On Dressage Explorer’s Day, sponsored by the Grier School, children also had the opportunity to learn from New Bolton’s Dr. Liz Arbittier, BA, VMD, and her team about what the life of a vet and/or vet tech is like and what it takes to get into the field of equine veterinary medicine. Dr. Arbittier specializes in sports medicine, lameness, performance horses, and geriatric wellness, she is also a Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist and an Associate Professor of Clinical Equine Field Service at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine.

New Bolton’s Dr. Tamara Dobbie, and Dr. Katrin Hinrichs spoke during the Dressage at Devon 2023 Educational Sessions about the benefits of Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI) for those interested in being able to compete and breed their mares at the same time.

Both leaders in the field of equine reproductive medicine, Dr. Dobbie, DVM serves as a Diplomate of the American College of Theriogenologists (DACT) Associate Professor at New Bolton Center, while Dr. Hinrichs, DVM, PhD, serves as the DACT Henry Werner Professor of Equine Medicine Chair of Department of Clinical Studies at New Bolton Center.

Reproductive technology has been a strength of Penn Vet’s since research on mammalian embryo culture in the 1960s and their clinical services continue in this tradition through their offerings of advanced reproductive services. For ICSI, oocytes recovered from the mare are taken to the laboratory PEARL (the Penn Equine Assisted Reproduction Laboratory) at New Bolton, which specializes in intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). There, the oocytes are matured, each oocyte is injected with a single sperm cell and then allowed to develop in culture for several days. ICSI offers owners with mares a great alternative to traditional breeding that provides an opportunity to keep the mare in work and breed her at the same time.