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4K views 34 replies 17 participants last post by  verona1016 
#1 ·
My horse, Harley is EXTREMELY petrified of the vet. What can I give him as an oral tranquilizer before the vet arrives? Is there anything I can eventually do to help him with his fears so I, the vet, and him don't have to deal with this anymore?
 
#2 ·
PS the vet told me to give it to him. Last time the vet came, Harley half dragged both of us across the lawn UNDER SEDATION when the vet tried to pull blood for coggins. Plus there is no need for anyone to say I need another horse and to sell him because he is a PHENOMENAL horse otherwise. Just not with the vet. Him and I are a perfect match. He just hates needles and hates the vet
 
#10 ·
Is it possible your horse IS a jerk? Or that your VET is a jerk?
Not to say either is, but there IS a reason this happens.
Please don't be defensive and angry about that^^.
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LOL I am not dismissing the fact that the horse could be a jerk. His past is very suspicious and unknown so that could also be it as well
 
#4 ·
Nose twitch him.....and if he's a jerk for that and dragging you all around while under sedation, making it unsafe for either yourself or the vet ask for a stronger sedative. Last resort I'd grab hold of his ear just so the vet can get his work done if he's that bad.....he needs to stay still for your safety and his own.

This is where I weigh it up, which is the lesser of the two evils? Getting trampled by a horse and not getting the necessary bloodwork done or twitching him either nose (preferable) or ear if he's a real twit for a minute or two while the blood is done?
 
#6 ·
Just out of curiosity, have you tried a different vet? (assuming there is another good one semi-locally) We have one horse who had a MAJOR injury and was treated by the best vet in the area several years ago. To this day, if that vet shows up to do ANYTHING the horse turns into a raving lunatic (though he doesn't drag anyone, just dances like a fool). I can give him shots and he doesn't flinch, but the vet approaches and its like he thinks he's going to die! The vet, of course, understands the situation and handles it very well, but it is beyond irritating! If your horse has been treated for something painful by that vet, it would be understandable (but not acceptable) for him to react badly to the vet's presence. Also, is there any chance that your vet is under-sedating?
A horse that's properly sedated really shouldn't be dragging you anywhere. I know that one of our horses (an arabian, incidentally) requires more sedative than our other (larger) horses. After finding this out the hard way, his dose has been slightly increased.
 
#8 ·
your horse doesnt respect you and needs ground work. This is basic holes in training and nothing to do with the vet. I teach my horses to stand. and when I say stand by god they better stand. I dont care if the barn is burning down around them.
See if you can get a copy of Julie Goodnights, "lead line leadership". teach and practice the "Stand like a statue."
 
#9 ·
It is absolutely a lack of respect for the halter/lead-rope and the handler.

I have inherited (or bought) horses that went ballistic over a Vet or a shot or being dewormed or ???? I got all of them over it. I used a lip chain on some and 4-way hobbles on those that actually struck or attacked a Vet or handler, but they decided that the Vet or a shot was just not that big a deal.

I consider it a life or death matter that horses stand for doctoring or ???. It can be critical that a horse does not go into 'self-destruct mode' when a life-threatening accident or injury occurs.
 
#15 ·
Just wondering. My Clyde went straight from previous owner's to trainer's when I bought her. I sent my vet over to pull Coggins, and she called me and said the horse tried to take her head off. When she came home, I never had any problem. I figured someone handling her was afraid of the vet. NONE of my dogs, cats or horses have ever had any problem with a vet, because vets do not cause an adrenaline rush in me. Doctors, on the other hand.....

Nancy
 
#18 ·
He is reacting out of fear. He hates needles.
Of course -- but it has become an excuse instead of a reason. Most unacceptable behaviors are rooted somewhere in the past in some fear -- rational or otherwise. That is why I am not interested in the background of any horse I buy or train. I do not ask and would not expect to hear the truth if I did get an answer. You have to deal with and have to train what you have at hand. Psychoanalysis is not necessary. To be an effective trainer / owner / handler, you have to deal with what you have and have to teach new, better, more acceptable behaviors to replace the bad ones.

I do not care if a horse goes bonkers over fly spray, a shot, a dewormer tube, a blanket or a blowing plastic sack. For a horse to be a useful partner and a safe 1000# plus animal to handle and be around, they have to yield to your wishes and demands. If you cannot train them out of the bad behaviors that can put other people in jeopardy, then they should be sold or sent to someone that can fix the problem.

I am not trying to be hateful or harsh, but Vets and Farriers should not have to be trainers or risk life and limb trying to handle horses that have bad manners. When I trained for the public, I cannot count horse many horses were brought to me (or I had to go pick up because they would not load) that were sent because the 3rd or 4th Vet or Farrier had driven off. Training a horse is not their responsibility.
 
#19 ·
um yes you do, you never want that horse to learn that it is bigger than you. Control is a great word. When was the last time you saw a lead mare showing a sympathetic approach in the field ?
No you dont need to beat your horse, but you can dang sure exersise control with body language, painful noisy but not injurous corrections, IE smacked in chest with crop, I dont generally need a chain but generally a lead line with a nice brass snap on a rope halter. A good wave of the line wacks them in the chin. But you really do need to watch the videos I mentioned to get it.
 
#20 ·
Ok heres the scenario of last visit. I give him an oral tranq that the vet had me administer when he got there because he wouldn't let him do it. We wait for him to get sleepy. I put him in a rope halter AND a chain. The vet comes towards him and he wakes right up and is pretty much dragging me across the lawn (him flying backwards) while the vet is trying to get blood. No matter what he doesn't calm down or stand still. Thats pretty screwed up.
 
