Dr. Brendan W. Furlong
Dr. Wendy Leich
Dr. Margaret Mullin
Dr. Rachel Gardner
Dr. Sarah Gold
Dr. Misty GrayDr. Jessica Stahle
Dr. Emily Olson
Our practice is comprised of 8 veterinarians from very diverse backgrounds and specialties. Please note that while all the veterinarians are based in New Jersey, Drs. Furlong, Leich and Mullin head to Florida in the winter to serve our clients that have travelled south for showing.
One of the foremost experts on high performance horses in the United States as well as team veterinarian for the U.S. Eventing Team, Dr. Brendan Furlong is the founder and principle veterinarian at BW Furlong and Associates. Well educated and passionate about his work, Dr. Furlong has been practicing veterinary medicine since he graduated from the Veterinary College of Ireland with honors in 1976.
Born and raised on a horse farm in Ireland, Dr. Furlong came to the United States for a two-year internship in 1977 and ended up putting down roots in the USA. In 1980 he started his own equine practice in Oldwick, New Jersey, which has evolved into one of the premiere equine sport horse practices in the nation.
Throughout his career Dr. Furlong has been involved exclusively with sport horses; their performance is of special interest to him, especially focusing on the areas of lameness and loss of performance. Because of his experience and expertise Dr. Furlong is highly sought after for pre-purchase exams and has traveled around the world to perform exams on behalf of his clients.
With his practice conveniently located near the headquarters of the U.S. Equestrian Team, Dr. Furlong has served the US Team in various capacities since 1990. His involvement includes serving as team veterinarian for three-day eventing at every Olympic Games since Atlanta 1996; the Pan-American Games; Show Jumping European tours and Monterrey, Mexico; the Combined Driving World Championships; and every three-day team at the World Equestrian Games since 1994 in The Hague. In 2010 he was also one of the team veterinarians to the 80 US driving horses competing at the WEG in Lexington, Kentucky.
Dr. Furlong and his wife Wendy, also a veterinarian in the practice, have been married since 1983 and have two sons, Adam, who works in the Teach for America program, and Jonny, who studies Exercise Physiology at the University of Virginia and both row competitively. The family lives on a horse farm in Pittstown, New Jersey, where they breed and train sport horses. In his spare time Dr. Furlong, who is Joint Master of the Amwell Valley Hounds as well as a member of the Essex Foxhounds, enjoys farming and fox hunting as
well as traveling for business and pleasure.
Photos courtesy Amber Heintzberger.
Dr. Wendy Leich Furlong grew up in England and attended Cambridge University Veterinary School. She met Dr. Brendan Furlong while she was working on a holiday job in the United States; after she graduated top of her class from Cambridge in 1983, the two were married and relocated to the United States.
Dr. Leich was instrumental in developing the BW Furlong practice from its early days, when the office was in the basement of the house, to the present hospital facility. She has been involved in the design of the clinic, including developing the anesthesia system for surgery and the design and development of the present building.
Having worked in all aspects of equine veterinary medicine, since 2000 her professional interest has been primarily in the field of equine acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicines and alternative therapies. She is certified as a Veterinary Acupuncturist and as a practitioner of Veterinary Orthopedic Manipulation (VOM). Dr. Leich works to integrate acupuncture and alternative therapies with conventional veterinary techniques and her clients vary from competition horses to geriatrics.
Dr. Leich has worked for the USET 3-Day Event Team as acupuncturist at many major competitions including the 2000 Sydney Olympics, the 2002 World Championships in Jerez, the 2004 Athens Olympics, 2008 Beijing Olympics and the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games in Lexington, Kentucky. She also worked along with BW Furlong and Associates at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.
Actively involved in breeding, training and competing sport horses from the Furlong's farm in Pittstown, NJ, in 2010 Dr. Leich won the US Eventing Association’s Preliminary Master Amateur Rider of the Year award, earned entirely on homebred horses that she produced herself. These homebreds were out of a mare, Jazztime, that Dr. Leich also produced from the start. Now aged 28, Jazztime is still ridden by a youth that Dr. Leich sponsors in the big brother/big sisters program.
Wendy and Jazzmine (right), courtesy C.Bootman photo.
Dr. Mullin graduated from the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine Philadelphia, PA in 1996. She went on to do her intership at Mid Atlantic Equine Medical Center, Ringoes, NJ the following year. She has been an Associate Veterinarian at B.W. Furlong and Associates since 1998.
