Twitching

Also, a twitch should be made from rope, not binder twine, which sometimes happens in a dealer's yard. Now, THAT can cause problems.

Agree about photographs, etc.
 
minimilton said:
I personally wouldn't make enemies with any vet. You never know when you may need them in an extreme emergency
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There are plenty of vets around. I wouldn't tolerate one that injured my horse.

IMO people seem to resort to twitching rather too easily...I can see the value for some medical investigations, but ear clipping??

By the way, what the heck is tongue twitching??? It sounds utterly barbaric. (as does ear twitching, but I know what that is, and I've seen the long term difficulties it can cause).
 
Landcruiser said:
There are plenty of vets around. I wouldn't tolerate one that injured my horse.
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When my horse had a severe prolapse and was bleeding to death I was glad that a vet I disliked and stopped using 2 years previously was able to attend in less than 10 minutes. Had I waited for my new vets or alternative ones she would have died without a question of doubt. Needless to say I dropped the grudge after that.
 
Hi,

I haven't read all the posts but my loan horse had nasty blisters which then sloughed off after repeated twitching at the vets for nerve blocks. I considered it acceptable as the horse won't let you near him with the clippers (they need to clip before injecting) and you can't trot up a sedated horse for a lameness work up - which I think is the case in your scenario OP?
However, if I was to take him again I would take my humane twitch which works a treat and and doesn't leave a mark.
Twitching is something I avoid but I do use it sometimes.
 
LouandBee said:
Hi,

I haven't read all the posts but my loan horse had nasty blisters which then sloughed off after repeated twitching at the vets for nerve blocks. I considered it acceptable as the horse won't let you near him with the clippers (they need to clip before injecting) and you can't trot up a sedated horse for a lameness work up - which I think is the case in your scenario OP?
However, if I was to take him again I would take my humane twitch which works a treat and and doesn't leave a mark.
Twitching is something I avoid but I do use it sometimes.
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Mine was a slightly different scenario in that he was not sent for a workup, I left him for an op, they did one despite telling me they would not and making sure I was not there for some reason, that is more of an issue than the twitching, the OP was more to gauge reaction and others experiences than about the use of a twitch which I am happy to use myself if required, everyone has been helpful and there are some interesting views, thanks also to those who have pmd.
 
My mare was twitched yesterday for tubing and there was no mark at all. The vet used a metal shaped twitch with a clip so it clipped onto the head collar. Marked improvement in the broom handle with a bit of rope on it we used to use years ago. She is the first horse I've owned that twitching actually worked on, two previous ones would all of a sudden wake up and start going bananas and swinging aforementioned broom handle all over the place. This was a much better affair and think I might get one for emergencies.
 
be positive said:
So the vet stating "is his nose still sore from the twitch, we use one as routine for nerve blocks", along with a chifney, on a horse that was injured and upset away from home would be unacceptable to you? This was a week later, he was sore for about 10 days, with the skin sloughing off, not badly but noticeably a month or so later, it was actually the least of my concerns at the time but it is still niggling away as I try to get to the bottom of what really happened.

It is interesting to get other views as you can tend to be blinkered when it is your horse that has been injured.
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why on earth wasn't he sedated , poor horse
as others have said twitching a horse shouldn't cause any injury although i have seen an injury caused by a twitch
i bought my horse as a foal and i discovered that they had twitched him to trim his feet , he had rope burns all over his lower face , he was only 4 months old and the skin would have been very delicate , he'd also never been handled up until this point so he would have put up quite a fight
 
I may get jumped on here, but I don't use a 'humane' twitch, I use the controversial batton with thick bailer twine as fburton describes it. I've used this to twitch my boy when clipping his sensitive bits, ears, face, legs, when pulling his mane and tail... (He's a sod with his mane but good with his tail but I still use it as a precaution). I say this to illustrate that i use the less favoured form of twitch, but have NEVER had a lasting injury, Ben has never ever been sore from the use of such a twitch, it is done up firmly, released regularly, and the second it is released his muzzle is massaged to stimulate blood flow, he is then given a break before re twitching.

I do not say the above to stir people's responses, as Ben gets more used to clipping and pulling, the need to use this is less and less, I'm happy with the method I use and will continue to use it. My reason for posting this is that if I can and do use the least favoured method and hand on heart never have had an injured or sore horse as a result, moreover, if my yo who regularly uses this method when clipping, trimming and pulling other people's horses can use the same method without ever causing injury or soreness to any horse then I would say that the vets have seriously messed up. No horse, no matter what method used should experience lasting soreness from twitching unless the handler is an incompetent jobsworth that needs shooting.

With regards to using twitches for routine practices as standard, this is not uncommon. When (years ago) I looked into getting ebony in foal and had a vet out to scan her, they stated that they never scanned without a twitch. I personally understand this, and would not question it. If you got a vet out to do a job, you gave the vet permission to do the job. If the nerve block had gone ahead with no issue from the twitching, I'm sure you wouldn't be bringing up the issue that they had twitched without your permission.

