After months of not being able to meet in person with our Piavet users, the borders have opened and travel has become reasonable again. So, we packed our bags (our Piavet Travel Bag that is), stuffed them with brand new hardware and hit the road! We’ve been looking forward to finally seeing our customers again!
Our Piavet Travel Bag helps you stay organized for when you need to quickly pack up and run to an emergency visit!
The Piavet System is Made for Vets, with Vets
We believe that transforming the way people work in the veterinary industry would not be possible without the involvement of all its representatives—veterinarians, veterinary technicians, front desk staff, stable managers, horse owners, and veterinary consultants. It’s important to us to have a clear picture of everyone’s needs. And we know the only way to meet those needs is to carefully listen to what you have to say.
Piavita Vet Board
That’s why we created the Vet Board. The Piavita Vet Board consists of our most engaged Piavet users—special customers who share their inputs with us. We regularly conduct surveys to learn from all our users’ experiences. We talk to them at trade shows and conferences, and consider all of their feedback. But let’s be honest, nothing can replace an on-site visit! Clinic visits allow us to go with you hand-in-hand and be a part of your daily routine. Our goal is to make sure the Piavet System is serving you daily!
Supporting Our Piavet Users On Site
So it should come at no surprise that nothing—not long road trips, adverse weather, accidental highway exits, or cows on the road—could stop us from achieving our goal to meet our Piavet users in their clinics again! Our first stop in Benelux (the region including Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg) was the beautiful Het Bokt Equine Clinic.
Piavet Users: Het Bokt Equine Clinic in Peer, Belgium
Drs. Desiree Aerts of Het Bokt Equine Clinic could not be nicer, or busier! When trying to reach her on the phone, it was always a few minutes before or after a surgery. And it’s no surprise. Het Bokt has nearly 20 stalls, offers 24/7 medical support, and is highly regarded for its excellence in orthopedic surgery. Dr. Aerts’ main interest in using the Piavet System was to be able to better monitor colic patients, like this Leopard Appaloosa below.
The Piavet Belt can be adjusted to fit different sizes, breeds, and body types
Goal of the visit
Although the clinic is equipped with video cameras that register the horses’ movements, this was not enough for Dr. Aerts to confidently send her staff home at night. Until now, someone was checking patient vital signs overnight, every night, every few hours. Ensuring quality of care meant that they had no choice but to sleep in the clinic.
So we were so happy to present the Piavet app for iOS to Dr. Aerts, as well as share the fully mobile-responsive Android solution with her coworkers. Now, no matter what device they use, the whole team can monitor patients overnight and get more sleep!
The Piavet iOS app is free and available in the App Store (Android users have a fully mobile-responsive WebApp). If you download the app, please rate it so we know how we’re doing!
Thanks to our smart alerts, the Het Bokt team not only has the security of continuous monitoring, but also the ability to receive a call or text when the vital values are outside their preferred range. We left the clinic very happy when seeing how system improvements made an immediate and important impact in the lives of our Piavet users!
Piavet Users: Equilibrium Spa in Heukelom, Netherlands
AK Equine Int. GmbH and AK Equine Swiss SPA B.V. managing director and founder, Alessya Kaiser, was our first Piavet System user in the Benelux region, so we have great affection for her and everyone at Equilibrium Spa. During the Benelux visit, we came by to check on her Piavet System, which she purchased a few years ago to monitor and examine patients before and after treatments. Horses at Equilibrium Spa are involved in various treatment programs, such as tailored exercise, hydrotherapy, swimming, K-Laser treatment, platelet rich plasma therapy, and more. Among the advanced technologies used onsite, the Piavet System is one of the wireless and mobile solutions that helps the team with instant health insights.
Goal of the visit
The goal of our visit was to check on their system and make sure all the hardware was up to date. What does that mean? Well, in the last year our product has developed very quickly, so we have released several software updates for the Piavet Base Station and Measuring Device in the past few months alone.
The Piavet System is increasingly valued as more than just an additional tool, but rather as a basic and necessary piece of equipment for any advanced clinic.
In order to update the Base Station, Piavet users must first plug it into a power source and connect it to the internet via LAN cable. The LED light may turn yellow, but after 20 minutes the Base Station will indicate the internet connection with the LED light, meaning it’s now ready to use with the updated software.
To update the Piavet Measuring Device, you simply log in to the Piavet Platform and change the color of the Measuring Device twice. This allows the devices to automatically pull the update. We have found that when our users are not happy with the recording quality, it’s usually an issue of non-updated hardware. That’s why we send tutorials and reminders about how to do the updates, offer online trainings, and visit customers on site for in-person support!
Piavet Users: Veterinary Clinic Bodegraven in Bodegraven, Netherlands
Dr. Hanneke Panhuijzen has been quite busy over the past few months. While many equine clinics were under a partial lockdown, big changes were happening at the Bodegraven Veterinary Clinic. Its small animal hospital was moved a bit further down the road, giving the equine facility more space for treatments.
Goal of the visit
As if that was not enough, a new beautiful facility has been added to the site! The addition features 10 spacious stalls, and needed new installation for the Piavet System. This was the main goal of our visit and we had a great time!
We are by your side from the very beginning, from product installation to user training and support
Together with the amazing equine staff, we went step by step through topics including Base Station installation, Measuring Device charging, optimal placement and set up in the new stable, and more. We also tested the newest features on a sweet senior horse. We’re not sure who was more interested in what we had to say, the staff or our four-legged participant!
For the best Piavet System experience, we encourage our users to read our short, weekly bulletins and to ask for support at any time!
Dr. Hanneke’s main use case for the Piavet System at Bodegraven is colic monitoring. So, during our on-site training we went through the different Piavet Platform features, such as smart patient management, adding notes during or after a measurement, and taking print screens in the recording. We also brought up the importance of properly fitting the Piavet Belt and Measuring Device. For continuous, long-term monitoring, the connection between the Measuring Device sensors and the horse’s body must be considered. Good connectivity is ensured with a snug fit and a well-saturated coat using alcohol. Doing this correctly means it’s unlikely you would ever need to clip or shave the area before use.
Our Piavet support team can schedule free online training for you or any of your staff members by request. Just reach out to us at support@piavita.com
Where to Next?
The next big customer visit is currently in progress more than 5,000 miles away in California. Two members of our US team are on a tour right now visiting current and new customers to check on Piavet hardware and updates, offer support, and assist with brand new installations! One big clinic in Southern California has purchased seven systems and is well on its way to becoming a truly digital, connected clinic with the Piavet System.
Keep an eye on our blog (subscribe to get new articles delivered straight to your inbox!) and follow us on Instagram and Facebook for more about our California tour!
