Vet Manners, Shots, etc.

2009-05-21 Thread Heather Baskey
This message is from: Heather Baskey 

I just received my Parelli e-Newsletter - and lo & behold, a question about
needles/shots came up ... sharing with the group - as it was a busy topic as
of late.
 
Heather
 
QUESTION
Okay, I am at a total loss with my 3-year-old mare who recently tried to kill
our (relatively savvy) vet and a trainer when they tried to inject her with
tranquilizer. I was not there - maybe that was a mistake - but she apparently
struck the trainer and caused both to think she was unmanageable vis-à-vis
shots. Her first shots were given by a vet who used an ear twitch; I put a
stop to this the second time and she has gotten over any ear problems long ago
, but the needles are still a battleground. I did the toothpick
desensitization, pinch-poke game, lots of praise, carrot bite at the time of
injection, treats...but she knows the difference and if it's a needle, she
freaks. Last time (out of desperation; she couldn't go to trainers without
vaccines) a nose twitch seemed to work fine, and she is still okay with me
playing with her nose afterwards, so I guess it wasn't too traumatic. But I
don't like relying on that. I really want to get her over this.
 Any ideas? She has done really well with all the groundwork, except this.
—Claire
ANSWER
This is a very serious situation especially as she's been through so much
trauma. I would be doing a lot of Friendly Game, plus developing the overall
relationship of trust and respect via the Seven Games and Patterns. When it
comes to the simulations, you need to make sure the mare is truly relaxed and
not at all tense. Treats are not going to help here — they are for incentive
once a horse is bored with repetition. In this case you are dealing with
intense fear. And it's not about the needle as much as it is the whole trust
thing. I would be doing more needle simulations and then actually using a
needle (without the injection part). You want her to become so relaxed, so
trusting, that even a little pin prick cannot upset her. She knows without a
doubt that you wouldn't hurt or kill her - which is really how prey animals
think about predators! What Level would you say the mare is? I'm concerned
that when you talk of her going to the trainers that
 something happens to her overall trust of people. Is your trainer using
natural approaches and putting the relationship first? If she is not treated
this way by every human it is to be expected that she will always have trouble
when it comes to anything potentially threatening a human might ask of her,
such as taking a needle. When we got Casper (Pat's gorgeous black stallion) he
was lethal about things like needles and pastes - we were aptly warned! But it
didn't take long before you could do almost anything 'to' him and he would
trust that it was all going to be okay. Now Pat is a master, so a couple of
months is all it took him and that means it will probably take people like you
and me a lot longer than that - many months of dedication to building
infallible trust and respect.
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Fjords in CA.

2009-05-21 Thread Pedfjords
This message is from: pedfjo...@aol.com

Thanks to everyone who responded here and by private mail. Im afraid there 
was nothing we could do for the 6 Fjords who were sold for slaughter, but in 
that, the good news was that the one was adopted. 
I have been in touch with Joe, from TB Friends ( his blog today will make 
you cry ) and he has my and others contact information in case he ever comes 
across another Fjord(s) in need. Esp. those in CA who wrote him offering to 
help a big THANK-YOU. Hopefully it wont be needed. 

Lisa


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Birth Announcement - A new Ulend colt!

2009-05-21 Thread Ronni Taylor
This message is from: Ronni Taylor 

Fjord Friends,
I have the great pleasure to announce the birth of Torden av Ulend!

By Curt Pierce's big grey stallion, Ulend, out of Rhonda Taylor's brown dun 
White Roses' Miss Thunder (aka Thumper, formerly owned by Amiee Day)

Torden is the Norwegian word for "the sound of Thunder" and av is "of", so he 
is "Thunder of Ulend". Probably an apt name given his big shoulders and long, 
big-boned legs!

Torden will be gelded, and trained as harness mate to his mom. He is a smart, 
very friendly little guy, who has something to say about everything! Very 
talkative and curious. Color as yet undertermined - most likely brown dun, like 
Mom.

R.Taylor, Straw Hat Stables

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