When do you call the vet?

cc14

cc14

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As title really.

I have come across a few discussions on here with people asking for advice on their ill or injured horse, some saying use salt water and get on with it, some insisting a vet is called immediatly to conduct full body xrays and scans (Ok not quite, but you get the picture...:rolleyes:). At our yard some will call the vet at the first sign of a scratch, some not until a leg is missing.

So my question to you is, at what point do you call the vet? As soon as a problem arises, or once youve realised your home remedies will not work? Also curious to see if responses vary depending on whether you are insured...

Before anyone asks, I personally prefer to try a few home remedies or a bit of box/field rest first, but I am quite lucky to have a few fairly experienced people around me to offer advice and basic treatment at no cost.
 
depends what he's done tbh :rolleyes:
slight lameness he gets rested and the vet phoned if it doesn't resolve itself.
injurie-wise I think better safe than sorry. if I'm unsure, then I phone for advice. obviously I wouldn't phone for a wee scratch although I did once think a cut was ok and it actually required staples :eek:
 
Depends on the injury...
I'm the salt-water / home remedies type lol
Saying that, even if the injury is minor, I will call the vet if it seems like painkillers are required.

Have met a lot of people who over-react and call the vet but I suppose if it gives them peace of mind then why not it's their horse and money :)
 
any type of colic - vet

blood - call my mum :D (im crap with blood)...

Wounds/obvious injuries then vet

slight lameness/sore - leave for 2.3 days then call the vet if no improvement - rest normally sorts most out :)


i did call the vet though when the prat decided to take a 5 foot fence out and cut her leg. Only minor but i was hysterical as i thought she had broke her leg :/
 
it varies, i can normally judge for myself on cuts etc, colic vet straight out, things like a virus etc will discuss with vet, ive normally got a stock of bute and a few days of abs to save me an emergancey call out, if not vet will let me collect med on agreement if no improvement they come out.

as for insurance i have none. i have a wonderful vets who let me pay pay weekley (ive been paying 20 quid a week for over 4 years now:mad:)

my vets bill oddley enough started off with a horse that was insured too!
 
I normal go with what ever feels right, and if in doubt will always call the vet. I have been known to call the vet out for a tiny cut on my mares hock that looked like a possible puncture wound, just to be safe, turns out it was a puncture wound that went right down to her joint that required a weeks stay at the vets. So now I do tend to air on the side of caution, but then I do always have my horses insurared
 
if my horses are injured or lame i always give them at least a week eigther on box rest or field rest depending on the injury unless they couldnt walk or realy ill then i would call a vet immediatley and if i cant see an improvement in that period i will then call a vet. this works more than not if approached right :)
 
I'm just like many of the other posters. I will only get the vet out in an emergency.

But I do the same with my own health and the kids'. I have to be half dead before I drag myself to the doctors. I don't agree with taking antibiotics for every snuffle and I have this same mindset with my horses.
 
scrunchie said:
I'm just like many of the other posters. I will only get the vet out in an emergency.

But I do the same with my own health and the kids'. I have to be half dead before I drag myself to the doctors. I don't agree with taking antibiotics for every snuffle and I have this same mindset with my horses.
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I so agree!
I will call the vet for colic. Serious injuries that need stitching. Foot abscesses I am more likely to call a farrier.

Great believer in cold hosing, old fashioned poultices, common sense and natural immunity.
 
Whenever I think one of my horses needs them. Money is not a concern when it comes to their welfare.

I do get annoyed when people ask for advice on here and specifically state that the reason they aren't phoning the vet due to lack of funds. If that's the case you shouldn't have a horse.
 
Im another one to cold hose/nappy poultice/suck it and see before calling the vet!
I do tend to have a minor breakdown initially, and then sort of pull myself together and see what needs doing!
I have a mental checklist: Are they sweating/cold (when they shouldnt be!), can they weight bare on all 4 legs, is there blood/how much/is it spurting, do they have a raised digital pulse, are their gums or eyes abnormally pale, what is their poo like, is their breathing normal and lastly, are they pleased to see me.
Generally this stands me in pretty good stead, but obviously for colic, joint cuts, spurting blood or Lami the vet comes straight out!
Jhoward, I too pay my vets in instalments, I gave up insuring my older mare, and now just pay the vets! xx
 
Agree with the doctor comment - the only time I go is if someone forces me or Im on my death bed, otherwise a few paracetamol and get on with it! Im not going to run to my doctor everytime I have a tiny ache or cut so I dont think i should do the same for my horse, they are animals after all :)
 
I am probably one of the ones who says call the vet. doesn't mean I would myself.

I'm with the others, colic, major injuries or something which is getting worse. I would expect my treatment to be showing improvement in 24 hours, not cured but better.

I think the reason we nearly always recommend the vet on here is that in most cases its obvious that the poster is either a new owner or not experienced. The ones with years of experience wouldn't ask on here. In those circumstances the vet is the safest option for the horses sake.
 
rockysmum said:
I am probably one of the ones who says call the vet. doesn't mean I would myself.

I'm with the others, colic, major injuries or something which is getting worse. I would expect my treatment to be showing improvement in 24 hours, not cured but better.

