Do vets consider a horse's mental health?

[Shilasdair]

Do you think vets consider horses' mental health enough when recommending treatment for physical issues?

So advising 'box rest for 6 months' might help a lameness heal, but might be traumatic/depressing for the horse.

Discuss!

 

[Carrottom]

I think it is important for the owner to have that discussion with their vet. Some horses can cope very well, others not so, we can't really expect our vets to know our horses as we do.

 

[MurphysMinder]

Yes my vets do When horse who hates being stabled had a tendon injury they agreed to him being in a small corral attached to field shelter. When pony who had suffered from Cushings and laminitis for years also developed a badly locking stifle vet was happy for me to leave her in small paddock rather than stable during a laminitis attack.

I do think it is very important to look at the whole horse in such cases, and for vets to listen to owners.

 

[Slightlyconfused]

Yes mine do.

We always talk through a treatment plan and see if it needs to be tweaked for the horse.

 

[The Xmas Furry]

Yes, this is a conversation I've had in previous years with my vets, with him asking me how each particular animal would be ok, different cases every time.
He (and the others in the practice) are very good at taking a holistic take on each animal.

 

[Follysmum]

Mine definitely does
One of mine had an awful injury last year and he had to have 10 weeks box rest as the injury was so severe. My vet at all times said for his mental well being he had to get out of the box as soon as possible. Saying that others at the same practice are not.

 

[Tiddlypom]

Yes, mine do, especially in relation to periods of box rest.

Also when I've said that one horse is not to have any more nerve blocks (she's fed up of them) they've respected that.

 

[EllenJay]

I don't think they do as a matter of course. But if the owner says "my horse can't cope with XYZ" then the vets treatment should take that into account.

 

[brighteyes]

There has to be the discussion about the patient (and sometimes the owner) being a suitable candidate for any rehab plan. Vets start with the ideal one for recovery. I think their professional, bottom line opinion, whilst being the most likely to be successful, won't always suit and compromises will likely have to be made along the way.

I think owners with any degree of experience will already have every rehab scenario lined up, if not worked out, before the vet gets there and be only too ready with the questions or prompt the vet for a range of possible options including staged recovery.

Then there's the forum to tap.

 

[Emilieu]

I’ve always had the feeling that if vets can offer a medical solution then they do, but that the owner is left to decide how well that might work for their horse. For example, in the latter stages of Deano’s cancer treatment it was mentioned that a stoma bag was technically possible, but when I said that I would definitely not be comfortable with that the vet agreed that he felt the same. I think since he knew it was possible he felt obliged to mention it.

 

[Jenko109]

I don't think so as much as they should.

Girl who I know (who admittedly is a complete moron) has a pony with knackered hocks. Vet said she needed to keep him slim.

He was not hugely overweight by anyone's standards. She kept him fenced in an area not much bigger than my living room (which is an end terrace so not big!) And he had no additional food or hay. He had his fence moved by perhaps one stride, every other day. But the area was not wide, so he would have eaten it within an hour.

He was starving and miserable.

I reached out to her vet and advised him that I appreciated the pony needed to shift a bit, but the way she was going about it was unhealthy both physically and mentally for the poor creature.

Nothing changed. So I guess he was happy with the miserable existence.

 

[SatansLittleHelper]

To be honest I don't really think vets are as well informed on the psychological and behavioural side of things, unless they own horses themselves. I believe that they give advice in line with the optimum conditions for the injury/illness they are presented with but most do take the owners knowledge of the individual horse into consideration.

 

[DizzyDoughnut]

Mine do, he tells you all of the options then says what his preferred option is for that particular horse.

He won't do something just because he can, he will only do it of its right for that particular horse. My vet is great and is happy to discuss all the options and the consequences of any treatment.

 

[poiuytrewq]

I don't think they do as a matter of course. But if the owner says "my horse can't cope with XYZ" then the vets treatment should take that into account.

