Dear Reader

Welcome to the first ever equine nursing edition of the VNJ! This is the first time that one specialty has been featured throughout the journal. We have selected articles from some excellent authors and decided to showcase them together in one issue for our readers.

I know this will not be everyone’s ‘cup of tea’ but it will give readers an interesting insight into what the EVN can do in the clinical environment. I am aware that many of my companion animal VN colleagues find the size of our patients daunting, marvel at how large our endotracheal tubes are, and how much IV fluids we can infuse. Maybe this will encourage more VNs to consider equine nursing. There are a few similarities between the different nursing skills so we are hoping you find something here to suit your interests.

This edition will be coming out when the British thoroughbred stud season is well under way. Many an EVN will be working day and night with sick neonates and mares with dystocia or other reproductive conditions. It is a rewarding career but utterly exhausting, mentally and physically, from January through to summer.

This issue will cover a broad range of topics that our EVNs are faced with in practice: from commonly performed equine distal limb anaesthesia that discusses the methods, to controlling and containing equine herpes virus with patient isolation and barrier nursing techniques. We have also included an interesting study on disinfecting catheter caps and a clinical article on treating systemic shock in equine patients. Finally, also included is a small feature on handling foals to minimise stress thus enabling simple procedures and diagnostics to be carried out quickly and effectively.

We really hope you enjoy this special issue and pick up some useful hints and tips for your practice.

We will of course be publishing more equine articles in our future issues. If this has stirred some interest in you, why not watch some equine webinars on our VN Knowledge platform and come along to our equine nursing sessions at BVNA congress.

Author

Bonny Millar CVT(USA), RVN, REVN

VOL 33 • March 2018 • Veterinary Nursing Journal