Several of us “horsey” folks were chatting about horse care the other day and the topic came up about what was involved in deciding whether or not the owner or someone else cares for a horse with serious problems.
Within the group, we had horse owners who had faced some very serious equine issues and it was most interesting to get their perspectives on how they handled the situation and what they would have done differently if it occurred again. Then, just this week, I received my latest issue of EQUUS magazine and there was an article about this very topic and it touched on all the items we discussed (we could have written the article ourselves!).
The article titled “Hospital or Home Care?” was written by Allison J. Stewart BVSc. In the article, she identified five basic things to keep in mind when you are trying to make this decision regarding a seriously-ill or injured horse of yours. The author is a clinician at an equine hospital, so she freely admitted to somewhat of a bias at keeping sick or contagious horses at a specialized facility.
The first consideration is facility. Some conditions or injuries may require very specific equipment that your own stable or a boarding stable may not have. You may have need of a padded stall or a way of helping a horse stand without great weight bearing (overhead sling). There may be requirements of extra cleanliness, secure confinement, quarantine, ongoing medication and monitoring throughout the night. It certainly is possible for the horse owner to find a way to provide many of these things at home but certainly not without additional expense and effort.
The second consideration is finances. The thought of prolonged clinic or hospitalization expenses can be quite intimidating to horse owners. In our chat group, two persons had spent very large sums of money on clinic and hospitalization expenses. Several times during the process, the questions were asked as to when to stop spending. But it is really hard to say “no more” when your beloved equine is at the heart of it all. At least in the horse world, you can get some good estimates up front as to what it is going to cost so you can make informed decisions. Also, there may be ways of modifying treatments to reduce costs and get your horse home quicker.
The third consideration is time. As a horse owner, sometimes you can’t accurately determine how much time it is going to take to care for the sick horse. The care is usually not a “once a day” thing, there may be products to be administered, drops to be given or bandaging tasks done several times a day. I have personal experience with this and it can be quite daunting. I had a severely injured horse that had to stay at the vets for an extended period of time. I was away working (to pay the vet bill) and my dear mom went and sat with my horse every day while my horse was recovering in the clinic.
The fourth consideration is nursing skills. Not everyone is comfortable carrying out the vet’s instructions – be it changing wound dressings, managing catheters, giving injections, dosing medications in eyes multiple times a day on a horse that doesn’t want it. Also of critical importance is being able to determine if things are “taking a turn for the worse,” e.g. increased pain levels, worsening symptoms. Many times you can get frequent support from your vet so you as a horse owner can handle these situations.
The fifth consideration is emotional fortitude. Do you have what it takes to care for your own beloved horse when he/she is in trouble?
Hopefully, you never have to deal with one of your own equine friends suffering from a serious injury or illness but, if you do, these are the things to consider whether you do home care or not.
