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How to treat this with Mānuka Vet™ - An open wound on the hock

Here at Mānuka Vet™ we want to help our clients not only learn how to best apply our products but also learn about the best wound management techniques. As a result, Dr Leigh de Clifford, one of our expert veterinarians, has helped put together our "How to treat this with Mānuka Vet™ " video series. This month we look at how to treat an open wound on the hock, including how to best bandage this awkward spot. We hope you find the video helpful and learn a few useful tips and tricks along ...

Tip of the trade - Wound pre-cleansing

We have all been told to pre-cleanse a wound before starting to treat it but many of us don't know how to do it correctly. As a result, we talked with Dr Jason Lowe to find out how you can pre-cleanse your animal's wounds like a pro! "Pre-cleansing an open wound is important as it helps to remove contaminants and debris in the wound bed which may lead to an increased chance of infection, explains Dr Lowe. 'Pre-cleansing is easy and is something I always do before treating any wound'. To pre...

Mānuka Vet™- For all animals not just horses...

Mānuka Vet products don't just work on your horse, you can use them safely on your smaller animal friends as well! Below you will find some of the small animal wounds that the Mānuka Vet Gel could be used to help heal. Burns Cuts Gangrene Skin Infections Licking Dermatitis Minor abrasions Please remember, if you don't see any improvement in the condition within a couple of days, take your pet to the vet!...

Did you know? Bees are unlikely to sting..

Did you know that bees are very unlikely to sting unless they are threatened? If you spot a bee close to you try and stay still or move away slowly. If you happen to get stung, try and remove the stinger and wash gently with water and soap. If you are allergic to bee stings make sure to take your medicines immediately!...

Tip of the trade - Bandaging 101

Most people will see a leg wound and straight away assume that it needs to have a bandage on it. This might not always be the case. Below you will find some useful information on what we are actually trying to achieve by putting a bandage on a wound. Prevent the open wound from contamination Remove dead tissue (wound debridement) Maintain a moist wound environment (this will help speed up the healing process for some wounds) Reduce swelling or hemorrhage Prevent weight bearing Immobilize...

How to treat this with Mānuka Vet™ - Minor abrasions

Abrasions are common on most horses, from foals to fully fledged competitive athletes. Mānuka Vet Skin & Wound Gel can be used to treat abrasions safely at home or while competing to speed up the wound healing process. Simply apply a reasonable amount of product onto the affected area once or twice a day. Then after a couple of days, once you start to see the hair growing back, you can move to applying the Gel every second day until the wound is fully healed. No nasty smell's or tangle...

Helpful hint - No bandage needed

"No bandage needed" By using and applying Mānuka Vet products on a wound you can save on expensive bandages! Our next product that is on its way even has natural insect repellants in it to keep the wound clean and the bugs away! Some wounds are better left open without being wrapped or covered up, for example a wound on the upper leg are in most cases best left open....

Fun fact - No bees no humans

No bees no humans! Not quite, but it could dramatically effect what we eat! If it wasn't for the bees pollinating our plants many of our everyday crops/food (like kiwifruit) would not exist. If we continue worldwide to loose bees (which they are) we could see a very dramatic change in our diets and lifestyle and we will more than likely struggle to survive – scary but true. 15 years ago beekeepers would see a loss of about 5-10% of bees in their hives each season but in recent years the number...

Tip of the trade - What to expect when you call a vet

If you have to call a vet it helps if you know what type of information you will need to have on hand to give them. Below you will find some tips from our resident vets on what kind of questions you need to be able to answer when making the initial phone call. How long ago do you think it happened? What area on the body or leg is involved and how deep do you think the wound might be? What do you think caused it? A sharp penetrating injury, blunt trauma from a fence or tree, or another horse?...

Helpful hint - Don't be afraid to ask

Most people have their favourite when it comes to what veterinarians they use. Lets face it when it comes to the health of your best friend/companion it's important that you feel comfortable. A professional vet will explain every step of the treatment plan and if you have any questions will be happy to explain it in less technical terms. We have all heard those weird words and Latin terms, nodded in reply and then not had a single clue what they were on about! It is extremely important that...

Five facts - Mānuka Vet™ product production

To make sure that our customers receive the best products possible we are very strict on quality management. Below you can learn about some of the processes we have in place to ensure the quality and consistency of our products. All of our Mānuka Honey is traceable to its origin. We have a preference of working with Māori landowners for the social and cultural benefits that can be generated and the quality of the authentic Mānuka Honey they produce. All of our products contain genuine New ...

Tip of the trade - Creating the best environment to treat an open wound

If something does happen to your horse it͛s important to have a set plan in mind, so full blown panic mode can be avoided. A helpful tip is to control the environment, the worst thing you can do is try and deal with it straight away, while you're in the wrong mindset or your horse is in the wrong environment! So to start with you need to try to keep yourself as calm as possible. Then think about what you might need to treat the wound with. For example, if the wound is bleeding you will need ...

Did you know? Leg wounds can be the most difficult to heal...

Did you know that some of the most difficult wounds to heal on horses are leg wounds? This is because there is less underlying tissue to support wound healing, more tension, poor blood supply and the tissue is always moving. No to mention that it͛s often harder to keep these wounds clean and dry! However, research conducted by Dr Andrea Bischofberger at the University Veterinary Teaching Hospital in Camden NSW Australia, has found that applying Mānuka Honey to a significant wound on a leg ...

