17690 Old Waterford Rd
Leesburg , VA 20177

P: (703) 771-6800
Send Email
Connect with them:
  • Practice Homepage
  • Facebook Icon
  • Instagram Icon

Marion DuPont Scott Equine Medical Center


Virginia Tech’s Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center is a premier, full-service equine hospital located in Leesburg, Virginia, and one of two hospitals of the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine. The equine center offers advanced specialty care, 24-hour emergency treatment, and diagnostic services for all ages and breeds of horses. As a campus of the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine, the center was one of the first university veterinary hospitals in the eastern United States to concentrate exclusively on equine medicine and research. In its first three decades of operation, the center established a reputation for excellence in emergency care, surgery, and diagnostic imaging, most notably at the forefront of discovery and scholarship in the area of colic.

Just a short drive from the major stables, courses, and tracks in both Virginia and Maryland, the hospital now sees more than 2,500 patients annually and has a renewed focus on emergency and critical care, sports medicine, regenerative medicine, and neonatal and reproductive services. The center serves the region’s private practitioners by working collaboratively to diagnose and treat cases and by providing opportunities for advanced continuing education. The center also provides specialized training for residents, interns, and veterinary students.
Christine Moyer , DVM
Dr. Christine Moyer graduated summa cum laude from Kansas State University College of Veterinary Medicine in 2013 after completing an undergraduate degree in animal sciences and industry in 2009. She grew up in the Kansas City area riding hunter/jumper horses and competing in United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) shows around the country. She completed a year-long hospital internship at Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Kentucky and has been at Marion duPont Equine Medical Center since July 2014. Dr. Moyer's professional interests include emergency medicine and diseases of the foot.
Elizabeth MacDonald , BVMS, MS
Dr. MacDonald earned her bachelor of arts in biology from Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, New York before completing her bachelor of veterinary medicine and surgery with honors at the University of Glasgow in Glasgow, Scotland. She also received a master of science in biomedical and veterinary sciences from the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine in 2015. Prior becoming a clinical instructor at the EMC, Dr. MacDonald completed an internship at the New England Equine Practice in Patterson, New York and a residency in large animal internal medicine at the Marion duPont Equine Medical Center. She maintains professional memberships with the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) and American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP).
James Brown , BVSc, MS, DACT
Dr. Brown earned his master’s degree in biomedical and veterinary sciences by completing a three-year surgical residency at the Equine Medical Center, which included conducting research on methods for culturing stem cells. Dr. Brown received his bachelor of veterinary science with honors from the University of Melbourne in Melbourne, Australia, and also earned a graduate diploma in agricultural economics from the University of New England in Armidale, New South Wales, Australia. After conducting research on upper airway diseases in racehorses, he completed a residency in equine reproduction at the University of California at Davis and subsequently achieved board certification in the American College of Theriogenologists. This certification acknowledges exceptional expertise in animal reproduction and obstetrics. He achieved Diplomate status through the American College of Veterinary Surgeons in 2011.
Jennifer Barrett , DVM, PhD, DACVS-LA, DACVSMR-EQ
Dr. Barrett is the Theodora Ayer Randolph Professor of Equine Surgery at Virginia Tech’s Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center. She received her doctorate in molecular and cell biology from Yale University in 1999 and her doctor of veterinary medicine degree from Cornell University in 2002. Further training included an internship in equine medicine and surgery at Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Kentucky, residency in equine surgery at the University of Illinois in Urbana, and postdoctoral orthopedic research position at the University of Wisconsin in Madison. Dr. Barrett joined the Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center’s faculty in August 2007 and achieved Diplomate status through the American College of Veterinary Surgeons in 2008 and the American College of Veterinary Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation in 2013. She is a member of the American Veterinary Medical Association, the American Association of Equine Practitioners, the Veterinary Orthopedic Society, the Orthopaedic Research Society, the Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine International Society, and the Phi Zeta Honor Society. She is a founding director of the North American Veterinary Regenerative Medicine Association and is Chief Editor of the Veterinary Regenerative Medicine specialty section in the Frontiers in Veterinary Science journal. Her research interests include tendon, ligament, and cartilage healing, stem cell and platelet rich plasma therapies, and tissue regeneration. She established the Regenerative Medicine Service at the EMC, which offers stem cell treatment and platelet rich plasma therapy to patients at the EMC and beyond. Her clinical interests include sports medicine, lameness, diagnostic imaging, and orthopedic surgery.
Kevin Connolly , DVM
