The experienced vets at our North Fort Myers animal hospital offer equine vet services and treatments from lameness diagnosis and internal medicine to parasite treatments and foot care.
Equine Veterinary Services
We offer equine vet care with a focus on helping your horse achieve optimal health. From treatment and prevention of lameness, pre-purchase exams and preventive care, equine dentistry, and more we have the services you need to keep your horse healthy.
Our state-of-the-art mobile units provides our vets with the tools they need to provide on-site diagnostic services to horse owners including digital radiography, digital ultrasonography, and fiber optic scope evaluations.
Here at Van Roekel & Associates, we will take care of your prized horses and other equines, whether you show them, breed them, or just love them as pets. Our entire staff is dedicated to our equine patients so that they can have the very best life possible.
Equine & Large Animal Vet in North Fort Myers
At Van Roekel & Associates our vets provide all of the equine veterinary services and treatments you need to keep your horse healthy and injury-free.
Whether you require equine health services, emergency care, international or interstate health certificates, or Coggins, our North Fort Myers vets can provide the care and services your beloved horse needs.
Procedures & Treatments
Our equine trained vets at Van Roekel & Associates provide a comprehensive range of services and treatments for hard-working horses and their proud owners including:
- Equine Wellness, Pre-Purchase & Soundness Evaluations
Equine Wellness Exams
We provide routine checkups every six months for our equine patients. Your North Fort Myers equine vet will ask you about the animal's past and recent medical history and whether you have any concerns about your horse's overall health.
Equine nutrition will be discussed and a casual evaluation of your horse's weight and diet. Finally, any vaccinations or deworming required will be given.
Pre-Purchase Exams
An equine pre-purchase exam is not designed to tell our clients whether to buy a particular horse, rather it is to offer an overview of the health of the animal so that you can make an informed decision.
A pre-purchase equine exam from our North Fort Myers vets can help to identify any health concerns. Does the horse have a heart murmur, show signs of arthritis, or have any unusual lumps or bumps? Our vets will work to provide you with information about any concerning issues.
Soundness Evaluations
We want to keep your horse healthy for life, which includes keeping your horse sound as much as possible. We want to reduce the overall impact when lameness occurs. This keeps you in the saddle longer and promotes improved wellness and comfort for your horse.
Each lameness case is different and how it is managed is determined by a number of factors. We spend the time evaluating your horse from head to toe to provide a comprehensive workup so we can diagnose your horse's lameness issue and start treatment quickly.
- Health Papers for Interstate Travel
Planning to travel out of state with your equine friend? Our team of experienced veterinary professionals can perform the examinations and tests that your horse needs and help you complete the forms required for interstate export.
- Equine Parasite Control & Treatment
Our North Fort Myers vets will examine your horse and put together an individualized parasite control program specifically to meet your horse's needs. Some of the most common parasites seen in horses include:
- Small strongyles (cyathostomins)
- Ascarids (Parascaris equorum)
- Tapeworm
- Large strongyles, or bloodworms
- Bot flies
- Filarids
- Pinworms
- Threadworms
We offer vaccinations for West Nile Encephalomyelitis, Rabies, and we offer Coggins Testing to check for antibodies associated with Equine Infectious Anemia.
- Surgery
Below are some of the most common equine surgeries that our vets at Van Roekel & Associates perform.
- Dental
- Minor Ocular
- Castrations
- Soft Tissue
- Equine Internal Medicine
There is a range of conditions that fall under the umbrella of equine internal medicine including GI tract issues, blood and lymphatic system problems, respiratory conditions, infectious diseases, digestive disorders (including colic), cardiac and pulmonary conditions and care of newborn foals.
Internal medicine conditions could also affect the animal's liver, muscles, kidneys, bladder, or neurologic system.
Our skilled team of vets utilizes a range of diagnostic technologies on-site thanks to our fully equipped mobile veterinary units. These units are equipped to provide our vets with the tools they need to offer a fast and accurate diagnose of your equine friend's internal health.
Some of the technology we bring onsite include ultrasound technology and fiber optiscope.
- Equine Dentistry & Odontoplasty (Floating)
Our equine friends can suffer from many dental disorders which can affect feed utilization, performance, and general well-being.
Annual equine dental visits from your vet, including a thorough oral health examination and tooth floating (if necessary), help to ensure optimal dental health for your horse.
- Equine Eye Care
Our North Fort Myers vets provide diagnosis and treatment for minor eye injuries and disorders seen in horses. Once we've assessed their needs we will recommend a course of treatment.
If your horse's eye injury or condition extends beyond our scope of expertise, we will refer you to a board-certified veterinarian and work closely with them to ensure your horse is getting the absolute best care possible.
- Equine Therapies
Shockwave Therapy
Whether you’re a vet or a horse trainer, shockwave therapy is easy to provide and significantly accelerates the healing process without causing your patients stress or pain. The shockwave machine is compact to offer minimal strain on the user and treat horses and small animals in their most comfortable environment.
Examples of equine-specific conditions this therapy can help:
- Ligament, tendon, and muscle strains
- Splints
- Bucked shins
- Scar tissue
- Neck, back, and joint pain
- Ringbone
Cold Laser Therapy
We offer in-house cold laser therapy as a way of helping our patients relieve discomfort. Laser and LED beams of light can stimulate the cells in the body that repair tissue, reduce inflammation and transmit pain.
Anti-inflammatory drugs do not heal, they can not be used before a competition and they often have side effects. This drug-free therapy for horses can stimulate healing, reduce inflammation and reduce pain.
Chiropractic Work
At Van Roekel & Associates we offer both in-patient and outpatient chiropractic care. Equine chiropractors look for localized muscle or skeletal pain, abnormally increased muscle tone, and restricted joint motion. These signs can be found in a variety of lower limb disorders but are most evident in neck or back problems.
If your horse is prone to stiffness, is aging, or if you want to keep your performance horse in tip-top shape, our equine chiropractor can help.
Mesotherapy
Mesotherapy is effective in treating degenerative arthritis in a horse’s back and the cervical vertebrae. It helps by reversing the physiology of these conditions to stop the pain spasm cycle.
This treatment can help the following conditions:
- Sacroiliac pain
- Kissing spine discomfort
- Arthritis of the back and neck
- One-sided neck stiffness
- Generalized back discomfort
- Can be enhanced when combined with chiropractic
Diagnostic Testing
Following a thorough physical examination, diagnostic testing may also be necessary to help your vet pinpoint the specific location and cause of your horse's lameness.
Lameness is most effectively treated once the precise location and cause of your animal's problem has been established.
If your equine vet has cause for concern based on initial examination, they may recommend further tests such as diagnostic nerve or joint blocks, radiographs, ultrasound, arthroscopy or examination of blood, synovial fluid and tissue samples.
Diagnostic Imaging
If your horse is suffering from an injury or lameness issue your vet may recommend an ultrasound and/or digital radiograph to help them get a clear view of the issue in order to form an accurate diagnosis.
Thanks to our North Fort Myers mobile equine units our horse vets can use advanced diagnostic imaging equipment to obtain the best possible image of your horse's skeletal or soft tissue issues, on-site at your location.
Pre-Purchase Exams
If you are looking to purchase a new horse, contact our North Fort Myers vets for a professional pre-purchase exam. Whether you're looking for your next show partner, or want a sound pasture pet, we can help.