M.A.R.E.S. Mobile Advanced Reproductive Equine Services LLC

Awards and Accolades!

2011-11-16T10:30:00.000-06:00

Well, it always makes me happy and proud to hear about the success of my clients in their equine sports. Being only a portion of that equation for those clients and still being contacted by them and informed of their successes, makes the personal aspect of my career and practice most rewarding. I want to take this moment to acknowledge two of my clients, their recent successes in their most diverse equine sports.
Taylor Flury and 'Role Model' of AliBoo Farms was ranked 1st Nationally, Horse of the Year for 5 yr old Jumpers in the United States Equestrian Federation. Congrats to her!
Pat and Dave Breitberg of Bright Paint Show Horses recently went to the American Paint World Show. Their mare 'Daisy Pretty Decisive' and weanling filly, "C. K. Lady Antebellum won Reserve World Champion and the Breeder's Futurity class for Breeder/Owner/Exhibitor. I know I can say this without offense, "you should see the butt on that girl!"

Great job to all of you. I'm sure we'll see more from you and from my other clients with their diverse equine sporting goals. Tell me how ya do and I'll sure post it.

Fuel Surcharge

2011-04-01T11:52:00.000-05:00

Clients,

Due to increase in fuel prices, now at or above $4/gal., I will be adding a Fuel Surcharge to all farm calls made, effective immediately. This charge will be in addition to any Trip Fees and on visits made as part of Mare Mgt. If the prices fall back, then I will remove these fees as my fuel charges normalize.

Middle-East and Oil

2011-02-25T08:28:00.000-06:00

Clients,

Well as we have all seen, the direct impact on the troubles in Libya have spilled over to us at the gas pump. I know it is affecting us all. Already, FedEx has shown some increases in fuel costs for overnight shipments. If the current trend continues, I will unfortunately be forced to charge a Trip Fee Fuel Surcharge. This will be applied to any Trip Fee or any Trip, even if Trips are covered under a Cycle Management. If the price for fuel rises to $4/gallon, I will institute a $5 fee. Let us hope the political unrest in Libya is humanely dealt with and that country and people can move forward, lending to greater stability in the energy markets of the world.

Take care.

Compounding and Deslorelin

2011-02-13T16:23:00.000-06:00

Hey all. Well this year's breeding season has been shown its first loop. The drug deslorelin has now been released as a labeled product by the company Bioniche. This drug was first sold as Ovu-Plant, by Ft. Dodge. They took it off the market and it was available for some time by compounding pharmacies as an injection. Now that Bioniche has produced the same product and has FDA label, the compounded product will no longer be available legally. The point you ask, COST. The Bioniche product will be about 2-3x's more than the compounded product. Who will this affect most? Likely the clients using cryopreserved semen as deslorelin gave better timing than hCG. The cost difference between the two will be about $20. If you have any questions about this product of the legal use of compounded and labelled use of drugs, hey send me an email. Be happy to answer any questions.

Take care all.

Upcoming Days Away

2011-02-04T15:27:00.000-06:00

Well, as some know, I recently took a little trip to Jackson Hole for a little skiing therapy. I must thank the weather here in Chicago as it gave me an extra day on the slopes. Very nice. Just letting my clients and any future clients that I will be out of town at a conference from Feb. 19-21.

Take care all.

First foal of 2011!

2011-01-31T14:04:00.002-06:00

Here is the first foal of the New Year, a filly named Kat.

Assisted Reproductive Technology lecture 1/24/2011

2011-01-24T13:58:00.001-06:00

I will be giving a lecture about Assisted Reproductive Technology at the Fox Valley Saddle Association on Monday, January 24, 2011 at 7:30. Hope to see you there!

LIGHTS! CAMERAS! LOOKING FOR ACTION!

2010-12-03T10:26:00.002-06:00

Well all, it's freezing outside, the complete opposite of the breeding season and here I am tell you all to starting thinking and planning for 2011 right now. It is time to start your lighting program. The research literature is pretty clear that mares need supplemental lighting to get them cycling earlier in the year. You need 60 days. You really cannot cut any corners on this. Sure there are some hormone treatments, but I really think this is the easiest for all. 14-16 hours of light is the needed dose and enough light to read a newspaper by in the stall where the horse is housed. So, since the sun is going out by 5, I suggest people have the lights turned on, and kept on at 4PM in the barn until about 9-11PM. I think 11PM is better. This will get your mares cycling by February. No, you may not want a January foal, BUT if your mare needs some attention, cultures, biopsies and the like, you get it done earlier. Pregnant mares that foal early, will cycle back, BUT if they did not have the light treatment they can shut down for 60 days right in March! Yuck! Stallions will also benefit by having increased sperm production with light as well.

If any have questions, please let me know. I look forward to a successful foaling and breeding season this coming year.

