Career Center

Fairfield Equine is an equine referral practice founded in 1989 with the goal of providing the best possible care for the health and maintenance of the sport horse.  The practice has become known nationally and internationally for its quality of care in sport horse medicine especially as it concerns lameness related problems.  The veterinarians at Fairfield Equine have provided their services to the U.S. equestrian team at the Olympic Games, the World Equestrian Games and many other notable events around the world for well over twenty years.  Our patients are primarily Warmblood horses with the remainder consisting of Thoroughbreds, Quarter Horses and other breeds. We provide ambulatory services to a large area of Connecticut as well as metropolitan New York City.

We collaborate with Dr. Amby Polkes, DVM, DACVIM for consultation on internal medicine cases, Dr. Robert Baratt from Salem Valley Veterinary Clinic for dentistry cases, and Dr. Corey Schmidt for Ophthalmology cases.

Facilities and Equipment:

Our hospital facility was opened in November 2000.  Our hospital includes a 16-stall hospital, fully equipped surgical suite, two induction/recovery stalls, treatment and examination areas and a riding ring for lameness examinations.  Our diagnostic equipment includes nuclear scintigraphy, MRI, Sound digital radiography, Prostride, A2M, Stemcells, RLT Laser, FES, Magnawave, portable shockwaves, complete Idexx diagnostic laboratory and 3 meter video endoscopy.  Our ambulatory vehicles are equipped with radiographic, ultrasound, and endoscopic equipment.

Staff Veterinarians:

Richard D. Mitchell, DVM, MRCVS, DACVSMR; Robert T. Neff, VMD; Ryland B. Edwards III, DVM, PhD, DACVS, DACVSMR; Kimberly J. Harmon, VMD; Danielle M. Stacy, DVM; Denise A. Branecky, DVM; Lamise M. Al-Basha, DVM; Lindsey M. Johnson, DVM, DACVS; Summer Lawrence, DVM; Rachel Powers, DVM; David Da Silva, MV, DVM and Zena M. Hemmen, DVM.

Staff:

Our full-time professional staff consists of 12 veterinarians, a COO, practice manager, two office personnel, a pharmacy manager, 9 ambulatory veterinary technicians, 3 therapy technicians, and 5 hospital veterinary technicians.

Types of cases:

Approximately 3,000 lameness exams are performed each year.  In the previous year we performed 140 surgeries.  The remainder of the caseload is comprised of medicine and wellness cases. Approximately 150 bone scans and 230 MRI’s are performed yearly.

Estimated Breakdown of daily or weekly load:

The caseload at Fairfield Equine Associates varies from routine wellness care to advanced lameness cases. 

Number of Interns currently in Practice:  4

Philosophy of internship:

This is a hands-on internship aimed at providing new veterinarians with experience in a variety of diagnostic and treatment disciplines, as well as help them to develop their client communication skills. The primary emphasis will be placed on lameness diagnosis and treatment. Upon completion of our program, our interns will have exceptional veterinary skills suitable for advanced practice application. The intern will be mentored throughout their experience and encouraged to seek advice from others.

Prerequisites of Application and Internship:

DVM (or equivalent) from an accredited veterinary school; Successful completion of the NAVLE or NBE and CCT; Curriculum Vitae; Letter of Intent; Transcript; 3 letters of recommendation; Personal interview; An externship at Fairfield Equine Associates is highly recommended.

Employee Benefits:

Health and dental insurance; 7 days vacation; professional liability insurance, limited use of a practice vehicle; cell phone for business use; licensure in Connecticut and New York; dues for AVMA and AAEP; on-site apartment with most utilities included.   All interns will be required to sign a non-compete agreement.

List of Internship Duties in Practice:

The interns will spend their time on a two-week rotation with Dr. Ryland Edwards, an ambulatory rotation and hospital rotation. Interns will be responsible for daily assessment of hospitalized patients. Each intern will spend time performing anesthesia on surgery cases. Each intern will scrub in on every emergency surgery and all surgeries performed by their current supervising veterinarian. Each intern will be responsible for reviewing one journal article per month. Ultimately each intern will make independent on ambulatory calls on a scheduled basis.

Emergency Duty Requirements:

After an initial training period, each intern will provide primary emergency coverage every other weekend, and occasionally on holidays and weeknights. A senior veterinarian will be available as back-up for consultation and assistance.

Amount of Supervision:

Initially, the intern will share case responsibility with a practice veterinarian while their skill base and experience builds. As the intern and we feel comfortable, the amount of independent practice will increase. Ultimately, the intern will receive and manage most cases. We emphasize communication in our practice, and will continue to support the interns even as they manage cases on their own.

Term of Employment:

June to June of the following year.  These dates are tentative and negotiable.