Matt Randall DVM

08/13/2024

This is spot on!

Here is a topic I find extremely important: access to, and some know how around trailers

Now before we get started, I recognize not everyone can afford a trailer, has a setup where they can store a trailer, or even has a truck to haul said trailer. But bear with me here-
Everyone who has a horse needs to have access to a trailer. Yes, you do. You need to be able to hook it up, load your horse in it, and drive it.

I read comments on horse vet corner every day where a horse has had a medical emergency and the owner doesn’t have access to a trailer, and can’t get any vets out.

I am called frequently by folks having an emergency and request I come haul their horse when I am out of state or unavailable.

I read posts about evacuations from floods, fires, etc where folks can’t get a trailer to their horse.

Your horse’s life could very well depend on access to this trailer and your ability to drive it. You don’t want to be in the middle of an emergency realizing your husband always hooks up the trailer for you, or your friend does, or your trainer does - (these are all things my students have said to me as a reason why they didn’t need to learn how)

I know they are expensive.
There are many solutions to this problem: payment plans, leasing, bartering with a friend, going in on a trailer with a friend. Of all the things we equestrians spend money on- matchy matchy tack, dvds, supplements, lessons (not saying you shouldn’t take them, just saying your horses safety is kind of a priority)- a trailer is not a bad investment.

To me, having a horse and no trailer is like having a baby and no car seat

06/28/2024

Collier Equine will be closed from July 3 to July 7.

Emergency services will be be provided by Equine Partners Veterinary Services from June 30 until July 6.

06/18/2024

Is it harmful to spray cold water on a hot horse? Should you scrape your horse after hosing him? Two experts weigh in.

05/27/2024

What gets posted on social media

Perfect Angel

HF Mobster

05/12/2024

🌸Happy Mother's Day🌸

05/02/2024

Funny, not funny.

Matt: Wonder if the semen shipment will make it to the clinic.
Me: Was it being sent FedEx?

05/02/2024

It may be rainy and gloomy today, but the Texas oven is preheating.

If you have a horse with anhidrosis (not sweating) or is prone to anhidrosis, now is the time to start your preventative measures, if you haven't already. Schedule your appointment for acupuncture and start feeding electrolytes and/or the product of your choice--One AC, dark beer, etc., whatever you need to do to keep them sweating.

04/10/2024

02/22/2024

Supporting our fellow local small horse business.

02/12/2024

My wife is impatiently waiting.

02/08/2024

Day 338 Udder Disappointment

One of the impending signs of foaling is "bagging up." This is a little edema in a well-used udder in an older broodmare. We'll try to post pictures as she progresses. No promises though as she is just as likely to bag up and spit it out while our backs are turned.

01/26/2024

Everyone obviously had a good night's sleep.

Horses are polyphasic sleepers, which means they have multiple periods of sleep throughout a 24-hour period.

Horses do slow wave sleep while standing up but must lay down for deeper rapid eye movement sleep.

Like people, horses can suffer from sleep deprivation, especially after periods of bad weather. They don't feel safe or comfortable enough to lay down and get the deep sleep they need. That's why after periods of bad weather it's not uncommon to see horses sacked out sleeping.

01/18/2024

01/03/2024

Here are three ways to reduce your horse's risk of becoming dehydrated even in the coldest weather. >>>https://bit.ly/EQWinterHydration

12/25/2023

Merry Christmas 🎄 🎅

11/22/2023

The office will close at noon today and reopen at 8 am Monday.
Happy Thanksgiving!

11/14/2023

Increase forage first and PS alfalfa is generally not the devil.

Experts share eight tips to increase your thin horse's weight and muscle mass.

08/12/2023

If a horse's value was measured by the lives they touched and shaped. Our condolences to Twisted M Stables.

