Annual & Pre-Purchase

Wellness Exams and Equine Wellness Programs

We like to perform a comprehensive tooth to tail exam every six months (at least every 12 months). Horses age at different rate and much faster than humans do. Horses that are 10-13 years of age are between 43 and 51 in human years! These aging changes can add up to problems much faster than you might expect.

A complete physical exam includes

  • Listening to your history of what has happened since we saw you last.
  • Thorough visual exam: We are looking for changes, swellings in joints, muscle atrophy, postural changes, hair changes
  • Eye exam
  • Check the teeth by palpation and visually looking at the teeth
  • Listening to the heart and lungs
  • Listening for gut sounds
  • Body Temp
  • Looking at the hoof and the bottom of the foot
  • Dr. Roster usually checks for body pain using Acupuncture points and motion palpation
  • Watching the horse move to and away in a straight line.

All this comes together to make a picture for us. Some of this list is very obvious, like listening to the heart and gut sounds. Many changes are very subtly. Horses that have some chronic diseases can have many changes that come slowly so you don’t notice them. It takes another set of eyes to assess these changes.

We have many Wellness plans available for every life stage of your horse.

A horse that puts its feet down heel first

Pre-Purchase Exam

Buying a horse is a huge investment and not just of money. A pre-purchase exam is important in helping you make this decision.