Facebook "experts"

[turkana]

I was approached by someone when my mare came down with laminitis who stated she needed to be “off box rest, walking around freely and socialising. She’s not getting better because she’s sad”


really did not help my situation, they wanted me to travel a pony to a track livery, with 16 degree rotation so she could walk around when she could barely move to her water bucket....but I was cruel for keeping her on box rest!

I feel for you, I followed your thread about your beautiful girl, without adding anything as I didn't have anything constructive to add.
How thoughtless and nasty some people are, how was a horse that was unable to move supposed to cope with being on a track?

 

[Nudibranch]

I find a couple of the native groups I'm on a bit depressing. Fairly regularly someone will post photos with a very, very heavy looking rider on board (yes I know, photos can deceive and all that), I'm not talking borderline, I'm talking ought to be asked to leave the ring heavy. Yet nobody mentions anything and generally gush on and on about how "fab" they look.
I'm really not anti adults on ponies, I do it myself, but there are limits.

 

[P.forpony]

I’ve found the same Nudibranch,
I lived in North America for a while so have links to there on my fb, the amount of ‘do you think I’m too big for this pony’ posts where the only sensible answer is yes. Only to be followed by countless comments saying no you’re fine, you look great together, if they’re not bucking they can carry you! Etc just gets a bit depressing.
Especially if someone dares to voice the obvious and instantly gets ripped to shreds for being fatist!

 

[holeymoley]

I’m on the laminitic group and EVERYONE seems to recommend move the horse no matter what. I’ve given up replying that they shouldn’t be initially unless they basically want everything inside the hoof to go to pot. Movement is only good once everything has calmed down and it’s on repair! One woman actually had the cheek to reply that she wouldn’t be doing it as her horse needed to go out for some grass and that he couldn’t possibly be kept in as she didn’t like to see him kept in(not that the horse wasn’t coping, it was for her) She proceeded to post a Video of the poor soul clearly walking on eggshells to the field. Low and behold the poor soul ended up getting put to sleep.

Another cracker I watch with popcorn is the barefoot magazine page... my God, nothing worse than shoving it down your throat as to why EVERY Equine ever to grace the land should be barefoot regardless. Usually accompanied by a very rough looking photo of a shod foot which clearly has some underlying issue!

 

[holeymoley]

Oh! And certain track livery page. Don’t get me wrong I think it’s great that it’s worked for so many horses but it doesn’t cure everything. Owner seems to come across very holier than thou about the whole thing.

 

[scruffyponies]

The ‘best’ advice I’ve ever seen, and this person was not joking, was to stand a horse with what sounded like horrendous colic with its bum facing up a hill....to cure the colic...

I have a picture of someone standing next to the poor uphill horsey, patting it on the back to make it fart, like you do with a windy baby.

 

[PSD]

Oh! And certain track livery page. Don’t get me wrong I think it’s great that it’s worked for so many horses but it doesn’t cure everything. Owner seems to come across very holier than thou about the whole thing.

maybe it’s the same track livery that approached me about my girl ?

 

[PSD]

I feel for you, I followed your thread about your beautiful girl, without adding anything as I didn't have anything constructive to add.
How thoughtless and nasty some people are, how was a horse that was unable to move supposed to cope with being on a track?

I think they meant well, but they stated I was being cruel keeping her on box rest. I responded with “thank you for your input but she can’t stand up comfortably, let alone travel” then blocked them ?

 

[holeymoley]

maybe it’s the same track livery that approached me about my girl ?

I imagine it probably is! I’d be surprised if it wasn’t put it that way.
First name initial of the owner is B?

 

[PSD]

I imagine it probably is! I’d be surprised if it wasn’t put it that way.
First name initial of the owner is B?

in all honesty I’m not sure of the owners name, but it’s a known place.

now I’m like you, not saying it doesnt work. But to approach me at the worst time of my life when dealing with my girls illness, it wasn’t a welcomed message!

