Horse in Health

Question 1

What are signs a horse is in good health? (Head)

Answer 1

• The horse is alert, with ears mobile
• Salmon pink mucous membranes
• No discharge from eyes or nose, eyes fully open
• Eating and drinking

Question 2

What are signs a horse is in good health? (Body)

Answer 2

• Supple skin, moving easily over the body
• A shiny coat
• No abnormal heat or swellings
• Well covered (enough muscle and fat to cover skeleton)
• Standing evenly over all 4 feet
• Skin recoil test: recoils immediately and shows elasticity (neck).

Question 3

What are signs a horse is in good health? (Urine and droppings)

Answer 3

• Urine should be pale in colour
• Droppings should break as they hit the ground, and be green or golden in colour.
• Horses pass between 8-12 droppings per day.

Question 4

What is a normal TPR range for horses?

Answer 4

• 38 degrees Celsius
• Pulse 36-42 bpm
• 8-15 breaths per min

Question 5

What are signs a horse is in bad health? (Head)

Answer 5

• Refuses to eat or drink
• Ears droopy, eyes dull, possibly showing discharge, nostrils showing discharge
• Mucous membranes may be yellow, pale or blue.

Question 6

What are signs a horse is in bad health? (Body)

Answer 6

• Lethargic
• Coat dull
• Trembling or shivering with body tucked up
• Abnormal areas of heat or swelling
• Horse sweating abnormally, or dried sweat marks
• Rug is twisted/torn.
• Signs of kicking walls/floors
• Kicking, biting sides or lying down and rising frequently
• Bedding in heap/tossed around
• Wheezing, breathing fast or irregularly, flanks heaving, coughing
• Keeping weight off fore feet or pointing a foot (heel raised). Refusal to stand on all 4 feet equally.
• TPR higher or lower
• In the field, horse may be away from the herd and appears uninterested in grass.

Question 7

What are signs a horse is in bad health? (Urine and droppings)

Answer 7

• Urine red/brown or black
• Not passing droppings
• Abnormal droppings (hard/too soft)/signs or D+ down hind legs.

Question 8

When should you take a horse’s TPR?

Answer 8

• When the horse is at rest, as after exercise the TPR will be raised.

Question 9

How do you take a horse’s TPR?

Answer 9

• Take resp first, so you don’t affect the breathing rate by taking pulse/temp. It can be assessed by watching the movement of the horse’s ribcage, one rise and one fall counts as a breath.
• The pulse is normally taken from the facial artery under the cheekbone.
• The temp is taken from the horse’s rectum - you should cover the end of the thermometer with some Vaseline and insert it it into the rectum, holding it at an angle against the wall.

Question 10

When might you notice signs of a stabled horse being lame?

Answer 10

• When it is first brought out of its stable.
• It may be short-strided, limping, or not putting weight evenly over all four limbs.
• Sometimes it’s noticeable when horse is in the stable, as it may be resting or ‘pointing’ the foot (normally foreleg).

Question 11

How can you tell if a horse is lame in a hind leg when it is still?

Answer 11

• They are more difficult to asses, as most horses at some time rest a hind leg.
• If the same leg is constantly rested, or held continuously off the ground, this could be a sign.

Question 12

What steps would you take to assess if a horse is lame at a halt?

Answer 12

• In general, it should be observed at a halt first, to check the leg for any obvious heat, pain or swelling.
• When the horse does show lameness, check the feet and pick them out, to see if there’s any objects or a puncture wound.
• If the horse does show signs of heat, swelling, pain or wounds, the vet should be called depending on the severity.

Question 13

How do you assess if a horse is lame at a walk?

Answer 13

• As long as the horse is not in pain, they should be walked on solid, level ground - and observed from the side, front and rear.
• The horse should be turned in both directions (away from the handler), as this usually emphasises any unevenness.
• If it’s still unclear if a horse is lame, they should be trotted by the same steps as above, but not turning the circles as they may be too sharp.

Question 14

What are the signs of lameness when a horse is moving?

Answer 14

• In a foreleg: The horse will raise its head when the lame leg touches the ground to keep its weight off that leg. The horse will drop its head when the sound foreleg touches the ground.
• In a hind leg: The horse will drop one quarter lower and raise the other quarter higher, although this may be difficult to see with slight lameness.
• For both, in general the length of stride on the lame leg will be shorter, so the horse’s stride will be uneven.

Question 15

How can signs of lameness be more clearly observed?

Answer 15

• On a circle, led in hand and on both reins on hard and soft ground (to make a correct assessment).
• Lunging can also be included when lameness is not obvious on a straight line.

Question 16

What is a flexion test?

Answer 16

This is done by the vet, who will hold each leg for a minute in turn to flex the joints, and the horse is then trotted immediately when the horse is released.

Question 17

What are the six types of wounds?

Answer 17

• Galls
• Punctures
• Lacerations
• Incised wounds
• Grazes
• Bruises

Question 18

What are galls?

