Huge thanks to our incredible sponsors for making this event possible. Your support drives our success, and we're thrilled to have you with us. 🐎💙📸

13/12/2023

Happy Day of the Horse 2023!
Every day is horse day for our team, and we wouldn’t have it any other way!

05/12/2023

Great info from our friends at Waller Equine Hospital! Coggins tests may seem like an extra step but it’s important to stay safe, and there are now confirmed cases in our area.

Four Quarter Horses in Texas, located in Waller, Montgomery, Denton and El Paso counties, were confirmed positive for EIA and euthanized.

21/11/2023

Help us celebrate our vet tech Desiree! She is such a hard worker and always has a smile and a story ready to brighten our day. She is also our designated donkey tamer 🫏 Happy Birthday Desiree!

10/10/2023

It’s a great day for dental floating! This cool weather is wonderful for our patients and our team

21/08/2023

Happy Monday from F9. Our clinic flowers are sure loving this record heat!

05/05/2023

The F9 team had the awesome opportunity to speak to the SAS students about our veterinary practice. Thanks again for having us!

30/04/2023

Happy World Veterinary Day! We are thankful for our team and all of our colleagues that work together to bring your horses the best care! Special thanks to our “boss man”, Dr. Brian Fitzgerald, who can handle any job from head to tail!

01/03/2023

Our team has been enjoying meeting the new foals of 2023! Here are some handy details on safe foaling protocol and things to monitor for both mare and baby in the critical first hours.

14/02/2023

Happy Valentine’s Day! Here are some beefed up ones from the cattle industry ❤️

26/01/2023

Curious to see how your horse measures up?

Dr. Fitzgerald assigns every horse a Henneke score at their annual exam and it is a great tool for assessing body condition. He can then make diet and exercise recommendations to help get your horse in peak physical shape, and track progress throughout the year.

: Being able to assess your equine friend's weight and body condition is a valuable skill, especially during the winter months when horses (particularly older horses) need to generate more heat to stay warm and may hide their weight loss under a fluffy coat.

The Henneke Body Condition Scoring Chart is an important tool that provides a standard scoring system by rating the horse's physical condition on visual appraisal and palpation (feel) of six key conformation points: the amount of flesh or fat covering along the neck; the withers; down the crease of the back; at the tailhead; ribs: and behind the shoulder at the girth.

A body condition score of somewhere between 4 and 6 is ideal for most horses. However, keep in mind that in some disciplines (like racing, polo and eventing) and some life stages (like pregnancy) a higher or lower body score might be more appropriate.

If you think your horse is too fat or too thin (or even if you can't quite decide), be sure to have a chat with your veterinarian to discuss the appropriate condition and feeding program for your equine friend!

22/12/2022

Our clinic will be closed Dec 23rd through 26th so our team can spend the holiday with our families. We hope all of our equine and human friends stay safe and warm. Merry Christmas!

21/12/2022

Santa's reindeer have been cleared to come to Texas, y'all! ✅

Make sure you're on the nice list and get proper CVIs and/or permits to travel with your animals this holiday season! 🎄🎅

19/12/2022

Brrr, it’s gonna be a cold week! Here’s a little look at one particularly cold day last winter. Matlock Rice Performance Horses knew just how to keep us toasty warm, and it was much appreciated!

14/12/2022

Happy Day Of The Horse! We are lucky to have all types of horses right here in our practice: the elegant dressage and graceful hunter-jumpers, trustworthy trail mounts, fiery rodeo performers, athletic polo ponies, tough ranch remudas, patient lesson horses, off-the-track racehorses, adorable miniatures, fluffy ponies, gentle giants, drum carriers, endurance racers, stocky cutters, swift reiners, babysitters and friendly foals, handsome stallions, and the patient broodmare bands. Horses have helped shape our history and culture for centuries, and we are honored to continue caring for them into the future!

01/12/2022

This is creative! How do you and your horses celebrate the holidays?

Blow up horse decor at home - kind of fun!

24/11/2022

‘Appy Thanksgiving from the F9 Family!

We thank all of our customers for trusting us with your equine veterinary care needs. We are truly thankful to each and every customer, and look forward to continuing working with your horses for many more years.

Our clinic will be closed for the remainder of the week. We will return on Monday, November 28th. We hope everyone has a happy and healthy holiday with your loved ones.

22/11/2022

We had a great time at the annual AAEP convention in San Antonio this past weekend. Between continuing education classes and labs, meetings with technology developers, and cool new purchases, our team is excited to share what we learned with our amazing clients and patients!

15/11/2022

…or a horse, or donkey, or whatever makes you happy! Call or email us today to find out about our prepurchase exam options and let us help with your horse shopping 🛍

24/10/2022

Good Morning and Go ‘Stros! Max here was more than happy to show his support for his favorite team ⚾️ Look at that big smile!

08/09/2022

Our team is blessed with great views as we travel on farm calls this week. Fall is a great time to schedule dental floating and annual preventive care appointments-give us a call if you would like to add your barn to our list!