Equine Emergency First Aid

It had been raining and the homemade bridge across the road from my property which we cross regularly felt a bit slippery under Zulus shod feet recalls Judy Todd an Abbotsford BCbased physiotherapist with a specialty in hippotherapy. Before I had a chance to warn my friend to dismount and lead my second horse Bo across his hoof boots turned into a pair of skates and he did a macabre kind of tap dance before he went down one back leg hanging off the bridge his front legs struggling to get a purchase. With my friend and I pulling on the saddle and any part of him we could access he finally managed to pull himself up only to get caught under the wood railing and pushed back down again.

This time his left leg was caught underneath the bridge while his right was half off. At that point he gave up the struggle and took a breather so I phoned home for ropes blankets and mats for a better grip and tried to imagine who might have a backhoe handy but before I got through he started up his efforts again. We got his left leg unhooked and slid him forward on his belly until he was able to struggle up without getting caught under the railing.
Amazingly he was able to weightbear and had accumulated only minorlooking cuts and grazes. The girth was shredded and we had damaged the stirrup bars from all our pulling. Unwilling to lead him back over the bridge which was also damaged we elected to lead both horses to the nearest road where my husband met us with the trailer first aid kit and blanket. His vital signs were good and I addressed the skin abrasions before encouraging him to hobble up the ramp.
His rehab was extensive and it involved hip and pelvis musculoskeletal trauma from his efforts to get up but he made a full recovery over a few months. Had he not been small calm and trusting he could have panicked himself right off the bridge and the outcome would not have had a happy ending!
Almost every owner will have to deal with an equine emergency sooner or later. A horses natural curiosity a trail ride mishap or turnout with herd mates can lead to all kinds of cuts bruises kicks and bites. Scrapes stone bruises punctures sprains or sores can happen suddenly and more serious conditions such as abscesses colic or bacterial infections can flare up with no warning.
While the advice of a veterinarian may be necessary many minor health conditions can be dealt on site with adequate knowledge and first aid equipment. But to take full advantage of onhand solutions certain protocols should be in place to help you and anyone else caring for your horse.
BE PREPARED
With some advance planning and basic knowledge of first aid youll be better equipped to handle a horse health emergency when it happens.
Emergency contact information such as the phone numbers and email addresses for the vet and farrier should be posted in the barn and saved on your phone. Maintain a health record of your horses vaccinations dewormings past injuries and incidents and any allergic reactions and have it readily available along with a record of his normal vital signs.
Know how to use all the medications and washes and practice bandaging before you need to do it in an emergency.
Make sure you have access to a truck and trailer that is accessible on short notice. Teach your horse to load quietly and safely in a trailer in the middle of an emergency is not the