Updated .. 5.03.26 ..

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Recently when I was setting up the 4 Feet First shelter fundraiser in Hahndorf a local horsey couple who live in the hills approached me.

We got to talking and they told me a story with what happened when they called a vet out to treat their horse for a mild cold virus. I was shocked with what they told me. In hope that one horse or many could be spared of this lowest of low behaviour by a minority group of dodgy vets out there who cave into temptation and/or employer pressure choosing to treat mild ailments with excessive medications all for the sake of making some extra money I'm putting their story out there for all to consider. If this expose' of sorts saves one horse,s un-necessary suffering we're on the right track.

Being a semi-retired farrier who's operated for just shy of 30 years now in and around the Fluerieu, Adelaide hills, Murraylands and Barossa and still swinging those hoof balancing tools, I've been privy to many different vet stories over the years while I'm bent over. This one takes the cake. I believe these folk were telling me the truth about what happened to their horse.
Here's what they told me..

So the owner of this horse called a 'new to them' vet out for a mild cold. They said their horse had two thin lines of snotty white mucous coming from his nostrils and not eating, not even a carrot. When the vet arrived the horse was in good spirits with the whole horse exam coming up normal, yep, normal. The gut noises were there in all four quadrants albeit a bit quiet. They asked the vet if that was because the horse hadn't eaten during the day and had an empty stomach? The vet agreed. They also told me there was no sign of any pain and no symptoms of colic whatsoever and that the subsequent vet report reflected this.

They told me the vet took a very long time to prepare medications back at their ute but all of a about a minute to administer. They weren't made aware what medications were being injected until they got the bill the following week. Apparently, with what would have had to be at lightning speed, the vet pumped 4 injections into their horse's left side neck including 2 sedatives, 2 strong painkillers which included the stacking of 2 nsaid painkillers. A Buscopan (compositum) anti-spasmodic for colic was also given in massive overdose, as was one of the nsaid painkillers related to the Buscopan. They said after they did some research the drugs given would have raised the risk of toxicity and bacterial infection substantially in their horse and even given the horse colic (see Buscopan side effect mentioned below). They said the anti-spasmodic given in overdose is supposed to be used for a horse that has a severe spasmotic colic. Their horse had no colic symptoms at all.

I could tell these people were pretty horse savvy and they told me as a precaution the only reason the vet was called was because they were worried about the horse not drinking and becoming dehydrated. A simple sedative and an electrolyte drench should have done the trick. Horses with mild colds are similar to humans. If you go to the doctor with a common cold they will tell you to go home, take a couple of panadol if you even have a headache, rest and drink plenty of water. Trouble with a horse it doesn't understand this not drinking thing and can become dehydrated quickly without correct vet intervention.

That was the first day, then they tell me they noticed their horse looking back at his belly a few times showing symptoms of a caught early colic. Not knowing the side effect of Buscopan or even that it had been used, they called the same vet back. They said the vet didn't tell them anything about the Buscopan side effect of entero-paralysis. What the vet did next shocked me. Before these people could even blink, again, according to the bill received the following week without their knowledge pumped all of those injections that were given the day before, all over again.

Note : In reference to the anti-spasmodic drug Buscopan and as mentioned above..this drug has a side of effect of entero-paralysis, a symptom of colic itself. This well documented side effect appears the next day and goes away on its own with no need for treatment. The 8 injections given over two days including 10 medications were also given one after the other without any regard for waiting times in between. All of this medication for a horse with a mild, caught early cold virus with no sign of anything else as observed in the initial vet report.

The owners said they found out that the colic symptoms would have been the side effect of entero-paralysis right on cue when Buscopan is given in high dosage. They also told me the maximum dose their horse should have received for his weight was 20-25 mls. In this case 35ml was injected and quickly. Following more research they said the side effect entero-paralysis is well documented on the Buscopan product leaflet so the vet would have known about it, then chose to keep it quiet. You may be wondering, as I was, why you would let a vet admininster those medications all over again on that second day. Apparently this vet had an extremely good smiling assassin bedside manner and had these folk eating out of the palm of their hand, and with the horse improving in his demeanor (from his cold on the second day), they trusted this vet completely, almost in a trance, expecting the vet was doing the right thing. Instead it appears the vet was setting them up and risking their horses life itself, all for a bit of extra money. Just when they thought it couldn't get any worse, the vet told them the horse had to go to hospital. This fake hospital referall when the horse appeared to be on the mend from his cold. They told me they take videos of just about everything everything and this bizarre but becoming more common with a certain particular vet business out there was no exception. The horses initial cold symptoms, recovery from the cold over the next few days, and much, much, more, was all well recorded. You may be asking what happened to the horse? They said the symptoms of toxicity and bacterial infection took 5 days to appear from all of this un-necessary treatment and he died in agony at a hospital on the 6th. day suffering a huge swelling from endo-toxemia and a bacterial infection on his left central neck and head area caused by all of the unnecessary injections given one after the other with no regard for rotation, waiting times or correct administration and dosages. Another thing these folk told me was when they asked the vet general questions right throughout this horse's ordeal which resulted in more serious questions being asked in the end, they could never get a straight answer from anyone in this company.

Here's my two cents..

After being made aware of the above, this is what I'll be doing from now on..

If I have a vet out and I don't know them from a bar of soap and even though I should be able to trust that they will do the right thing,no matter how warm and fuzzy they may make me feel while I'm vulnerable after the whole horse exam before any medications are given, I'll be asking lots of questions..

For example :
What medications are being proposed?
What is the purpose of those medications?
What doses are being suggested?
What are the side effects?
Once you're well informed, ask yourself, do those proposed medications match the diagnosis?
Very important !! Whatever medications you agree to make sure the vet is following correct procedures in regard to waiting times in between those injections for diagnostics.
Get involved with the plan of action with the vet before any injections go in.
Have someone with you for emotional support before you agree on a course of action with the vet.
Stay in control through awareness putting all the bases in your animals favour and at the same time keeping your visiting professional honest. There's vets out there who are great, but the chances of you getting caught in this trap are very high.

I'm hearing it's mainly an opportunistic phenomina happening in the emergency after hours aspect of the industry while the client is at their most vulnerable and the vet bosses are pressuring young and/or inexperienced vets to make more money, exploiting their own vets vulnerabilities. But that doesn't get the vet off the hook. They are grown, seemingly intelligent and educated adults capable of making their own life decisions. Some of them might need to learn how to say no to anything that breaches their codes of conduct.

But don't take my word for it. If I haven't convinced you to be on guard with code breaches happening in the industry including any associations who may be seen to promote this behaviour and/or turn a blind eye, just around the corner now there is new government legislation coming into force where huge penalties for any dodgy vet behaviour will be in law. There are valid reasons for these changes.

This is as real as it gets and regardless of punishments put in place, this section of the vet industry will keep doing it while they're getting away with it. The new penalties, backed up by our awareness and vigilance, I believe, will make a big difference to the safety of our horses and all other animals.

Richard Simmons