# Do you give your own shots?



## Joshie (Dec 8, 2008)

I'm curious as to how many people give their own shots? If so, do you have the vet come out only once a year? 

Which shots do you give?


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## SFM in KY (May 11, 2002)

I give everything but rabies. Always have. The vet comes out when something happens that I can't handle myself or I need something that requres a vet like blood drawn for a Coggins.


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## fetch33 (Jan 15, 2010)

I only have two horses, so I trust my vet to give the shots, do the exams, pull Coggins and do the teeth. I think it pays to have a good relationship with your large animal vet as they are a dying breed!


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## lamoncha lover (Mar 1, 2009)

I usually have the vet do shots the first time and then I do it myself after that.
I no longer give rabies after my horse had a bad reaction to it.


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## saanengirl (Apr 7, 2009)

I give all shots but rabies. I take my horses to the vet once a year for their coggins and rabies vaccination.


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## fordson major (Jul 12, 2003)

at one time i gave our equines their shots, just as easy to have the vet jab them when hes up doing something else!


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## arabian knight (Dec 19, 2005)

I always give my horses their shots. Including rabies. No big deal they are all given IM.
And being my mini the only one I have now does not leave my place I don't have a coggins test, no need to get one.


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

If you are not sure which vaccines to give, I would talk with your local Vet. They will know what is needed in your area. Plus most Vets are happy to show you how to safely give vaccines.

I give my horses their vaccines.


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## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

arabian knight said:


> I always give my horses their shots. Including rabies. No big deal they are all given IM.
> And being my mini the only one I have now does not leave my place I don't have a coggins test, no need to get one.


In many states, rabies vaccine is only sold to licensed vets. I gave rabies vax when I was able to get it. Vets here don't even bother with it.


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## Joshie (Dec 8, 2008)

I'm a nurse. It just has to be easier to give a shot to a horse than to a human. A friend of mine scared me a bit because she had a horse die after getting the West Nile shot. I figured I'd use the Five Way shot. 

Do you usually give your shots this time of the year? We're planning on going to TSC for the shots tomorrow.


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## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

Joshie said:


> I'm a nurse. It just has to be easier to give a shot to a horse than to a human. A friend of mine scared me a bit because she had a horse die after getting the West Nile shot. I figured I'd use the Five Way shot.
> 
> Do you usually give your shots this time of the year? We're planning on going to TSC for the shots tomorrow.


I'd give west nile vax as well as the 5-way.


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## malinda (May 12, 2002)

I've always given my own shots, though my horses have never gotten a WNV. One of my clients, who is a vet, advised not to because the vaccine's potential side effects (more horses seemed to have a reaction to this vaccine than the other 'normal' ones) outweighed it's benefits.

Some of my clients have titers pulled, and then vaccinate (or not) accordingly.


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## lamoncha lover (Mar 1, 2009)

i would never get vaccines from tSC or any other store. If they don't have it sent on ice or don't get it umpacked and refridgerated right away you are giving nothing of value. I get my meds from revival or the vet. I know of a 1800 puppy the folks thought they'd save 10 bucks by using tsc vaccines. Pup died of parvo.


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## Jay27 (Jan 11, 2010)

I second the comment on getting vaccinations from a source who is more likely to have handled them properly. Too warm or too cold and they can be at best ineffective and at worst toxic. Even my vet has gotten bad vaccinations in the past, prior to the major shippers adding the package trackers that change color if the package gets too hot or cold. 

I have my vet check titers when he is out to do coggins. Then he allows me to purchase what I need from the clinic and I administer it. It has been 3 years since I gave a vaccination... titers always come back good in both my dogs and horses. My vet is great, though, and believes that animals are overvaccinated (just like people).


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## ErinP (Aug 23, 2007)

We give our own shots, also. 

We don't do titers, but we don't give annual vaxxes, either. Probably about every five years. I figure that way we split the difference between over-vaxxing and under.


