Sedation- Ignore the dangers at your peril

[Blackhawk]

I very much agree with desensitising horses. If I'm around the yard I will rustle empty feed bags and such and the stables is near a road and next to a large airfield.

I have had one of mine sedated when he went to the vet, who he is usually fine for, but he terrified himself when he had to go in to be examined.

 

[Tia]

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If you want to scare your horse by accustoning it to loud bangs and crashes so be it but I would prefer to go by the advice of my vet and have a contented animal.

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Ahh I see what the problem is here - you don't know how to desensitise a horse.

When desensitising a horse, one doesn't go around SCARING the horse with loud bangs, LOL!! One has to start desensitising from the very beginning ....... not somewhere near the end of training like you are suggesting.

I own 13 contented horses and none of them require sedation...ever, because they have all been taught not to react to things like this.

Did you vet also advise feeding your horse whilst under this sedation? Edited to say - just read you fed before the Sedalin. So your horse is going to be without food for something like 8 hours? Long time for a grazer to be without forage.

 

[Skhosu]

So your horse is contented because you have doped him....sorry, doesn't make sense!
I hope someone is checking him tonight through the night?

 

[Tierra]

My horse hates being clipped. He's terrified of just the noise of clippers. While we are working on trying to desensitise him, I rug early to reduce the amount of winter coat he grows.

This works to the point that he doesnt need clipping. He competes, he's in a reasonable amount of work and we dont have to go through the stress of sedating him

I hate sedating horses, they're big animals and generally the bigger the animal the more risky it is to sedate. This has simply reinforced my own opinion that I do whats best for my boy - despite some people looking down their noses at me for having a slightly fuzzy horsey

 

[RunToEarth]

I gave my coloured 10ml of sedazin first time we had him shod as he had never had back shoes on before and was an absolute bastard. He stands to be shod now, I am a believed that with persistance comes acceptance from horse.
I never bothered with it for clipping, and yes, the first couple of times were an absolute nightmare, but the fact is, I clip about every 10-15days just to keep on top of it. Could you imagine the cost and faff involoved in giving light sedation every 10-15days? For me, it would be more beneficial to p!ss about with a ladyshave or whatever for a few days for about 10mins a shot and get the horse used to it that way. Now I clip him without being tied up. Ok, there are exceptions to every rule, but I dont agree with these people that get vets out to sedate horses for clipping all of the time...

 

[GTs]

The notion that you should sedate a horse as it has never had something done to it is absolutely ludicrous IMHO. Why can't you slowly introduce the new scenario? If it is loading having some dinner in the trailer for a week, if it is clipping having the clippers out and on while it is being groomed for a week, if it is shoes speak to the farrier about taking about being his last appointment and paying him extra, and giving him a couple extra cups of tea and do it over a longer time. I am not sure if people are using sedation because an ability to teach their horse properly, or they just cannot be bothered.

This notion that a horse should be drugged fireworks, horses were cavalry animals they can be desensitized to load bangs.

Just for everyday situation I can not condone using sedatives - training is the proper way to go, and if you can not do it, it does not mean it can not be done.

 

[SSM]

I have spent the ENTIRE summer trying to get ready for this moment - trimmers held, eventually held on her, even a tiny patch clipped - but then bought the Wahl hand held ones - Physco horse that I feel is a danger to any handler as well as herself - so yes I will be using Sedalin (I understand she had it last year) but I will be reading the instructions very carefully.

Fireworks? Cracking and banging right over their heads - I swear she was just looking upwards oohing and arrhhhhing - completley unfazed! Non were bothered!

 

[BethH]

Only even sedated for the equine dentist as he hates having his teeth done and that is always only after referral from vet who gives me sedalin paste (i believe this is the new form of ACP) or with a vet present to give sedation IV.

Have heard some really horror stories, would prefer to work on desensitising the horse to his phobias rather than sedate although I can see other points of view that sometimes you need to keep yourself safe!

 

[pottamus]

I don't agree with using it for non medical reasons and find it horrifying that people (non vets) can get hold of the stuff and use it willy nilly.
Someone I know has a horse that is ok to clip with a twich on but the closer you get to her head the worse she gets. They have still managed to clip her every year for hunting purposes. But this year the 'resident horse expert in the area' said she would sedate her and clip her (previously had someone else doing her). I cannot believe that this person just let her horse be sedated by a non veterinary and how she got hold of the stuff in the first place.
No sorry...I am for patience and training all the way and if the horse it that frightened by something...then don't do it! After all...clipping is not essential...it just allows us humans to have more fun in the winter with our horses!!!

 

[lilym]

there will always be one who reacts badly, just as some people react badly to aspirin......i will continue to sedate my mare to clip her legs, this is done every 3 months with complete agreement from my vet, i can clip her body and head without sedation then the next day i sedate and do legs...as for all you jumping on the band wagon about de-sensitizing....don't you think i haven't tried?? i think in the past someone has caught a leg with the clippers, she is not so much scared but just plain nasty, even a lady who has been clipping for 30 odd years will not touch her without sedation... i think it is plain f*****g dangerous to carry on messing around risking a nasty kick. my yearling on the other hand is not clipped, obviously but happily stands and has the unit switched on and run over her body!!

 

[TheresaW]

I have to keep my mare's legs clipped and when I bought her, the only way her previous owners could do it, was by getting her sedated. Since day one, I wasn't happy about sedating her as I can't believe it is good for them in the long run. It has taken me 2 years, but have got to the point where myself and my sharer can clip her without sedation. We still have to keep our wits about us and choose carefully when we are going to do it, but we get them done.

