Getting a pony to be a bit happier about seeing the vet!

M

MochaDun

Well-Known Member
Joined
18 September 2009
Messages
14,584
Visit site
After not being too bad at all with seeing the vet (beyond having his teeth done which he doesn't like) in all the time I've had him (10 years), my 18 year old is now quite scared of the vet (shoots to back of stable, hard to hold in stable for jabs etc and panics a bit) which doesn't make it a pleasant experience for him or I. Always the same lovely vets from the same practice and nothing ever that awful been done to him over the years at all as he's had great health. So had nothing beyond normal annual jabs, and teeth until in the last year/15 months over a period of Nov 2012-Feb 2013 he had to have painkiller injection, peritoneal tap, antispasmodic jab, antibiotic jab, sedation for intimate cleansing (sheath infection!), and then the two jabs for mites but not all at the same appointment obviously :). No more than 4-5 vet visits over those 3-4 months so I'm just a bit saddened by his reaction and alarm now - we had his annual jabs today. I just want to get his confidence back up - are there any ways of doing this? We tend to lose his confidence and cause him alarm the minute the vet appears at his door :(
 
Poor pony, does he have a low pain threshold?

My horse is very needle phobic so before she has an injection I spend a few weeks desensitising her.

Basically I break it down into its elements (approach, bang neck, grab skin, inject) and do all these separately with a click and treat and then put them together, slowly leaving more time in the skin grabbing thing and a click/treat - and using a cocktail stick in about 1 in 10 for a small prick(!). This way we get through the injections quickly and although she doesn't like it, she isn't particularly disturbed. I always make the vet give her a couple of treats as well afterwards.

So, what I suggest is if you know what the vet is going to do, then break the procedure down into its smallest elements and desensitise. Also get random calm people (especially if they smell funny like vets) to do it as well.

It isn't a panacea but it does help them cope with the experience and you can positively train a horse to be less worried about people doing intrusive things, as long as you can limit the pain in the training and get the horse to focus on the treat it can really help.
 
How about trying something like Rescue Remedy to help chill him out a bit? It could be the smell of the vet so maybe a bit of Vicks or similar on his muzzle to mask it might help.

I had the opposite problem - my old boy had a misty eyed crush on the vet and I swear faked symptoms so I called him out - it cost me a fortune.
 
Thanks very much for the link and those other suggestions - think I will need to try and desensitize him somehow. He officially hates me tonight after worming :rolleyes::D
 
I use food, food and more food to avoid the vet or myself getting squished and we've just had the best dectomax jab in years tonight, with only one very mild stamp of his hoof.

This is nothing short of a miracle compared to when I first got him when me and the vet would literally be dancing round the yard trying to avoid 800kg of stomping horse, with feet the size of dinner plates!!

I have a 'special' tub of equibites just for vet visits and feed them in like a conveyor belt. No-one gets trampled and horse happily gives vet a cuddle afterwards now.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top