“Isn’t there a new study on limb conformation in racehorses?”
“What’s the very latest research on support limb laminitis?”
“Didn’t I hear that someone published a new hoof biopsy technique? I went online, but I couldn’t find it… ”
Equine veterinary professionals, researchers, and students now have a helping hand to keep up with research. They can come out from about their towering stacks of unread journals, delete all their outdated content alert emails, and forget the search protocols on database sites.
HoofSearch—the intersection of the hoof and research—is a monthly guide indexing new peer-reviewed research, academic papers, conference proceedings, and patents covering hoof science, equine lameness, biomechanics, imaging and related topics such as equine metabolic syndrome, footing studies, and racing, breed and sport-specific lameness research all in one interactive document, available 24/7 across all of a subscriber’s web-connected devices.
Kentucky’s Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital’s Podiatry Clinic was an early adopter and signed up all the staff vets. The hospital’s Scott Morrison, DVM said, “We all have HoofSearch available on our phones and laptops. We use it to keep up-to-date on all the developments in our field; it really is a great resource for all of us.”
Around 100 linked HoofSearch listings from 20 or more countries each month connect registered users to all points of the equine veterinary medicine/science publishing compass. Subscribers can browse the list passively for general awareness, or actively click through to journal pages for more options. Unlike basic database update feeds, HoofSearch contains more than peer-reviewed journal articles: conference proceeding abstracts, Master’s and Doctorate theses, and even international patent announcements are listed and linked.
“HoofSearch is a great tool for anybody interested in staying up-to-date with what work is going on in relation to horse feet,” said Professor Renate Weller of the Royal Veterinary College (RVC) in Great Britain. “It is a trustworthy source at an affordable price.”
Professor Weller, who recently launched the RVC’s new Graduate Diploma in Equine Locomotor Research, continued, “I am not the only one who appreciates HoofSearch; the farriers enrolled in our new degree in research are also using it for their work.”
RVC Structure and Motion Laboratory PhD candidate Amy Barstow, BVetMed (Hons), concurred: “HoofSearch gives you a straightforward, time-efficient way to stay on top of the latest research.”
Massachusetts publisher Fran Jurga developed HoofSearch after listening to veterinarians’ frustrations with online search systems. She also heard the frustration of farriers who had no knowledge of new peer-reviewed articles on the foot science. Researchers and students decried the necessity of multiple database feeds. Veterinary college librarians lamented the lack of selective content awareness services commonly used in other fields of science, but which have not been offered in animal science until HoofSearch.
The monthly lists carefully differentiate Open Access papers from those requiring subscription/library sign-in by using color-coded access labels.
Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine Professor Emerita Hilary M. Clayton endorses the service. She said, “HoofSearch is worth its weight in gold—instead of spending countless hours scouring the literature, I just go through HoofSearch each month and find all the new publications, proceedings and patents neatly classified and enough of the abstract to convey the contents of the article.”
HoofSearch can be viewed via free Google-based mobile apps for smartphones and tablets as well as via its desktop/laptop browser-based version. It can be used on the road, as well as in clinics and offices, and requires only internet access and a browser.
Fran Jurga commented, “Everywhere professionals are involved in helping horses with foot problems, the push is on to both be able to access and build on a comprehensive, if still evolving, body of knowledge. These reports will be useful to track how this newly expanding field of research grew and contributed to the improved welfare, longevity and soundness of horses in the future. I can’t wait to add more editions on other equine health subjects.”
A subscription to HoofSearch is US$119, worldwide, for 12 editions.
Subscription Information
Quick direct subscription link for new U.S. subscribers only: https://goo.gl/Lpj1gb.
Simple payment link for non-US subscribers: https://www.paypal.me/Hoofcare/119. Internet access and a browser- or app-equipped device are the user’s responsibility.
More about HoofSearch
Introduction to HoofSearch https://goo.gl/hJTISt
U.S. subscription purchase link https://goo.gl/Lpj1gb
HoofSearch on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/HoofSearch/
About HoofSearch
HoofSearch (ISSN 2573-6094) is a new project from Hoofcare Publishing, in Gloucester, Massachusetts (USA). Started by Fran Jurga in 1985, Hoofcare enjoys being known as the flagship for innovation in publishing new hoof-related information and research for and by veterinarians, farriers, researchers, technicians, horse professionals and students. In addition to HoofSearch, Hoofcare publishes the popular “Hoof Blog” and manages publishing projects and social media for equine-related corporations, publishers and charities. Fran Jurga’s services are available as a freelance or contract writer and editor, or for coaching, ghostwriting and workshops on using web search systems and online tools to manage references.