Answer 18

Open or closed wounds: sores or swollen areas. Generally caused by dirty or ill-fitted tack, commonly found around the girth and behind the elbows.

Question 19

What are puncture wounds?

Answer 19

Small entry wounds but can be deep, common in the foot, caused by eg. nails. Dirt and grit often becomes ingrained inside, so the risk of infection is high.

Question 20

What are lacerations?

Answer 20

Torn wounds: rough tears, damage to tissue, high risk of infection. Edges uneven.

Question 21

What are incised woulds?

Answer 21

Clean-cut wounds - a cut from a sharp-edged implement eg. glass or a knife, often with perfuse bleeding.

Question 22

What are grazes?

Answer 22

When the top layer of skin is scraped off. The skin can sometimes contain foreign particles with can cause infection.

Question 23

What are brusies?

Answer 23

When the skin is unbroken but the blood vessels underneath are ruptured, normally noticed by heat and swelling.

Question 24

What are the main steps to treat a wound?

Answer 24

1) Arrest the bleeding - use a sterile pad firmly on top of the cut.
2) Clean the wound to avoid infection.
3) Dress the wound - applying wound powder, cream or spray.
4) Protect the wound - some will need bandaging or poulticing.

Question 25

What method do you use to clean a wound by hand?

Answer 25

• You can use cotton wool or swabs, with cold or warm water. You can use dilute hibiscrub, and make sure you use a clean piece of cotton wool/swab each time.
  1) Trim any hair away using small clippers or safety scissors.
  2) Clean the wound from the middle outwards.
  3) Dry the wound and apply the appropriate wound powder, spray or cream.
  4) Remember to clean your hands before and after treatment.

Question 26

What is cold hosing and why is it used?

Answer 26

• It’s used for swollen areas, bruising, or cleaning an open cut. If the area around the wound is dirty, clean this by hand first so you don’t wash any foreign particles into the wound.
  1) Start hosing the hoof area first to avoid startling the horse. Gradually raise the water up the body until you reach the cut or swelling.
  2) Hold the water there for 10-15 mins.

Question 27

What is a poultice?

Answer 27

• Used for puncture wounds and wounds where foreign particles are present.
• It is important that wounds heal from the inside out, so that foreign matter is not trapped inside.
• A poultice draws out foreign matter and helps to keep the wound open for it to escape. It also encourages blood supply to damaged areas.

Question 28

How is a poultice applied?

Answer 28

1) Clean around the wound first.
2) Apply animalintex dressing.
3) Cover with Gamgee
4) Vet wrap
A poultice should be changed daily, but normally done on vet advice. If the wound does not heal after 10 days, call the vet. A wet foot poultice should be stopped after 3 days, as it will cause the horn to soften.

Question 29

Once cold hosed, how can you help an area of swelling on a horse’s leg heal?

Answer 29

• Continue to cold hose 2-3 times a day.
• Apply stable bandages at night for support.

Question 30

How can you treat girthgalls?

Answer 30

Clean the wound and apply sudocrem, then when the skin has healed, apply surgical spirit to harden the skin. Use a girth sleeve to prevent reoccurence.

Question 31

How can you treat mouth sores?

Answer 31

• Bathe the sore and apply sudocrem.
• Do not use the bit until it has healed.
• Put vaseline on the sore area when it has healed before putting the bit in the mouth, to prevent friction.

Question 32

Explain how a horse should be looked after when ill/injured.

Answer 32

• Regular care and attention
• Good ventilation without draughts
• Skip out bed regularly, keep level with large banks
• Keep the horse warm. If needed, rug lightly, as a heavy rug can be tiring for the horse.
• Constant supply of fresh, clean water.
• Plenty of roughage.
• Change the feed gradually to a suitable diet for a horse off work, and they should be small feeds.
• If bandages are worn, remove daily and massage legs for circulation.
• Keep a record of condition and treatment given.
• Follow vets instructions.
• Groom, to improve circulation, mood, and keep the skin and coat in condition.

Question 33

What are signs to call the vet?

Answer 33

• The horse seems off colour for no apparent reason
• The horse has a high or low temp
• The horse is hopping, lame
• The horse has colic/shows signs
• A wound is bleeding heavily, is more than skin deep or is arterial (spurting blood)
• A wound refuses to heal
• If the horse is coughing repeatedly or there is thick discharge from the nose

Question 34

When can a lame horse return to work?

Answer 34

Only when it is sound, had 1-2 days rest.

Question 35

What should you keep a record of?

Answer 35

When the horse was last vaccinated, wormed, shod and teeth checked.

Question 36

What items can you keep in a horse first-aid kit?

Answer 36

• Cotton wool/swabs
• Animalintex
• Vetwrap
• Themometer and vaseline
• Bandages
• Blunt surgical scissors
• Gamgee
• Sterile dressing
• Wound cream/powder/spray
• Hibiscrub
• Duct tape
• Latex gloves
• Saline