Oh ****, now I feel guilty

J

JillA

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Neighbours across the road have got two young mini shets in their paddock - which has a large sycamore tree in one corner. I have pondered a few times going across and letting them know about EAM, but I suspect they might have been either dismissive or politely asked me to mind my own. They are far from experts, ponies belong to their daughter who no longer lives at home.
One of them is ill - not classic EAM symptoms, mainly not eating and down a lot, although he does get up to go and rinse his mouth out in the water bucket. He has been like it for 4 days - vet has been and taken bloods, they are waiting for the result.
I COULD have warned them...................
 
But what would you have warned them about?

The symptoms don't sound really like EAM and tbh I would have thought, not that I have any experience of the condition *touch wood*, that a mini would have succumbed at least as quickly as a bigger horse. Are the ponies still in the same paddock? If so, the vet can't think that there is much ongoing danger from the sycamores.


Fingers crossed for the mini's recovery.
 
Vet did mention EAM and they have fenced off the tree area and bought some hay so there is something else for them to eat. They are so little it wouldn't take much toxin to knock them for six
 
Shoulda woulda coulda..... It's very hard to know when to get involved and how people will react, try not to beat yourself up and fingers crossed may be totally unrelated.
 
Our stable jockey lost his shetland and miniature horse, earlier this year, to this condition. The vet had actually inspected the paddock when the ponies were first unwell and they actually suspected foul play.
 
Don't assume because it isn't acute it isn't EAM - it was, confirmed by bloods, pony was still managing to get to his feet once in a while 6 days after he stopped eating. He was PTS today :(
 
Don't feel guilty. It is very sad that the poor little shettie has lost his life, but even if you had told the owners about EAM it may have been too late for him. There are too many ifs and buts for you to be feeling guilty.
 
So sorry to hear the little chap didn't make it. You can't blame yourself though, really the responsibility lies with individual horse owners to keep up to date on horse welfare matters.
 
TGM said:
really the responsibility lies with individual horse owners to keep up to date on horse welfare matters.
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sorry to disagree. These people were apparently not experts and kept the ponies for their absent daughter. Possibly they are not on every horse forum each day to obtain EAM updates. I would much rather have faced rejection by providing them with info that could have saved a life. Surely we can provide help to inexperienced people? Maybe they would have listened and been grateful that they had the chance to do something. They wouldn't now be thinking "if only we had known"

I wouldn't hesitate to make someone aware of EAM. It is far too serious a condition not to. The choice is then up to them if they want to do anything.
 
So are you saying the blame lies with the OP then? I share lots of information re veterinary matters and welfare with friends and acquaintances, and I hope it is of help to them. But if I had missed an opportunity to do so then I would not hold my self responsible - the final buck stops with the actual owners. Even if you are inexperienced then you owe it to the animals to get as clued up as possible. For example, we are thinking of getting some ducks, never had them before, but I would educate myself as much as possible about their needs before getting some. If they did succumb to something I could have prevented then I would blame myself, not the duck keeping neighbours up the road who hadn't warned me.
 
TGM said:
So are you saying the blame lies with the OP then? I share lots of information re veterinary matters and welfare with friends and acquaintances, and I hope it is of help to them. But if I had missed an opportunity to do so then I would not hold my self responsible - the final buck stops with the actual owners. Even if you are inexperienced then you owe it to the animals to get as clued up as possible. For example, we are thinking of getting some ducks, never had them before, but I would educate myself as much as possible about their needs before getting some. If they did succumb to something I could have prevented then I would blame myself, not the duck keeping neighbours up the road who hadn't warned me.
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I don't remember mentioning blame. Simply that if people who don't have up to date information can be made aware of it then at least they have the chance to do something to prevent disaster if they wish.
I don't blame the OP however if this was me then, yes, I personally would blame myself for not warning them. I appreciate that not everyone thinks that way.
 
Sad news!!��

This is no ones fault, it is one of those things. Only this foul condition is to blame. Who knows how long horses had grazed that field with no problems.
 
That's more or less what the vet said Sukistokes2 - he said a few weeks ago he would have advised clients that sycamore seeds might pose a very very slight risk, nothing to really worry about, but since then he has had numerous cases. And the owner said if I had told them, she would most likely have got her hubby to rake up most of the seeds, but wouldn't have regarded it as important enough to ensure they were all removed. It doesn't take much toxin to poison a 2 year old mini Shetland. Hindsight is a wonderful thing - I have since phoned another local new mini shet owner who says he has no sycamores round his field. He may be right, I have done all I can.
 
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