Prior to veterinary school, Dr. Mullin rode and trained hunters, jumpers, and equitation horses as well as riders in Annandale, NJ. While a veterinarian, she has had the honor of working for the United States Equestrian Team at such events as 'The Masters' at Spruce Meadows in Calgary, Canada, a 'CSI' event in Monterrey, Mexico, and various other international events. She has represented B.W. Furlong & Associates in Florida during the winter months for the past five years.
Dr. Gardner joined BW Furlong & Associates in August 2005 as the internal medicine specialist. As the internist at BW Furlong & Associates, she evaluates and treats horses for respiratory conditions, neurologic disorders, ophthalmic disorders and gastrointestinal disorders. She also investigates the causes of more subtle signs that horses may show, such as fever, inappetance, lethargy or weight loss.
Dr. Gardner received her undergraduate education at Cornell University where she was also a member of the Cornell University Women’s Polo Team. She graduated from veterinary school at Cornell University in 2001, then completed a one-year internship at Blue Ridge Equine Clinic, a private practice in Charlottesville, Virginia. She returned to Cornell University for a residency in internal medicine, which she completed in July 2005. When not working, she still finds a way for life to revolve around horses and other animals. Her husband, Jason, is a small animal internal medicine specialist and they can usually be found riding their horses or hiking with their dogs in their free time.
Dr. Sarah Gold joined the staff of B.W. Furlong and Associates in 2005, and also is in
charge of our standing MRI facility, Equine MRI of NJ. Born in Nuremburg, Germany,
Dr. Sarah Gold grew up in Suffern, NY (Rockland County). Her involvement with
horses began at age 9, when she began riding with Mindy Minetto at Stonehedge Farm.
By grooming, training, and showing horses for Mindy in the hunter/jumper industry,
she developed a strong background in horsemanship, and decided pursue a career in
equine medicine. Sarah graduated cum laude from the College of Agriculture and Life
Sciences at Cornell University in 2000 with a degree in Animal Science. She also was
captain of the Women’s Varsity Equestrian Team at Cornell. Dr. Gold was then accepted
directly into veterinary school at Cornell University, where her primary interests were
sports medicine, reproduction, and pathology. She completed a one-year internship at
the Alamo Pintado Equine Medical Center in the Santa Ynez Valley in California. She
joined B.W. Furlong & Associates upon completion of her internship as an ambulatory
practitioner, with a special interest in regenerative medicine (stem cell, PRP), lameness,
and diagnostic imaging. She also has served as assistant team veterinarian to the United
States Eventing Team in the 2008 Hong Kong Olympics, 2010 WEG, and various other
elite competitions both in the USA and internationally.
Dr. Misty Gray grew up in a small town in north Louisiana. As the only horse lover in the family, she spent all of her spare time at a hunter/jumper barn in a nearby town. Misty attended Louisiana State University for undergraduate work where she rode on the equestrian team, and graduated from the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine in May 2007. Following an internship at BW Furlong and Associates in 2007-2008, Dr. Gray remained at the practice as an associate. In addition to the lameness, sport horse care, and emergency field medicine skills acquired during the internship, Dr.Gray's special interests include reproduction, broodmare management, and newborn foal care. She will also be offering chiropractic services following AVCA certification in February 2012. In her spare time, she enjoys riding, playing with her dog Abby, visiting friends and family in Louisiana, and exploring New Jersey!
Dr. Jessica Stahle grew up in a small town in south central Pennsylvania. She has always
had a love for animals with a particular passion for horses. Jessica graduated from Penn
State with a BS in Animal Bioscience in 2005. She then attended the University of
Pennsylvania to receive her veterinary degree. Jessica completed an internship at our
practice in 2009-2010 before becoming an associate here. Since moving to New Jersey, Jessica has
enjoyed the gorgeous scenery the state has to offer. In her spare time, she enjoys riding,
hiking, and playing with her cat Lucius.
Growing up in the Greenspring Valley of Maryland, Emily Was very active in pony club and eventing and also enjoyed foxhunting and polo in her free time. She became a Virginia Tech Hokie in 2002 as a Dairy Science and Animal and Poultry Science double major. During her time in undergraduate she was active on the Intercollegiate Dressage Team. Staying in Blacksburg on the Virginia Tech campus Emily continued on to the Virginia Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine. Enjoying another four football seasons as a student fan at Tech, she was also very active in the Student American Veterinary Medical Association and the American Veterinary Medical Association. After completing her internship here at BW Furlong and Associates in the summer of 2011, she stayed on as the primary emergency associate also offering Saturday appointments and dentistry services to our clients. She is glad to stay in New Jersey along with her red heeler, Salsa, and horse, Scarlett (pictured here)!
