Vet Visit

Naughty and Nice

My vet, Dr. Klayman, came yesterday morning to do spring shots, sheath cleaning, and teeth floating.  All three Boys were due so it was bit of an assembly line.

Chance was first and was a good patient...mostly.  Dr. Klayman did say he needed to lose some weight--no surprise there. I will cut down on his feed and try to work him some more.  He's one of those horses that's an easy keeper, I guess.  All went well until it came time for his strangles vaccine.  This is a nasal vaccine and Chance did not like it AT ALL.  He had been tranquilized for his teeth floating and sheath cleaning, but whatever the doctor gave him had worn off by vaccine time.

Dr. Klayman has a wonderful horsewoman assistant with him--Mary-- and Dr. Klayman himself is a strong 5'10" man, but Chance certainly gave them both a fling around the stall.  He was simply as naughty as he could be, flinging his head, his body and the two handlers around in circles--even with a chain over his gums as a last resort.  He certainly is an opinionated boy when he doesn't like something.  Next time, I think that vaccine will be administered first--as soon as the tranquilizer takes effect.

Tucker was next and he was really well behaved.  For some reason, his eye was soft when he saw the doctor and he really was cute and curious about everything.  At least until he needed some extra dental work.  Two of his rear molars had hooks on them that needed to be ground down.  Years ago, my Russell R. had the same problem--a slight parrot mouth that kept the rear molars from lining up properly.  Back then my vet used a pair of tooth nippers to clip them. Dr. Klayman says the electric grinder is much better because there is much less chance of cracking the tooth which sometimes happens with the nippers.

Tuck did not like the machine and started snorting.  Clearly, the tranquilizer was not doing the job.  He needed two more doses before he was drowsy enough to accept the grinder so the job could be done.  Dr. Klayman said that not only did the molars cut into the upper gums, but they could be very uncomfortable when the horse needed to go on the bit. I will be interested to see if Tucker is better in the mouth now when I ride him.

That left Toby--The Prince. What can I say?  While Dr. Klayman said his weight was "beautiful" (By the way, Tucker's weight was "perfect.")  we both agreed we'd like to see him with more fat for the winter.  I'll be upping his feed again to see if I can get some more weight on him.  He's certainly not skinny, but older horses can use the extra calories.

At any rate, The Prince, lived up to his reputation. He was just about perfect for everything and passed his tooth check with flying colors.  He did not put a foot wrong and was the angel of the barn.  He has always been pretty good to handle, but age and experience have certainly taught him that medical treatment is usually nothing to fear and an important part of his health and well-being.

Two out of three isn't bad.