(10/2020) You don't have to pass a test in order to buy a horse. You can find them for free on the internet or buy one at auction or through private treaty. This leads to a lot of new horse owners that don't know how to properly take care of horses or recognize the signs of their common ailments. Luckily most horse owners don't have land with a barn, so instead board their horse with a knowledgeable care-taker. So while the owner may not have a clue as to how to care for a horse or even the brand or type of feed their horse is eating, the barn manager will know and is usually the first to notice if something is off with the horse.

If you're going to take a more hands-off approach to horse ownership it is imperative that you find a reputable barn with a skilled manager. Good questions to ask are how many horses have died in the last few years at your facility. Unless they run a retirement or rescue facility the answer should be 1 maybe 2. Same goes for laceration repairs that have required a vet. The well-run boarding facilities that I work for rarely call me out for emergencies despite having 15-50 horses at the facilities. They know the importance of prevention, and while accidents and illness happens, if you're having the vet out more than a few times per year for emergencies then your preventive care needs to be re-evaluated.

One of my clients moved her family out to the country a few years ago. It was their first time owning land and she and her kids were happily acquiring animals for their farm. They started with chickens and then she and a few of her friends went to the local auction one day and all bought horses and brought them back to the farm. They were all first time horse owners so figured they could learn together about how to take of the horses.

"Boots" was one of the horses purchased that evening. He was an older quarter horse with bad knee arthritis. So while he was lame and couldn't do much more than walk, he was a very kind horse and perfect for what the family needed. They had no intentions of doing a lot with him and their main goal was to have a horse that they could safely brush and groom. Boots was perfect for that job. After they bought Boots, he and the other horses acquired at the auction came down with respiratory disease so I was called out to the farm to meet all the new horses. I told them that respiratory illness was very common in auction horses but luckily this was not strangles or flu and should clear up quickly. I also told them that Boots was too lame to ride but that they could give him some anti-inflammatory meds so that he'd at least be comfortable in the field. Once Boots and his field mates were healthy, another appointment was scheduled to give all the horses their vaccines.

As Boots was their first horse, the owners slowly got to learn about how the saying ‘healthy as a horse’ is some sick joke as horses are far from healthy. They got to experience a hoof abscess and a rather dramatic choke where their daughter called crying thinking Boots was vomiting and dying as he was throwing himself on the ground while food and saliva poured out his mouth and nose. Unlike dogs, horses don't vomit. Instead the food had become lodged in Boots' esophagus and that's why it was coming out his nose in saliva coated chunks.

So as Boots' owners had now experienced respiratory disease, a hoof abscess, and choke, colic or a laceration was destined to be next on the list. It ended up being colic. Unfortunately though Boots' owners didn't recognize that he was colicing. When they came out to check him that night and found him down in the field, they assumed that his arthritis was acting up and that’s why he was laying down. They were able to get him up but he went back down a few moments later. They got him up again and when he lay down again, they assumed that Boots was just tired and went in the house and went to bed.

The next morning when they went out to feed breakfast, Boots was still down only now he was worse and couldn't even stand up. They called me to come out and said that his arthritis was bad and he couldn't get up. When I got to the farm I found Boots down in the field.

His owners were with him and said that even though it wasn't that cold (it was September), he was shivering so they'd put a blanket on him. Boots was minimally responsive and just laying there. His gums were purple. When I lifted off the blanket I could see where Boots had rubbed off most of his skin on his face, shoulders, hips, and legs. His heart rate was elevated and his gut sounds were absent. Boots had not gotten stuck down do to arthritis. He'd been colicing all night. He was laying down because his stomach hurt and as the night had progressed he'd gotten increasing painful and had rubbed off his flesh as he'd rolled and thrashed trying to find a position that was comfortable. At this point the only humane thing to do was to euthanize Boots. His owners were devastated. They hadn't realized that his situation was serious until that morning. Colic had never even entered their mind and they felt terrible that they'd left their horse in pain all night long.

While horse ownership is usually a rewarding experience it is essential to educate yourself about how to take care of your horse and the most common illnesses horses get. Join a local trail-riding club, Pony Club, 4-H or other horse organizations. Many groups have veterinarians, farriers and other horse professionals come in to give talks about horse care. Having a good relationship with a vet is also important. If something is wrong with your horse you can always call or text your vet. My clinic has a vet on call 24/7 for large animal emergencies. You can always call and sometimes we can even walk you through what to do to help your horse and you may not even need an emergency vet call. We can also tell you when this is something that should not wait until morning and you need a vet out there now.