When Nic was diagnosed with a Sarcoid - a tumor - on the inside of the right hind leg the first thought that hit me was "where was I going to take him?".  And I instantly knew the place to take Nic HAD to be the Pioneer Equine Hospital in Oakdale!!

From its early growth beginning in the 1970's, Pioneer Equine Hospital now has ten vets and a newly constructed 22,000 square foot full service equine hospital.  And I mean FULL SERVICE.  Along with what I call normal 'surgery',  Pioneer offers lameness diagnosis, orthopedic and laser surgery, stem cell and IRAP/PRP, digital and computed radiography, extracorporeal shock wave therapy, ultrasound, dentistry and has just installed the only high field equine MRI in Northern California!!  Plus they have all the gadgets and instruments to monitor a horse  constantly before, during and after surgery to give each equine patient superior veterinary care and owners that peace of mind we all need as we unload our beloved horses from trailers and walk towards the medical unknown.   As I unloaded Nic I felt he was in good - no - GREAT hands.

The first thing you'll notice about Pioneer besides the size is design and layout.  Every building is designed for the horse's comfort.  To walk into the shoeing barn, mats cover the gravel area so a horse with lameness can walk comfortably over the mats.  In the trailer area, dirt strips are behind each trailer so a horse unloads onto a 'solid' natural surface without fear of wet slipping or gravel damage to hooves.  Plus all the drive through gates open/close automatically so you don't have to get out to open a gate!  And if a horse does get loose, he's confined within horse fencing so he can't get out of the trailer area.

A covered arena with a round pen in it is used to diagnose lameness.  It has an overhead sprinkler system that 'waters' the surface so the arena is never too wet in any one spot.  Next to it is a covered area with doors that lead into the hospital or over to the barns.

In the barns (and hospital) all floors are covered with a special, non-slide surface and overhead hoses about every 3 stalls for watering and fire use.  Inside each stall a window allows the horse to see out and overhead tracks hold IV preparations so no matter where in the stall a horse may move, the IV lines can't get tangled or loose.

Entering the hospital, one walks into the reception area and around the corner from the reception area is the waiting area where owners can wait and even view surgery in action through the 'client viewing window'.  Pioneer is equipped with two surgical suites and one standing surgery room, each equipped with the latest innovative technological equipment to enhance surgical procedures while minimizing the risks of surgery and general anesthesia.

Once Nic was checked in at the front desk, he was unloaded and lead to his stall.  Since he hadn't been fed that morning (mandatory no feed for 12 hours before surgery) his stall had a "No Feed" sign hung on it.  (insert picture DSC01421)  After a few minutes of wandering in his stall, the anesthesiologist arrived.  First explaining the process for putting Nic to sleep for surgery he began to do a thorough check up.  (insert picture DSC01438) Nic had a strong heart beat, his lungs were clear and his eyes were bright.  Only problem, Nic kept trying to nibble on anything that looked like feed.  Nic isn't a happy horse when he misses his breakfast - or supper!

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