(352) 472-1620 vets@springhillequine.com
Ready for Evacuation

Ready for Evacuation

Sep 7, 2012 | Disaster Preparedness

 

Tony the cat here. One of the things we talked about recently was being prepared for a hurricane. This week I wanted to talk more about evacuation plans.  So last week I was lounging about while Isaac was passing us by, and I overheard the girls talking about how badly South Florida flooded from the rain Isaac dropped. I even got to see some pictures which I’ll share with you. While we saw just enough rain for me to hate being outside, those poor folks down there were riding around in boats, swamp buggies, and large trucks that were just barely able to drive through the water. Some places registered two feet of flood water. I feel bad for the cats down there that got soaked. In some places, humans had to leave their homes and their animals. Rescue personnel had to go back and get the animals, or other helpers. The girls made some strong arguments about the importance of having Coggins and other forms of identification ready in case you humans have to evacuate quickly.  You see, when an area floods, has electrical damage, has devastating fires, or another disaster, many people are forced to evacuate. Sometimes they are forced to evacuate quickly, and aren’t prepared to take their animals along. In these cases, animals may be evacuated by emergency personnel or rescue organizations who work to re-unite the animals with their owners once the disaster has been contained or remedied. When this happens, animals need to have all proper documentation and some kind of identification for them to be properly reunited with their owners. There are a few very important things that horse owners can do to ensure that their equine pals are ready for any type of emergency or natural disaster in which they must be evacuated.

First and foremost, most states require that a horse have an updated Coggins test to be transported. Now, you may think, “But what good is a Coggins going to do if I’m not there with it in hand to transport my horse?”. Though you may not be present, I’ll talk about ways to make sure your horse can be identified. Coggins reports are stored on an online database, so if they are up to date, they can be searched on that database to ensure the horse is ready for transport. The Coggins documents now have color photographs of each horse from the left, right and front to allow easy identification. Any time you are forced to leave your property, make sure that your horse’s halters are labeled with their name, and your name.  The Coggins reports can be searched by the owner name and horse name, so if the horse’s halter is labeled with their name and your name, they can easily be identified, and their Coggins can be referenced. Keep your horses’ Coggins in a three ring binder in plastic sleeves to ensure they are not damaged. If you are able to haul the horses with you when you evacuate, then you’ll already have their Coggins paperwork on hand and at the ready. If emergency personnel have to go in to retrieve your horses, you can provide them with a copy of the Coggins reports. Many owners decide not to pull Coggins on horses that they don’t haul regularly, but this kind of situation should show owners why Coggins tests are a necessity for their horses.  Even those older horses, and yes the pesky babies who like to chase us cats, are important to their human owners, and in the case of an emergency they should be just as up to date on their documentation as your other horse partners.

Given the low cost, the ease of testing and administration, and overall importance of Coggins and animal identification, it’s easy to see why any human should make sure these things are done for their animals. Natural disasters and emergencies happen every day. Here in Florida, we’re often visited by those pesky tropical storms and hurricanes, plus we often face brush fires in the dry seasons. If you ever have to evacuate, wouldn’t you feel better knowing your horses, and even your other animals, were all set for a speedy getaway? I’m sure your horses would feel reassured too, I know I would. So in closing, I hope that you’ll take a second to look and make sure your horses (and your other animal friends) are fully prepared should you ever have to evacuate. Make sure all documents are up to date, make sure you have labeled halters, collars, or name tags, and look into the options available to help ensure your animals are located. Dr. Lacher is always ready to help you out, should you need or want to update your horses or have them micro-chipped. She can go visit you, or you can bring your horses here to the office, where I’ll happily greet you and help out where I can. May your litter box always be clean, and your food bowl full.

 

Are you prepared?

Aug 25, 2012 | Ailments, Disaster Preparedness

 

I try never to pass up the opportunity of a storm headed our way to talk about being prepared!  So with Isaac headed our way here goes.

Have a plan.  Look at your farm and decide if you will stay or go.  Here in Gainesville, staying is often a reasonable plan but that means planning for no electricity, lots of water where we don’t want it (as a cat I hate this part) but no water to drink, and plenty of other fun inconveniences. If leaving is the better option, leave early.  It is very important to get your animals out ahead of a major evacuation so you don’t get stuck in hot weather with animals in a trailer. If you are staying, think about everything you do in a day and determine what you need to do tasks such as feeding and watering, both humans and animals.  Stockpile what you need to do these tasks for at least 14 days.

