Our extensive facilties at Hoo Hall include:-           Specialist stabling We have stables for the care and observation of up to fifteen hospital patients at any time (with more stables currently being built). There are specialist stables for patients requiring fluid therapy, post-surgical care, the treatment of laminitis, isolation of potentially infectious cases, mares and foals (see below) and miniature horses / ponies. Paddocks are available for patients that will benefit from turnout whilst hospitalised.       Above you can see a block of four stables for horses to recover in following surgical procedures. On the left is one of our two mare and foal boxes. These are double the normal size and have facilities for giving fluid therapy to mares.       Portable digital x-rays. The great advantage of having modern digital x-ray facilities is that the practice can now take high quality x-rays and focus on different areas of the images after processing to improve diagnostic quality. Digital processing time is much quicker, thus reducing costs and the length of investigations. Our x-ray system is portable, allowing images to be taken and developed out at yards if required. The images can then be saved, e-mailed or printed as required, allowing them to be sent to prospective purchasers, expert surgeons for second opinions, or referring vets to give just a few examples. At the clinic we also have an x-ray machine capable of taking quality images of equine necks, backs, shoulders and stifles. Many practices do not have equipment powerful enough to take these images.         Specialised lameness exam facilities Our lameness examination area provides completely level trot up surfaces for in-hand and lungeing exams on both hard and soft surfaces. We have a full size manege with jumping facilities for any ridden examinations required. When carrying out lameness examinations at the practice, it can often be difficult to predict how long an investigation will last.         Modern ultrasound machines We have four ultrasound machines at the practice, to meet all of our demands as veterinary surgeons and to provide excellent care without delay to our clients. Two of the machines are used purely for breeding work -pregnancy diagnosis and mare scans. We also have a machine based at the clinic to provide us with high-quality images when scanning tendons and ligaments, or any other soft tissues in horses including abdominal scans. Our most recent machine provides the same high-quality images as the hospital based scanner, but is fully portable with additional colour doppler. All of our scanners can be connected to printers on request if images are required.      Shockwave therapy Shockwave therapy can be a great benefit in helping horses recover from certain types of injury causing lameness. We commonly use shockwave therapy to treat horses with inflammation of the origin of the suspensory ligament, as well as suspensory ligament branch injuries, supraspinous ligament injuries (along the top of the back), injuries of the poll, and some splint bone enlargements.      Equine dentistry We can meet all of your dentistry needs. All of our vets will happily carry out full dental health checks with a gag, and can perform routine dental rasping at competitive prices. We can also sedate for dental work if required, saving on further visit fees if you are using an equine dentist and require sedation. In addition we can perform advanced dentistry techniques such as dental extractions, major dental corrections (with mechnical burrs) and sinus surgery. The practice is proud to work alongside equine dental technician Stuart Garrard, and dental clinics with Stuart are held at Hoo Hall every other Thursday by appointment only.      Digital video gastroscopy/endoscopy With our modern digital video gastroscopy and endoscopy system we are able to perform and record internal examinations of patients, allowing owners to see what we as vets can see in perfect quality.     BEVA approved AI centre Paton and Lee is a British Equine Veterinary Association (BEVA) registered Artificial Insemination (AI) centre. We can advise you on all equine breeding requirements, whether they be for natural covering, chilled semen AI or frozen semen AI. We have on-site facilities for long-term storage of frozen semen. We can arrange for breeding work to be carried out at your own yard, or have mares in on livery during the breeding season.      Surgical facilities - Standing and GA The practice has full surgical facilities, with a specialised padded area for safely inducing and recovering patients from anaesthesia, and a hydrolic lifting surgical table. We are able to safely perform most standing and general anaesthetic (GA)surgery procedures, but we are proud to always put the welfare of the patient first - if we do not have the expertise to perform a procedure, we will always advise referral to veterinary specialists. Procedures that have been carried out by Paton and Lee over the last 12 months include castration of normal horses and 'rigs' (retained testicle/s), dental extractions (standing and GA), sinus surgery, penile amputations, superior check ligament desmotomies, laser surgery of sarcoids (standing and GA), removal of other serious tumours and many many more.      Full anaesthetic monitoring Because our primary concern is the welfare of your horse, we have full anaesthetic monitoring equipment to keep patients safe during surgery. Anaesthesia in equines carries a small risk of fatality, but we do everything we can to make sure patients recover safely and calmly from surgical procedures. Our monitoring techniques include continuous ECG (heart signal) monitoring, direct blood pressure monitoring, a modern anaesthetic machine and artificial ventilation where required.  Every anaesthetic is performed and constantly monitored by an experienced equine anaesthetist. Emergency drugs are always available for the very rare instances where they might be required.      Laser surgery The practice now has a powerful hospital based CO2 laser. Laser surgery can be an excellent treatment choice for the removal of tumours and lumps, including equine sarcoids. For further information about surgical laser treatment, contact the practice.      General management and care The general management of horses under our care is very important to us. We have excellent nursing and yard staff to ensure that during any stay here your horse is always bedded in a clean warm stable, with regular grooming, appropriate rugs at all times, and the high-quality food that is essential during convalescence. We apply the same high standards to our patient care as we apply to our own horses at home.