Oaklands are pleased to announce the arrival of our new Clinical Director and Consultant Surgeon, Tom Witte.

Tom graduated from the Royal Veterinary College (RVC) in 2000 and after a role in first opinion farm and equine practice in Somerset, returned to the RVC to complete a PhD studying the interaction of injury risk and mechanics in racehorses, whilst continuing to work as a clinician.

Since then he has interned at Hagyard Equine Medical Institute, a large hospital in Kentucky; completed his surgical residency at Cornell University Hospital for Animals, in New York state, where he developed a focus on surgery of the upper airway. He led the emergency department at the Equine Hospital of the Vetsuisse Fakultät, University of Bern in Switzerland. He returned to the UK to take up a role as equine surgeon at the RVC from where he was tempted by the opportunity to lead the team at Oaklands.

Alongside his clinical work Tom gives back to the profession by serving as an elected member of the veterinary professional regulator, the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS), and is currently chair of the examining committee of the European College of Veterinary Surgeons (ECVS).

Tom brings an enormous depth of experience in all areas of equine surgery, across all disciplines and with all types of equid, from the racing Thoroughbred and Standardbred to the working draft horse and the companion pony. He is looking forward to working with all our clients and referring vets across the spectrum. He will head up the airway team covering North Yorkshire and beyond but will also be available for advice on all aspects of general surgery.

Tom said: “Leaving the RVC after so long was a difficult decision, but the opportunity to work in a clinic with the prestige and history of Oaklands and to be part of such a dynamic and exciting team was too much to pass over, even before considering the location in such a beautiful part of the world.”