Heard the most shocking thing today....

P

Puppy

Well-Known Member
Joined
2 February 2006
Messages
31,648
Visit site
Had my farrier out to shoe both my girls (who btw met Bel for the first time and said lots of nice things about her
grin.gif
) and he was telling me about something that had happened to one of his farrier friends this week...

A woman had phoned up this other farrier and said when he came to do her others next, please could he also shoe her new one. Farrier said yes, no problem. Woman then says, "Oh, one thing by the way, it's got strangles"
shocked.gif
shocked.gif
shocked.gif
Farrier then says "No way then - not coming to the yard to do any of them in that case" Woman said Why not?? Then moaned that the vets had told her that everyone would over react if she told them, but that the vet had said it wasn't contagious and that they could carry on going to shows etc...
shocked.gif
ooo.gif
crazy.gif
mad.gif


I can't believe this...
crazy.gif
I don't know whether to believe that a vet would really be that idiotic, (incidentally my farrier knows the vet in question, and DOES believe it...) or if it's the woman's selective interpretation of what they've said, but either way, how can someone be so unconcerned about such a contagious disease...!


I am gobsmacked... and quite scared. I was very relieved to discover the yard in question was nowhere near me
crazy.gif
There seems to be an awful lots of areas effected at the mo, I'm concerned that we're going to have an epidemic at this rate...
frown.gif
 
Is the vet newly registered? And possibly not familiar with horse conditions? That, or the woman is lying through her teeth? Those are the only reasons I could possibly think that a vet would take this so lightly.
 
Probably a bit of both, we had the reverse with ringworm once (which is obviously waay less worrying) where there was a hell of a lot of confusion over whether the vet had said that every horse should be washed 'as a precautionary measure'. Trying to explain that the wash confers protection only for the time the horse is wet or until it touches somthing else, so unless the whole yard (including all fenceposts and trees etc) were to be washed clean it was a totally pointless exercise.
Thank god that was pretty much the reverse of your farriers strangles situation! I would sadly say it could be either vet or owner, but probably 50/50... Good on your farrier tho, mad people!
 
I don't know the vet in question. My farrier does, and believed that they really were being that incompetent, whereas I (as mentioned) am equally inclined to think it is the owner being so lapse. Either way, I'm just gobsmacked that people aren't very concerned about a disease, which as my farrier pointed out can kill
crazy.gif
 
To be perfectly honest, I would be very concerned about ever using said vet if that is the attitude; who knows, perhaps the vet just bumbled on with the other calls after visiting the infected yard??

Strangles in itself isn't the curse of death and rarely kills, however all efforts should be made to halt it. Perhaps that was what the vet mean't? That people would get all silly and over-react over it? Rather than the real meaning of taking sensible precautions?

People do seem to become incredibly over-dramatic about it.
 
Our pony got strangles because the pony he was sharing with "had a virus" but none of the obvious symptoms YET. The thing is you never know if the vet has really said it is ok to leave them together etc which it obviously wasn't our pony was competing, fit etc but did have copd. But was under a management regime that kept him fit and well....

It was so distressing, I think sometimes owners either don't care or are too stupid and novice to know, like one girl was convinced that her vet told her the horse only needs a flu jab every TEN YEARS!!! Good God, it is no wonder we cannot stamp out these things.

Diana
 
om my gosh, that is awful i cant believe the vet said that or the woman was lying but either way that is awful and thank god the yard is not near you.
 
"Strangles not only causes great pain and distress to horses but in some outbreaks can kill up to 10% of the animals infected. It can also be an economic disaster for affected yards which often have to shut down for months".

The Animal Health Trust and the British Horse Society have joined forces to increasse awareness of Strangles and raise vital funds. Together they plan to raise £250,000 to accelerate research into the development of improved means of diagnosis and prevention ultimately to eliminate the disease. For further details, leaflets and donations go to the following web sites: www.aht.org.uk www.bhs.org.uk
 
[ QUOTE ]
People do seem to become incredibly over-dramatic about it.

[/ QUOTE ]
I don't understand that Tia.

Surely it's something to be taken incredibly seriously? Strangles has been confirmed a mile down the road from me. All stock at my place have been moved to the other side of the farm to prevent any chance meeting with other horses, as a lane runs up the side of the property.

Horses on the yard in question are all quaranteened as far as I am aware - but just how cautious can you be??
 
We've had situations where OH's customers have been in yards where other horses have had strangles and have taken advice from local vets. He will go into those yards to shoe but does them as last call of the day so infection cannot be passed on. So I do feel it is over-reacting for the farrier not to want to attend to the horses at all, but am horrified that the vet said it wasn't contagious and that horses could continue going to shows
shocked.gif
.
 
I was concerned as I had my vet out the other day and I wanted him to come to me before going to the other yard. He was totally blase about it and said there wasn't a danger
mad.gif
If not then why does it get around so much.
Also interestingly one vet from one practise put on protective gear to treat a horse whereas another vet didn't so I've been told.
It's very confusing.
 
Is there anyway you can tell us without mentioning any names which area this is in,so we can be careful.We had the vac but now its not available and I don't think it was any use anyway .Press reports a pony getting strangles from the vac and horses in a yard that were vac. getting it worse than those without vac..It is a worry when you travel all over the country competing
 
I was referring to Cambridgeshire.

From what I've seen on here lately, and talking to my farrier and dentist, it seems to be everywhere at the mo
crazy.gif
 
What I mean is that many people, through ignorance or whatever, seem to place Strangles on a similar level to the Bubonic Plague. Now whilst the Black Death hit England somewhere around the 14th Century and Strangles has been documented since the 12th Century then that is about the only thing that is slightly similar.....that it has been around for a very long time.

As far as I am aware, unlike the Bubonic Plague, Strangles is very rarely responsible for killing healthy horses. I has been responsible for the development of Bastard Strangles however. It is Bastard Strangles which kills; now this may or may not be as a result of human interference - I believe in the majority of cases this is so; however am quite happy to be corrected on this.

Strangles develops into Bastard Strangles in less than 10% of all Strangles cases and something like 75% of all horses who contract regular Strangles will hold some immunity to the condition once they are fit and well again, frequently this is a life-long immunity.

Now I know that it isn't a Notifiable condition in most of the Western World, however I believe that it is in the Vets Code of Practice and generally the advice given is simple; use Povidone Iodine to aim to kill all traces of the infection, encourage yards to implement a quarantine period and let the infection run it's course.

So my point is really that people do often appear to be incredibly ignorant of what this infection is, what it does and how it spreads.....hence all the melodramatics whenever they hear of a yard who has it. Sensible precautions? yes; believing that it is the curse of death? no.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top