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## 2horses (Jul 19, 2004)

I've never had a titer run, wonder if anyone here does them? I have my vet give annual vacs, was religious about all the mosquito-borne ones when I lived in the coast. but went 18 months instead of 12 this last time now that I'm further inland and mosquitoes are not so prevalent. I may stick to a little longer schedule from now on. Oh, and rabies is must have around here, have had a few cases in skunks in neighboring counties and don't want to take a chance on horses or dogs. I am fully capable of giving my own, just prefer the over-all checkup and shots, coggins and floating etc. that the vet's going-over provides.


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## ForMyACDs (May 13, 2002)

malinda said:


> I've always given my own shots, though my horses have never gotten a WNV. One of my clients, who is a vet, advised not to because the vaccine's potential side effects (more horses seemed to have a reaction to this vaccine than the other 'normal' ones) outweighed it's benefits.


I find this interesting. We have over 4500 horses under our care at the clinic where I work. Many of these are some pretty big name breeding and training facilities. Eastern, Western, Tetanus, West Nile, Potomac and Rabies are the vaccines that are on our "give to everyone" suggestions for vaccines (Rabies was just recently added last year when Rabies started to become a major issue in the state). Strangles and Rhino/Flu are suggested for those horses who are showing, traveling or in barns where there are a number of horses in/out.

With the thousands of horses we've vaccinated since the West Nile vaccine was developed there has been one vaccine reaction.......one. That reaction was some minor swelling and soreness that was easily taken care of. There have been NO issues with foals from mares vaccinated with West Nile (unlike the horror stories seen on some of these websites) and no other issues that we've encountered. I'd love to hear what kind of issues people are seeing. 

Of course we've also had to deal with some actual West Nile cases involving horses that were not vaccinated. Believe me.........you are FAR better off vaccinating.


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## malinda (May 12, 2002)

This was about 5+ years ago, when everyone here was first hearing about WNV. A horse I personally knew (owned by a friend) had a severe reaction, coliced, and the vet needed to be called back to treat her.

The vet who advised me not to vaccinate for West Nile said that the vaccine is not guaranteed by the manufacturer to prevent the disease, and may only lessen the effects of it, if anything.

When the West Nile "scare" was going around the horse community here, there had been someone a few hours north of us who claimed they had 7 horses die from the disease, but that's all I ever heard.

Many of my clients do vaccinate for West Nile, and have not had any adverse reactions.


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## ForMyACDs (May 13, 2002)

malinda said:


> This was about 5+ years ago, when everyone here was first hearing about WNV. A horse I personally knew (owned by a friend) had a severe reaction, coliced, and the vet needed to be called back to treat her.
> 
> The vet who advised me not to vaccinate for West Nile said that the vaccine is not guaranteed by the manufacturer to prevent the disease, and may only lessen the effects of it, if anything.


That's the case with most vaccines. They don't ALWAYS prevent the disease so there are no guarantees but the difference between vaccinated and unvaccinated means a difference between a chance at surviving. We've treated a number of West Nile horses. Last summer was a pair of horses. One was vaccinated for WN 2 years ago, but had not had any boosters since, the other was a young horse who had never been vaccinated for WN. As you can probably guess the unvaccinated horse did not make it while the horse that had been vaccinated at least once in the past survived. West Nile is a pretty gruesome disease to die from and there is no way I'd ever recommend skipping that vaccination. It's far more prevalent than Eastern or Western Encephalitis as it's presence has been noted in nearly every one of the states.

ANY vaccine can cause a reaction. You can also have a horse that has never reacted in the past react suddenly or even have a horse that has reacted in the past never react again. Sorry......to me it's not worth the risk to not vaccinate for something that your animal can get just standing in the back pasture (with no contact with other horses) that can easily kill them. 

I lost a goat to West Nile.........it was horrifying. An ugly, gruesome death.