 

[Muddywellies]

I'm also in a laminitis group and have noticed it's common to advise people to get their laminitics moving. I thought that movement risked the liminie tearing. I wouldn't want to do that without vet advice first

. There's some truth in that one. If you're past the danger stage, indeed, it's better to get the pony moving in a starvation paddock to increase blood flow to the feet. Instructions I was given from a highly regarded vet who I worked closely with through my 8 year battle with my old gelding's laminitis. I guess there are many comments seen in social media which if taken out of context or applied in the wrong circumstances, can have pretty awful consequences. Not all advice is wrong, it just doesn't fit every set of circumstances. I just wish more people would consult a vet or professional before consulting Dr Facebook

 

[Aperchristmas]

I'm also in a laminitis group and have noticed it's common to advise people to get their laminitics moving. I thought that movement risked the liminie tearing. I wouldn't want to do that without vet advice first

This advice makes me absolutely livid, mostly because the people giving it have no bloody idea what they're talking about and think that it applies to cases in the acute stage. For acute attacks it is absolutely critical to minimise movement and give as much support to the hoof as possible. Once they can move relatively comfortably, then yes movement (preferably on a bare patch) is desirable. However so many just spout nonsense without taking the time to actually understand what's going on. We all hate lami so much so any advice that could increase suffering just makes my blood boil!

Sorry, rant over

 

[SatansLittleHelper]

I had to leave a couple of nice wildlife / birdwatching FB groups because every time cats were mentioned people went off the deep end saying all cats should be kept inside because they are bird murderers.
And I don’t even have a cat.

They have a point though. I don't have a cat either, can't stand the bloody things to be honest.
My friend runs a parrot sanctuary and frequently has wildlife brought to her...mainly cat attack victims. Makes me so angry that cats can just wander about killing stuff for fun. I don't care what absolute drivel people spout about it being "cruel" to keep cat's indoors. There would be alot less of them run over for a start.
Probably for another thread ????

 

[Griffin]

Another cracker I watch with popcorn is the barefoot magazine page... my God, nothing worse than shoving it down your throat as to why EVERY Equine ever to grace the land should be barefoot regardless. Usually accompanied by a very rough looking photo of a shod foot which clearly has some underlying issue!

You also have to use a bitless bridle and keep your horse out in all weathers (I am generalising but some of the comments make you think this). I like to turnout as much as possible but even my hardy mare wants to come in when it's wet, windy and cold because it's horrible.

 

[joelb]

PWAS was a popcorn group, never seen so many folk actively wishing harm on fellow vulnerable road users (cyclists). There's an underlying mentality of I'm doing X because it's my right per the Highway Code regardless of how dangerous or inconsiderate to other road users it is. Such a shame as I totally support the cause, but the negativity made me leave and there's little hope they will ever educate drivers as any counter view or constructive advice is met with hysteria and accusations of rider bashing. The irony being that I left feeling more sympathy for cyclists than I had when I joined.

 

[southerncomfort]

I only read my local community pages now as I'm quite rural so is nice to keep up with local news etc.

But even those can get ridiculously spiteful. You still occasionally get people joining with the sole purpose of upsetting as many people as possible.

But yes, their are so many extremely arrogant individuals out there who think that their opinion is the only one that counts. I think most of them live on Twitter these days!

 

[Morgan123]

on the laminitic group and EVERYONE seems to recommend move the horse no matter what. I’ve given up replying that they shouldn’t be initially unless they basically w

This advice makes me absolutely livid, mostly because the people giving it have no bloody idea what they're talking about and think that it applies to cases in the acute stage. For acute attacks it is absolutely critical to minimise movement and give as much support to the hoof as possible. Once they can move relatively comfortably, then yes movement (preferably on a bare patch) is desirable. However so many just spout nonsense without taking the time to actually understand what's going on. We all hate lami so much so any advice that could increase suffering just makes my blood boil!

Sorry, rant over

YES! Exactly this. I just can't understand it. And they're all going "well my pony was fine just being turned out and its hoof capsule was nearly falling off and my trimmer told me to so it must be right for everyone".
I got in hot water for calling a trimmer unprofessional for giving that advice the other day. They said well they could see from the (one, angled, shod) picture given, that it wasn't that bad a case of laminitis so it was fine to advise over facebook. I looked them up and fairly sure they weren't even a trimmer. And people just believe them!! What is the world coming to.

 

[vam]

Another cracker I watch with popcorn is the barefoot magazine page... my God, nothing worse than shoving it down your throat as to why EVERY Equine ever to grace the land should be barefoot regardless. Usually accompanied by a very rough looking photo of a shod foot which clearly has some underlying issue!

