Wendy has a lifetime of horse experience and grew up riding hunters with Pam Hunt in New England, then received her colors from the Los Altos Hounds while completing her under graduate degrees in Molecular Biology and Chemistry from San Jose State University. She imported, bred and trained Registered Irish draughts and RID sport horses in North Carolina and Virginia while completing her DVM from NCSU and her Traditional Chinese Medicine degrees from Chi Institute. She started driving a single pony and was instantly hooked on driving so all the young horses had to ride and drive. Click here for some pictures of our Wysiwyg sportcobs with their happy owners. Wendy has national titles in both combined and pleasure driving and also enjoys recreational driving.

She currently resides in Sarasota, Florida and is a veterinarian at 5 Elements for Animals, a mobile traditional Chinese veterinary medicine practice. She offers acupuncture, herbal therapy, food therapy, laser therapy and nutritional and wellness consults for companion and farm animals and is branching out to exotics and marine mammals. In conjunction with Panacea Chiropractic, we offer sport horse and rider body works clinics and family (humans and pets) harmony clinics at your barn and/or home. For news and info on Traditional Chinese Veterinary medicine for your animals, check out the 5 Elements for Animals page at www.DrWendyYing.com.

Wendy is also host of the Driving Radio Show on the Horse Radio Network.

Director of Equine Research and New Product Development

When Mary Beth begged for riding lessons as a child, she could only hope that the rest of her life would revolve around horses. The quintessential horse-crazy kid, she thought she was heading toward a career in veterinary medicine, but life had other plans.

During college, Mary Beth discovered a passion for equine nutrition. And after graduate school, Purina. Here she studies the effect of nutrition on horse health. Separating trends from true efficacy, her research uncovers what’s right for each type of horse and at what level nutrients become meaningful and not just “tag dressing”.

With undergraduate and graduate degrees in Animal Science from Delaware Valley University and Rutgers University, Mary Beth appreciates that she can combine her love of horses with a commitment to thorough research. Whether she needs access to resources at the nutrition center, specialized equipment or just more time, Purina supports exemplary science.

And this, she says, shows up in every bag.

Nutritionist, Equine Technical Solutions

Pesta received her bachelor’s degree in animal science from Kansas State University in 2009 and completed her master’s degree in ruminant nutrition in 2011 from the University of Nebraska. Her master’s work focused on utilizing byproduct feeds in high-fat finishing diets. In 2015, she graduated from the University of Nebraska with her Ph.D. in ruminant nutrition, studying nutritional strategies to reduce methane production in growing and finishing.

While at the University of Nebraska, Pesta coached the horse judging team and taught junior and senior level courses on the principles of horse evaluation. She also assisted in producing training videos on horse safety for feedlot pen riders and presenting oral reasons for youth horse judging teams.

Originally from North Carolina, Pesta grew up showing and judging horses and livestock through her local 4-H club. Pesta has experience as a three-day event competitor as well as riding and judging western discipline shows.

Director, Nutritionist, Equine Technical Solutions

Karen holds both a master’s and a Ph.D. from Texas A&M University and is a horse owner from way back. And while she satisfies her curiosity with research, she still gets her kicks on the ride. Purina, Karen says, is tailor-made for her.

“It’s a good day for me,” says Karen Davison, “when I can make a day better for a horse.”

Horses are individuals. They don’t read the textbook; what works for one doesn’t work for another. So Karen takes her science out of the lab and directly to owners, and horses, in a way that makes a real difference. She uses her team’s collective expertise and experience to work through issues and tweak individual feeding programs. And they use these experiences to develop new and better feeds.

Manager Equine Research

Mike earned a bachelor’s degree in animal science with a focus on equine reproduction from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale and recently earned a master’s of business administration from the University of Missouri-Saint Louis.

Fifteen years ago, Jerina accepted a four-month internship at the farm where, in his words, “They handed me a pitchfork when I came in the door.”When he graduated, Purina offered him a job.

“Feeding horses on the farm is complex because we have to practice with such precision in terms of data collection,” said Jerina. “In the equine unit, we have x-ray and ultrasound machines, indirect calorimetry machines to measure caloric output during exercise, as well as EKG monitors to measure heart rate.It’s crazy the amount of testing we do before a product is offered to the public.But the time and effort pays. Our products are successful in the marketplace because they work.”