Safety

SafetyIn this class we will learn the safest ways to handle animals and perform procedures.

Safety of the patient and all personal involved should always be a primary concern when working with animals. Although successfully completing an examination or a procedure is the primary objective, this objective should never supersede human safety. It is important to remember that an animal’s behavior can never be correctly predicted 100% of the time. The best way to stay safe is to be constantly evaluating the situation, and be flexible enough to change what you are doing if there is unacceptable risk to people or the patient.

A. Behavior: Knowing the typical behavior of each species is important in safe and efficient handling. Please refer to attached pages for brief descriptions of typical behaviors, and a handout on the “vices” of horses.

B. Approaching an animal in a clinical situation. The goal is to achieve the objective (physical examination or procedure) efficiently, in the safest way possible, with the least possible stress to the patient. Achieve this goal by following these steps.

1. Assess the situation (environment, animals’ temperament, and type of procedure) and form a plan.

2. Pay attention to information that the owner gives you about the animal’s typical behavior, but trust your own opinion of the animals’ temperament based on the signs it gives you.

3. It is the primary job of the veterinarian, and secondarily the technician, to keep the situation under control. Veterinarian and technician must have excellent communication.

4. Have a back up plan (increased restraint, chemical sedation) and do not let your pride get in the way of using it! Go to plan “B” before the situation escalates.

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Behavior of Large Animals

The information contained here is only a BRIEF introduction to a large subject. Please let me know if

you are interested in further references on this subject.

Horses

1.Usually are not blatantly aggressive with the exception of many stallions, and some broodmares with

foal at side.

2. Horses are herbivores, grazing animals, not predators. As such, their most common defense is flight.

An anxious horse about to run away will often: raise their head and stare at the perceived threat, flare

nostrils, and elevate the tail. They will sometimes whinny and blow loudly through their nostrils. As

herd animals, most horses are more comfortable when in close proximity to other horses and may

become anxious at forced separation.

3. As with many prey animals, horses are easily startled. Sudden movements (objects or people), loud

unexpected noises, and unexpected additions to a familiar environment can startle a horse and cause

them to flee or jump away (common horseperson terminology= spook or shy).

4. Temperament varies between individual horses and amongst breeds. Many horses will be nervous

and jumpy in unfamiliar situations, and much harder to control.

5. When horses do become aggressive their usual defense is to lunge forward and bite, kick with hind

legs, strike with front legs and squeal. Aggression is most often exhibited between horses but can be

aimed at people! Ears laid back is the most common and important aggressive posture.

6. Herds of horses will establish a pecking order of sorts, and they may be aggressive to a new animal

introduced to the group.

Cattle

1.Bull is most aggressive, beef cattle are typically less predictable than dairy.

2.Bulls will paw the ground, hold head low, snort, charge, toss and kneel on victims.

3.Cows/Heifers: aggressiveness depends on socialization, breed and amount of handling.

4.Calves should be treated gently with a slow approach in a quiet deliberate fashion.


Pigs

1.Aggressive behavior consists of jaw snapping, barking grunts, pushing with their heads, and slashing

with their tusks (boars).

2.Piglets over two weeks of age will fight and begin to establish a pecking order.

3.Pigs may be aggressive to new pigs introduced to an established group.

4.Sows can be dangerous, especially with a litter. When piglets need treatment it is best to remove them

from earshot of the sow.

5.If kept calm pigs will move as a herd, but will run over each other in avoidance behavior if startled.

Sheep

1.Rams: engage in inter male aggression.

2. Sheep will use a tightly packed herd to avoid an uncomfortable or frightening situation. Sheep dogs

make use of this to move sheep into an enclosure.


Restraint and Handling of Horses

I. Basic husbandry: This is not a class in husbandry, however, it is important for an equine

veterinary technician to be knowledgeable (client communication) and skillful in equine

husbandry, and it will be discussed throughout the course. Today we will work on horse

handling and grooming. You are responsible for the following:

1. Halter Placement. Most horses are taught to accept a halter at young age. Horses may be

turned out with or without halters, depending on the handler’s preference. Horses are easier to

catch with halters on, but it should be noted that horses should only be left unattended in halters

with a leather “break away” strap, so that if they become entangled they are not at risk of

strangling themselves as they seek to escape. Horses may be caught by their halters, but should

always be lead with a lead rope.

2. Use of a lead rope to lead horse forward, turn and backup. (Jogging horses and lunging will

be covered in a later class dealing with lameness). Lead ropes are clipped to the metal ring on

the underside of the noseband of the halter. Horses are trained to be approached and lead from

the left side. You should stand at the horse’s shoulder while leading in order to avoid being hit

with the horse’s feet from behind. From this position you can use your elbow to put some

pressure on the horse’s neck if he is crowding you. Never wrap any of the excessive line around

any part of your body. The purpose of the lead rope is to have something to hold on to if the

horse spooks, if it is wrapped around your hand you could be dragged or have your hand broken.

Many horses have been trained with voice commands (walk, back, trot, and “whoa”=slow down,

are most common. A clucking noise can be used to encourage horsed to move forward or pay

attention) and these commands, as well as directed pressure on the noseband through the lead

rope may assist you in communicating your wishes to the horse.


3. Placement of horse on crossties. Cross ties are used to hold horses still so that the handlers’

hands are free to do other things to the horse such as grooming and tacking up. Horses should

not be left unattended on cross ties.