Their most recent post sent my eyebrows into orbit. Possibly the most badly thought out post I've seen in a while and just made me cringe. It set back all the headway made that people who do barefoot are not all crazies.
I have found some of the barefoot pages useful but there is a underlying fanatical edge with them.

 

[Dasher66]

A photo of one of the fattest ponies I have ever seen popped up on a native pony page. Obviously being ridden at a show, very nicely turned out but the animal was very nearly spherical.
There were lots of comments saying how lovely he looked. Perhaps all the ones who thought it was FAT were, like me, sitting on our hands.

 

[Chippers1]

For me it's the pictures of overweight horses that everyone says "they look fine hun"

Someone posted the other day about whether their horse was in show condition...everyone saying how great it looked and the odd person saying it was fat were shot down.

 

[Morgan123]

For me it's the pictures of overweight horses that everyone says "they look fine hun"

Someone posted the other day about whether their horse was in show condition...everyone saying how great it looked and the odd person saying it was fat were shot down.

yes!! I see this a lot on the dog pages too :-(.

 

[Quadro]

I had a patient the other day who was quite convinced she had "mild schizophrenia" as she had done a quiz on Facebook, and it told her so...................

 

[Equi]

I have had to unfollow a lot of people lately on FB due to the spouting they are doing.

 

[MuffettMischief]

I think that one has its roots in a very, very old treatment for colic, way before modern medicine. The idea being you might be able to dislodge an obstruction. Obviously you wouldn't do in preference to ringing vet these days

interesting!

 

[Celtic Fringe]

I think when some people get their Dr title they forget it doesn't make them Dr. OfAbsolutelyFreakingEverything!

Are you saying that just because my PhD included research on fossils (many thousands of years beyond any veterinary help ) - that I'm not qualified to comment on the training/breeding/feeding/illness/injury of a horse that belongs to a total stranger Now you've spoiled all my fun

 

[shortstuff99]

Are you saying that just because my PhD included research on fossils (many thousands of years beyond any veterinary help ) - that I'm not qualified to comment on the training/breeding/feeding/illness/injury of a horse that belongs to a total stranger Now you've spoiled all my fun

Oooo what fossils? I was technically part of the paleo group at Bristol although I didn't work in fossils.

 

[SaddlePsych'D]

Are you saying that just because my PhD included research on fossils (many thousands of years beyond any veterinary help) - that I'm not qualified to comment on the training/breeding/feeding/illness/injury of a horse that belongs to a total stranger Now you've spoiled all my fun

Soz!

I'm doing a doctorate now, and I'm not saying Drs shouldn't have opinions on a range of things (as we all do) but I do think there needs to be a degree of 'staying in ones lane' instead of wielding the title around in any given situation to look more authoritative on a topic.

That said, when I do get my qualification I plan to wap out the Dr thing out as much as possible for no good reason (but for silly things like when you get asked 'are you miss or mrs?' rather than to make me look like I know what I'm talking about in things unrelated to my area of study).

 

[shortstuff99]

Soz!

I'm doing a doctorate now, and I'm not saying Drs shouldn't have opinions on a range of things (as we all do) but I do think there needs to be a degree of 'staying in ones lane' instead of wielding the title around in any given situation to look more authoritative on a topic.

That said, when I do get my qualification I plan to wap out the Dr thing out as much as possible for no good reason (but for silly things like when you get asked 'are you miss or mrs?' rather than to make me look like I know what I'm talking about in things unrelated to my area of study).

It's like this really

 

[poiuytrewq]

Slightly OT but it’s a page that’s been mentioned, has anyone seen Fergals horses turned out, literally bouncing ??

 

[PapaverFollis]

PWAS was a popcorn group, never seen so many folk actively wishing harm on fellow vulnerable road users (cyclists). There's an underlying mentality of I'm doing X because it's my right per the Highway Code regardless of how dangerous or inconsiderate to other road users it is. Such a shame as I totally support the cause, but the negativity made me leave and there's little hope they will ever educate drivers as any counter view or constructive advice is met with hysteria and accusations of rider bashing. The irony being that I left feeling more sympathy for cyclists than I had when I joined.

I left PWAS when they all absolutely laid into some poor socially awkward teenager (on someone's headlamp video) who failed to hold a gate open for someone! It was like they'd deliberately attacked the horse rather than just been a bit too teenage and awkward to have realised that holding the gate would have been polite!