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## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

ForMyACDs said:


> That's the case with most vaccines. They don't ALWAYS prevent the disease so there are no guarantees but the difference between vaccinated and unvaccinated means a difference between a chance at surviving. We've treated a number of West Nile horses. Last summer was a pair of horses. One was vaccinated for WN 2 years ago, but had not had any boosters since, the other was a young horse who had never been vaccinated for WN. As you can probably guess the unvaccinated horse did not make it while the horse that had been vaccinated at least once in the past survived. West Nile is a pretty gruesome disease to die from and there is no way I'd ever recommend skipping that vaccination. It's far more prevalent than Eastern or Western Encephalitis as it's presence has been noted in nearly every one of the states.
> 
> ANY vaccine can cause a reaction. You can also have a horse that has never reacted in the past react suddenly or even have a horse that has reacted in the past never react again. Sorry......to me it's not worth the risk to not vaccinate for something that your animal can get just standing in the back pasture (with no contact with other horses) that can easily kill them.
> 
> I lost a goat to West Nile.........it was horrifying. An ugly, gruesome death.


same with people vaxes....


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## arabian knight (Dec 19, 2005)

I have not had a coggins test ion years and have transported out of state, bought and sold horses that never had a coggins pulled, it is just a waste of time, and money.
The coggins test used was never intended to be used as it is today, never.


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## 2horses (Jul 19, 2004)

pointing out the obvious - never mind


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## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

arabian knight said:


> I have not had a coggins test ion years and have transported out of state, bought and sold horses that never had a coggins pulled, it is just a waste of time, and money.
> The coggins test used was never intended to be used as it is today, never.


Not if you need it for a show or you worry about being pulled over to have it checked.


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

I have seen first hand what happens to horses that don't get the WNV vaccine. 
So mine, get the WNV vaccine. Same reason they get the 5 in 1.
The vaccine for WNV is a lot more safe now, than when it first came out and there are a couple of brands to choose from.

Mine get a 5 in 1 and WNV and to be on the safe side, the WVN is given a couple of months after their 5 in 1 vaccines.
I live in Oregon now, so the above vaccines are the only ones they recommend for here.

When I lived in NH, I also gave my horses their Rabies shots and the Vets also recommended the Potomac fever one as well, as well as the 5 in 1. So it does depend on where you live, to what vaccines would be needed.


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## sidepasser (May 10, 2002)

I have the vet give rabies, WNV, E/W/V, Influenza A1 and A2, rhino, and now Potomac Horse Fever. I used to give all shots, but it is easier to have the vet do it as he does the teeth floating, coggins and a head to tail check up at the same time. Did that today and for six horses, the cost was 751.00. That also included two dogs and one cat. Inky Stinky hid so didn't receive her shots today, will take her later when she has "calmed" down.


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## Joshie (Dec 8, 2008)

I bought the 5-way and West Nile Virus. In IL, I can't give rabies. Only vets can give it.


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## ForMyACDs (May 13, 2002)

arabian knight said:


> I have not had a coggins test ion years and have transported out of state, bought and sold horses that never had a coggins pulled, it is just a waste of time, and money.
> The coggins test used was never intended to be used as it is today, never.


It's all good until you get pulled over........regulations are regulations.


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## Minelson (Oct 16, 2007)

My horse had a reaction to the West Nile shot last year. He got really sick...head hanging low, droopy eyes, lethargic. It lasted about 2-3 days. I don't know what I'm going to do this year...I'm scared to give it and scared not to 
I give all the shots around here. I would rather give 100 horses shots than give 1 cat a shot. But I do the cats too.


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## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

ForMyACDs said:


> It's all good until you get pulled over........regulations are regulations.


Yep...the thing I really hate are the brand inspections that we have to do in the western states. What a racket.


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## SFM in KY (May 11, 2002)

They do take brand inspections "seriously" in the western states ... but I spent most of my life there so they seem normal to me. However, I really did get a kick out of the brand inspector (an older man I'd known since I was a kid on the ranch) when he got to come out to do one of my mares with the Trakehner brand ... and I also got to explain to him that it wasn't an individual registered brand but a "registry" brand. He finally decided I got to drawn in the "elk head" Trakehner brand!

As for Coggins ... if you sell a horse, you can't get a transporter to load a horse without one ... they won't do it.


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

Minelson said:


> My horse had a reaction to the West Nile shot last year. He got really sick...head hanging low, droopy eyes, lethargic. It lasted about 2-3 days. I don't know what I'm going to do this year...I'm scared to give it and scared not to
> I give all the shots around here. I would rather give 100 horses shots than give 1 cat a shot. But I do the cats too.


