12/07/2022
It was very timely for me to see this research for the first time today, having been involved this morning with a pony who had a fear of vets and injections. Today she successfully had her blood taken with almost no reaction. A far cry from a previous experience where she panicked so much that she was dragging vets and handlers all around her stable (and she's tiny!!).
One of the many things that we added to her shaping plan to make today a success was using EMLA numbing cream on the injection site. There was a huge amount of time, dedication and patience put into her training before this too of course.
But anything we can do to try to make stressful events, such as injections, less stressful and uncomfortable is absolutely worth doing. 😊
A recent piece of research with ponies showed that the use of a topical anaesthetic liquid applied to the skin, 2 minutes before giving a routine intramuscular injection, reduced the discomfort during needle placement.
Now imagine if we conditioned the pony to the smell of that topical anaesthetic first, by using initially a dilute form of its odour and as the pony sniffed it, we paired it with a treat. Repeated multiple times (Pavlov metronome/ bell and food style). AND we did some other discomfort reducing measures first:
Spent some time relaxing the horse/ pony by scratching their favourite spots, letting them lick something tasty, letting them hand graze next to the vet etc, BEFORE we applied the anaesthetic and whilst it was working. The perfect time to check the passport and get some history.
Kept them in proximity to a relaxed equine friend.
Used a 21, 22 or 23 gauge needle (this means a smaller diameter needle with 23 being the smallest) and perhaps 1 inch (shorter) instead of 1.5 inches (as standardly used).
Provided verbal and touch based reassurance during the procedure. And gave a food reward immediately after needle placement or injection completion.
Several of these methods are also mentioned in the new research, which used a semi feral herd of ponies, so does need some expansion of course and considerations for injections occurring in a more day to day context (the ponies in the study are not typically head collared for the handling, instead in a handling “corral” and are consistently given food and reinforcement and positive distractions during handling bouts, as well as living a life in a permanent group with much freedom of choice)
Unfortunately many horses or ponies have a conditioned response to being given injections. They associate the vets presence with pain or fear from the procedure and their heart rates are already up and memories/ responses from previous vet handlings being recalled BEFORE that needle goes in.
Many horses/ ponies freeze. That is to become stock still and rigid during the procedure- often interpreted as them being “fine” about injections.
However, many start fidgeting, rearing or even becoming aggressive and these individuals are not only experiencing an unnecessary negative state themselves, and become at risk of harsher handling techniques but also of course, handler and vet become at greater risk of injury.
It’s just wonderful to read this paper and I must also mention Gemma Pearson’s recent PhD at the University of Edinburgh too which has been all about stress reduction handling in equines, to feel that times are changing in animal husbandry and equine clinical work, focussing more on compassionate care.
I have been teased enormously in the past by fellow equine vets and by equine handlers, particularly professional handlers such as trainers, for taking a compassionate approach to equine veterinary care, including injections. This sort of research brightens my day that we are moving forward and one day, an empathetic approach to animal handling combined with application of positive reinforcement learning theory, will prevail.
Torcivia, C. and McDonnell, S., 2022. Efficacy of Lidocaine Topical Solution in Reducing Discomfort Reaction of Horses to Intramuscular Vaccination. Animals, 12(13), p.1659.
