Giving your own shots - scary?

[MiniHoofBeats]

My vet has told me that they will sell me the shots I want and I can administer them myself, this would definitely save me at least $200 in the long run! I have asked about this topic earlier and received photo's on WHERE to give the shots, but now i'm looking for more advice please!

Shots I give are - 4-way (WNV, flu, rhino, ENT), potomac, and intra-nasal strangles. I have seen how to do the IN strangles numerous times and think I can handle that one, however here are my Q's on the rest:

WHERE do you give:

4-way

potomac

(in the rump or neck?)

I have watched my vet give 3 separate shots...2 in the rump and 1 in the neck in addition to the IN strangles, i'm trying to think if I left out a vaccine? I know some vaccines can be given either in the neck or in the rump and it's a matter of personal preference, so please let me know where you PREFER to give each shot?

Also what method do you use - when given in the neck do you have to pull slightly on the plunger until you see some blood to make sure you are/arent in a vein? How do you tell if you are/arent?

In the rump you just stick in the needle and give the vaccine, correct?

Any advice would be much appreciated!

 

[Miniv]

For me, the scary part is the horse's reaction to the poke of the needle. I hate hurting them! And of course they pick up on my nervous hesitation, which doesn't help.

We prefer giving shots in the butt muscle, however, if a horse is being really jumpy we surprise them by doing it in the neck muscle.

You should pull back a little on the plunger, no matter where you give the shot.

I recommend that you first practice on an orange, using water in a syringe. It gives you an idea of what poking animal skin is like. I also recommend that you have your vet come out and show you what to do and then stand over you as you do it.

The vets we've had don't mind teaching their clients how to do things like that for themselves.

MA

 

[Matt73]

My horses are hardly aware they've had a shot when I do it. I do the three bump with my hand then in with the needle. After my vet scared the crap out my horses by rushing on them and jabbing them in the neck (no pulling back on the plunger, no needle in first without syringe) I decided to give my own. He treated them like cattle. After you've done one or two, it's so much easier.

 

[MiniHoofBeats]

Do you usually need just one person to help, or two? (one to hold head, one to help hold butt)

So, you can give ALL the shots in the rump?

edited to add: I have given shots to cats quite a few times so I have SOME experience, which may help me, but I am sure it'll help a lot to have the vet out to show me a few things first!

 

[CLC Stables]

I only give a 5 way.............so only have to deal with one shot.

BUT, I give everything in the butt and do just like Matt and do the three bumps then the needle. My horses are used to it, and I do it myself. Tie them to the fence and I am on the back end. No problems at all.

 

[CNC MINIS]

I hate to give shots it give the the willies just handling the needles, if there is anyway I can get around giving shots, I do. My vet only charges me a couple of $ to addminister the shots so I just have him do my shots and if there are any reactions to the vaccines the vet is right there, but that is just my own personal prefrence.

 

[vvf]

I have given shots for years to a herd of around 30 head.

I give 2 different shots, one on one side and one on the other side.

I mostly give in the neck, but occassionally the rump.

I give them myself with no help. Just tie them short to something secure.

When i give a shot, i always kind of tap the horse 3 times with a fist, then with the 4 tap I give the shot.

They don't even realize it is coming and generally don't even move.

But if I have one that I anticipate will move, I will pinch it's nose with one hand, then do the taps and give the shot.

Also, i always draw the syringe back and if there is blood, i just remove and insert in another area.

In my experiance it had been somewhat rare to draw blood. But it does happen.

 

[Chamomile]

When you put the needle in and pull back on the plunger, you don't want to see any blood, that would mean you are in a vein. Not a good thing! The fluid that rushes into the syringe should be yellowish. Also make sure you get all the bubbles out of the vaccine before you push it into the horse. And doing the three bumps does help them, it relaxes the muscles and gives you three seconds to steel yourself for the plunge

: Make sure when you pop that needle in you don't hesitate. Horses really don't appreciate it if you stick them and don't get the needle all the way in

:

This is what I do... I use a fresh needle, one that hasn't been used to get the shot out of the bottle. I get all the bubbles out of the shot, then remove the needle, with the lid still on it. Pop off the lid, insert it in the horse immediately. Don't take the lid off the needle until you are ready to pop it in, you don't want it to get dirty. The reason I do this is, if the horse gets upset and moves around, pulls back or jumps at all you don't have a whole shot hanging there or falling out onto the ground. If you drop your needle, get a new one, don't insert a dirty needle. Then calm the horse and pop the shot onto the needle and pull back on the pluger, make sure there's no blood and in goes the shot! You're done.

Remember, if the shot administers the shot and there is any kind of reaction that requires the vet to come back out, the vaccine company will pay your vet bill. I don't give very many vaccines, only to the horses that show. So I have the vet do all my shots. The only shots I end up needing to give are the Banamine shots if someone has a tummy ache... I don't mind those as the horse usually doesn't even notice the prick when their tummy is hurting and I know they will feel so much better after!

