The annual spring maintenance of the horses was done at the stable today.
I check all horses' teeth twice a year. In the spring, the horses are vaccinated and dewormed, and they also undergo any other necessary treatments. Today, the program was only teeth, vaccinations and deworming.
I always prepare for the vet's arrival by cleaning the horses and the stable.
I take the horses to the stable on time so that the veterinarian does not have to wait unnecessarily. The horses' passports or vaccination cards must be included so that the veterinarian can see the vaccination history and mark new vaccinations on the cards.
The vet started with the teeth.
The horses were sedated one by one for the procedure. Each horse is checked over time and the teeth are examined one by one using a good light. The doctor only scales the teeth if necessary. I am glad that I have found a dentist who is knowledgeable in his field and who can spend time with each patient. This time there was hardly anything to treat in the teeth, so we got through the operation quite quickly.
The vaccination rules for horses, for example in competitions and exhibitions, are quite strict, so it is worth sticking to the vaccination schedules.
The vaccine is valid for one year, and it should not be given for more than a day. If the vaccinations are late, the entire vaccination program will have to be started over. Our horses are used to spikes, so the vaccination went smoothly.
Deworming is something that every horse owner should carefully familiarize themselves with.
Horses should be dewormed at least twice a year, preferably more often. We have dewormed according to the program drawn up by the veterinarian in spring and autumn, at the beginning and end of the frost season, but in the future I plan to make it a habit to also take manure samples once a year in the summer. The manure sample can be conveniently sent by post to, for example, Kuopio Movet, and many clinics also check them themselves. The manure sample is a good way to find out whether the previous deworming worked and whether it is worth doing an additional one.
I was just looking at old social media updates, and according to them, spring came much earlier last year!
There is still snow on the ground here, although it seems to be receding quickly. I have given myself permission to take it easy for a few more weeks, after which I will start spring work on the farm. In addition to daily horse care, our spring will include carpentry work, designing a new manure shed and building a fence.
