This message is from: "Karen McCarthy" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Steve,
excellent advice on gelding post-op managment (of course, your'e the vet!)
One thing my vet has me do on top of what you have allready outlined is a
little bit of hydrotherapy, er, sppritzing of whats left down there with a
not too harsh, but steady stream of cool water for appx 5 min. Kinda keeps
the crud sloughing off, and drainage open...a bit of a challenge for some
folks when your horse hates to be around the hose & get wet, especially
THERE! but actually good training in the long run..
Karen McCarthy
Great Basin Fjords
Carson City, NV
----Original Message Follows----
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Reply-To: fjordhorse@angus.mystery.com
To: fjordhorse@angus.mystery.com
Subject: Re: when to geld?
Date: Fri, 5 Oct 2001 18:20:00 -0500
This message is from: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
You can geld really anytime you want. The younger you geld, the easier
it is on them. Weanlings hardly swell at all when gelded and don't seem
to miss them much. On average you will get an inch or two more growth if
you geld weanlings compared to gelding them as yearlings or 2 yr. olds.
My usual protocol is that the gelding have stall rest the day that it is
done. This will help keep them from starting to bleed again. Then,
starting the second day for about 5-7 days it is important that the horse
get lots of exercise. This is important to promote drainage and keep the
swelling down. Now by exercise I mean forced exercise, 15 to 20 mins of
trotting (not just hand walking) every day.
I often get people calling me a couple days after a castration
complaining about the horse being swollen. I ask if they have been
exercising it and they say "well I've got him turned out in the paddock".
After biting my tongue hard I remind them politely how I said to force
exercise it daily. A horse that has just been castrated is going to be
sore and not want to move any more than it has to. That is why you must
make it work.
Steve
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