The hands-on once-over
The visit opens with the basics done thoroughly. The vet listens to the heart for rhythm and murmurs, to the lungs for any noise that should not be there, and to the gut for the sounds of a working digestive system, because those three systems say a great deal about a horse you have no history for. Eyes are checked in good light for cloudiness, scarring and discharge; the skin is run over for lumps, sarcoids, old scars and rain scald hiding under the coat; and the legs are felt joint by joint for heat, filling and old injuries. Temperature and weight, or at least an honest condition score, are usually recorded, because a new horse's file needs a starting point that future visits can be measured against rather than a memory.
Teeth, age and the mouth
The mouth gets particular attention at a first visit because it corrects guesswork. By examining the teeth the vet can confirm or challenge the age you were given, which matters when a passport age and a mouth disagree. The vet feels for sharp points, hooks and loose teeth, checks how the jaw moves, and notes whether the horse is likely to need dental work soon. What is found here shapes the feeding conversation too, since a horse that cannot chew properly cannot hold condition on forage alone, however good the hay is.
Watching the horse move
Most vets will ask to see a new horse walked and trotted in hand on a firm, level surface, away from and back towards them, sometimes with turns. It is not a full lameness work-up, but it reveals obvious unevenness, stiffness, a shortened stride behind, or a horse that is simply not moving as his age and type suggest he should. Lunging or a ridden look may follow if something needs a second view. What the vet sees is written down, and that short movement note becomes valuable later, because it proves what the horse looked like on the day he arrived if soundness is ever questioned.
Paperwork, protection and the plan
The administrative half of the visit is as important as the stethoscope. The vet scans the microchip and checks it against the passport, reviews whatever vaccination history exists, and if the record is incomplete or unverifiable, advises restarting the course rather than assuming cover. Worming is discussed against the yard's programme, often with a worm egg count suggested before any product is chosen. You will also talk through feeding, workload and any quirks the previous owner mentioned, and agree what needs doing next and in what order. If blood tests or a closer look at anything are needed, they are arranged now rather than rediscovered later.
What you walk away with
A good first visit leaves you with three things: a baseline record of the horse as he is today, a dated plan for vaccinations, worming and teeth, and a vet who has actually handled your horse before the day something goes wrong at midnight. Owners who open the horse's KinsLe Pet Passport from that first appointment keep the baseline, the plan and every later addition in one portable packet, so the next vet, yard or insurer starts from the same complete story.