#21 ·
Nothing more constructive to say, the others have it pretty much covered...

But your horse sounds like me! It used to take 4 people to hold me as a kid, then they would trick me (slam a door or pass the needle around the back and poke me). Now I just shake, cry, and jump. I went to the dentist to get a small filling done (she probably could of done it w/o novocaine) and I was still panicky on 0.5mg of Xanax plus 20 minutes of breathing nitrous like I was huffing paint. Everyone tells me to knock it off, relax, don't look, etc.... Ain't gonna happen. If I were you horse, I'd need the works! If I could control myself I would, but sometimes my sense of fear goes beyond my sense of control. I couldn't imagine how that must feel as a prey animal.
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#23 ·
Nothing more constructive to say, the others have it pretty much covered...

But your horse sounds like me! It used to take 4 people to hold me as a kid, then they would trick me (slam a door or pass the needle around the back and poke me). Now I just shake, cry, and jump. I went to the dentist to get a small filling done (she probably could of done it w/o novocaine) and I was still panicky on 0.5mg of Xanax plus 20 minutes of breathing nitrous like I was huffing paint. Everyone tells me to knock it off, relax, don't look, etc.... Ain't gonna happen. If I were you horse, I'd need the works! If I could control myself I would, but sometimes my sense of fear goes beyond my sense of control. I couldn't imagine how that must feel as a prey animal.
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I have had the same thing happen to me! Now as an adult I just choose not to get needles but my horses DO
 
#22 ·
I had a mare that was a dream to handle, she was an amazing horse, anybody could do anything with her. She taught dozens of kids to ride, she was calm, respectful, never put a foot out of line. The vet could show up, look her all over, touch her all over, stick her arm down either end if she wanted, but as soon as the needles came out, it was as if someone flipped a switch. It was honestly Jekyl and Hyde. After quite a few battles, and only specifically over shots or blood draws, the vet and I discovered that if she simply walked alongside us as we were walking around the arena, and gave the shots or drew blood in transit, the mare was fine. Luckily I had a great vet that was willing to collaborate with me, instead of insisting on a twitch or a chain. In this mare's case, it was honest terror of the needle. But often it IS a handling issue. The mare also had a set of scars on her butt that made her look like frankenstien, which she had before we got her. It was obviously a "home repair job", as the scars from the stitches looked like a railroad track. I often wonder if she was stitched up without sedative and that set up her terror of needles. She also had to have colic surgery when she was older, she gave a vet student a concussion because they didn't believe us when we told them beware of her around needles, the student got slammed into the stocks as she was trying to administer a shot. They told us the same thing. Even in severe pain (our vet had sedated her prior to going to the vet school) she was as compliant as any horse they had ever seen, until that needle came out.

My point is, yes, most of the time it is a hole in training, but sometimes there is an exception that makes the rule, and a little thinking outside the box can go a long way.
 
#24 ·
Google Scotch hobbles. A loop of rope tied with a bowline knot goes around the horse's neck. Another rope goes around the horse's ankle and thro the neck loop and the leg is drawn up maybe 6". The horse is swing his leg as he tries to set it down. Wait until he's standing quietly before releasing the rope. Practise this until it's second nature to both of you. He's not going to go too far when the vet comes. The more he kicks the tied leg the more it jerks on his neck. It's amazing what you can do to a horse when it's back leg is out of commission.
 
#26 ·
I have used Scotch Hobbles a lot and have 2 big soft cotton Scotch ropes now. I prefer 4 way hobbles. I have seen more than one horse crippled by Scotching up a hind leg. One of the crippled ones crippled himself because he would not tolerate clippers. He tried to attack the person holding them. The guy Scotched him, he threw himself and permanently injured something high in the hind leg or hip that was Scotched. I have had several horses throw themselves with 4 way hobbles, but have never seen one injured. I am sure it can happen, but if a horse cannot be handled and is dangerous with ordinary means, then they get 4-way hobbles or laid down. Usually an experienced person on a lip chain can get a horse over the needle thing.

And yes, blind-folding one can work. But, it is very dangerous as they can run over someone or hurt themselves if they do not 'freeze' when they are blind-folded. Some freeze and some don't.
 
#30 ·
Do NOT have the vet work with him in the stall. That's askin to be rammed up against a wall. Your vet doesn't have a clinic to haul him to? He should have a stock there.
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#34 ·
My horse is absolutely TERRIBLE for the vet when it comes to shots, anything else she is perfect for. We use a chain and blindfold her and she's fine -- she knows something is up, but can't see it so she behaves.

She ALSO has scars on her butt (and her past is iffy) Before I had 100% control over her (I "leased" her from people and then bought her) She was TERRIBLE with her feet, dewormer, etc, now she stands still. You can TELL she's nervous and uptight, but she sure as hell stands there.

So yes, blindfolding may help, it did in my case. She does have to be drugged in order to check her teeth though.
 
#35 ·
Chain or rope over the upper gum.

I took my horse to a show just a few weeks after I got him- his first show ever- and when we went to load him up to go home he lost it and bolted back to the show barn, twice, breaking his lead rope in the process. He has a big, thick neck and realized he could just look away from me and I wouldn't have the leverage to stop him. My friend who was trailering him (and who is also a vet) rigged up a lip "chain" with a thin rope she had handy and showed me how to use it. He started to turn his head to pull his bolting stunt again, I gave one quick tug on the lip rope and he got into the trailer without any more fuss. I've trailered him a lot more since then and now he loads and unloads like a champ, no "aids" required.
 
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