Faith, there are no words that will ever express how important you were and will always be to me. You survived life by my side every step of the way. Twisted M only exists because of you. Faith was my first "real" money earning, trusting, loyal, hard working, lesson horse I have ever owned. When I first started my lesson program, she was my only horse, she taught 20 lessons a week, over 5 days, all by herself. She knew every speed event and every voice command that ever existed. She could go win the whole youth class and then turn around and walk the pattern with a baby on her back without being led. She was as autopilot as they come, she had to be, cause I desperately needed her to be. She competed in speed events and showed in English and Western Pleasure Classes and even Halter . We were an unstoppable team, her and I both were workaholics and we hated unnecessary attention 😆 She was never a fan of hugs or baths and you never tied this princess to anything, she preferred being ground tied, didn't matter where we were, and she would remind you if you forgot. I always respected her simple demands because of what she gave in return. She taught approximately 8500 lessons in 16 years and won approximately $300,000 in prizes, saddles, buckles, and cash for my students who competed on her. She is the only horse they never had a serious thing wrong with her, zero maintenance, never wore shoes, barely had any days off. So of course I owed it to her to leave with dignity and that's what I did. As usual, when I know it's time for them to make their way to Heaven, I always send them with their teeth freshly floated and their feet trimmed and a bath. I have always believed in that. That has always been my thing. I want to thank Ayla Lawson for giving her the retirement I promised, a place to roam, free of work or children, and to just be left alone to enjoy being a horse. Thank you for respecting my wishes and making sure she had her teeth floated, feet trimmed, and a bath before she left your place. I will always be grateful for the things u did for her. I want to thank Dr. Randall for not only being her vet but for always being so respectful and loving to our horses when it's time to make their way to Heaven. Yesterday, I stood in her stall, for the first time in our entire existence together she let me hug her and for the first time in my existence, I hugged the best hug I've ever given. As I held her, I thanked her for everything. The amount of love I felt between the two of us was indescribable. Letting her go was probably the hardest goodbye I've ever given. As I walked out of her stall she followed me, and nudged me just before I closed the door, I truly felt she said "I will see you later " 💜 Oh Faith, I love you so much, it's never goodbye,

it's see you later....

( For those curious, Faith was 29 yrs old)
If you rode Faith, I would love it if you shared a photo in the comments

08/05/2023

It takes a team to win.
One of the most important parts of the team are the vets.

We can’t stress this enough-USE THE VET.

When the horse doesn’t feel right.
When the horse isn’t working as good as it was working.
If there are problems on the pattern that are new-have them checked.

If they all of a sudden aren’t firing or are letting up half way thru the run.
If they start being aggressive while saddling trying to bite or kick you.

The game has changed and it is way too tough to run a sore horse and think you can be competitive.

Even if one is winning and doing great, we vet them before major events or every 8 weeks. Stay ahead of issues. It's easier to correct when it is just an injection and not a major injury that was caused because we were not paying attention.

www.betweenthereins.us

📸: Bee Silva Photography

07/14/2023

COOL SCIENCE (pun intended)!

An old myth wants us to believe that horses should be walked until they cool completely after exercise, even in the summer. However, a study from 2020 looked at five different ways to cool a horse after exercise: walking, walking with fans, walking with intermittent cold water application, walking with intermittent cold water application and scraping, and stationary with continuous tap water application. As it turns out, the method that resulted in the quickest return to normal body temperature was stationary with continuous tap water application (2 minutes), while walking alone took the longest time for recovery (25 minutes).

Bottom line: enjoy your rides in the sun this summer but remain vigilant for signs of heat stress in your horse. If they look tired, it’s time for a drink, a cool bath, and a break in the shade.
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Brough to you by the AAEP Horse Owner Education Committee

07/10/2023

Our horses are out at night during the summer due to the sugar content of our abundant grass this year.

Plus, they're all primadonnas and want their fans.

Grazing horses at night can help keep them at a healthy weight and reduce their sugar intake.

06/30/2023

𝙎𝙪𝙢𝙢𝙚𝙧 𝙎𝙪𝙧𝙫𝙞𝙫𝙖𝙡 𝙏𝙞𝙥 #2: 𝙎𝙩𝙖𝙮𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝘾𝙤𝙢𝙥𝙚𝙩𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚

The heat and humidity can decrease a horse’s performance, especially if they’re not conditioned to it. Be mindful of what you’re asking them to do and when.

