Freeze Marking................. DO I ?

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Scoopy

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Ok i would like your views on the above !

He is Micro-chipped, but that not safe, so was thinking of going down this road !

Good or Bad ? who or what
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Personal choice really. I had my horses in England freezemarked and I see it as a good thing.
 
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What do you mean by 'not that safe'?

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Not a visual deterrent. You don't know a horse is microchipped just by looking at it, unless it's micro marked.

I have my horse freezemarked.
 
I keep thinking about getting Chex freezemarked too. But I wonder how many thieves would actually take a rug off to check if they're freezemarked before they chuck them on the back of a lorry. He's microchipped at least.
 
Would have feeze marked as it can be changed, and as was on here last week if you dont keep up your yearly subscription then they can reallocated your freeze mark! I Dont think that is safe!

I have mine microchipped. Less painful cant change it and as long as you have a good vet they should check the horse when they first first it or vet it. It also goes on your passport! And there is no fee once you have had the horse done.

Unique number for life!
 
It may sound like a stupid question and I am in danger of making myself sound stupid........but here goes...
Can freeze marking fade over a long period of time? Can it be tampered with in any way?
 
I've been thinking about this too, I just couldn't deal with the idea of them being stolen
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It scares me that the registration can be changed if you don't pay up...
So I was wondering how good is the micromark system? At least that way there is an outer mark so a vet would check...
At major horse sales do they check for microchips?
 
They didn't scan my horse that I sold as a companion when the new owners re-passported him, changed his name and sold him as a riding school.

This is the sole reason why I decided to get my next horse Freezemarked. One day Bailey (now Fizz) will be checked for a chip which will upset the new owners as it carries all the details of the reason why he was retired from work.
 
Oh and I was wondering can microchips migrate in horses like they can in dogs and cause problems?

And do they interfere with muscle function in anyway?

So many questions... sorry
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Microchips can't migrate in horses because they aren't put just under the skin in the same way they are in dogs and cats. This also means that they can't be removed as they are put in with a huge needle that puts it about halfway along the neck just under the mane and a a depth of about 1.5 cm or whatever is halfway through your horses neck .... sounds appalling, but what this means is that it can't be removed without it being cut out. This then shows that it has been tampered with so it just doesn't happen. My mare wasn't that stressed when she had it done, and I will be having my new horse done next time the vet is out. But yes, it is invisible so there is no reason for a thief to know it has been done apart from all the signs you can put up and are supplied with the chipping. All reputable auctions are 'supposed' to have scanners and in theory more people are getting them. But it is a slow business.

I also had my mare freezebranded to make a visible mark. It was total fiasco and my number ended up a series of splodges. So I had it done again, which smudged the numbers even more, so I had to take a photo of the mess and that is what they registered - which I don't think would be good enough if she was stolen. I found it stressful enough marking her anyway, without it looking horrible too. She also found it very upsetting, especially the second time and they rely on the horse standing still to enable the brand to be held on for long enough to be good and clear.

Sorry if I have put people off either or both of these! Sadly, they are a necessary part of keeping a horse safe I think.
 
I have one of my horses freeze marked (before I bought her) and have not done the other two. I suppose its a case of shutting the door after the horse has bolted, only if there were a risk/threat would I have the others done.

Personal choice really, I had a mare done many years ago and I felt sick, so did'nt fancy having it done again. I think I felt her pain.
 
Yes, definitely. My previous horse was chipped and freeze-marked. The current one is only chipped because she's grey and I don't like the bald patch/marks on the shoulder! Her foal will be chipped and, provided it's not grey, will be freezemarked as well as soon as it's a yearling and old enough.
 
Ive have been toying with the idea of having my horse freeze marked but she is grey so unsure on how much it will show.
I can remember patches reporting on having it done and was wondering with patches also being grey how much does it show now that it has been a while?
 
Patches actually needs to have hers redone as one of the letters wasn't left on long enough to make a bald mark full stop and another two are not quite good enough.

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Would have feeze marked as it can be changed, and as was on here last week if you dont keep up your yearly subscription then they can reallocated your freeze mark! I Dont think that is safe!

I have mine microchipped. Less painful cant change it and as long as you have a good vet they should check the horse when they first first it or vet it. It also goes on your passport! And there is no fee once you have had the horse done.

Unique number for life!

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If you had read the thread properly last week you would have seen that I went to the trouble of checking with both Freezemark and Farmkey on behalf of everybody on this forum, and that marks are never reallocated unless the original horse is known to have died. There is little danger either of both companies allocating the same number as one uses 3 digits and the other uses 4. They will always redo a mark which has not taken properly FOC and there is very little pain involved in the process, the freezing acts as a kind of local anesthetic and it is mostly the pressure they are reacting to.

Personally I have NEVER seen a vet scan a horse for a chip and know it very rarely happens at auctions or when doing descriptions for passports - a freezemark cannot be missed and any tampering with it will be very evident.
 
Had mine freezemarked a few months ago and really gald I did (she was already microchipped), as a couple of weeks ago, someone had definately been snooping round the yard, my girls and another horses doors had been opened and their rugs undone (assume someone was checking for a freezemark).
 
mine is freezemarked, micro chips can get lost so see them as a bit of a gamble, please do not be offended anyone. Had freezemark done under saddle, means week off but worth it. It is a very visable mark, so deters people straight away
 
Freezemarking definatley!!! I had Simon freezemarked when i bought him. He showed no signs of being in pain when it was done and 19 years later it was still as visible and clear as the year he had it done. You cant take a mark away its always visible.
 
I think both are very valuable and have their place. My one concern with microchipping is that I have been informed by a vet in the past that if a powerful enough magnet is run over the area where it is then the microchip us wiped clean - fat lot of use then to the owner if someone steals the horse and knows about this is it then makes having a microchip worthless.
 
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