When my old, retired arthritic horse who’d had every joint medicated ten times over went down with severe laminitis all round I asked the vet to pts. She refused and made me feel awful.
I did the box rest and rehab, against my better judgement as directed and lost him about two years later after several bouts.
I think some vets need to listen more to owners who voice concerns about difficult recoveries. I’ve learnt from it and next time will be more forceful. I strongly believe horses live for the moment.

 

[milliepops]

I have found that mine do, but i need to initiate the discussion. Which I'd expect really, as I know my horses better than anyone else so I'm in the best place to judge what they can and can't cope with. I agree that vets will tend to suggest what would provide the textbook conditions for healing and then it's for vet and owner to decide on what's acceptable for the individual concerned.

Last time I had a prescription for box rest, I asked vet if it could be done in the field as I knew the horse would need consistent company all the time to stay calm. I made her a pen in my retirement field at home. Vet was very supportive. If I hadn't asked there would have been an assumption that horse would have to stay in the stable.

 

[Celtic Fringe]

Mine did with my old cob. The horse had stifle arthroscopy and ideally should have had ~ 6 weeks box rest. He did not like being in at all and my vet knew this so immediately recommended a small paddock instead.
Although my horse had area approx. the size of a tennis court and was hand grazed round the yard as well he was still totally fed up after six weeks. He NEVER normally bit anyone but let me know how angry he was by nipping me every time I went into him. He galloped like a loon when we put him back with his herd but fortunately made a full recovery.

 

[brighteyes]

When my old, retired arthritic horse who’d had every joint medicated ten times over went down with severe laminitis all round I asked the vet to pts. She refused and made me feel awful.
I did the box rest and rehab, against my better judgement as directed and lost him about two years later after several bouts.
I think some vets need to listen more to owners who voice concerns about difficult recoveries. I’ve learnt from it and next time will be more forceful. I strongly believe horses live for the moment.

That's shocking.

 

[Winters100]

Mine absolutely does, but of course I know them best, so it is my responsibility to make sure that he has all information.

 

[mavandkaz]

I think most do, but it's up to the owner to start the discussion as we know them best.
I'm going through it at the moment with the little old Shetland. Her recurrent uveitis has flared up again and it may be time to call it a day. She has seen a range of vets and they have all been supportive of me making that decision, but they have also offered other suggestions - not because they think I should, but because it's their job to give me all the options. (Including getting the specialist optometrist out. Vet made it clear he didn't think I should, but felt he had to mention it) they have all put quality of life before anything else.

I think insurance companies play a big part in this. Mine are not insured so I have the final say in any treatment plan. I think some get stuck having to do things by the book to please insurance companies, especially if you start going down the loss of use route.

 

[blitznbobs]

Not really, the amount of food restrictions that are put on some horses with cushings/ ems etc to me seem to be keeping the animal healthy but not happy... some cope but a lot seem utterly depressed. Yet vets will keep upping the prascend and keeping them on such megre rations i think it severely effects quality of life

 

[teapot]

Mental health AND yard set up I think should be considered - whether they do...

All very well saying a horse needs x weeks box rest, when it's been living out 24/7 for years.

 

[ycbm]

Do you think vets consider horses' mental health enough when recommending treatment for physical issues?

No.

 

[Nudibranch]

Mine does. We agreed to pts one rather than lengthy box rest as he would never have coped. He suggested pts when the PPID girl was going to need upping to 5 tablets a day to control her levels (which we did, it would have been not only unfair to her but extremely expensive). With another he was happy to come to a solution for turnout when he saw how much weight had been dropped after three days of box rest.

He's far and away the most pragmatic horse vet I've ever used and he's really good at thinking about the bigger picture. But it took 30 years to find him! I don't know if it's pure coincidence but he's also far and away the least horsey equine vet I've ever met as well.

 

[poiuytrewq]

That's shocking.