Do you know what brand he was given? Some times its the suspension they use that causes the problems.
And were any other vaccines given at the same time?


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## Minelson (Oct 16, 2007)

bergere said:


> Do you know what brand he was given? Some times its the suspension they use that causes the problems.
> And were any other vaccines given at the same time?


I'll have to look on Monday for the brand...it's at the vet clinic where I work. And yes I did give Rabies at the same time. I have been informed since not to do that...I guess now I don't know if it was the rabies or the WN.:hammer: I just assumed it was the WN because I have not heard of a reaction to the rabies shot before.
I'm pretty sure it was the Fort Dodge 5way but I really do have to double check that....thanks!


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## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

Minelson said:


> I'll have to look on Monday for the brand...it's at the vet clinic where I work. And yes I did give Rabies at the same time. I have been informed since not to do that...I guess now I don't know if it was the rabies or the WN.:hammer: I just assumed it was the WN because I have not heard of a reaction to the rabies shot before.
> I'm pretty sure it was the Fort Dodge 5way but I really do have to double check that....thanks!


The Ft. Dodge 5way doesn't have west nile in it...it's 2 way S.sickness, tet, flu and rhino.


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## RLStewart (Sep 10, 2006)

My husbands horse had a bad reaction to the rabies vax so it could have been that. He had a mild reaction the first time and was really sick the second time so the vet said no more. Afraid the third time would be his last. A local vet tells the story about the first horse he vaccinated out of vet school. Horse immediatly dropped over dead! Never found any specific reason but it can happen. He said it was years before he could stick a needle in a horse without worrying.


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## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

RLStewart said:


> My husbands horse had a bad reaction to the rabies vax so it could have been that. He had a mild reaction the first time and was really sick the second time so the vet said no more. Afraid the third time would be his last. A local vet tells the story about the first horse he vaccinated out of vet school. Horse immediatly dropped over dead! Never found any specific reason but it can happen. He said it was years before he could stick a needle in a horse without worrying.


They don't really just "drop over dead"...they go into anaphylactic shock, which is a result of an allergic reaction. Usually the vet has epinephrine with them to counteract the anaphylaxis. Same thing can happen to people getting shots.


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## Joshie (Dec 8, 2008)

Minelson said:


> My horse had a reaction to the West Nile shot last year. He got really sick...head hanging low, droopy eyes, lethargic. It lasted about 2-3 days. I don't know what I'm going to do this year...I'm scared to give it and scared not to
> I give all the shots around here. I would rather give 100 horses shots than give 1 cat a shot. But I do the cats too.


I'd ask your vet. Remember, though that kids can get fevers and generally feel lousy after getting vaccinations.


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## Minelson (Oct 16, 2007)

The brand I used last year was Fort Dodge. What other brands are out there (that are good) and where is a good place to order them from? I need Eastern, Western, Tetanus, West Nile.
Thanks!


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## Joshie (Dec 8, 2008)

Minelson said:


> The brand I used last year was Fort Dodge. What other brands are out there (that are good) and where is a good place to order them from? I need Eastern, Western, Tetanus, West Nile.
> Thanks!


We got Intervet from TSC. The 5 way has Eastern, Western, Tetanus plus 2 others. West Nile is a separate shot.


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## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

We like PreveNile for west nile. It only requires one shot on a horse that has never had the West Nile vax before, unlike others that require a follow-up booster.


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## deineria (Aug 22, 2009)

We do our shots on everything. . .except Rabies.


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## Minelson (Oct 16, 2007)

LisaInN.Idaho said:


> We like PreveNile for west nile. It only requires one shot on a horse that has never had the West Nile vax before, unlike others that require a follow-up booster.


I just looked into this and it seems there is a recall on this brand...:awh:


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## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

Minelson said:


> I just looked into this and it seems there is a recall on this brand...:awh:


Where are you finding this? I just did a search and nothing came up. My daughter's mare was just vaccinated with it 2 weeks ago by the vet.


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## Minelson (Oct 16, 2007)

LisaInN.Idaho said:


> Where are you finding this? I just did a search and nothing came up. My daughter's mare was just vaccinated with it 2 weeks ago by the vet.


