Care and Knowledge
Care and Knowledge
FIRST AID AND EMERGENCY CARE
Baseline
Temperature:
99.0 to 101.0F. is normal.
Over 102F is a significant fever.
Pulse:
30
to 48 beats per minute at rest.
Respiration:
8 to 16 breaths per minute.
Get to know
your horse's normal values. A stethoscope will aid in listening to the heart, which
is behind the left elbow. Also practice listening to the lungs and guts for normal
sounds. Practice taking a rectal temperature using a digital thermometer and record
the normal values.
Emergency items you need to have in ready supply include: Bandage
scissors; bandage material which should include various types of tape (Vetwrap, Elasticon,
duct tape), gauze pads, absorbent cotton, gauze wrap, quilted leg wraps, leg bandages;
antiseptic cream; betadiene scrub; a large syringe for flushing wounds; sterile saline
for flush; a non-
Most of these items
should be available in your barn and house. If you are packing for a trail ride you
should put many of them in a saddle bag. You can pre-
Eyes: Problems with the eyes should always be considered an emergency
and you should consult with your veterinarian immediately and decide if it needs
attention or can be treated by you. The problem could be with the lid, cornea, internal
eye or the conjunctiva which is the tissue between the eye and the lid.
Lids can be
cut or torn, they can be bruised or stung. Damage to the lid may cause the eye to
close, while the eye itself is not damaged. Swelling of the lid will cause the horse
to try to look out and the lashes will be pointing out.
Conjunctiva reaction can cause
some tearing and redness around the eye from fly irritation or rubbing the eye. This
is uncomfortable but not terribly painful. Such eyes can be flushed with saline and
treated with a steroid ointment, but not until the cornea has been stained to rule
out ulcers.
Corneal scratches or ulcers are very painful and cause a lot of tearing
and squinting. The eye lashes will point down. These eyes can be flushed and treated
with non-
Choke: This
is a blockage of the esophagus from feed which causes backup of feed and saliva into
the pharynx and makes the horse cough when the saliva gets into the windpipe.
It
is not usually dangerous to the horse but it is painful from the dilation of the
throat and causes colic like symptoms as well as a feeling of choking. It is scary
to the horse and owner but usually resolves within an hour. Remove all feed and water,
walk the horse to distract it and call your vet to alert him/her to a potential problem.
If it is not resolved in an hour your vet will pass a tube down the throat to relieve
the blockage.
Respiratory distress: If your horse is having a hard time getting its
breath, it could be allergic, such as heaves, or infectious, such as pneumonia. Taking
the temperature and looking for nasal discharge may help tell which one it is. Also
the history and age of the animal will help. In either case you should get help for
the horse as soon as possible to relieve its suffering.
Foot abscesses: The most common
cause of severe lameness in the horse is hoof abscesses. They are infections that
form in the foot from breaks in the sole which allow bacteria to enter the sensitive
tissue and start to grow. They are very painful and cause a lot of heat and a strong
pulse. It is unusual for abscesses to form in both feet at once, so it can be differentiated
from founder which is usually bilateral. While many abscesses will eventually break
out and drain on their own, the best treatment is to find them and drain them surgically.
Once opened, they can be soaked and wrapped until the infection is resolved. Antibiotics
are seldom any help. History of a recent tetanus shot should be checked or a booster
given.
Colic: This can be caused by anything that produces abdominal discomfort. It
can be anything from gas distention or diarrhea to a twisted gut. Therefore you don't
know at the outset whether it will require mild pain killers or surgery. A careful
workup and an observation as to the response to therapy will lead to the final diagnosis.
Some of the signs of colic include kicking at the belly, looking at the side, pawing,
getting down and rolling, sweating, increased heart rate, either loud or silent guts,
or any combination of the above. If any of these signs appear, call for help as time
is of the essence if it does turn out to be surgical.
Founder or Laminitis: The first
sign of this disease is a reluctance to move, frequently described as the horse looking
as though it was "walking on egg shells." There may be increased heat and a strong
pulse in the feet. It is an inflammation of the sensitive lamina which holds the
hoof wall to the coffin bone. The syndrome can be very mild or so severe that the
hooves slough off. The former may not leave any lasting damage, but more serious
cases leave the feet permanently disfigured, when the pedal bone "rotates" or drops
within the hoof capsule. Laminitis is caused by damage to the delicate blood supply
in the lamina from toxins in the blood stream. The source of the toxins can be disturbances
in the GI tract as from overeating or from an infection or degenerating retained
placenta. Acute treatment is directed at fighting the inflammation and restoring
the blood flow in the foot. Later, corrective shoeing is used to help protect the
damaged foot. Some horses can return to useful lives while others are permanently
lame. In the very worst cases the animal has to be euthanized.
Down horse: Horses
rarely lie down for very long, and when they do they usually get up if roused. A
horse that can't get up is either very sick, trapped or cast, or has a broken leg
on the down side. If there is no other sign of a problem, flipping the horse by looping
soft ropes around the feet and rolling them over on the other side, will sometimes
allow it to stand or will clarify the reason why it can't.
Tying up: Horses that are
very fit and are allowed to rest for several days while being fed at the normal rate,
have a tendency to have their muscles bind up when they go back to work. To avoid
this, back off of the feed when a fit horse is out of work, and make sure it gets
some exercise each day.
Overeating: If a horse gets into an abnormally large amount
of food, the digestive tract is unable to cope with the excess amount and it ferments,
releasing toxins and causing colic and laminitis. If the animal is treated with purgatives
and anti inflammatory agents within 14 hours, the toxins can be blocked and disaster
can be avoided. If you suspect that your horse has gotten into excessive feed or
even rich hay or grass that he is not used to, please have him treated right away.
By the time the temperature and pulse go up and he shows discomfort and diarrhea
it is too late.
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