TRADE SECRETS
Charly Mould BVSc MRCVS Vet at Penbode Equine Vets How did Penbode Vets start? Penbode Vets was started by William Penhale in North Devon in 1840! The name was changed to Penbode in 1985 and the company has been expanding ever since. In 2015 Penbode bought the Lamerton based Eqwest practice which became the Penbode Equine Vets Tavistock branch. Penbode now has six branches treating livestock, pets and horses across Devon and Cornwall and we can also use The Grange Equestrian Centre in Okehampton for vettings. What services does Penbode Equine Vets offer? We have eight vets based out of our Tavistock and Holsworthy clinics. We offer routine work such as vaccinations and dentistry, medical and lameness workups. All our vets are mobile and have the latest veterinary technology at their disposal to deliver services such as x-ray, endoscopy and gastroscopy on your yard. We also offer (amongst other things) reproductive and AI services, laser sarcoid removal and tooth extractions. Horses can undergo standing surgery or surgery under general anaesthetic. Away from the practice we often provide vets at local point-to-points and country shows and have even had vets work at the Olympic Games, Badminton and Burghley Horse Trials and overseas endurance events.
What are the most unusual cases you have seen? I have seen some quite interesting cases such as standing surgery for kissing spines. This entails a back operation carried out under local anaesthetic where the horse has vertebrae which touch. I’ve also worked with the fire and rescue services to rescue horses from rivers, ditches and slurry pits.
and placements at veterinary practices where you gain additional work experience with animals. All vets are qualified to treat all species. Most vet students choose what their focus is going to be in their final year – equine, farm, exotics or small animals. But the training doesn’t stop when you leave university – many people go on to do qualifications or diplomas and PhDs.
What changes have you had to make as a result of the pandemic?
What would you say to someone thinking of this as a career?
The owner normally holds the horse while you treat it, but during the pandemic, we had to work with the horses on our own a lot as we had to keep 2m distance from the clients, so we encourage clients to desensitise their horse to make them easier to handle.
It is one of the most challenging and rewarding jobs out there. The hours are long but it’s very fulfilling. You spend a lot of your time outside working with both animals and people.
What training is involved in becoming an equine vet? You have to undertake a five-year veterinary medicine degree at university. There’s practical and theoretical work
What is the best thing about being an equine vet? Driving around the beautiful Devon and Cornwall countryside is fantastic and of course getting to meet a wide range of owners and treat their horses – from Dartmoor ponies to racehorses.
Your friendly, penbodevets.co.uk knowledgeable, Holsworthy local equine vets 01409 255549 Tavistock 01822 613838 Okehampton 01837 506070 53