Dr. Connolly completed his DVM at Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University and a Ph.D. in biochemistry and molecular biology at the University of California at Los Angeles. Prior to completing his DVM, Dr. Connolly worked in a biotechnology department for a manufacturing corporation. He worked on novel biologicals and polymers for tissue engineering, while developing skills in anatomy and physiology through working in an animal research facility. He continued to develop his research skills through graduate school and a postdoctoral fellowship, determining the mechanisms of infectivity and antibiotic resistance in food animals and developing unique antimicrobials against S. aureus. During veterinary school, he worked on research projects in nutrition, orthopedics, and anatomy. Following the completion of his DVM, Dr. Connolly completed an internship at the South Shore Equine Clinic in Plympton, Massachusetts which gave him the opportunity to hone his clinical skills.
Krista Estell , DVM, DACVIM
Dr. Krista Estell graduated magna cum laude with her bachelor of science in biology from Frostburg State University in Maryland before earning her doctor of veterinary medicine at the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine in 2009. She then completed an internship at the Equine Medical Center of Ocala in Florida and a residency in large animal internal medicine at University of California at Davis. Before joining the EMC as clinical assistant professor of equine medicine, Dr. Estell worked as an equine internal medicine clinical faculty member at University of California at Davis. She served as primary investigator and collaborator in multiple research projects in addition to a high clinical commitment, and worked closely with the small animal oncology department to provide cutting-edge chemotherapy and radiation therapy treatments to equine oncology cases. She earned her Diplomate status with the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine in 2014. Dr. Estell has clinical interests in emerging therapies in oncology, neurologic disease, clinically applicable research, and collaboration between disciplines to deliver the best patient care.
Lauren Groom , BVSc
Dr. Lauren Groom grew up outside Sydney, Australia and has ridden and competed with horses from an early age. She attained her degree in veterinary science at Sydney University in 2011. In February 2013, she completed an internship at Agnes Banks Equine Clinic, a large private practice in Australia. Dr. Groom then moved to the United States, completed a second internship at the Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center in July 2013, and is currently at the center undertaking a residency in equine surgery. Her professional interests include upper airway, colic, and orthopedic surgery.
M. Norris Adams , DVM, DACVS
Dr. Adams is a clinical assistant professor in equine lameness and surgery at Virginia Tech's Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center. He received a bachelor of science from Cornell University in 1988, and a doctor of veterinary medicine in 1992 from Mississippi State University. This was followed by an internship at the Alamo Pintado Equine Medical Center in Los Olivos, Calif. He then entered private equine practice and spent a year in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., and a year in western Pennsylvania, before completing a residency in large animal surgery at the University of Minnesota in 1998. He achieved Diplomate status through the American College of Veterinary Surgeons in 1999. Dr. Adams worked in a horse show practice in Fairfield, Conn. for one year before serving a two-year stint as a clinical instructor in large animal surgery at the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine in Blacksburg, Va. In 2001, Norris moved to Middleburg, Va. and was an associate veterinarian and surgeon at The Middleburg Equine Clinic for five years. Prior to joining the center, Dr. Adams worked as an associate veterinarian and surgeon at the Piedmont Equine Practice in The Plains, Va., from 2006 to January 2008. Dr. Adams's expertise includes lameness, imaging and orthopedics.
Nathaniel White II , DVM, MS, DACVS
Dr. White is a professor of surgery at Virginia Tech's Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center. After receiving a doctor of veterinary medicine at Cornell University in 1971, he completed an internship and residency in surgery at the University of California-Davis from 1971 to 1973, and earned a master of science in pathology at Kansas State University in 1976. He is a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Surgeons (ACVS). Dr. White, who has served on the faculties of both Kansas State University and the University of Georgia, joined the Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center in 1985, and held the position of Theodora Ayer Randolph Professor of Surgery at Virginia Tech from 1987 to 2003. He was the Jean Ellen Shehan Professor and Director from 2003-2012 and was named Professor Emeritus in Equine Surgery in September 2013. A world-renowned expert in colic, Dr. White has authored several books on the topic including Equine Acute Abdomen, and Handbook of Equine Colic as well as the surgical texts Current Techniques in Equine Surgery and Lameness, and Current Practice of Equine Surgery. He has been a director for the ACVS Veterinary Symposium since 1997, and is a past president of the ACVS and of the ACVS Research and Education Foundation. Dr. White is a former director-at-large for the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) and is currently AAEP President. Dr. White’s research interests include pathophysiology of ischemia-reperfusion, epidemiology of colic, abdominal and orthopedic surgery, and treatment of orthopedic diseases. He is a member of the AAEP, the ACVS and the American Veterinary Medical Association.
Sophie Bogers , BVSc, MVSc, DACVS-LA
Dr. Bogers is a fellow of emergency surgery and critical care at Virginia Tech’s Marion duPoint Scott Equine Medical Center. She grew up in New Zealand and attained her veterinary degree at Massey University. Upon graduating she completed an internship and internal medicine fellowship at Hagyard Equine Medical Institute in Kentucky. Prior to her surgical residency she completed a Master’s degree on the influence of exercise on bone remodeling in the distal limb of Thoroughbred racehorses. Dr. Bogers completed a residency in equine surgery at the Equine Medical Center and became a diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Surgeons in 2016. She is now investigating the use of a novel stem cell treatment for equine osteoarthritis as part of her PhD. Dr. Bogers receives emergency surgery and internal medicine cases during nights and weekends.