Justin T. Hayna, DVM, Dipl. ACT

2 Years and Counting!

2010-09-14T10:25:00.000-05:00

I hope that everyone had a good year of breeding and showing this season. As the breeding season is basically over, and hey trust me I love those of you who just keep going, I hope we all had a good year. The practice had an 88% pregnancy rate this year, which is about 13% better than the overall average. The practice froze its first embryos this season, which was really exciting. I thank those clients for giving me the opportunity.

I recently came back from a veterinary conference and there are some new techniques available. For those with show mares, we have some new methods for keeping mares out of heat for up to 60 days, and possibly 90, without using daily Regumate. Also, I am going to be utilizing some different methods of deep uterine horn insemination, which I hope will increase our successes as well. The University of Illinois is reporting a successful "grafting" of an orphan foal to another mare. The methods they used are actually not new, as the methods were developed by a reproductive specialist, Dr. Daels. If you have any questions concerning induction of lactation in non-pregnant mares and rearing orphan foals, just give me a buzz. As I hope you all realize, I will be going over the research literature this winter and trying to find more research findings and applying it to this practice, bringing you the most up to date information possible.

I also want to let my clients know that there will be some price increases next breeding season. A number of pharmaceutical costs have risen so those products will increase. Also, a number of the cycle packages and examination fees will change as costs have risen. Please ask if you have any questions.

Justin T. Hayna, DVM, Dipl. ACT

First Anniversary!

2010-03-01T10:24:00.000-06:00

Today is the first anniversary of my practice! Thanks to all my clients. I am looking forward to a great breeding and foaling season this year!

Justin T. Hayna, DVM, Dipl. ACT

Winter

2010-01-17T10:23:00.000-06:00

Dear Horse Friends,

I hope the cold Illinois winter is not chilling your goals for this year's breeding season. I am currently attending the North American Veterinary Conference, but will be home soon. If you have any questions, please feel free to email me while I am out of town.

Take care.

Justin T. Hayna, DVM, Dipl. AC

Placentitis

2009-10-06T10:22:00.000-05:00

I do not need to tell everyone that late gestational abortion in mares can be so very upsetting. After all the effort, time, and resources that is spent on establishing pregnancy, it is really awful to lose one. Although nature sometimes terminates a pregnancy for unknown reasons, mares and their unborn foals can become subject to diseases like any other horse. Placentitis is the number one cause of infectious abortion in mares.

The placenta is the fetal organ which interacts with the mare's uterus for the delivery of nutrients and removal of wastes. Placentitis is inflammation of the placenta, which is most commonly caused by bacterial infection. There are three forms of placentitis: Ascending, Hematogenous, and Nocardioform. Briefly, Ascending comes from the vagina and cervix. Hematogenous is from the blood and Nocardioform is a very specific type caused by a single microorganism. This cause is almost only diagnosed in Kentucky. Advances in diagnostics have enabled veterinarians to detect the Ascending form of placentitis via ultrasound examination. Measurements are taken of the thickness of the uterus and placenta and these values let us know if problems are occurring. Treatments are aimed at antibiotics, anti-inflammatories, and hormonal supplementation. Early treatment has been shown to lengthen gestation and have a more favorable outcome to the foals than untreated mares.

I strongly recommend to my clients and all horse owners to have their mares examined as part of a pre-natal health program. If anyone has any questions about this disease, please feel free to contact me.

Take care all and think healthy foals.

Justin T. Hayna, DVM, Dipl. ACT

End of the first season

2009-09-15T10:21:00.001-05:00

Well, I want to thank all for a good kickoff to the practice this year. It was a lot of fun and very exciting for me to start my own practice. I do very much enjoy reproductive medicine and I again want to thank all of my clients for helping me bring these technologies to Chicagoland.

As the breeding season comes to a close, it is never too late to start planning for next year!

For those of you with stallions, now is the time to think about genetic preservation. As the show season closes, collection of semen for cryopreservation is the best way to insure you have genetic material into the future. If you have any questions, please call and we can discuss the logistics of semen cryopreservation.

The mares get to take a bit of a break. Most are hopefully enjoying the fall weather and getting a check or a shot here and there. I do want to remind owners of placentitis. Placentitis is the #1 cause of infectious abortion in horses and it is one of the few problems we can find and treat. Briefly, there are three kinds of placentitis, and we can detect the most common of those three with regular ultrasound. I recommend monthly examinations from 7 months gestation, especially in mares that have had previous pregnancy losses. The most common sign of placentitis that owners see is a growing mammary gland with milky production. The most successful outcomes are associated with early treatment. Preventative ultrasound exams are key to early detection. Clients with questions should give me a call and we can discuss.

Take care all until next time.

Justin T. Hayna, DVM, Dipl. ACT