Take pictures and/or video of your property, home, vehicles, trailers, and anything else you can think of to document what you have and what it looks like.  Gather important documents.  Place both of these in a waterproof, secure location.  Even better upload them to an internet application such as Dropbox and they will be available no matter what happens.   An often overlooked step here is having an out of area contact.  Pick someone your entire family knows who lives outside the area likely to be affected by the storm.  Call your out of town contact and let them in on the plan and how things are progressing.  More on how important this person is in the next step.

Identify your animals!  There are several ways to do this and the more of them you use the better!  All animals should have a halter, collar, or some way to catch them.  These should be breakaway in case they get tangled in debris.  They should have your home phone number, cell phone number, and your out-of-area contact on them.  The easiest way to do this is write everything on a piece of cloth with a waterproof marker.  Place in a Ziploc bag and duct tape on.  Pieces of cloth with your information can also be braided in to manes and tails. Livestock grease markers work great to write phone numbers on the sides of horses and cattle.  And the single best way to identify your animals is a microchip!  Microchips helped over 90% of horses get reunited with their owners after Hurricane Katrina.

Storms are a constant threat living in Florida.  Spending some time on websites such as http://www.fldart.org/preparedness.htm can help you formulate the perfect plan for your farm and family.  We have disaster preparedness workbooks available at the office.   And as always you can contact the humans at Springhill Equine for help formulating a plan for your horses.   Most important though, may your food bowl be full and your litter box clean!  So plan ahead and head to the grocery store now to buy cat food and kitty litter!

 

Preparing for the Unpredictable

Oct 23, 2011 | Ailments, Disaster Preparedness

 

A large storm system is headed our way and tornadoes are all around us or a train carrying sulfuric acid has spilled on the train tracks can you rapidly evacuate your house, horses and pets?

This was the terrifying scenario Connie Brooks presented for us at the Third Annual Open House at Springhill Equine.  While none of us want to think about these things it is important to plan ahead for the unpredictable.   This week I spend some time in the evenings on the internet.  Please don’t tell on me since no one knows Teeney and I get on the computer.  We cats can do anything even without opposable thumbs.  Anyway, while surfing on the internet I found some valuable guidelines to make sure as much can be done as possible in the face of an emergency evacuation.

Step one is similar to the primary disaster plans we talked about last week.  Start by sitting down to make a plan.  What type of disaster could occur near you?  We are near train tracks and the cement plant but not a river or creek.  Are you near the interstate? Nuclear problems are unlikely in our area but what about power plant or other manufacturing facilities?

What can you reasonably get done in 45 minutes or less?  Do you have carriers for all your cats?  Leashes and collars for all your dogs?  Can you trailer all your horses or donkeys or will you have to decide who goes and who stays?  These are decisions you don’t want to make with a Sheriff’s Officer yelling at you to get out now!

Have a close but not too close evacuation location in mind.  Having a “close” location within 30-45 miles of home and a distant location, in Atlanta for example, ensures you have a plan for any emergency.  These evacuation locations should be known to your family, close friends and emergency contact.  Once again your emergency contact should be someone far outside our area who can be a contact point for family members or emergency personnel.

All of your animals should have collars or halter with ID tags ready to go.  Your animals should also be trained to wear these collars.  Us cats in particular can be persnickety about collars but getting us used to them during non-emergencies will ensure we are more compliant when it is necessary.  Here I will put in a shameless plug for microchips.  No matter what, a microchip is there and ready to identify your pet at anytime.  You won’t have to find it, put it on, worry about it staying or any of the other issues with collars and halters.  When you get your animals micro chipped be sure to include your out-of-area contact and keep your information updated once yearly.

An emergency kit should be kept stocked and ready to go at all times.  This kit should include photographs of all your animals, preferably with you in the picture, registration papers for any registered animals, copies of important household information such as insurance papers, deeds, birth certificates, etc. and emergency first aid supplies.  This kit should be somewhere quick and easy to grab on your way out the door.

Following your return from any disaster, be prepared for your animals to be out of sorts.  Your property may look very different, fencing may be down, and buildings can be unsafe.  Small animals should be kept leashed, crated or contained in small areas until clean-up is completed and they have re-acclimated to your property.