 

[Triggy&Blue&Daisy Too]

None of my local vets will sell nasal strangles vaccine for owner administration but if you do have a source for it I would caution you to do the nasal on a separate day you do the injections. Too much chance for the nasal vaccine to contaminate the area or your person. At the very least, do the nasal vaccine after all the injections to all your horses have been given.

I personally don't give all the vaccines at once usually only two per day and not on the same side especially with a new horse so I know which may be causing a local reaction. I have found the 4/5/6 ways tend to incite more local reactions than to get the individual doses from my vet and I know they have been kept properly by not having a farm store be the intermediary. Basically my vet thinks they don't have the efficacy of the separate dose and won't use them in his practice so I go with his guidance.

The easiest and most painless way I have found to do injections is to not dart them but to hold the needle separate from the syringe, holding it like a pen with the side of my hand bracing on their hide to insert the needle gently and smoothly. I let them settle then attach the syringe draw back and then push the plunger and withdraw the entire unit. My horses have remained easy to vaccinate and hardly even know it happened.

It's always good to have a supply of epinepherine on hand if you do your own vaccines just as a precaution. I've thrown out a lot of it due to expiration but I like the peace of mind that I have it should I need it.

 

[Jill]

Oh, I hate to give shots and I have been doing it now for 10 years and have a lot of minis right now. Still, I get worked up before I have to give the shots. Most of my horses don't even flinch, though. So, it's not a big deal. I give some shots int he rump and some in the neck. Depends on the horse. It's more a mental thing wit me where I will dread how they "might" act though realistically I know almost all of mine don't respond to the shot at all. (imagine my own delight when I got to start myself on insulin shots last week!!! but that also is no big deal after all...)

 

[MiniHoofBeats]

Well I suppose I should see if my vet sells the intranasal strangles...though they did tell me they sell everything and I listed off all of what I like to do, including the IN strangles, and they said they sell them so I assume all!

I have one vet that gets the 5-way and one vet that gets the 4-way, the vet that told me they sell the vaccines carries the 4-way. I assume what I saw them administer out here last time was the 4-way in one but cheek, the potomac in the other butt cheek, the IN nasal was last, and I think now it was a coggins taken from the neck and not a vaccine...lol...now that I think of it!

So I am hearing it is easier to to the three bumps then prick, and have it be just the needle, then attach the vaccine...is that easy to do on the rump? I think I would feel a lot better doing rump shots first until I feel more secure about giving shots, then going on the neck...i'm afraid of hitting too many things in the neck! Is it okay to go at an upward angle in the rump? I saw my vet do it at more of a straight in angle but they also kept the vaccine attached to the needle and boy did my horses FLY forward! We needed 3 people to hold each mini...but we didn't have them tied so it required one person in front, and one person at each hip.

Thanks everyone so much for your input, I am feeling better and better about trying shots myself!

What is the epinepherine for? I need to really read up more on medications, I am horrible at remembering all these medical terms and what they are for! (glad my vet is right down the road!) though for being right down the road I still get charged a pretty penny for them to even come here...

 

[Ashley]

I never give in the neck. If they get stiff its better in the butt then the neck. If its in the neck they might refuse to eat.

Call me dumb but what is ENT?

 

[MiniHoofBeats]

Oops I think I meant EWT? Tetanus?

 

[Nathan Luszcz]

I do all my vaccines in the neck, big horse and little. ALWAYS pull back before injecting, ALWAYS. That ONE time you forget, you'll hit blood. With vaccines its not a big deal, but with other drugs it could be fatal.

 

[JennyB]

[SIZE=12pt][/SIZE]

I give my own too, but I agree I don't like hurting them... :no: Sometimes they feel it and sometimes no. When giving them in the neck which is all I do...I get some skin and pinch the area I am going to give the vaccine. I wait just a few...then I insert the needle as I let go of the skin. Then I pull back on the syringe to see if I hit a vein, if not, I slowly inject the vaccine. I also like to do a vaccine and wait a day or two before giving another one, especially to weanlings! I don't like giving them in the butt as you do have to stab them. I have found that thumbing them 3 times only makes them more tense, especially the smarter ones

: Plus my vets advice not in the rump because if they get an abcess, it's harder to treat and drain them...JMO

Happy day!

Jenny

 

[MeadowRidge Farm]

I have done all my own shots for the past 30 years...and to be real honest, I think it STILL hurts me more to do them, then the little pick the horses feel. I do most of mine in the rump, that way if they do swell up there is no stiff neck or problem eating. The only thing you do have to be careful of when doing it in the rump is the horse kicking out, or bolting forward if your doing them alone. I always make sure I have epinepherine on hand just in case there is a reaction. I have never had to use t, but its very reasonable, and I just feel safer having it. I order my shots but get the epinepherine from my vet, since it has a very short shelf life. If your really trying to save money by doing your own shots...you might want to check out a few catalog prices compared to what your vet will be charging you. I order my shots by the 10 dose viles,(Valley Vet and Jeffers) and it comes out to be ALOT less then thru a vet, but if you do that you have to remember to order your needles and syringes too, which I also buy by the box. I also agree, with what someone else said~~ practice on a orange. You'll get the hang of it. :bgrin Corinne

 

[wc minis]

We also give our own shots, actually our vet prefers that we do it and taught us how. We use to do the butt muscle and than the vet taught us for the neck, and since we switched spots, it has been much easier, and the horses dont even notice, whereas the butt muscle, they noticed.....

