EponaMind’s goal is to place the horse at the center of focus.  We seek to involve all members of the equine community by providing a communication platform based on education and technology.  Our interdisciplinary approach will be of interest to veterinarians, farriers, trimmers, trainers, and owners. 

 Thank you for your interest in this event. Please stay in touch with us on Facebook and check back here regularly for future events

Location of Event: EponaMind, 6720 Linne Rd, Paso Robles, California, 93446, USA

Friday November 8, 2019 - Pre-Event Demo

1:30pm Live Demo Shoeing (Monique Craig & Ray Knightley)

* Use of Metron AI auto-measure software for Radiographs and Photographs

* Bone-Referenced Trim

* Shoeing with EponaShoes

4:30pm Wrap Up

Saturday November 9, 2019

 9:00am    Talk 1: Micro-Vessels in the Frog (1:15 hr Robert Bowker)

10:30am    Artificial Intelligence Applied to Equine Imaging  (1 hr John Craig)

12:00pm    Lunch at The EponaMind Ranch

  1:00pm    Grazing/Forages: Nutritional Rewards and Laminitis Risks (1:15 hr Carey Williams)

  2:30pm   A Review of the Symmetry of the Hoof and Third Phalanx (45 mn Sara Malone, Monique Craig)

  3:30pm Traditional Chinese Acupuncture vs Western Acupuncture (1 hr Derek Lavoie)

5:00pm Wrap Up

Sunday November 10, 2019

9:00am    Talk 2: The Distal Phalanx and how it Responds to Trimming (1:15 hr Robert Bowker)

10:30am Dynamic Loading of the Equine Limb in Stance Phase (1 hr Domenico Cellaro)

12:00pm   Lunch at The EponaMind Ranch

  1:30pm   Comparative Pathology of the Distal Phalanx - Barefoot and Shod (1:15 hr Mike Savoldi)

3:00pm Bio-Materials (1 hr Monique Craig, Patrick Esquibel)

 4:30pm   Wrap Up

Speaker Bios...

Robert Bowker, VMD, Phd

Robert Bowker is currently a Professor at Michigan State University. His education al background includes:

• PhD, Neurobiology, University of Pennsylvania, 1979,

• VMD, Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, 1973

• BS, Biology/chemistry, Springfield College, 1969

Dr. Bowker is a world-class researcher on hoof form and function.

His research interests in horses began in the early 90's when he began focusing upon understanding how nerves aid and improve foot function, how horses use the many sensations present in the foot to negotiate within its environment and how the foot dissipates energy and supports the horse during health and disease conditions. He has presented his results to numerous international and national audiences over the past ten plus years, and believes that a healthy foot translates to a healthy horse..

Carey Williams, Phd

Carey A. Williams, Ph.D. joined Rutgers University in July 2003 as its Equine Extension Specialist, and Associate Director of Outreach for the Equine Science Center taking an active role in teaching, conducting research and working with the equine and academic communities to ensure the viability of the horse industry in New Jersey.  Wisconsin native, Dr. Williams earned her doctorate degree with an emphasis on equine nutrition and exercise physiology in June 2003 from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. She holds a master’s degree in equine nutrition, also from Virginia Tech, and a bachelor’s degree from Colorado State University.  At Rutgers, Dr. Williams maintains a herd of Standardbred mares for nutrition, pasture and exercise physiology research.  The focus of her research is two-fold: antioxidant supplementation and decreasing the stress of exercise and competition in performance horses and, more recently, pasture management and metabolism of the grazing horse.  As a hobby she trains and competes with her off the track Thoroughbred mare at various local and regional dressage shows.  Most recently Dr. Williams was promoted to full professor in the Department of Animal Sciences at Rutgers University.

John Craig, Phd

John Craig has a PhD from Stanford in engineering. He is the author of "Introduction to Robotics: Mechanics & Control" which is a leading university textbook for the engineering field of robotics.  He has authored several papers related to robotics as well as equine biomechanics, and has chaired conference sessions on biomechanics and the connection between machines and the biomechanics of animals.  He has researched the hoof and shoeing systems for the past 20 years, and has been a speaker at the International Hoof Summit in Cincinnati, and other veterinary/farrier venues. He is the lead software developer for the Metron Imaging system used for digital radiography and other modalities in veterinary imaging.

Monique Craig, BSCE, APF

Monique Craig has a degree in computer science engineering with a minor in mathematics and physics. She was aiming at a PhD in computational linguistics at Stanford, when she purchased her Holsteiner stallion - Smirnoff. His chronic hoof problems made her take a different path. She became a professional farrier while she also developed the Metron software system with her husband John Craig. She eventually invented the EponaShoe. Monique has spent many years researching, trimming and shoeing the hoof -- as well as riding and training. Her research has been presented at several veterinary and farrier conferences and in various publications.  She  recently published a book: "A Modern Look at... The Hoof".  She lectures in the USA and internationally. She has been a visiting scholar at CalPoly San Luis Obispo for the past eight years where she lectures in a biomechanics course for  pre-veterinarian students.

Michael Savoldi

Mike is the directory of the Equine Research Center in Shandon, California. USA

He is Professor Emeritus and Farrier Science Instructor in Animal & Veterinary Science

For 29 years he was the Resident Farrier at the W.K. Kellogg Arabian Horse Center at California State Polytechnic University in Pomona, California.

Derek Lavoie, DVM

Forging his way into the future with science from the ancient past, Dr. LaVoie fully embraces the medical acumen of the Chinese ancestors. Graduating from UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine in 1997, Dr. LaVoie quickly realized that a typical equine veterinary practice was not in the cards. After mastering equine dentistry and chiropractic, Derek finally met his philosophical match in Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine (TCVM). Formally trained in veterinary acupuncture, Chinese herbals, and Tui-Na, Dr. LaVoie is well on his way towards a most rewarding journey that is sure to keep his therapeutic scholarship, as well as his equine patients, on pins and needles.

Sara Malone, Phd

Dr. Malone is a Teaching Instructor at Rutgers. She is currently teaching Domestic Animal Behavior and Welfare, Animal-Assisted Therapies, and assisting Dr. Williams with Comparative Mammalian Anatomy. Before coming to Rutgers she was an Assistant Professor and the Equine Program Coordinator at Morehead State University in Kentucky. She is a life-time horse owner who currently breeds Arabian and Half-Arabian Sporthorses and owns an off the track Thoroughbred that she is training for lower level eventing. Dr. Malone completed her PhD at the University of Melbourne, her PhD topic was equine forelimb asymmetries and factors influencing hoof shape.

Domenico Cellaro

Domenico is a farrier working in Italy, who has spent the last ten years developing, perfecting, and doing research with a machine which articulates an equine cadaver leg. This machine allows him to look at various aspects of loading and how the internal structures are affected, and also details such as the firmness of the ground and other factors.

Patrick Esquibel, BSME

Patrick received his BS in Mechanical Engineering from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, California. Patrick has worked on cool mechanical design projects in the bicycling world, and now works with us at EponaMind.

Cost: $175/Day for Vets and Farriers;  $75/Day for Owners