Vet Visit - TOTAL Disaster!

So the Vet/Equine Dentist came out today to do Candy's teeth. She was an hour late, but that is beside the point.

I warned her straight up how difficult of a patient Candy is. I told her that although I haven't had her teeth done before, I'm fairly sure she is going to be VERY difficult to sedate, very difficult in every aspect. I have only experienced one Vet ever getting a needle into her - a small shot of anti-biotics.

She told me not to worry and that she had lots of tricks - and she did. On her trailer was a portable horse crush, she had twitches, etc, etc.

After an hour of trying, and an hour of rearing, bucking, striking and kicking it was just becoming too dangerous for the Vet, for me and for the horse.

The vet could get the needle in her - just, but couldn't get near enough or get the horse still enough for her to enject the fluid to sedate her. We tried the neck, chest, rump - to no avail.

Inside the crush she was becoming too dangerous, and the vet was worried she was going to rear up and go over and hurt herself.

We finally got the twitch on - most normal horses will stand still once a twitch is on. NOT Candy. She completely freaked, and terrified the vet who had never seen a horse react the way my horse did with the twitch on.

We tried holding her, patting her, (the vet did manage to get an intermuscular needle in her bum with a bit of anti-anxiety fluid, but it didn't work).

It was a completely expensive, Fruitless experience and I felt like crying by the end of it (just thinking about the bill!)

We exaughsted all options, the vet even tried the controversial ear twitch.

My only option is to take her into the hospital on Thursday, where they will have 2 vets and 2 vet nurses ready where she will be going into a padded cell.

They are hoping to get some paste into her mouth to take the anxiety away, then they might be able to actually get some sedation into her veins.

Then she will be having a tetnus shot and have her teeth done.

I have to pay $110 to hire a float to GET her there, not the mention the $200+ it cost me today, and I don't even want to think about the end bill..

I am a student with completely disinterested parents who will not help me out finicially, who have nothing to do with my horse Candy. (They have come out to the paddocks twice in year and a half I've owned her)

SIGH. Not loving life right now!

Sorry for the RANTING, long post, but I really need to vent. What happened to my completely chilled out, relaxed calm horse?

Bundy is the same with needles - I dread the day I have to try to give him another. I feel for you!
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Work, work, work, work, work with her every day, several times a day. I have issues with my horse, so I feel you. Likely enough my vet was able to get it done even though it took him 2 visits (and she's getting better now every year). I'd take a toothpick and just poke her every single day in neck area and vein area to get her used to it. Then I'd ask other people (you mom, your friends) to come to the horse while you are holding her and do the same. From my experience it helps.

I'm so lucky that the worst Jerry will do when hi is uncomfortable is spin in circles (easy enough to fix on crossties.) :p

Good luck!

As recommended, it's time to work work work with your horse. I have a mare who used to be impossible to give injections to. Stocks, twitches, drugs, etc...all were useless with this mare. I worked on training and desenstizing and can now walk out in the pasture and give shots without any fuss at all.

The simple truth is that these issues are as much about respect as they are about fear. So, it's time to work on getting your horse to respect you no matter the situation you are in and to work on desensitizing her to the motions that occur during a vet exam that seem so scary.

I would recommend watching some of Clinton Anderson's Gaining Respect and Control on the Ground videos and desensitizing videos. You can also search on here and somewhere I went into detail on how to get a horse over being needle shy.

So glad i'm not the only one with a needle-shy horse. Sunny broke the crossties the other day when my aunt gave her vaccinations. I have a feeling that she freaked because she isn't used to my aunt, seeing that I am the only one who works with her.
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