Tablet computers, Metron PX, Hi-8, true digital, megapixels, lithium vs. NiMH batteries, inverters, iGo Juice, Photoshop–what do all these things have to do with the equine veterinarian? The message of the Emerging Technologies Table Topic was they can do quite a lot to help.

“You get into a lot of these things out of necessity, not fun and games,” said moderator Dick Galley, DVM, a Willow Park, Texas, veterinarian. Beginning the discussion with digital radiography (DR), Galley and co-moderator Mark Martinelli, DVM, MS, PhD, Dipl. ACVS, of California Equine Orthopedics, agreed that it is the way forward.

“DR is definitely something that will change your life,” added Martinelli. “It gives you the best information, it’s easy, it’s quick, and gives you instant feedback. If you don’t get the view you want, you can retake it immediately, rather than waiting to develop the films back at the clinic. If the view or exposure is not optimal, you would have to go back out to that farm and do it all over again.”

“It’s a huge benefit to clients,” Galley noted. “If you can print out a version of the X ray with lesions marked up for people who can’t read X rays, it’s a great benefit