Specialist-led, multi-disciplinary veterinary referral hospital Chestergates, is holding an exclusive “invite only” open day for North West small animal first opinion vets and nurses on Saturday 18 May to celebrate its 20th anniversary.
Headlined by a pioneer of UK veterinary neurology, RCVS specialist neurologist Mike Targett, and a co-founder of the Chestergates hospital, Judith Skerritt, the event aims to give its visitors insights into the past, present and future of this hugely important veterinary discipline.
Guests will initially be given a talk by both Judith and Mike, who will discuss the history of Chestergates together with the history of veterinary neurology and neurosurgery.
Geoff and Judith Skerritt founded Chestergates Veterinary Specialists in 2003. Geoff is recognised as a pioneer in the use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the veterinary profession. Together with Mike, and the other neurologists that worked alongside them, Geoff developed new techniques for the surgical treatment of syringomyelia amongst many others.
A tour of the hospital’s neurology department will then be given, where attendees will learn about how Chestergates Neurology department has evolved, from the development of MRI in veterinary medicine in the nineties to surgical management of syringomyelia in the noughties to vastly increasing our knowledge of many neurological diseases in the 2010s to current day advanced techniques using 3D printed guides for spinal stabilisation in 2024.
Visitors will also be shown the state-of-the art facilities at Chestergates Veterinary Specialists, including its High-field 1.5T MRI which has the ability to diagnose a wide variety of neurological conditions from brain tumours to slipped discs.
In addition, Chestergates Veterinary Specialists’ neurology team, including Simone Spinillo and Pablo Amengual will also be on hand to talk about recent exciting case studies, including a recent case of atlanto-axial instability in a young cockapoo where our team used 3D printed guides to accurately place implants through the vertebral bodies to stabilise the spinal column. They will also discuss another extraordinary case where there was a traumatic atlantoaxial instability necessitating emergency surgery to stabilise the spine and save the dog’s life.
Simone and Pablo will also be able to share their insights into how they think veterinary neurology may progress within the coming decade.
Liz Bode, clinical director of Chestergates Veterinary Specialists, said: “We can’t wait to open our doors to our referring vets, nurses and paraprofessionals. We hope this exclusive open day will give a huge insight into the history of veterinary neurology – and how far we have come in just two decades, the amazing treatments that we can achieve today, and where the discipline is headed in the future. It will also be fantastic to hear from Judith and Mike. We do hope that our visitors enjoy the day.”
The Chestergates Veterinary Neurology Day will be worth one hour of CPD.
