CVMBS, Fort Hood Army Post Offer Equine CE Event For Veterinary Corps
Story by Megan Myers, CVMBS Communications
A continuing education event at the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (CVMBS) gave 34 United States Army Veterinary Corps (VC) members from across the country the opportunity to learn about equine medicine from CVMBS experts.
The event included one day of online webinars and one day of hands-on learning at the CVMBS, with sessions covering lameness exams, radiography, nerve blocks, dentistry, and colic exams.
“These are the common skills that they would see in general practice or in the field, and this was mainly a refresher and update on techniques,” said Dr. Amanda Trimble, a CVMBS clinical assistant professor of equine internal medicine. “A lot of them, at least the veterinarians, hadn’t performed some of these equine procedures since they graduated, which for some was 14 or 15 years ago. And for some of the technicians, these skills were new.”
Trimble and Dr. Kyle Johnson—a resident in equine practice at the Texas A&M Large Animal Teaching Hospital (LATH), VC officer, and operations officer for the 169th Medical Detachment (Veterinary Service Support)—worked with the U.S. Army post in Fort Hood to coordinate the event.
“Given the breadth of resources at the college, including equipment and personnel, we determined that hosting an in-person event would allow for the delivery of high-quality, hands-on, equine-centric veterinary training,” Johnson said.
U.S. Army Photo by Sgt. Rigo Cisneros
Although VC veterinarians and veterinary technicians tend to spend more time treating small animals like military working dogs and the pets of service members, they are still responsible for caring for military working equids, like the more than 50 horses in the 1st Cavalry Division Horse Cavalry Detachment at Fort Hood. These horses participate in ceremonies and events, support the Army’s public relations and recruiting efforts, and help preserve the Cavalry’s historic traditions.
Trimble hopes to expand the CVMBS’ partnership with Fort Hood in the future to provide more opportunities for current VC members and veterinary students interested in joining after graduation.
“Because Fort Hood is right in our backyard and A&M has this strong military history, this collaboration could benefit not only the Veterinary Corps and our military but also us and our students,” Trimble said. “We could potentially have the opportunity to go out there and help them with their horses and provide educational opportunities for everybody.”
Other CVMBS faculty and residents who participated in the event include Drs. Wesley Bissett, Cleet Griffin, Alexis Jennings, Martha Julien, Dustin Major, Katherine Maples, Taylor Myers, Shannon Reed, Bridget Savitske, Brian Shoemake, Jake Trautmann, and Gustavo Zanotto.
###
For more information about the Texas A&M School of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, please visit our website at vetmed.tamu.edu or join us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Contact Information: Jennifer Gauntt, Director of VMBS Communications, Texas A&M School of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, jgauntt@cvm.tamu.edu, 979-862-4216