4. Basic grooming including currying, brushing, and picking feet. You are responsible for

being able to ID all the grooming equipment including: hoof picks, curry combs, hard and soft

brushes, mane combs, sweat scrappers, and shedding blades. Grooming is done in order to keep

the horse’s coat in the desired condition. The amount of time and attention spent on grooming

will vary with the intended purpose of the horse. Grooming is a great time to get to know what

is normal for an individual horse (old injuries and scars) and for horses in general (people will

often mistake normal anatomy such as chestnuts for medical problems). Picking the feet keeps

rocks and soft mud and manure from building up, which can be damaging to the feet. It is

especially important if the horse wears shoes.

II. Restraint: Restraint is the act of controlling an animal so that it can be examined or treated.

It is a responsibility veterinary technicians should take seriously because everyone’s safety is

involved. If the horse is well trained, has a docile temperament, or the procedure is not painful or

frightening, restraint is often nothing more than a simple halter and lead rope. Horses are incredibly

strong animals and will win any contest where strength is the deciding factor. All methods of

restraint rely upon the horses’ prior training and an ongoing process of training through negative and

positive stimuli. Because negative stimuli are employed, restraint can be easily abused and

overdone. Negative stimuli are most effective and kind when used in the following manner: bad

behavior initiates the negative stimulus, and good behavior makes it go away. Experience shapes a

horses’ future behavior. If a particular procedure is minimally frightening or painful they tend to

remain accepting of the procedure. Bad experiences tend to lead to an exacerbation of bad behavior

in the future. We are fortunate to have excellent sedatives available to us now which give us an

alternative to contests of strength with horses which can be potentially dangerous, painful to the

animal, and damaging to the animal’s future behavior.

Restraint (cont)


The situation, the animal’s demeanor, and the procedure to be performed dictate the amount of

restraint necessary. Always begin with the least amount of restraint possible, but do not attempt to

continue with a procedure if the animal becomes fractious or unmanageable. Completing a

procedure is never worth getting hurt over! Sometimes it is necessary to return at a later time, with

additional help in order to complete a procedure

You are responsible for knowing the following methods of restraining a horse. Asterisked items will be

discussed only.

Use of a chain lead shank: chain over nose, chain in mouth, lip chain. In all cases short sharp

tugs when the horse misbehaves should be used rather than constant hard pressure (war of

strength and will- you WILL lose) with the chain. The chain over the nose is most useful when

leading a horse that is trying to drag the handler. The chain in the mouth is a stronger form of

restraint and is most often used to help control excited breeding stallions. The lip chain can be a

very painful form of restraint, but is very effective, and can be a good training aid when used

properly. A lip chain is most often used to get a horse to stand still when for one reason or

another a twitch is ineffective. With a lip chain constant light pressure needs to be maintained

in order to keep the chain in place. If the horse makes a sudden movement forward or up the

chain will automatically “hit” the horse in the lip, this pressure will be reduced when the horse

stands quietly. Effectively the horse is able to control the painful stimulus with good behavior.

Constant strong pressure or jerks on a lip chain are abusive and cruel.

Twitch: rope/chain nose twitch, humane twitch, neck twitch, ear twitch (last resort!!) Twitching

means holding and twisting some part of the horse’s body. Twitch is also the name of various

tools used to facilitate a nose twitch. The nose twitch is the most common form of restraint used

to keep a horse still, and seems to have an instant calming effect on many horses, presumably

because it triggers a release of natural endorphins (similar to “scruffing” a cat). Many horses

however resent the twitch being placed, or fight through a twitch. A twitch requires constant

twisting pressure with an increase in pressure during the painful procedure (example: at time of

injection). A long rope twitch is the safest and most effective, but are not sold commercially.

Commercially sold twitches are usually shorter and the loop is a chain. A chain has more


potential to injure the oral mucosa if used improperly. Added length allows the handler to stand

in a safer position at the shoulder. A small humane twitch works well for small horses, or when

only minimal added restraint is necessary. A neck twitch (simply grabbing a fold of skin at the

neck is an easy first method of restraint. An ear twitch (twisting the horses ear) can be quite

painful and can damage the ear and so must be used judiciously. An ear twitch is commonly

used on small squirmy foals. I only use an ear twitch on an adult if it is only required for a short

time and is absolutely necessary: all other methods of restraint have been tried and failed, and

chemical sedation is for some reason not an option.

Holding up a foot: pros and cons. A horse’s foot can be held up to help keep the other feet on

the ground. For example: the veterinarian is trying to clean a wound on the left hind leg, but

the horse keeps stamping. In this situation the left front leg can be held up because horses do

not like standing on two legs- especially two legs on the same side of the body. However, if

sufficiently irritated horses will continue to stamp in this situation, resist the foot holder, or even

through themselves to the ground! This form of restraint should be used carefully!

*Stocks: Often used for reproductive work, or procedures that involve working directly behind

the horse. Not appropriate for horses that are overly excited or painful due to risk of them going

down or getting stuck in stocks.

*Hobbles: Most often used in certain training methods, or on mares during live breeding to

ensure that the stallion is not kicked. Hobbles must be fashioned in such a way that they can be

easily removed, or the horse risks injury.

*Chemical sedation: Must be used under a veterinarian’s direction. Although sedation makes

many procedures easier and safer for horse and veterinarian, it is not a panacea. Horses can still

kick under sedation, and veterinarians and technicians should continue to pay attention even in a

sedated horse.


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Safety