How to treat this with Mānuka Vet™ - An open wound on the knee

Here at Mānuka Vet™ we want to help teach you about wound management and the best way to use our products to ensure you get the best result! Check out the video below to learn from Dr Leigh de Clifford, one of our expert veterinarians, about how best to treat a significant open wound on the front of your horse͛s knee with Mānuka Vet™ Skin and Wound Gel. We hope you find the video helpful and learn a few useful tips and tricks along the way!...

Helpful hint - How to identify if your horses wound is becoming infected

One of the most important things when managing your horses wound is learning how to identify if the wound is not responding to treatment and/or becoming infected. Some of the signs to look out for that indicates your horses wound is becoming infected are; Unusual heat - the wound area is warmer than the surrounding tissuePain - discomfort should lessen as time goes by, so increased discomfort or pain can be a warning signColour - if the wound or surrounding skin becomes more reddened or there ...

Fun fact - What goes on inside a beehive?

Lots of bee's producing honey right? Well yes, that is true but the work structure of a beehive is like a well-oiled machine. The hive consists of 3 different types of bees. The queen, the worker and the drone. Below we will give you some quick facts about each one. The queen – A beehive can consist of up to 80,000 bee's but there can only be one queen and she is the mother of most if not all the bee's that 'belong' to that particular hive. She can lay up to 1,500 eggs during the busy season ...

Keeping it in NZ!

Here at Mānuka VetTM we are proud that all of our products are New Zealand sourced and produced. Our honey is sourced from Mangapapa which is a block of Māori owned land that hugs 30km of the Mokau River banks in the King Country. The block of land lies in the tribal territory of Ngāti Maniapoto. The owners can trace their ancestry back to the land for over 700 hundred years! We also use local Māori beekeepers to harvest the Mānuka Honey we use in our products. This way we are bringing ...

Tip of the trade - Bandaging best practice

Bandaging is a skill and one you have to be confident to perform. A bad bandage that slips or is too tight can cause more harm than good. Don't be frightened to do it but make sure you are shown and talked through the correct method by an experienced person before attempting it yourself. Below are a few tips from one of our resident vets Jason Lowe to help you on your way! Make sure you always have the bandaging material on hand and even better see if someone can be there to pass it to you....

Fun fact - Egyptians have used honey to heal for thousands of years

Now, if we offered you a taste of some 3000-year-old honey, would you? Well if preserved correctly we can guarantee that it is perfectly editable thanks to the Hydrogen Peroxide, acidity and lack of water. These work wonders for the honeys preservation! The ancient Egyptians used honey for multiple different things such as a sweetener, a gift for the Gods, for medical use or as an ingredient in embalming fluid. Now thats pretty amazing and something that we here at Mānuka Vet found interesti...

Helpful hint - Wound management

You have just brought your horse in from the paddock and while brushing off some of the dirt you find a wound just below the horse͛s knee. What do you do? Our helpful hint is to make sure you prepare everything you might need to clean and treat this wound before you start. You don͛t want to be standing there holding on to a clean dressing and realising the Mānuka VetTM Gel is 5 meters away on the bench. Or that the bandage has rolled in the shavings while you applied the gel! So make sur...

Five facts - The different types of honey and there uses

As we have mentioned before there are many different types of honey, the colour and flavor are all dependent on what type of nectar the bees have sourced close to their hive. Below you will find some different types and what they are best suited for! Clover Honey -This honey is made from bees visiting the different clover flowers and can be found in most people͛s cupboards. It͛s good for consumption on your toast or in your cup of tea! Buckwheat Honey – Ideal for that tasty barbeque sau...

What is the life cycle of a honey bee?

Honey bees have four distinct life cycle phases: egg, larva, pupa and adult. The total life cycle varies a bit between the three types of bees (queens, workers and drones). A queen bee usually takes 16 days, a worker bees 21 days and a drone 24 days to make it to adulthood meanwhile they all tend to only live for 120-150 days!...

The basics of open wound management

Assess - To the best of your knowledge, ask yourself does this injury require a vet? If you think it's more than you can handle and involved structures other than the skin and connective tissue beneath, make sure you call your vet immediately. Time -To decrease the threat of infection try and clean the wound as soon as possible. Clean - Make sure you use a clean cotton pad or a sterile pad with or without diluted disinfectants, such as Iodine, when cleaning out the wound. Apply – Find ...

Why is sterilized honey better than raw honey?

While you want to ensure that honey maintains all of the beneficial vitamins and enzymes you have to be careful when applying it to open wounds. This is because raw honey often has other natural but potentially harmful enzymes which can increase the likelihood of infection. As a result, in order to be classified as medical grade the honey must conform to rigorous standards of quality and consistency. In order to do so and to ensure that the honey products are suitable to use in a moist wound e...

Five facts – Mānuka honey

(Mānuka) Honey has been used as a healing component for thousands of years, it's natural antibacterial qualities protects against damage caused by bacteria. Mānuka Honey comes from bees pollinating from the Mānuka Tree which can only be found in New Zealand. Unlike antibiotics, it has yet to show signs of developing resistant bacteria when used as a treatment. Mānuka Honey contains the antibacterial component called methylglyoxal (MG). It's believed that the higher concentration of MG t...