Rachel was lucky to be born into a horse loving family and grew up around horses. When her family moved from the east coast to Michigan, Rachel began riding at a young age and starting competing on the hunter/jumper circuit. She became a Wolverine at the University of Michigan in 2002 and graduated with a degree in biology in 2006. During her undergraduate career, she continued riding as a catch rider in Ann Arbor, MI. In 2006, as she prepared to apply to veterinary school, she was able to enjoy a year of horse showing as a working student in Ocala, Lexington and beyond. She continued on to Spartan territory at Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine the following year, where she was an active member of several clubs including the student chapter of the American Association of Equine Practitioners. She graduated from Michigan State in 2011 but nonetheless, still remains a Wolverine at heart! In her spare time, Rachel can usually be found enjoying the beautiful garden state of New Jersey with her fiancée Daniel and her two dogs, Asher and Penelope.
Dr. Jaime Horner grew up in Minnesota riding and competing horses since she was a child. After a variety of diciplines foxhunting introduced her to 3-day eventing, which was where she found her passion.. Through all the years of riding and competing, Jaime developed a strong interest in equine sports medicine and pursued a career as an equine veterinarian. Jaime graduated from the University of Minnesota, School of Veterinary Medicine and since moving out to New Jersey, she has enjoyed returning to riding, exploring the country side, and not having to pump her own gas.
Please take a moment to read about our hard-working support staff. These are the behind-the-scenes people that make the clinic run so efficiently.
Nadia grew up in and around the horse industry in Ireland. She has gathered experience from many different equine disciplines including Eventing, Show Jumping, Hunters (Both Field and Show Hunters), Driving and Thoroughbred racing (her grandfather, James Ashmore, was a well known breeder of some of the top steeplechase horses of his time). She has traveled as a groom throughout Europe with Show Jumpers and has ridden competitively at shows and evented within Ireland and the US.
Nadia came to the US in 1985 to work for Dr’s Brendan and Wendy Furlong and decided to stay. Since arriving in the country, Nadia has, again, accumulated many different experiences from Farming to Administrative duties and everything in between and has worked her way up the ranks at B.W. Furlong to her current position as Office Manager and administrator.
In 2000, she returned to Ireland for training in Equine semen freezing and collection at Hartwell Stud in county Kildare with Mary McCann and returned to the US with her knowledge. She continued with the stallions and formed the stallion station at B.W. Furlong and Associates and also formed Shelbourne Farm Stallion Agency, primarily for foreign stallions and later for local stallions belonging to clients of B.W. Furlong and Associates.
Nadia has two teenage Daughters, Kali and Taryn both avid Lacrosse players playing the sport all year round. In her spare time, Nadia volunteers her time as Head Administrative coach for girls at the Local Lacrosse Club for ages Kindergarten through eighth grade.
Dionne Evans-Poliacik, Head Barn Tech.
Michael Owen, Technician
Hugo Silva, MRI Technician
Jessica Yuritch, Lab Technician
Rachel Kimsey, Technician
Client Relations: Victoria Drew, Ryan Crowley and Melissa McCarthney.
Melissa graduated from Rider University with a Bachelor’s degree in PR/Journalism and
Minor in Event Planning. She has multiple years experience in the client relations’ field
and joined B.W. Furlong and Associates in September 2009. Melissa inherited a passion
and knowledge of horses from her grandmother at a young age and has found herself
right at home with the rest of the Furlong family of staff. She also has an enthusiasm for
music and the arts. On her free time, Melissa enjoys cooking/baking, attending music
festivals/concerts, and spending time with family and friends.
Michael graduated from Snead State College in 2002 with an Associate Degree in Veterinary Technology. Upon graduation he received his Veterinary Technician license and began work at Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine as an equine technician until 2009, upon which time he joined B.W.Furlong and Associates. He grew up in Alabama where his interest and love of horses came from the family farm. This is where his family hosts a trail ride each year to benefit St. Jude Children's Hospital. His interests include playing guitar and anything outdoor related. In the clinic he is the senior technician with his main responsibilities in the barn helping with appointments, hospitalized cases, radiology, and stallion collection.
Bio and photo coming soon...
Hugo is a native of Honduras, and moved to the United States in 1995. He began working for Dr. Furlong in 1999. He currently performs all of the MRI scans of patients and referral cases. He also assists in stallion handling and collection, and is indispensable as the clinic “handyman”.
B.W. Furlong & Associates
101 Homestead Rd PO Box 16
Oldwick, NJ 08858
908-439-2821