To my mind, it's not that they twitched without your permission that's the issue, it's the fact that they caused damage, whether lasting or not.

Within seconds my boys skin pinks up, there are never any lasting marks or sensitivity. If there were, I'd want blood.
 
fburton said:
Do you happen to know if a so-called "humane twitch" was used, or the conventional sort with a rope loop at the end of a baton? The reason I ask is that the humane twitch can be easily attached to a headcollar after it has been tightened and will maintain the pinch while the handler gets on with something else (e.g. mane pulling). The downside is that it would be easier inadvertently to leave it on for longer than it should be. In contrast, the conventional sort of twitch is usually held by a second person, so there should be less 'excuse' not to remove and reapply it as appropriate. Just a thought...
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Actually, just to argue this... I use the controversial twitch when I'm on my jack jones and I tuck it up inside the headcollar so I can clip/pull/ handle with two hands free
 
I have never known a horse twitched for nerve blocking.....
I have never know a horse twitched for tubing...

If my vet did either of these things while using a twitch I would seriously consider there ability as a vet. There have been times when I have held a horse with a twitch but never for more than 10mins at a time and the nose is always checked for soreness afterwards. If my horse was returned to me in the state that your horse was give back op....... I would demand an explanation on the spot of what had happened and report the condition of the horse to the rcvs with images

What you have described is appalling and should not have happened under the care of veterinary professionals.
 
Well I've never had a horse tubed before so I have no idea but I can tell you the horse had lamed itself on a stone, been signed as fit to travel by one vet and given bute, went down in the trailer on the way home/had a reaction to the bute and lamed two more legs and then took spasmodic colic. She may have stood to be tubed I have no idea but her reaction to things she doesn't like (which are anything involved with being touched) is to rear, and after the day she had already had I see no problem at all in twitching her to get the tube in with no more dramas because I'd had my fill of them never mind her!
 
I've seen horses twitched for blocks - the fact is some REALLY do not want to stand for it and given the delicacy of the structures involved, the safety aspect, and the fact that it's not usually done lightly, it can be a "needs must" situation. I think it's quite far down the line for methods of restraint though, and not my initial "go to" in most situations.

OP, I would not be pleased in your situation simply because the lines of communication have broken down. Yes, you want the vet to fix your horse, but you are also paying for a service and have a perfect right to have your goods returned to you in a "good as new, if not better" state or, at the very least, an explanation why this is not the case.

My PERSONAL view is something must have gone quite wrong for experienced horse handlers to inflict that kind of lasting damage - I have never seen anything like that and I've seen many horses twitched over the years. Again, I'd want to know what went on!

Then again, I'm not a fan of chiffneys. I think horse's mouths are precious and easily damaged, and, having restrained horses safely for decades without them, I cannot think them essential. Which is not to say I haven't seen them used successfully, especially for leading issues, on horses that have been trained to them. But I do not find them good for restraint and am surprised that a vet service, presumably full of people used to dealing with upset horses, would default to a chiffney and a twitch used significantly enough to cause the damage you describe, but then not have anything to say on the subject, not even a "wow, your horse is a *******" type comment, however unacceptable that might be!
 
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As the owner of a horse who does require twitching for certain procedures for both his own safety and the safety of those around him (and a twitch is cheaper and quicker than full sedation, has a good effect and some of the procedures eg nerveblocks during lameness exams needed him to be able to walk and trot normally within a few minutes of them being performed) he has never had a lasting mark left on him or any ill effects. Only exception to this is when an inappropriate tool was used in an emergency situation when I wasn't present and when I looked at him the next day I couldn't find the mark that had been described to me.
 
TandD said:
I have never known a horse twitched for nerve blocking.....

If my vet did either of these things while using a twitch I would seriously consider there ability as a vet.
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Really?? How do you nerve block a horse that really is not going to play ball then??

Mine was twitched just the other day for nerve a block.Didn't make him exactly compliant,but did help I think and unsure what else we could have done.I would challenge anyone to come and make my git of a welsh cob do anything he doesn't want to without any means of 'persuasion' so to speak:wink3:

I also seriously considered my vets ability.I considered that she was bl**dy marvellous to have got the block in at all with only the use of a twitch:biggrin3:

OP- Is it the twitch itself you object to or the marks present afterwards implying it wasn't done properly??

I'm not sure what other method would be preferable TBH.Nerve blocks are very precise and the horse needs to be still,other than sedation which can't be used I'm not sure what else could be done with a non compliant horse??

I agree excessive damage to the nose is not acceptable,and for this I think you do have every right to question how it happened.

For me personally a bit of minor skin damage/soreness wouldn't be the end of the world,but then i know what a git my horse can be,and i trust my vets judgement completely to deal with him as they see fit.

Hope your horse is now recovering well OP,and that you resolve your issues over his handling at the vets.
 
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