Sorry Lisa, I meant to post the link but spaced out I guess...
http://www.workinghorseworld.com/forum/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=4466&posts=15


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

Minelson said:


> The brand I used last year was Fort Dodge. What other brands are out there (that are good) and where is a good place to order them from? I need Eastern, Western, Tetanus, West Nile.
> Thanks!



I use, Prestige V with Havlogen from Intervet.

For West Nile I had to use Fort Dodge this year because I couldn't get the WV from Merial.

I buy my vaccines from, Heartland Vet Supply. They have the best prices, and will long date the vaccines.


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## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

Minelson said:


> Sorry Lisa, I meant to post the link but spaced out I guess...
> http://www.workinghorseworld.com/forum/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=4466&posts=15


There's some talk about it on the Chronicle forums too now. Glad Windsong had no problems.


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## bluebird2o2 (Feb 14, 2007)

We do our own shots,Vets are super busy as we live only a few miles from the racetrack.


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## ErinP (Aug 23, 2007)

LisaInN.Idaho said:


> Yep...the thing I really hate are the brand inspections that we have to do in the western states. What a racket.


How so? :huh:
I pay the brand inspector $5-10 to sign a piece of paper that says, "Yep, that's P's brand on this horse/cow."
Or do you mean branding in general is a racket. 
(I'm having a hard time wrapping my mind around this one, I guess. But then, in my world, everything has a brand on it and always has...)

Colorado has a permanent brand inspection card. It's a laminated card that you can get, about the size of a license, that has all of your horse's markings, registry numbers, etc. on it as well as brand and owner. No more brand inspections once you have that nifty little card. 
Surely they aren't the only state that does this...


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

Brand inspector here costs $75.00 plus a farm call to come out. The paper doesn't have anything more on it than the Vet's health certificate. So at least in this area, it is just another way for the Gov to be more money out of us and honestly not needed.

When I had the brand inspector here last.. was about 2 years ago now, they won't do life time brand inspections, forgot why.
And I am not kidding when I say it did not have any more info on it than the Vet Health Certificate we get here. In fact, they pretty much used the same form the Vet uses.

Heck, the coggins paper work here basically has "brand" inspection info on it, so does the copy of the horses Registry papers


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## ErinP (Aug 23, 2007)

Holy smokes!! 
I though the $15 I paid last year when I bought a horse in CO was high! lol


In Nebraska, it's $.75 a head, plus mileage (of course, that's just cattle since Nebraska doesn't require inspection for horses). And it depends on who your inspector is what they actually charge for mileage, if they charge at all. 

In South Dakota (the last place we lived that required horses to be inspected) it's $.80 a head and mileage, which is again at the discretion of the inspector. 
Lifetime permit is $10.


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## Minelson (Oct 16, 2007)

bergere said:


> I use, Prestige V with Havlogen from Intervet.
> 
> For West Nile I had to use Fort Dodge this year because I couldn't get the WV from Merial.
> 
> I buy my vaccines from, Heartland Vet Supply. They have the best prices, and will long date the vaccines.


Thanks for the link Bergere


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

Minelson said:


> Thanks for the link Bergere


Your Welcome.


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## poppysfarm (Apr 10, 2009)

Wow and I thought NJ was the most over regulated state...........shhhhhhhhhhhhhh. NJ does not require brands, although specific registries may require them. In NJ you can give your own horses their vaccines other than rabies. We have our vet give rabies and strangles(we can't find intranasal strangles) We give the rest. All non owned horses get shots from the vet or their owner. We board horses also. Coggins and a vet cert are required if travelling out of state. Coggins(1 year old or less) is required pretty much anywhere you take your horse in this state.
But Yes we give all vaccines ourselves to owned horses unless state regulated(rabies) We have the vet out at least once a year for rabies so when we have an emergency, they know who we are. We also use the same vet for 10 plus years....which helps when you need to make the 2am phone call!


