Kissing Spines: Diagnosis, Treatment and Rehab

Event information

Event venue: Online
Date: 21st October 2021 - 7PM
(Available on-demand if you cannot watch live)
Price: £35.00

Kissing Spines has long been associated solely with race horses, but recently it has seeped into the consciousness of most every-day horse owners, with most people knowing at least one person whose horse has suffered with this pervasive condition.

As in our other events looking at specific conditions, PKW Events takes a deep delve into kissing spines with a fantastic line-up of speakers, ranging from the academic, to the clinical. We will be covering diagnosis, looking at warning signs, associated conditions and imaging best practice. We will also cover treatment, do we need surgical intervention? What are the correct parameters for this? And lastly we look at the huge topic of rehabilitation, in which we will also cover how to safeguard against kissing spines.

If you deal with horses with kissing spines in your daily practice, you need to be at this event. It provides an holistic view of the condition, providing access to some of the country’s top practitioners.

SPEAKERS

• Matt Chesworth
• Jodie Daglish
• Gordon Sidlow
• Gillian Carlisle

SPEAKER PROFILES

Matt Chesworth BVM BVS MVetMed Dipl. ECVS MRCVS - Consultant at Newmarket Equine Hospital

Matt graduated from Nottingham University Veterinary School in 2011. He then undertook an internship before spending 4 years as an ambulatory vet in a busy equine hospital in Yorkshire. Following this he completed a surgical residency at the RVC where he developed a keen interest in both soft tissue and orthopaedic surgery. He joined NEH in 2019. In February 2020 Matt successfully passed the qualifying examinations of the European College of Veterinary Surgeons, becoming a Diplomat of the College and, a European Specialist in Equine Surgery.

Jodie Daglish Consultant at Newmarket Equine Hospital, BVSc MS DipACVSMR MRCVS



Jodie graduated from Bristol University Veterinary School in 2010. She initially undertook a 2 year internship at Newmarket Equine Hospital before pursuing an ambulatory role at Lambourn Equine Vets, working predominantly with event horses and racehorses. Following this Jodie moved to the University of California, Davis to study integrative sports medicine with a focus on acupuncture and chiropractic application in the sports horse. Jodie then enrolled in a one year equine diagnostic imaging internship at Colorado State University before transitioning into the equine sports medicine and rehabilitation residency program. During this time Jodie completed a Masters in Clinical Sciences and successfully attained board certification in Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation in February 2020. Jodie returned to work at Newmarket Equine Hospital in September 2019 and currently has a consultant role, providing lameness assessments and poor performance evaluation. She also is responsible for development of rehabilitation protocols for inpatients, post operative patients and for those presenting with a primary issue not requiring surgery. This is a consultation service that Jodie additionally provides remotely in conjunction with home veterinarians.

During her residency training Jodie gained extensive knowledge and experience in equine musculoskeletal rehabilitation at Colorado State University, the original home of equine sports medicine and rehabilitation. She has worked tirelessly in the advancement of the understanding and application of rehabilitation techniques utilising therapeutic modalities, manual therapy and physical therapy. 

Jodie is the first equine veterinarian in the UK to have specialist residency training in equine rehabilitation and has the capacity to provide protocols in laser therapy, extracorporeal shockwave therapy, therapeutic ultrasound, TENS, NMES, acupuncture, kinesiotape application and physical therapy. 

Jodie applies a whole horse approach to her case management and encourages owners and trainers to build a dynamic system of feedback and program review so that programs can be adapted rapidly and to accommodate difficulties or success according to progress. 

Gordon Sidlow British Thoroughbred Retraining Centre Trustee and consultant vet

Gordon has a great deal of experience with retired Thoroughbreds, he was the first equestrian vet for the Hong Kong Jockey Club from 1996 – 2009 and during that period worked with over 2000 horses which were retired from racing and retrained for use in Hong Kong riding schools or for equestrian use in China. As well as caring for riding school and racing horses in Hong Kong and working as a treating vet for the 2008 Olympic Games. He still visits China regularly and continues to monitor the health and welfare of retired HKJC horses throughout the country.

Since returning to the UK Gordon runs the equine side of a busy mixed practice in Mid Devon and frequently officiates as an FEI Veterinary Delegate at competitions both In the UK and overseas. He also regularly flies with horses for both racing and equestrian competitions throughout Asia. Gordon’s many years of working with retired Thoroughbreds has led to an understanding that many of their lameness and apparent behavioural issues in retirement can be attributed to back and sacroiliac pain and has allowed him to develop treatment protocols which recognise this situation and to encourage as many horses as possible to take up equestrian careers.

Gillian Carlisle Chief Executive The British Thoroughbred Retraining Centre

Gillian joined BTRC in June 2015 and was instrumental in the planning of the Charity’s 25th Anniversary in 2016, including the rebranding of the Centre to become The British Thoroughbred Retraining Centre. Gillian came from a professional background in operational management specialising in B2B, CRM, Marketing and Strategy development in the commercial and not-for-profit sectors in Ireland, United States and Hong Kong. Previous to joining BTRC she held the position of Equestrian Operations Manager for the Hong Kong Jockey Club. Gillian managed the HKJC Beas River facilities as well as being responsible for the rehabilitation and retraining of the retired racehorse population that were not exported by their race owners and overseeing the rehabilitation stables for active racehorses at BREC. As ninety-five percent of all the horses in riding schools and private livery stables in Hong Kong are retrained retired racehorses this provided Gillian with a huge amount of experience in this unique area which spans across the racing and equestrian industries.

Privately, horses have always been a huge part of Gillian’s life and she has been involved in equestrian sport for 30 years, riding competitively in both show jumping and eventing and being a registered BHS Trainer (BHSII,SM/BHS Level 4 Senior Eventing Coach). In 2016 Gillian was awarded a full scholarship by the Racing Foundation to represent the horse welfare sector on the British Horseracing Authority’s (BHA) supported Thoroughbred Horseracing Industries, MBA at the University of Liverpool. Gillian’s thesis was completed on behalf of the BHA and consisted of researching the welfare challenges facing retired racehorses in racing jurisdictions throughout the world, in order to provide an overview on International Aftercare and retraining practices. Presently, Gillian is studying International Animal Welfare, Ethics and Law at the University of Edinburgh, Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies.