complete disaster with vet today :(

its all very good doing that but unless i want to pay £20 call out every time i want to practice withe the vet then its a bit hard! it just seems to be him he dislikes,
 
He dislikes the vet because he's not had a very nice time whenever the vet is there. He'll be like that with every vet (male and female) unless you teach him not to be - vets don't tend to come to see your horse for social calls, vet visits more often than not involve being poked, prodded, jabbed or some other painful or unpleasant thing. And your horse can smell a vet at 100 paces (honestly, they don't smell bad to us, but they do smell distinctive ;)).

You don't need the vet to practice. You just teach your horse a routine - for mine it's running my fingers down either side of his jugular - which is always followed by him relaxing his neck and me stabbing him (fairly gently ;)) with a sharp object and him then getting a reward. When the vet arrives, you tell them the routine - i.e. approach horse from left, stroke fingers down neck until neck relaxes, prep injection site, stab. Provided the horse knows exactly what happens next and that it has never been scary when you did it in rehearsal, they will be fine.

There is no easier way to do it, unless you want to sedate your horse every time the vet calls. And to sedate your horse effectively, you need to inject them. It's easier for the horse in terms of welfare to prepare them for nasty things that might happen in their life and to teach them that nothing is that bad - and it's safer for the vet if the owner has taken the time to train the horse.
 
capalldubh said:
He dislikes the vet because he's not had a very nice time whenever the vet is there. He'll be like that with every vet (male and female) unless you teach him not to be - vets don't tend to come to see your horse for social calls, vet visits more often than not involve being poked, prodded, jabbed or some other painful or unpleasant thing. And your horse can smell a vet at 100 paces (honestly, they don't smell bad to us, but they do smell distinctive ;)).

You don't need the vet to practice. You just teach your horse a routine - for mine it's running my fingers down either side of his jugular - which is always followed by him relaxing his neck and me stabbing him (fairly gently ;)) with a sharp object and him then getting a reward. When the vet arrives, you tell them the routine - i.e. approach horse from left, stroke fingers down neck until neck relaxes, prep injection site, stab. Provided the horse knows exactly what happens next and that it has never been scary when you did it in rehearsal, they will be fine.

There is no easier way to do it, unless you want to sedate your horse every time the vet calls. And to sedate your horse effectively, you need to inject them. It's easier for the horse in terms of welfare to prepare them for nasty things that might happen in their life and to teach them that nothing is that bad - and it's safer for the vet if the owner has taken the time to train the horse.
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thanks, i didnt mean to sound so bitchy in my reply to you! good advice tho, will try doing that and getting my bf to do it too, see if it helps, anythings got to be worth a try!
 
Hello! Just a thought but you mentioned you were on a livery yard? Does your vet visit anyone else on your yard? If they let you know he is visting you could ask him to give your horse a pat or leave a carrot out for him to give him. I'm sure your vet wouldn't mind -it would take 2 minutes and means your horse will get chance to see he's not trying to kill him! Also your vet might not have a life theatening visit in the future:D
Might be worth ago!
 
good advice tho, will try doing that and getting my bf to do it too, see if it helps, anythings got to be worth a try!
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Don't worry I only got there myself through bitter experience and hiding from the vet for the first 6 months I had the horse after a bad experience in the 2nd week :rolleyes: So I know how stressful it is :o
 
Lady is exactly the same, every time vet comes she charges at the door, rears, spins and uses her shoulder to push them out of the door. lol, food doesn't work with her either. Vet came out last wed to do her flu and tetnus, he petted her and stroked her for around 10 mins then lifted her front leg up and yo shook a bucket of feed at her to get her attention, vet then injected her in the chest before she even realised. lol. First time ever she has been injected without damaging anyone, last time she broke 3 bones in my foot.!
 
My pony was fine with men generally, but could sense our old vet a mile off (perhaps they smelly funny! ;)) He always wore waterproofs and wellies and a wax jacket. Then we changed vets after we moved house and the new chap turned up in jeans and trainers. My pony behaved totally differently with him - guess he didn't recognise him as being a vet. how would your vet react to you asking him to change his clothes?!?!:)
 
skewbald-mad

The most likely reason your foal threw the twitch off and had a bad reaction is this.............Twitching a horse causes a rush of endorphins to flood his system, and those endorphins help him to cope with pain and trauma.

You can see this at work in nature when a zebra is caught by a lion.........the lion usually bites the zebra on the muzzle, and holds it with its claws at the poll. The zebra gets the same rush of endorphins and goes into a trance-like stupor but, before it dies, the zebra invariably has a final explosive attempt to survive.

When a horse is twitched, the same rush of endorphins is triggered, but the important thing is that the effects come on quickly, then they start to wear off and, when they do, the horse displays a similar explosive reaction.

For those reasons it is unwise to twitch a horse for longer than ten to twelve minutes before removing the twitch for a short period, after which it may be re-applied again for a similar duration.

Perhaps you know of the man who first explained this to me.....a well respected Fife horse vet called Sam Duff.

Another thing to remember is when twitching a horse any undue noise should be avoided, and any attendants should speak in lowered tones, as well as being aware of making sudden movements (particularly with the light behind them).

Twitched horses can be reactive to sudden sounds or movements, particularly as the effects of the endorphins wear off.

I'm just over the bridge from you..........I would easily come and show you a few humane methods of handling horses for the vet, if you like. I quite often get called out to assist with castrations, vaccs and such like.

I'll do you NR rates......a one off freebie. :)
 
Hi! If its any consolation atall Squiggy was petrified too for the 2nd injection. The 1st was ok cos she didnt know what to expect, the 2nd one she was a bit looney tunes!