I know now. That day I was so stressed out about my previously happy boy suddenly being so crippled, we had to nerve block all 4 feet to get him into a stable that I just felt terrible for suggesting it.
In hindsight it would have saved him a lot of mental stress.

 

[paddy555]

Do you think vets consider horses' mental health enough when recommending treatment for physical issues?

I wouldn't expect them to. I would expect them to tell me all the options from a medical POV and what they will entail, pain they will cause etc etc. I then tell them which bits we can't do eg box rest, and what I want and we then tailor the plan around that. I see it as my responsibility to look at the mental side. The vet doesn't know the horse and cannot really judge based on the short time he is here how a course of action will affect the horse, if there are other horses to bring in to keep it company or anything else. Plus of course every horse is different and the best treatment for one may not be the best for another. Only the owner can know how the horse will react and at what stage to press on or give up.

 

[honetpot]

You have an ideal, then you have to adapt to the situation and animal. It's harder when they have access to a horsepital and all the tests under the sun, but the owner has to live with that animal, and pay the bills. In the old days, you were lucky if the vet did a blood test for anything, and they had two rasps to do teeth, they would give you basic advice and leave you to it.
A horse lives in the present, it doesn't know its going to get better, or that days stress in the long term may make it feel better. I think we all have a duty to make sure the stress is as little as possible. I visited a large equine hospital, and I am afraid I wouldn't leave anything there long term, there seemed to be no adaptation for the horses needs

 

[scats]

I think things are improving on that front, especially over the last 20 years. It used to be common place for our local vet hospital to suggest box rest and be very difficult to get them to budge on that or discuss alternative options.

I would say now, in my experience, the well-being of the animal does come into it more. Vets seem more likely now to come up with a plan to suit if an owner expresses concern. I think an awareness that not everyone has ideal facilities is important. Some of the advice that vets gave in the past was near impossible to follow on your average livery yard.

 

[Caol Ila]

Mine does. When Gypsum could no longer be ridden or do very much, he always said we needed to consider her quality of life. Because of her neurotic socialization issues, she could never have a nice retirement in a field with a herd. He knew that.

A stoma bag, Emilieu? Really? For a horse? Surprised that's even a thing they can do. But not that surprised. Many years ago (I must have been about seven years old), one of our family cats was attacked by a raccoon, and parents took her into the emergency vet that night, who stabilized her, and she went to our normal vet the following morning. They said that the only way to save the cat was to send her to the Colorado State University vet hospital for surgery, and that would end in kitty having a stoma bag for the rest of her life. My parents were like, "You have got to be kidding." Needless to say, the cat was PTS.

 

[Flicker]

My current vet, yes. Very pragmatic and supports PTS decisions even when field ornament options are available.

There was one at the practice a while back,though, who was very much from the ‘where there’s life there’s hope’ school. He talked the owner of an elderly horse with strangles out of PTS because he said he could ‘save’ him. He couldn’t and the horse suffered needlessly for another three days before the owner finally couldn’t take it any more and told the practice if they didn’t send someone to put the horse down she would shoot it herself. He no longer works at the practice and I am glad of this.

I agree with the box rest observation. In my opinion, prolonged box rest is wretched and unnatural, frequently causing more problems than it solves. Considering damage to tendons and ligaments in horses are both common and potentially career-ending, one would have thought that some enterprising vets would be trying to find treatments that would at the very least reduce the amount of time needed for box rest, or allow for restricted paddock turn out in the right conditions.

 

[spotty_pony]

I think it depends on the Vet. It was certainly a big factor with my horse when I decided to have him PTS. He liked to be out as he headshook in the stable, but then couldn't be out because of the soft tissue injuries he had. It obviously wasn't the only factor as for the decision I made but it did play a part in it - I wasn't prepared to keep him on box rest for months and months as it just wouldn't have been fair on him.

My other horse was on box rest with an annular ligament strain at another point but he was allowed out to hand graze and so I had him out grazing for at least an hour each day and eventually fenced off a square for him to graze in.