 

[MiniHoofBeats]

When you buy your own, say from Jeffers, which vaccine do you get? I see there is a 4-way, 5-way and 6-way with the new Kentucky 97, which I read is the latest protection against A1 and A2 influenza strains?

 

[CheyAut]

I do my own vaccinations on my horses, goats, and cats (I take the dogs to a shot clinic b/c some of the stuff I do with them requires vet proof of shots).

I pinch a little bit of skin further up on the neck (towards the head). That way they're feeling that and don't notice when I stick the needle in their necks. I do it by myself without help, but that's b/c I know my horses and am confident I can, and my horses are fine about it.

Jessi

 

[Margo_C-T]

I've been giving all shots to my horses(and to my large dogs, and my cat, when I had one-except for Rabies, which can't be ordered in NM)for MANY years; it is really quite simple, but you do need to stay focused and follow some basic proper procedures. I order from whatever catalog company has the best overall 'deal'; since I order BEFORE the weather warms up, I don't need to use special shipping, just the standard ice packs; I make sure I will be home on delivery day, so the vaccines can go straight into the fridge upon delivery. This year, I got my 6 way from Jeffers, and my West Nile from a vet supply house in my own state; it came in one day, and the ice packs were still nearly frozen solid! I give a 6 way, and West Nile(Recombitek, though I may well try the newest and supposedly, best WN after it's been on the market for a bit longer.)I do NOT give them at the same time, but wait about 10 days-2 weeks between times of administration, as I believe that ONE such 'stressful to their system' procedure at a time is enough(I do not deworm at the same time, etc., either.) I buy 3 cc. syringes and 1" X 21 or 22 ga. needles in boxes of 100(am still on boxes I bought some years ago, since I have less horses!--on my 'big' horse, I use a 1 1/2" X 20 ga., the size that comes w/ all individual dose vaccines.)

I give in the buttocks, unless I absolutely HAVE to use the neck(as it IS easier to do in the neck; but worse if soreness or an abcess develops-in the buttocks, gravity will be your friend if an abcess should form-I've had only one, a minor one in the buttock that was already 'burst', drained, and starting to heal before I even saw it, as it was hidden by a luxuriant amount of TAIL....develop in over 30 years of giving my own shots to all of my horses. "Shake"(roll it rapidly between your palms, actually) well; if using a multidose vial, carefully open the needle, place on syringe, draw a bit of air into the syringe, then insert into the vial, and insert the air, DON'T pull back on the plunger until you have upended the vial, so that the tip of the needle is IMMERSED in the liquid, then gently pull the required amount into the syringe. Turn the vial right side up again, so that the needle tip is again OUT of the liquid, before carefully and slowing withdrawing the needle and syringe. Have freshly-washed hands when you start this process, keep your fingers OFF the needle itself, the syringe tip, the top of the vaccine vial. I immediate pop the needle cover back onto the needle after filling the syringe, and do not remove it again until I am ready to place the needle into the horse. I ALWAYS work alone; I tie the horse up fairly short and where I can(with a mini, at least!) push them over against a safe secure fence if need be. I do NOT do the 'thumps' -the horses got wise to that REAL quick--I just eyeball carefully where I want to place the needle, aim, then 'pop'(don't "WHAM")it in, to the hub, then reattach the syringe, pull back to be sure I'm not in a vein/artery. If not, then push the vaccine in, firmly but not TOO fast, completely, then a quick withdrawal of the needle and massage the area for a moment or two. If you HAVE to give in the neck, be SURE you are in the relatively SMALL , triangular, 'target area'(your vet should show you). Pinch up the skin right next to where you intend to place the needle, shake the skin a bit--you can leave the syringe attached to the needle for this kind of shot, just 'SLIDE' it in next to where you have pinched the skin. Then draw back the needle; if no blood is seen, complete as described above. ABSOLUTELY, use ONLY a clean needle( I always take extras out with me- I have had horses jump and shoot the needle out across the pen into the dirt(there is NO way to clean it so it's safe to use then!), or bend it so it wasn't usable, etc.-but these things don't happen often. The main thing, I think, is to be focused on what you are doing, and be calm and deliberate in your actions.

It IS a VERY good idea to keep a vial of epinepherine on hand if you give your own shots; it could save the day if there is an allergic reaction. I always 'hang around' for 15-30 min. after giving shots, because if there are to be allergic reactions, they will almost certainly occur within that period of time.

Good luck! Practice as suggested, stay calm and focused, have a plan in place should anything not go as planned.

Margo