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My first statement for any horse owner is this: if there is a doubt about your horse's health, and you are not sure what it could be, CALL THE VET! Horses can not tell you what is wrong, and sometime they have a great deal wrong but are acting just slightly weird. Your intuitive reaction is the most important; your vet will appreciate your concern. If by chance your vet scolds you for calling him out about nothing, then consider a new vet.
Consult with your vet. Find out what is helpful for him when calling for an emergency. Most vets will want:
1. body temperature
2. heart rate
3. respiration rate
4. capillary refill
5. signs and symptoms
6. gut sounds
7. a progression, if any from when first
noticed
If we went to the doctor for the flu, the nurse would take our vital signs. This is the same thing. The vet needs the vitals to understand what the body is or isn't doing. It is crucial, mostly because the horse can not talk, but also it quickens the vet's diagnosis, and his treatment. Depending on how long it takes the vet to reach your facility, these vitals should be taken every 10-15 minutes.
Things that are helpful in your medical kit: a pad and pen/pencil for writing down "vital" information. On that pad, have your vet's phone number, even if you remember it by heart. Also, by the phone, place the vet clinic number on or near it. Carry a horse thermometer. If there is a large fluctuation in temperature in your area, try to find a temperate room where you can keep your kit. Thermometers become fragile and break very easily, if not taken care of.
A stethoscope helps you listen to the heart rate, usually found behind the elbow of the horse. Count the beats in a 15-second increment. If you have never taken a heart rate, have a vet show you, and practice, practice, practice. During that time, you can also get a respiration rate. In another 15-second increment, count the breaths of the horse. With each number you receive multiply it by four to get beats/breaths per minute.
A heart rate monitor, which is used in many endurance vet checks, is a useful tool. Again, have your vet show you how to use it. The only problem with them is you can not hear the heart, so you don't know if it is beating rhythmically or not. This is also an important source of information for your vet. Rhythm in breathing and beating could also detect a serious problem. When a human heart skips beats, medical professionals become concerned, perhaps a valve is not working. The same goes for horses.
Use the stethoscope to see if your horse has gut sounds. This is particularly useful if you suspect your horse has colliced. If you do not hear any, this is a very bad sign. Horses should always have gut sounds; they are a grazing animal and need food continually, so they constantly eat.
Capillary refill can be monitored by the horse's gums. Press your thumb into the gum line above the teeth; count the seconds it takes for your print to fill back in. Notice if the gums are a healthy pink, or fading into white or pale coloration. This and the heart rate act as a blood pressure test, the heart is beating, but it might not be circulating the blood properly.
Monitor your horse; take notes on his condition so the vet has a good progression of events leading up to his arrival. Also, monitor any changes with application of medication. If you live in a remote area, discuss with your vet about keeping penicillin, bute, banimine, possibly ace promazine, and other medications that could assist your horse's condition. Use these only under the direction of the vet, and have him/her explain and show you how to administer the medication. It is also important to know the side effects, and what you should not use along with the medication, counter agents.
Other useful things to carry in your kit consist of wound dressings. Have gauze, cotton rolls, cauterizing powder, vet wrap, and ace bandages all available for a bleeding wound. Artery incisions are very scary and need to be pressurized right away. Keep all of the bloodied dressings so the vet will approximate how much blood has been lost.
Also, when changing soiled dressings and the wound is still bleeding, pile dressings on top. Keep the soiled closest to the wound there, and remove the top layers.
Most importantly, gain a good relationship with your vet. Communicate with him about things that are helpful for him in an emergency. I suggest for each horse you have, take a round of vitals each day for a week. See what is normal for them, keep it on record in your handy pad. I hope you do not need to use this information often, but do consider it as a
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