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## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

A brand inspection doesn't require that the horse actually have a brand, just that you pay the money, and show the state brand inspector a piece of paper (easily made up) ostensibly proving that you own the horse. Then he takes the horse's picture and laminates it onto a plastic card with the vital stats. 

It's supposed to prevent horse theft but how easy would it be to steal a horse, forge a bill of sale and then get yourself a brand inspection by telling the inspector that the horse came from the east where there are no brand inspections? Very easy. Plus, many states like Bergere's (Oregon) and Arizona where I used to live, really don't have much of a description.


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## ErinP (Aug 23, 2007)

All the more reason to _actually_ brand. 
It's hard to forge a nice, well-seasoned brand on your horse's hip that just happens to be registered in your name in three different states.


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## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

ErinP said:


> All the more reason to _actually_ brand.
> It's hard to forge a nice, well-seasoned brand on your horse's hip that just happens to be registered in your name in three different states.


Well, that's great if you have a lotr of stock. But many horseowners have just one (or just a few)horses and it would be a hassle and expense to go through designing and registering a brand for one horse. It would be nice if the government stayed out of it altogether.


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## ErinP (Aug 23, 2007)

You don't need to _design_ a brand...
Most states have a list of brands that are currently available. And if you go with an easy alpha-numeric you can get them ready-made from places like ValleyVet. 

Registering, well, yeah... But personally, I think $50 every 5-10 years is worth it. :shrug:

So far as getting the government out of it, you'd have a hard time selling THAT notion! Most of us who own stock in brand inspection areas are _happy_ for it. It's certainly not fool proof, but it IS a theft deterrent.


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## bergere (May 11, 2002)

Even folks that run working QH's, don't brand over here. Know lots of folks and not one single brand on a horse. 

You have photos and Registry paper(s).


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## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

ErinP said:


> You don't need to _design_ a brand...
> Most states have a list of brands that are currently available. And if you go with an easy alpha-numeric you can get them ready-made from places like ValleyVet.
> 
> Registering, well, yeah... But personally, I think $50 every 5-10 years is worth it. :shrug:
> ...


I guess we'll jus have to agree to disagree Erin. I see it as a racket here and I think it's unnecessary and I'd prefer not to have brand inspections.


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## ErinP (Aug 23, 2007)

bergere said:


> Even folks that run working QH's, don't brand over here. Know lots of folks and not one single brand on a horse.
> 
> You have photos and Registry paper(s).


Well that's great for proving that a found horse is yours. 
But for one that's _missing_, a nice, visible brand is really the best thing. It's also easy to make the argument that something so visible is a deterrent. :shrug:

Now, if you personally don't want to, I'm hardly going to convince you otherwise. But there's a reason tens (hundreds?) of thousands of horses, cattle, etc. are branded. It's not just because it's a law; it's because people happen to think it's a good idea, too. 
You guys'll have a hard sell trying to convince those who happen to LIKE that law that it's a bad one.


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## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

ErinP said:


> You guys'll have a hard sell trying to convince those who happen to LIKE that law that it's a bad one.


Actually, I think you're the one trying to do all the convincing. I simply said I thought it was a racket. You jumped on it like a mud on a pig. But if it means so much to you, by all means...keep arguing your point.


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## ErinP (Aug 23, 2007)

My apologies. 

I didn't realize I wasn't allowed in the conversation. I'll bow out. :shrug:


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## wr (Aug 10, 2003)

I can see both sides of the branding/brand inspector issue. 

In my case, I used my horse brand because I inherited it and my irons but if I hadn't, it would have been cheaper and easier for me to simply keep my bill of sale and a copy of my registration papers for brand inspection purposes. Another problem with branding horses is that it really has to be done right and if someone is inexperienced, it's not always a good idea to just get the guy with cattle down the road to handle the job or offer a tutorial because horse hide has a whole different texture. It's better to freeze brand horses and that comes with additonal cost for irons and in some areas, few people know how to apply a freeze brand correctly. If I were to buy my brand and my irons, I'd be looking at close to $500, which doesn't make financial sense if a person only keeps a couple horses and to be quite honest, given the current horse market, I can't see too many people stealing horses. If they want one that bad all they have to do is leave their trailer unlocked at the next horse sale.


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