Fall 2016 Updates Create Service Improvements Alison Lacarrubba, DVM, DABVP

Volume 12: Issue 1 Fall 2016 Updates Create Service Improvements Alison LaCarrubba, DVM, DABVP In order to stay current, the Veterinary Health Center (VHC) is continually updating equipment and creating new opportunities for veterinarians and clients. If you have visited the VHC recently, you will have noticed that the parking lot for the Equine and Food Animal hospitals is under construction. We are fortunate to be the benefi- ciaries of a new building to house our ambulatory vehicles as well as classroom and office space. This building is exciting for those of us who scrape ice from windshields during the coldest winter months! This year the equine section is also fortunate to have been able to update our digital radiograph units, both in the clinic and in the field. I have never been so in love with a piece of equipment. Our ambulatory unit is completely Construction taking place in the Equine and Food wireless. This is especially exciting to those of us working Animal hospitals parking area is for an ambulato- in the field. We can now bring the radiograph unit to a ry facility that will house food animal and equine horse in almost any location and take films. Having no ambulatory vehicles as well provide office space cords connecting the equipment also increases safety as and a seminar room. well as efficiency. To top it off, the images are truly of the highest quality. Fall, with its cool weather and beautiful foliage, is my fa- Many of you may be familiar with the Lameness Locator, vorite time of year for riding. Now that my children are a wireless, objective lameness evaluation system created old enough to ride with me, I find myself looking forward by Kevin Keegan, DVM, one of our surgeons. Keegan is to our weekend excursions. I hope that you all are able to never idle and he has recently been working on a wireless saddle up and enjoy your time with your equine friends. system to help detect mild neurologic deficits in horses. We would like to thank all of you for your continued sup- It is not uncommon to have a horse present for lameness port of our program. Please don’t hesitate to call or contact that actually has low-grade neurological deficits. These us if you have any questions or need help with anything. mild deficits can be difficult to detect. This new system has so much potential to help us reach a more accurate If you haven’t already, please like us on Facebook so you diagnosis quickly. We look forward to seeing progress on can keep up with the current equine news, patient updates this new technology. and other fun facts: www.facebook.com/MUEquineClinic/ 1 Meet the MU Equine Ambulatory Team Alison LaCarrubba, DVM, DABVP Dee Whelchel, DVM, DACVIM-LA Alison LaCarrubba, originally Dee Whelchel works with both from New York, grew up riding the Equine Internal Medicine and hunter/jumpers and dressage from Ambulatory services. Whelchel is a young age. After graduating from originally from Atlanta, where she Cornell University with a degree in grew up riding hunter/jumpers. animal science, LaCarrubba moved She attended Emory University for to the Midwest to obtain her vet- undergraduate studies and com- erinary degree. She graduated from pleted a master’s degree in physi- the University of Missouri College ology at the University of Georgia of Veterinary Medicine in 2001. LaCarrubba complet- with a research focus on botulinum neurotoxin. She com- ed an internship in equine medicine and surgery at the pleted her DVM at the University of Georgia, followed by university and subsequently spent a year working in an a one-year internship in large animal medicine and sur- equine exclusive private practice. She returned to the uni- gery at Texas A&M University. Whelchel then returned versity in July 2003 as a clinical instructor, and in 2009 she to UGA to complete a residency in large animal internal completed the specialty boards with the American Board medicine in 2011. During her residency, she researched of Veterinary Practitioners in Equine Practice. low molecular weight heparin therapy in horses. LaCarrubba’s love of equine dentistry has inspired her Whelchel spent three years in private practice in South to continue her training in this area. In recent years she Carolina where she worked both as an ambulatory clini- has attended a variety of advanced equine dental courses, cian and a boarded equine internal medicine specialist. which has allowed her to develop specialized skills and Her experience included time in Aiken, South Carolina, expertise in this field. As the equine dentist for the univer- which is a unique multidiscipline equestrian commu- sity, LaCarrubba is excited to see all things dental, from nity that includes three-day eventing, hunter/jumpers, routine work to more complicated extractions. When she thoroughbred training centers, and Fédération Équestre is not at work, she is