She doesn't need another til the summer so im hoping she will have got over her small hiccup. If not im in the ****!
 
wonkeywoody, its AS, its a shame, he kept appologising, and i kept apologising too for my foal trying to kill him!!!

emmathechief - good idea! although kaiser is out, i might say to him to pop over and say hi in the field or i could bring him in, just so he knows that he doesent just come to stab needles in him!

Lovejoy, glad im not the only one! i was so depressed when i came home tonight, he would hardly let me near him in his stable tonight, poor wee thing, will do lots of rubbing in the nice bits tomorrow!
 
Could you get the vet to handle him when he comes out for other horses?

Our vet gave our filly "injections" (just stuck te needle in her neck) and put the mouth gag on her every time he visited another horse ... then she'd get a treat and a fuss ...
 
Aww poor you and kaiser, and good that the vet didnt lose his temper and make the little man more scared.

I remember a pony that would kick up a serious fuss when having injections, The owner used to hold one of those liquorice smelling licks in the small round tubs for the pony to lick with it's head turned the opposite direction to the vet so he couldnt see the scary needle coming!
 
ummm, just my view but......i would try a different vet. Personally i wouldn't have twitched him. Haven't read all of it but was he vaccinated in his stable? Personally i've always had more success with babies outside the stable on a lead rope held by mum:) they don't feel so trapped or intimated that way.

Before the vet comes to try again practise gently pinching him on the neck for just a few seconds to help disensitise him a bit to it. If he moves or rears keep with him but the second he stands let go.....even if it means a very quick squeeze and then let go before he has time to react badly:) don't practise it to often though or he'll start to worry you'll do it everytime he sees you lol.

with the youngsters i've had vaccinated i found one of the vets i used was not much different to the other vet but for some reason my filly didn't like him and reared and kicked out at him, however with the other vet she was fine. Sometimes it can just be due to personal dislike lol. A vet that asks for a very young youngster to be sedated for vaccinations sounds to be like one who is not too brave (which youngsters can tell and play on) or one that likes to do everything quickly. Either way i'd be inclined to try someone else.
 
Had this with Belle - she was horrendous and as quite tall and quick she was a nightmare. We could get the vaccs in with a struggle but couldn't get her chipped. Have to admit that sedalin has not a lot of effect on her either :rolleyes: she ended up with four times the normal dose for a foalie her size and she was still awake, albeit the edge taken off her.

We planned to IV sedate her on top anyway for the chip. That involved running a lunge line through a tie ring and over the door to my friend, me holding the head and vet pinning the rib cage against the wall while he gave her the IV dope.
The trick is to have the headcollar right up to the tie ring so they have no scope to pull back and the vet needs to pretty quick.

She has been much better since then and she is now a me & the vet job. Still snug her up to the tie ring, the vet bribes her with a treat and then pops the vacc in her chest. Each time has been better so fingers crossed she will eventually just stand like her Mum.

ETA She has no problem with the vet about anything else, just having needles stuck in her. Vet can get hold of flesh, fiddle in vein area etc and she only reacts once the needle makes contact. One of our vets was a stud vet in the Netherlands and says she has never seen a foal so quick to react (bodes well for her dressage career anyway :D )
 
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laceyfreckle said:
ummm, just my view but......i would try a different vet. Personally i wouldn't have twitched him. Haven't read all of it but was he vaccinated in his stable? Personally i've always had more success with babies outside the stable on a lead rope held by mum:) they don't feel so trapped or intimated that way.

Before the vet comes to try again practise gently pinching him on the neck for just a few seconds to help disensitise him a bit to it. If he moves or rears keep with him but the second he stands let go.....even if it means a very quick squeeze and then let go before he has time to react badly:) don't practise it to often though or he'll start to worry you'll do it everytime he sees you lol.

with the youngsters i've had vaccinated i found one of the vets i used was not much different to the other vet but for some reason my filly didn't like him and reared and kicked out at him, however with the other vet she was fine. Sometimes it can just be due to personal dislike lol. A vet that asks for a very young youngster to be sedated for vaccinations sounds to be like one who is not too brave (which youngsters can tell and play on) or one that likes to do everything quickly. Either way i'd be inclined to try someone else.
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if you had seen kaiser yesterday or attempted to go near him you would have prob resorted to the twitch too, and yes he was done outside his stable, as we had no luck in the stable the last time. As for saying he is not brave to sedate him, he is a very strong ENTIRE colt, who i do not feel should be put through that again just to get a vaccine which is why he is being sedated tomorrow.

TBH its not the needle that bothers him, he is just scared of the vet, will see how it goes tomorrow and maybe decide on changing vets
 
skewbald-mad said:
if you had seen kaiser yesterday or attempted to go near him you would have prob resorted to the twitch too, and yes he was done outside his stable, as we had no luck in the stable the last time. As for saying he is not brave to sedate him, he is a very strong ENTIRE colt, who i do not feel should be put through that again just to get a vaccine which is why he is being sedated tomorrow.

TBH its not the needle that bothers him, he is just scared of the vet, will see how it goes tomorrow and maybe decide on changing vets
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ok but just my opinion....didn't mean to offend. tbh i have never had a problem with even two year old entires being a problem (even ID x's) but i do a LOT of groundwork first. I'm not a fan of twitching with ANY horse, especially not a baby. Also be aware that being a entire at his age makes him no different to any other foal, sometimes if entires are given a precident because they are still entires that in itself can cause problems.
 
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