A horse in a rehab facility, lying down.

UMass faculty are developing an Equine Rehabilitation Center at the UMass Hadley Farm, in conjunction with the current Equine Reproductive Services clinic and Stockbridge Stables boarding facility. Working with local veterinarians, regional lameness specialists, and the Tufts Cummings Veterinary Medical Center, the UMass Equine Rehabilitation Center will provide horse owners and trainers resources for injury lay-up, post-surgical rehabilitation, nutritional counseling, and therapeutic exercise programs.

Close-up image of a horse's hoof with a stabilizing device on it.

Jillianne Smith and Dr. Cassandra Uricchio successfully completed the  Certified Equine Rehabilitation Practitioner (CERP) program this summer. In cooperation with the Colorado State University Orthopaedic Research Center, the University of Tennessee (in 2004) developed the only university-based, RACE approved credential program in equine rehabilitation. The Equine Rehabilitation Certificate Program (CERP) is a sequence of postgraduate courses for veterinarians, veterinary technicians, physical therapists, PTA’s or students of these professions, which include case studies and a cumulative examination. The CERP program is designed to guide the practitioner from the theoretical foundations to the clinical applications of equine rehabilitation.

A person examining a horse's foot.

As part of the new Equine Science concentration, two new courses focusing on equine sports medicine and rehabilitation will be offered starting in the 20192020 academic year: Animlsci 401 Management of the Equine Athlete and Animlsci 402 Equine Rehabilitation. Students will learn about equine conditioning and prevention of injury, common areas of breakdown within different sports, diagnosis of injury/lameness, as well as different modalities currently available for treatment and rehabilitation. Students will gain hands-on experience assisting with horses and individualized rehabilitation plans.