spending time with her husband and Internationale-level driving. Her professional interests three children. The whole family enjoys horses and riding include equine infectious diseases, endocrine disorders, together on Missouri’s beautiful trails. respiratory disease, critical care, cardiology and neona- tology. In her free time, she enjoys riding horses, biking Martha Scharf, DVM and hiking. Martha Scharf practices equine ambulatory medicine at the Equine Our interns have a special interest in working with Hospital. Scharf was born in Chi- horses and potentially going on to complete a residency, cago and grew up riding hunters/ specializing in either equine medicine or equine surgery. jumpers in St. Louis. Since mov- Every June we welcome a new crop of interns. This year ing to Columbia she has contin- our interns include Katie Bucy and Jessica Millwood. ued to ride and started to explore Katie Bucy, DVM three-day eventing. After earning a DVM at MU, she completed a rotating equine internship at the university. She continues to work as a clinical Katie Bucy grew up in Westminster, Maryland. She instructor for the Equine Ambulatory Service. competed in eventing and was part of the local pony club, 4H and FFA programs. She attended Virginia Scharf spends the majority of her time instructing senior Tech for her undergraduate studies and graduated in veterinary students while providing quality medical care 2006 with a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry. Bucy for horses within the Columbia area. She is particularly then moved to North Carolina and worked as a veteri- interested in wound management and emergency care in nary technician for a few years prior to attending Ross the ambulatory setting. Scharf works closely with the re- University School of Veterinary Medicine. ferral clinicians in the Equine Hospital to provide supe- rior care to horses. Continued on page 3 2 Potentially Serious, Choke is Manageable Martha Scharf, DVM material is observed coming from Choke, also known as esophageal Although uncommon, long-term, the nostrils and mouth. Although the obstruction, is a common condi- unnoticed obstructions can prog- horse may initially try to eat or drink, tion of horses that occurs when the ress to esophageal rupture, shock, these attempts generally exacerbate esophagus (the flexible, muscular the drainage and lead to coughing. severe infection and death. tube from the mouth to the stomach) Often, the horse is anxious, repeat- becomes blocked. Unlike choke in edly attempting to swallow, gagging, corn cobs. The mass becomes caught humans, which refers to blockage of and coughing. in the esophagus, partially or com- the airway, horses are typically able pletely obstructing the passage of If the obstructing object is large and to breathe while choked. However, more food. in the neck portion of the esophagus, with time, their airway may become it may be palpable as a firm, painful compromised by regurgitated food Horses can be predisposed to choke mass on the left side of the neck. Fol- and saliva. As a result, emergency by rapid eating, dental disease, in- lowing the initial period of acute dis- veterinary care should be sought im- ability to swallow normally (caused tress, many horses become calmer but mediately upon discovery of a choke by neck injuries, neurological disease, will continue retching and maintain to prevent significant complications. or scars or masses in the esophagus), a downward extension of their neck or access to excessively coarse feeds, The most common cause of choke and throat. With time, dehydration such as straw or dry beet pulp. Choke is a mass of swallowed food that is and depression will occur. Although can affect horses of all ages, but it served in pieces that are too large, uncommon, long-term, unnoticed is commonly diagnosed in geriatric improperly chewed, too coarse, too obstructions can progress to esopha- horses due to poor dentition, neuro- dry, or that swell after swallowing. geal rupture, shock, severe infection logical abnormalities or both. Esophageal obstruction has also been and death. reported with foreign objects, such Choke is most often discovered fol- as shavings, riding crops, wood and lowing a feeding when saliva and feed Continued on page 4 Interns, Continued from page 2 Jessi Millwood, BMVS, MRCVS Bucy’s clinical year was completed at RUSVM’s affili- Jessi Millwood grew up ate school, Oklahoma State on a hobby farm in Ruth- Center of Veterinary Health erfordton, North Carolina. Sciences, where she gained She attended the University experience working with the of North Carolina at Wilm- western riding disciplines. ington for undergraduate She graduated in 2015 and studies in marine biology completed a yearlong in- and Spanish. She is a 2015 ternship at New England Equine Practice in Pat- graduate of the University of Glasgow School of terson, New York.

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