alternatives to sedation

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rup93

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Just had very bad experience with farrier rearing over backwards lashing out, the works! he is only 4 but not scared or worried just taking the piss and taking it to far thought he was going to kill one of the farriers ! he had to ring for his apprentice to come and help! got three on and had to stop as getting too dangerous. Vet coming on friday to sedate to get last shoe on. Obviously going to be very expensive to get bet out every 5 weeks so anyone know any alternatives that you can buy online or in shops? (tried twitiching didnt make slightest bit of difference!)
Any advice much appreciated, i have no experience with youngsters x
 
iv only had him 3 weeks, previous owner had him shod infront and hes got evidenve of being shod behind at some point they said he was fine to shoe with them. Came from Ireland though....:S
 
I read that as the farrier reared up! Sorry!
Is this the first time you've had him shod? How has he been for trimming? Mine wasn't dangerous first time, but tried to sit on the farrier a few times, lol.
Is it the smell, the nails being banged in, or the whole experience?
The advice I was given for my youngster ( by my farrier) was to get her used to all the sounds and smells. Also, when picking her feet up to give them a few knocks with a hammer or similar. My farrier also did this for about 6 months before shoeing her for the first time. On the big day she wasn't bothered by all the different things going on, more that she had to hold her foot up for longer than usual, hence the sitting down.
Hope you can sort it without sedation, it will be very expensive otherwise.
 
I had a horse shod once after being told although he was barefoot he had been shod. The first time he was terrified and stood on his hind legs (only have fronts done) for a fair bit of it but we had put him in a stable which he wasn't used to so put it down to that. The second time we did it outside and he nearly landed on my farrier's head a few times! From then on he was always cold shod and was absolutely fine in the end so perhaps try that?
 
haha no not the farrier lol
i Think its everything really he doesnt even like me picking his feet up to pick them out he tend to yank it out and then boot me for good measure or just put all his weight on it then tries to fall on me. he doesnt like any of it but mostly i think its the nails that really sets him off. he broke his brand new leather head coller ! lol
 
Before getting the farrier out again you need to do lots of work getting him well behaved when you pick up his feet, you should be able to hold each foot up for how ever long you want to.

When he is ok with this, and you can pick his feet out fine, start banging his shoes with the metal bit of the hoof pick, pretending like you are shooeing him.

You need to desentize him to the whole process or you will need to sedate each time which will be very costly.

I had a horse once that would rear up continuously when his fronts were done (he had obviously had a bad experience in the past). A big bucket of his favourite food was always a great distraction, and meant the farrier could get the job done without being killed!!
 
I would leave the shoeing for a while then, and take him back to a point where he is comfortable with his legs and feet being handled. If he doesn't even like his feet being picked up, he's not going to like being shod. Ask your farrier to help, by taking a bit of time every time he's on the yard to pick your boys feet up, and get him used to it all without the trauma of nails etc. do a bit every day, brushing and handling his legs and feet, ask him to pick up for you, and please, wear a hat while doing it, if he's likely to lash out!
 
Yes I would go right back to basics and start all over again as if the horse has never had his feet handled.

Start by ensuring you can touch him all over his legs and feet without him trying to move his legs, then move on to lifting his feet and putting them straight back down, gradually build this up until he's comfortable to hold his feet up for a few mins without any drama!

Then you can move on to mimicking noises and movements the farrier would make.

Just as an aside - not sure where in Ireland the horse came from but up here in co. Antrim it is almost impossible to find a farrier who hot shoes, only cold shoes available in most cases so that might be something to ponder. Not sure about the rest of Ireland tho
 
I have been there I know exactly how you feel only my farrier is my OH! Mine had been badly trimmed as a baby and was a nightmare rearing up and striking out.

We had him sedated intravenously initially so the job could get done safely.

We then progressed to Sedalin.

We then did only two feet at a time as his attention span was very short.

This process took several years. The horse is now 19 and a doddle to trim/shoe. We also found working him hard just before shoeing helped a lot.

I think there is a new sedative called Domosedan which might be worth asking your vet about. It's a lot better than getting hurt.
 
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