Documented Medical Cases
The cases that changed everything — documented, real, and undeniable. Explore Dr. Fenton's clinical cases spanning equine and small animal patients, where integrative veterinary medicine added a deeper layer of insight alongside conventional diagnostics and supported outcomes that speak for themselves.
horse Straining to Urinate — not colic.
On the night of December 31st, Dr. Fenton's Rocky Mountain Gaited Horse was frightened by the fireworks of a nearby city celebrating the New Year — and his body held every bit of it.
He experienced something that many owners would have mistaken for colic. It wasn't. It was fear — held in the body, compounded by cold rainy weather, expressed through the kidneys and bladder.
In Chinese medicine, the kidneys govern fear. They also govern warmth, fluid, and the deep reserves of the body. The fireworks took something from him that night, and his body told the truth about it.
What followed was not sedation, not intubation, not a rectal exam, not a hospital. What followed was listening. Warmth. A gentle, integrative approach that met his body exactly where it was — and brought him back.
This is the difference between treating what something looks like and understanding what it actually is. That distinction is everything. Watch the full video above to see exactly how this case unfolded and what made all the difference.
Equine Parasites, Hyperthyroidism, Cushings, Insulin Resistance, Pancreatic Dysfunction, Bacterial Infection & Historical EPM. All in one horse...
Ready to Begin?
Cranial Cruciate Ligament Injury, Arthritis & Adverse Reaction to Prilosec
Fanny is a 10-year-old Goldendoodle living with a cranial cruciate ligament injury and arthritis — but it was what happened after a conventional intervention that brought her to Vital Equine.
What followed was an integrative approach that addressed not only her orthopedic condition but the suspected compounding effects of adverse drug reactions on her neurological and musculoskeletal function.
Watch how Fanny's case unfolded — and what whole-body thinking made possible.
Canine Immune Keratitis
Pictures taken one month apart
The owner of this dog sought a holistic approach to managing immune keratitis — a condition diagnosed by another veterinarian. Using muscle testing, nutrition, herbs, and dietary changes, the results seen above were achieved in one month with Vital Equine. No drugs were used.
Ready to Begin?
Corrective Hoof Care in a Horse
Before After
Same hoof. Same day. Twenty minutes apart between before and after.
This patient's left front hoof was inverted at the wrong angle from lateral to medial, had excess toe, abnormal weight bearing and imbalance. One hoof trim session provided significant improvement as seen above.
Equine Odontoclastic Resorptive Tooth and Hypercementosis (EORTH), Calculi, Tartar and Periodontal Disease
Equine Odontoclastic Resorptive Hypercementosis (EORTH), calculi, tartar, and periodontal disease in horses are remarkably similar to dental disease in humans, dogs, and cats — we simply use different terminology. Bacteria accumulate on horse teeth just as they do in other species. Without intervention, plaque forms and progresses to tartar.
The gold standard for dental health is daily at-home care. A dental hygienist cleaning your teeth once or twice a year without any brushing or flossing at home would have devastating consequences — and yet this is precisely the situation most horses are in. We float their teeth once a year, we don't brush them, and most owners never look inside their horse's mouth at all.
Hay treated with pesticides, herbicides, dyes, and preservatives contacts the teeth and gums with every bite, every day. Commercial grain products are frequently loaded with fillers, sugars, synthetic ingredients, and preservatives — all inflammatory to dental tissues and conducive to the bacteria-plaque-tartar-decay cycle. Chronic oral inflammation can, over time, contribute to cancer. Some of the most painful, malignant, and difficult-to-treat tumors in the horse originate in the mouth.
Annual power floating compounds the problem. Power tools generate heat and can damage tooth roots if used aggressively or imprecisely. When incisors are not addressed alongside molars, bite imbalance results, placing hundreds of additional pounds of pressure on the front teeth and weakening the surrounding structures further.
Cushing's disease adds another layer. Excess cortisol weakens periodontal ligaments and suppresses immune function, increasing susceptibility to infection. Any chronic stress — which elevates cortisol — will worsen this condition. Vaccination, particularly in a cushingoid horse, can further potentiate the process. Genetics also plays a role.
When all of these factors converge, the periodontal ligaments that anchor teeth within the gum and bone begin to fail. Openings from inflammation allow bacteria to penetrate deeper, driving infection, pain, and progressive destruction. Eventually the horse struggles to eat, teeth abscess, and conventional medicine often arrives at incisor removal as the only remaining option — without tracing back to understand how the horse arrived there.
The consequences of incisor removal are significant. Without front teeth, the tongue cannot remain properly positioned in the mouth. Saliva — and the digestive enzymes it carries — is lost continuously. The result is chronic digestive compromise and recurring colic.