In high heat, most warmup times can be modified. For high-energy horses, rather than an excessively long warmup, separate riding sessions at night or frequent short rides to burn off extra energy might decrease the chances of getting a horse too physically hot and worn out before competition.

Like humans, horses lose their ambition when it gets too hot. Running cool water or applying ice to regions of heavy blood flow, like along the jugular vein in the neck or the large veins in the inner legs, can help a horse cool down and perform with maximal effort.

In some cases, horses that are “washing out” and struggling performance-wise can benefit a “vitamin jug” from a veterinarian. This intravenous administration of fluids, vitamins and minerals will deliver a quicker response than traditional ingestible products.

Be mindful of the signs of heat stress. A horse standing at rest in front of a fan and breathing rapidly with nostrils flared are in distress. Horses that fail to cool out quickly, or are still panting after repeated cooling baths, are in potential danger and are in need of veterinary assistance.

06/29/2023

A veterinarian offers tips on how you can prepare in advance to keep your horse calm despite the noise and sight of festive fireworks.

06/29/2023

A debilitating case of Napoleonic syndrome.

06/27/2023

Always a good reminder for this time of the year: The notion that a hot, recently exercised horse needs to cool down before drinking water is a myth, so be advised that it is best to rehydrate sweaty, hardworking horses without delay.

The key, however, is to know how much water to allow at one time. Because of the equine stomach’s relatively small capacity, offer small amounts of water every 20 minutes until the horse drinks his fill rather than letting the animal drink it all at once. A slower reintroduction of water is good common sense, while it makes no sense to hold horses off it.

Remember that water is the most vital nutrient for a horse. The average idle 1,100-pound horse in a cool environment will drink 6 to 10 gallons of water per day, but that amount may easily double or triple in a hot environment! Therefore, it goes without saying that providing cool, clean water to your horses at ALL times is of paramount importance.

Source: Equus Magazine and AAEP member Dr. Anthony Blikslager. More information about offering a horse water can be found at https://equusmagazine.com/horse-care/offering-a-horse-water-after-exercise-8622/

06/15/2023

𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐮𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐯𝐚𝐥 𝐓𝐢𝐩 #𝟏

Be mindful of humidity

In ideal conditions, sweat will help regulate a horse’s normal temperature through evaporation, but humidity can make that cooling mechanism ineffectual.

Veterinarian Steven M. Haugen, in writing for the American Association of Equine Practitioners, explained that the sum of temperature and relative humidity can indicate when the potential for overheating is greatest.

When the sum of temperature and humidity is below 130, most horses can generally regulate their temperatures effectively. However, at 150, sweat starts to lose its ability to keep a horse cool, especially when humidity contributes more than half that sum. At 180, sweat is essentially ineffective and the potential for overheating is greatest.

Our heat scores will mostly be above 150 until fall. Most horses and riders in our third realm of hell are used to dealing with it, but it's worth being mindful of the humidity. Sometimes is easier to cool down when the temperature is a little higher and the humidity is lower.

06/08/2023

Since we're making the temperature switch from bake to broil...

An equine nutritionist addresses the different types of salt available and how to pick the right one.

05/31/2023

We are a neutral party on a fact-finding mission on behalf of the buyer; however, I do have some clients try to get around that neutrality by asking "Would you let your wife buy this horse?"😎

It’s no secret that owning a horse is a big investment in terms of money, time and emotion, so before you acquire a new horse it’s important to investigate the animal’s overall health and suitability through a pre-purchase examination (PPE) conducted by an equine veterinarian.

But what is the role of the veterinarian during the PPE? Are they supposed to tell you if you should buy the horse or not? The answer is no—the veterinarian is not there to pass or fail the horse, their job is simply to find out everything possible about the animal’s **current** physical status. The decision to purchase the horse is then totally up to you based on the veterinarian’s findings, your goals for the animal and how much risk you’re willing to assume.

And remember: keeping an open and honest line of communications with your horse doctor is always key!