Justine Kane-Smyth

RCVS & EBVS Specialist in Equine Surgery

Justine hales from Co. Carlow, in Ireland. She graduated from the ‘Royal Dick Vet School’ (University of Edinburgh) in 2007 and then worked in mixed practice in Yorkshire for two years. She then competed an internship at the Liphook Equine Hospital before joining their branch practice on the Isle of Wight as an ambulatory equine vet (now Vectis Equine vets).

Justine then returned to ‘The Royal Dick’ in Edinburgh to complete a 3yr ECVS Equine Surgical Training Residency. During that time, she achieved a Masters by Research, completing a thesis investigating surgical approaches to the navicular bursa.

Justine remained at Edinburgh as a locum equine surgeon for a year post-residency. Thereafter she passed her specialist exams, gaining her ECVS diploma in Equine Surgery.

From 2015 to 2020, Justine worked as a surgeon and Lecturer in Equine Surgery at the Leahurst Equine Hospital (University of Liverpool). She worked primarily in the equine soft tissue surgery department and taught undergraduate and post graduate equine surgery and dentistry. She ran the hospitals advanced equine dentistry service and oversaw the head CT imaging service.

Justine then moved to the charity sector, working as part-time Technical Director at The American Fondouk, a non-profit hospital providing primary and secondary care for working donkeys, mules and horses in Fez, Morocco. This involved further training of the hospital veterinary staff and expanding the hospitals surgical capacity.

Justine joined the hospital team at the Sussex Equine Hospital in January 2022, returning to the beautiful south, bringing her love of donkeys and teeth.

She is most at home treating conditions of the horse’s head- particularly enjoying sino-nasal disease, advanced dentistry and advanced imaging of the head. She is also very partial to surgery of the gastrointestinal and urogenital systems.

Justine has published numerous peer-reviewed articles and remains involved in teaching post-graduate certificate modules in surgery and dentistry.

Most of Justine’s free time is devoted to chasing her Labrador around the South Downs.