Vaccinations

[rodeohounddogg]

My mini is 2 yrs old and she has never had any vaccinations. I have my big horses vaccinated every year for West Nile, rabies, tetanus and East and West Encephalomyelitis. I would think that the mini needs the same. The vet here says that one size fits all as far as the dosage. Also, he isnt making any barn calls, so he said that we will have to do it ourself. We will buy the vaccines from the vet. I have done the big guys before, but I am a little apprehensive about Tinkerbelle. He said that there should be no problem and not to worry about any allergic reaction to the shots, but I have seen big horses break out in hives from shots. Do any of you guys give your own vaccines and have you had any adverse results?

Thanks again,

Linda

 

[Keri]

Give my own shots and never had a problem.

I've never had horses break out after shots.

Also, make sure you give her boosters.

 

[Sanny]

Remember if he has never had shots before that he will need boosters the first time. Since most of our horses show we do shots in April and then the ones going to nationals get boosters in August.

You would think the dosage would be smaller for minis, but my husband called Fort Dodge directly with some questions and they said the dosage is the same no matter what the size of horse.

Minis are no more likely to have a reaction than big horses, it will just vary from horse to horse, big or small. It is a good idea to ask your vet to give you a dose of the stuff given when they have an allergic reaction so you can keep it on hand. I have it in my first aid kit, but I can't think of the name of the drug. I have a horse that has allergies and will sometimes break out in hives and have an allergic reaction and the shot gives him immediate relief. He once broke out in huge welts when I gave him a bath with a new equine shampoo and the welts started going away as soon as I gave him the shot.

I also have a couple of horses that get sore every time they get shots no matter how careful we are, the rest of the horses are always fine. I give those horses Banamine the day after shots if they show signs of being sore.

This year our vet did the nasal strangles and rabies shots and I did the four-way and the West Nile/tetanus shots.

 

[wildoak]

I give the majority of our shots myself, and also have no particular problems with minis. I have a couple I know are sensitive, they get banamine when they get vaccinated. I do use a slightly smaller needle than I do with big horses but that's the only real difference.

Jan

 

[Miniv]

Minis get the same shots and same dosage as our big horses..........And like Wildoak, we use a shorter needle for the minis.

Since your 2 yr. old has never had shots, you're going to have to remember to give a booster 4 weeks later.

 

[AJ]

What size needles do you use?

 

[Joanne]

We use 23 guage needles on the minis for vaccinations.

We also prefer the vaccines from Intervet and use Prestige V here.

We had reactions from Fort Dodge and no longer use that brand.

 

[Miniv]

What size needles do you use?

We use a 3/4 inch needle, 20 gauge. And like Joanne, we use Prestige V.