I think the reason we nearly always recommend the vet on here is that in most cases its obvious that the poster is either a new owner or not experienced. The ones with years of experience wouldn't ask on here. In those circumstances the vet is the safest option for the horses sake.
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Echo this and also the ones I have recommended getting the vet too either fit into this or where I honestly think its about time the vet was called

Personally if its a minor lameness I will rest for a week and see what happens, then if no better will get the vet. I think that by then they at least need ant-inflammatory to heal faster

amazes me the amount of times people say horse injured itself and is lame but its ok its not in pain SO WHY is it lame then?? Surely if it didn't hurt it wouldn't be lame (mechanical lameness is different) therefore needs bute for the pain
 
rockysmum said:
I am probably one of the ones who says call the vet. doesn't mean I would myself.

I'm with the others, colic, major injuries or something which is getting worse. I would expect my treatment to be showing improvement in 24 hours, not cured but better.

I think the reason we nearly always recommend the vet on here is that in most cases its obvious that the poster is either a new owner or not experienced. The ones with years of experience wouldn't ask on here. In those circumstances the vet is the safest option for the horses sake.
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That is a perfect answer. I am probably also guilty of saying get the vet a lot even though I wouldn't necessarily be calling them myself but I wouldn't be asking on here because I know if I need the vet or not.

Also totally agree with when you call the vet, colic yes, stitches yes, anything else, treat, wait and look for improvement and if it isn't happening then vet :)
 
Cuts, bumps and scrapes i'll deal with myself unless it needs stitched .

First sign of colic im on the phone, my horse is worth more to me than a vet bill, and has needed to go to vet hospital before for it.

Anything i cant quite put my finger on i'll watch for a day or so as long as their tpr is alright, and no deterioration in their condition, if no better in 48 hrs its the vet man.

Lameness its anti inflammatories cold hose and box rest for 48 hrs, then a walk out and if not looking sound or progressing in that direction its the vet.
I'd rather be out of pocket a few quid than lose any of my guys

Injuries or problems that cause a prolongued change to their normal tpr where the horse is looking "flat" or looks in shock its the vet immediately
 
[QUOTE Surely if it didn't hurt it wouldn't be lame (mechanical lameness is different) therefore needs bute for the pain[/QUOTE]

There are two sides to this too. In a human, if it hurts you take a pain killer and then rest up. However with animals, you take away the pain they will use the limb and possibly make the injury worse. Some pain is needed in order to make them not use the limb. Yes, anti-inflammatories are also pain killers, but that why you end up box resting the beast.

So, immediately giving bute/danilon is not always the best thing to do.
 
uuummmmm really can't remember the last time I called the vet for other than routine stuff.. I know I'm lucky that neither of the boys are accident prone, but also I do treat minor things myself.

minor lamenesses are treated as sprains/strains and if no improvement or obvious change towards something else then as for gravel. Only twice Ron has been lame (in 7 years) both were minor gravel cases which resolved themselves with good old fashioned poulticing and convenient farrier timings to help ensure they drained properly.

cuts and bruises I treat myself unless I think they need stitching.

Ron overreached badly about 5 years ago, on new years eve. We were out hunting and I'd hacked there, so had to hack home. He was entirely sound, but I did get off and lead him home (walking 3 miles in riding boots is not fun!). getting home I washed off and bandaged the cut. He had a few days box rest, changing the bandage daily. After that he had a week on the yard to allow the cut to harden up without getting muddy. then he went back out and back into work. the vet saw him for jabs about halfway through this process and said Id done exactly what he'd have done, except he'd have charged me for it.
 
Any problem with or injury to an eye (or eyes), while it may not be life threatening, I would still consider an emergency and call the vet. I would not wait for an improvement!
 
I am firmly in the "if in doubt get the vet out" camp especially with my lad being prone to colic. I would rather pay for a vet's visit than wait and maybe have a problem get worse.
FDC
 
just remembered when I last called the vet out in an 'emergency'. It was the week before Christmas in 1999.

My welsh cob didn't come in from the field with the others. When I went back for him he was very lame and had blood running from a fetlock joint. I got him in (very slowly) and called the vet. Vet (after being threatened by welsh cob who hated vets and men, and especially male vets) decided he'd punctured his fetlock joint and gave him 24hours to put weight on the foot or PTS.

he was sound the next day but had 3 months off to recuperate.
 
While I don't rush straight to the telephone for every little thing, I try to remember what my first instinct has been - the gut feeling - when I initially realise there is something wrong with my horse. I try to check whatever it is out carefully, so far as my experience allows, make a note on a pad of all symptoms, read it back to myself, and then decide.

The one thing that influences me towards ringing the vet is if the illness/injury happens just before the weekend. I wouldn't want a situation trailing on over the weekend. I don't panic with lameness, as you often don't get the full picture for some time anyway.

Insurance has nothing to do with it. My horse is insured, but if she needs the vet, she needs the vet, whether the complaint is covered or not. He will talk me through whatever it is, and we decide on action from there. But I have a smashing vet.........
 
Lame = test with infra-red thermometer - call farrier, rest up for a day or two, poultice (if farrier reckons abscess) then vets with hoof testers and xray.

Colic = buscopan tablet and hot bran mash, watch for pooh; slightest decline Immediate vets.

Scratch/graze/cut = clean off, wound powder.

I am not a vet, but I am confident in my experience/knowledge to diagnose and treat what i can at home.
 
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