Großhartpenning, Germany, December 3 to 5, 2026
in cooperation with
Residents and Diplomates of the Colleges of Veterinary Surgeons – or equivalent qualifications – will be taught techniques to improve the results of arthroscopic interventions in leg joints and tendons. They will practice the procedures on cadaver legs under the guidance of Andy Bathe, Dwayne Rodgerson and Hans Wilderjans. Sixteen persons only can participate to ensure quality time for each one. All procedures will be demonstrated first by the instructors and then the participants will perform them guided by the instructors. The German Academy for Continuous Veterinary Education (ATF) credits this course 20 hours.
The working stations are kindly provided by Storz!
Thursday, December 3
lectures in Hotel Alwirt with Andy Bathe, Dwayne Rodgerson and Hans Wilderjans
- 10:00 Welcome
- 10:05 Bursoscopy of the navicular bursa – approach through the DFTS.
- 10:35 Arthroscopy of the DIP joint – dorsal and palmar approaches.
- 11:05 Arthroscopy of the PIP joint – know your limits: when to remove and when to leave the fragment
- 11:35 Coffee break
- 11:55 Removal of extra-articular fragments at the base of the sesamoid bone – approach through the DFTS.
- 12:25 Complicated and unusual fetlock fragments.
- 12:55 Lunch
- 13:55 Arthroscopy of the femoropatellar joint – tips and tricks.
- 14:25 Arthroscopy of the femorotibial joints – cranial and caudal approaches.
- 14:55 Stifle OCD in foals – re-attachment technique of osteochondral fragments of the femoral ridge: Patient selection, imaging follow-up and surgical technique.
- 15:25 Coffee break
- 15:45 Tenoscopy of the tarsal sheath – anatomy, portals and common pathology.
- 16:15 Carpal fragments.
- 16:45 Complications during arthroscopic surgery and how to deal with them.
- 17:15 Discussion
- 18:30 End
Friday, December 4
hands-on in Equine clinic am Kirchberg
Participants work in pairs (2 surgeons per station); 8 arthroscopy stations
Stations
- 1–2 Navicular bursa – approach through DFTS
- 3–4 Manica flexoria resection
- 5–6 Arthroscopy of the DIP joint
- 7–8 Tenoscopy of the tarsal sheath
Faculty circulate continuously between stations.
- 09:00 Wetlab session 1
- 10:30 Coffee break
- 10:50 Wetlab session 2
- 12:30 Lunch in Hotel Altwirt
- 14:00 Wetlab session 3
- 15:45 Coffee break
- 16:15 Wetlab session 4
- 18:00 End
- 18:30 Start of action evening!
Saturday, December 5
hands-on in Equine clinic am Kirchberg
- 08:30 Participants’ preference session (repetition of selected procedures).
- 10:15 Coffee break
- 10:40 Removal of sesamoid base fragments through the DFTS.
- 12:00 Lunch
- 13:15 Demonstration – Arthroscopy of the stifle (FP and FT joints).
- 14:45 Coffee break
- 15:10 Case discussions and management of arthroscopic complications.
- 17:00 End
All Presentations are in English
Instructors
Andy Bathe
graduated from Cambridge University, and is a partner at Rossdales LLP, specialising in orthopaedic surgery, lameness and poor performance in sport horses. He was formerly University Equine Surgeon at the Queen’s Veterinary School Hospital, University of Cambridge. He is a Diplomate of the ECVS and the ACVSMR, and holds the RCVS Diploma in Equine Orthopaedics. He is Team Vet to the Japanese Three Day Event Team, and formerly to the British Three-Day Event and Pony Showjumping Teams.
Dwayne Rodgerson
earned his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from Atlantic Veterinary College, Prince Edward Island, Canada. He completed a surgical internship at Hagyard Equine Medical Institute prior to his residency and Master’s program at Auburn University. After his residency, he joined the University of Missouri as a Clinical Instructor in Equine Surgery for one year before joining the University of Florida’s Large Animal Hospital as a Clinical Lecturer for one year and as an Assistant Professor for two years. Then he returned to Hagyard as an Equine Surgeon in 2002 and is a Partner of the Practice.
Hans Wilderjans
graduated from Ghent University, Belgium. He worked for several years in an Equine Practice in the UK and returned in 1992 to Belgium to co-found the hospital de Bosdreef. He is Diplomate of the European College of Veterinary Surgeons. Hans is frequently invited as a speaker on international congresses and as a surgeon in other hospitals to perform specific surgeries.
What you need to know...
Dates & Locations
December 3 Hotel Altwirt
– see address below
December 4 and 5 Pferdeklinik am Kirchberg GmbH
Piesenkamer Str. 18,
D-83607 Großhartpenning, Germany;
Fon: +49-8024-477140;
e-mail office@pferdeklinik-am-kirchberg.de;
www.pferdeklinik-am-kirchberg.de
Accommodation (please book early!)
- Hotel Altwirt (instructors are here): Tölzer Straße 135, D-83607 Großhartpenning bei Holzkirchen; Fon +49 (0) 8024 303220; info@hotel-altwirt.de; hotel-altwirt.de
- Hotel-Gasthof Neuwirt: Tölzer Str. 112, 83607 Großhartpenning; Fon +49 (0) 8024 7654; heiss-j@t-online.de; https://www.hotel-gasthof-neuwirt.de/
- Hotel Alte Post: Marktplatz 10a, D-83607 Holzkirchen; Fon +49 (0) 8024 30050; info@alte-post-holzkirchen.de; http://www.alte-post-holzkirchen.de
Further information
Arbeitsgruppe Pferd – Task Force Horse
Arno Lindner
Heinrich-Röttgen-Str. 20, 52428 Jülich, Germany
Phone: +49 (0) 2461 340-430; contact@agpferd.de; www.agpferd.com
- Airport of choice: Munich MUC https://www.munich-airport.com/. In certain cases, Salzburg might be an alternative SZG http://www.salzburg-airport.com/
- More equine professionals’ education: Please check under events in agpferd.com