 

[MagicMelon]

Yeah, I only ever sedate if I absolutely have to and only once done it without a vet there (to clip a 19yo pony who needed it as he had a thick coat in summer and was absolutely cooking!). Wouldnt do it again.

It is risky and I just hate seeing them start to come round - they can injure themselves so easily and there's not much you can do to help a half tonne horse. I think the vets only ever sedated ours VERY VERY rarely - like if a horse is acting up something terrible for the dentist or something.

 

[TURBOBERT]

My horse is now 14 and we have had him 10 year. When we got him he was very anxious when being clipped but we perserved. He got gradually worse - for no reason - so we tried Sedalin which was ineffective we found. He became quite lethal with his hind legs barging etc. Eventually a couple of years ago we sedated him and it was a much happier event for all of us particularly the horse - he was a danger and in my view that level of risk was not acceptable. Also he works quite hard in the winter and gets a heavy coat so not clipping was not really an option.

 

[riotgirl]

My horse used to get sedated on bonfire night, something I was not happy with (mainly due to the fact I am inexperienced at administring sedative). I leave her in the field on bonfire night, she has a 10 minute gallop about when the fireworks start and then she becomes accustomed to the noise and eats her hay.

 

[TGM]

Another danger of sedation is that handlers are often lulled into thinking that the horse is then 'safe' - which isn't always the case. I know of someone who was pulling the tail of a horse under sedation and it suddenly went mad and kicked her, breaking her pubic bone

.

 

[SirenaXVI]

Have to say I have never ever sedated any of my horses, but would also state that I have always had them from babies so do not have anybody else's problems to deal with. I too find it almost shocking that ordinary people like us can get hold of ACP/Sedalin etc so easily. On the other hand I do think sedation has a place so I am kind of sitting on the fence here.

 

[Dovorian]

Depending on the degree os stress claipping causes an individual horse it may be possible to use the sedation as a retraining exercise. Some horses will realise that clipping isn't the horror they anticipate and mayt not need it the next time. But I agree with you that some are plain dangerous and that sedation is needed - I don't think that sedatives should be handed out willy nill and from personal experience vets will want to know which animal they are required for and will check notes etc. The problem seems to stem from a few owner who use drugs on other horses/ponies which are not known to their vet.

 

[Tempi]

il give anyone on here £100 if they can give my mare a full clip without sedation..............

i can garentee wholey that non of you would even get in a stable with her even with the quietest of clippers. She gets two clips a season as i dont like sedation anymore than the rest of you, but shes a competition horse and she cant be hairy as she just sweats up immediatly which equally isnt good for her.

 

[Tempi]

yup agree with that - when clipping bloss whilst she was fully sedated she suddenly snapped out of it and went totaly nuts - luckily i had hold of her and the woman clipping her jumped out of the way. she then went back to sleep again..............

 

[tashyisaudrey]

I'm not a fan of sedating horses. Two horses at my yard were sedated for clipping with no probs, guess it just depends

 

[Sparklet]

..........and I'll match it if anyone is brave enough to take on my daugthers horse when having its teeth done. Spent 5 years trying to get her to accept dental work and only ever getting half the teeth done. Her back teeth were so sharp they were causing ulcers in her mouth.

Having said all that I knew of someone who had an unbroken youngster IV sedated to clip her feathers off 4 times yearly.

 

[Tia]

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il give anyone on here £100 if they can give my mare a full clip without sedation..............

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I think Patches is your woman

. She's just the latest in a string who have finally managed it with her mare.

 

[Sooty]

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Sedation should be used for medical purposes........not for preening procedures which can almost always be overcome if the handler can be bothered to correctly train/desensitise the horse.

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Agree. Is the trend for sedating to clip a fairly new thing? I don't remember it happening when I was younger, but it may be that I was unaware of it. I do remember twitching though.

 

[sojeph]

I think it is a new trend. I've been and worked around horses for 20+yrs and have NEVER sedated anything for cosmetic purposes and I've clipped a few buggers in my time too! TBH its never occured to me.

 

[KateStartin]

One of those subjects with no black and white answers, depends on horse/owner/circumstances!

I always sedate my horse for the dentist as he is difficult and i wouldn't ask the dentist to do it without, too risky for him and if my horse hurts him how does he make a living?!!

Had to sedate a foal at work coz it needed a coggins test to go to newmarket and we couldnt get a needle in the vein without risking us/foal/vet!!! How do you train a TB foal to accept a needle in the vein?

I'm always a bit wary of anything sedated on ACP, they can snap out of it so quickly however wouldnt have been without it when bringing my horse out of his stable after he had been on box rest for 4 months.

 

[eventingdiva]

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No sorry...I am for patience and training all the way and if the horse it that frightened by something...then don't do it! After all...clipping is not essential...it just allows us humans to have more fun in the winter with our horses!!!

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I am patient with all my horses, and they are all well trained, come and meet them if you like! However i will continue to use sedation (which my vet knows about, and trusts me to do, just has he does with the bute he gives me when i ask for it) when i think it is necessary, and when they realise that im actually not trying to kill them and chill out, i of course will not use it.
With my competition horses it is essential to clip them, due to the work they do, they get very hot if not clipped in the winter. x

 

[jules9671]

i had to have my horse sedated to get a blood test done for colic,i got acp tablets to give before the vet came and he still would not let the vet near him so then he got injected sedative which practically knocked him out, after the blood test i put him into the field and he stood in the same place i left him for 2 hrs, a couple of hours after that he had the worst colic i have seen with him....