Rocky, pictured above, belongs to Dr. Fenton. A routine dental exam prompted concern about his gum tissue. Dental radiographs confirmed loss of periodontal ligament integrity and early tooth resorption consistent with EORTH. He had been power floated twice prior to Dr. Fenton's care — once at age 19, when tooth eruption in horses has already slowed considerably. That single session caused permanent damage. He would not erupt sufficient tooth again in his lifetime to compensate for what was lost.
Rocky was also diagnosed with Cushing's disease — despite a minimal vaccination history. He is an emotionally sensitive horse, and Rocky Mountain Horses carry a genetic predisposition to metabolic conditions. Chronically elevated cortisol, even without external stressors, was a factor. He was managed comprehensively. Cushing's was treated with herbs, nutrition, diet, acupuncture, and frequency therapy — and bloodwork normalized without the use of Prascend.
Infrared, red light, and blue light laser therapy was applied to the oral tissues based on muscle testing results to reduce bacterial load, decrease inflammation, and support pain relief. Daily tooth brushing was initiated using a xylitol-free toothpaste and soft baby bristle brush, alongside targeted oral remedies to address plaque and tartar without conventional antibiotics. The results are visible in the photographs above — significant reduction in plaque, tartar, gingival inflammation, and the draining tract of bacteria.
Rocky now receives dental exams every six months, performed exclusively by hand. Floating is done with extreme caution, or not at all, with the primary objective of preserving existing tooth structure.
This protocol represents an effective and sustainable maintenance approach for horses presenting with early EORTH. When initiated promptly and supported by consistent at-home care, it can meaningfully slow or interrupt the cycle that leads to pain, chronic infection, and eventual tooth loss. Internal health must be addressed concurrently — any active disease state will undermine dental outcomes if left unmanaged.
Equine Sarcoids (Fibrosarcoma Tumors)
Watch the full video below to learn what equine sarcoids are, what drives them, and how an integrative approach can support the body in addressing them.
- On January 11th, this horse could not walk without pain. The tumors were bleeding, rubbing against the inside of the legs, developing open sores, and attracting flies and maggots.
- By March 1, the condition was significantly reduced.
- By April 12, the horse was able to be ridden.
- After June 17th, he was in regular work.
- He has since retired to pasture in Georgia as a senior gelding.
Watch the full video below to learn what equine sarcoids are, what drives them, and how an integrative approach can support the body in addressing them.
Ready to Begin?
Chronic Anxiety and Leptin Resistance
in an Andalusian Mare
— An Embryo Transfer Horse
Some anxiety has a story beneath it — one that goes back further than the behavior itself.
This Andalusian mare was an embryo transfer horse. The embryo transfer process itself — the retrieval, the handling, the separation from the live womb of her biological mother and the artificial environment of her earliest existence before she ever took her first breath in the world — left an imprint. Her chronic anxiety, the nervous energy, the spookiness, the reactive and difficult handling, was not a training problem. It was a deeply rooted stress response connected to the trauma she experienced within the embryo transfer process.
After a single Neuro-Emotional Technique (NET) session, she was calm. She has remained transformed, almost like a completely different horse.
Watch the video to see what becomes possible when the root is addressed rather than the symptom.
A "Tired and Slow" Dog Not Wanting to Go On Walks Like He Used To
Treated with Chiropractic, Acupuncture and Neuro Emotional Technique (NET)
Holistically Managed Senior Pet Exuding True Wellness
Not every story of exceptional veterinary care begins with a crisis.
This is Dakota — a 15-year-old Siberian Husky running freely, leaping over curbs and gulleys, full of life and light. This is what holistic management looks like when it's working. Not just the absence of disease — but the presence of true vitality.
Watch what's possible when a senior animal is supported with integrative care from the inside out.
Severe Equine Dental Issues,
Weight Loss Due to Dental Issues & Suspected Equine Hyperthyroidism Greatly improved
Ready to Begin?
Severe Equine Dental Issues Due to Breeding and Genetics
Severe Equine Dental Issues Due to Breeding and Genetics
Colic in a Domestic Rabbit
resolved Holistically
|
|
Not every life that needs saving arrives on four hooves.
Pea was a bunny — small, sensitive, and in crisis. His owner came to her decision with conviction — no conventional drugs, no hospital, no exceptions. What she needed was someone who could meet that conviction with both the clinical skill to keep him alive and the integrative knowledge to do it without compromise. She knew Dr. Fenton could achieve both.
Rabbits and horses share more than most people know — including how quickly a GI crisis can become life-threatening, and how much the body responds to being met with gentleness rather than force.
Watch how this case unfolded — and why it matters.
Ready to Begin?