By now you should have noticed a recurring theme to Disaster Month…Plan ahead.  I have learned from Connie Brooks, my reading on the internet and chats with the Doctors and staff at Springhill Equine that planning ahead is the key to surviving any type of disaster.  There are many resources available for help planning including www.AAEP.org, www.Ready.gov and www.HumaneSociety.org  Each of these websites has an amazing variety of information about what you need for horses, livestock, human, cats, dogs and even wildlife during emergencies.  You may also contact us here at Springhill Equine for help getting started.

That’s the news this week from my counter top.  May your food bowl be full and your litter box clean.  Tony

 

Disaster Response Planning

Oct 15, 2011 | Ailments, Disaster Preparedness

For those of you who attended our Disaster Preparedness Open House this past weekend, you may have the words “MAKE A PLAN” ringing in your ears while you are trying to fall asleep at night (I know I do… I’m thinking of maybe burying some cat food). For those of you who weren’t able to attend, or who missed out on the motivating talk by esteemed disaster responder Connie Brooks, one point I took away is that those of us in the Alachua area do not need to be prepared for the eventual hurricane, but also for the less obvious disasters: chemical spills, nuclear fallout, and “host community” effect when disasters occur nearby (especially south of) us. This means our plan must be adaptable, and we need to have more than one to be truly prepared (I think I’ll mail cat food to Europe too, going hungry scares me).

To accomplish this level of preparedness, it is important to make two plans – one for evacuation, and one for sticking it out at home.  First, figure out which of these would be your best plan A.  Start thinking of friends in your community, and away from home, that you can rely on to help house you, your animals, and your precious information.  Make a list of their addresses and phone numbers, and begin to collect information that you would want them to have copies of.  Based on your relationship with these contacts, you may want to send not only copies of tax, deed, and insurance information, birth and marriage certificates, and social security cards, but also copies of your medical records, your pet’s medical records, and photos of you with your pets.  Have your method of identification, for ALL of your pets, decided on and prepared. As Connie informed us, 99% of horses in Louisiana were returned to their owners after Hurricane Katrina (as it is required by the state to microchip), so take advantage of Springhill’s hurricane-season special on microchips! Have two current copies of your Coggins, with photos of your horses, sealed in a Ziploc bag.  Attach one bag to your horse, and leave the other in your barn or home, and you may want a third to send to that relative in Wisconsin. Use highly-visible methods of ID as well – fetlock bands, grease pens, or even body clipped phone numbers. The ideal location is a large, treeless field with white tape fencing and access to multiple backup water sources, NOT a barn (as a cat, I will be in a carrier, ready to evacuate if needed).

For your evacuation plan, make sure you keep up with trailer maintenance, and have more than one location you can haul to, in case of an impact area larger than you may expect. Be prepared for fuel, food, and water shortages (not just for you, think of your pets too!).  Have your kits, first aid and emergency, stocked and ready, as you would at home. Consider ways you could carry drums of water for your animals in your trailer, and check out our blog on trailer safety and maintenance. Have a place that can accommodate you and your animals – do not rely on the government to take care of you. Most importantly, if it is less than 72 hours to impact, DO NOT EVACUATE. Refer to your stay home plan. It is key to have these plans written down and readily accessible in an emergency!

As a special offer, Springhill Equine is offering microchipping at $10 off throughout Hurricane Season.  And for even more resources check www.ready.govor  www.avma.org/disaster/default.asp

Thanks for visiting my counter, may your litter box always be clean and your food bowl full! Safe sailing, Tony

 

In Case of Emergency

Jun 8, 2011 | Ailments, Disaster Preparedness, Feed, Leg issues

We all know horses have an amazing ability to find new and fun ways to injure themselves and their humans.  In this blog, I will briefly touch on the basic things to have on hand and the protocols to have in place for emergencies.

There are three common horse emergencies: Colic, Eyes and Legs

Let’s start with colic.  Horses have been badly designed by Mother Nature so if you have horses long enough you will experience colic.  The best way to deal with colics is to prevent them.  A few quick pointers: any change to diet should happen over 5-7 days minimum, roughage and high quality concentrates will minimize digestive upsets and horses hate change so keep to a routine as much as possible.  So you have done everything to prevent colic but come home one evening to find your horse unwilling to eat, rolling on the ground or just laying around.  Step One is a basic assessment of your horse’s vital signs.  Is your horse sweating a lot, breathing very rapidly or extremely restless?  If so, call us immediately.  These are signs of a more severe colic which requires attention quickly.  If your horse is quietly laying down, breathing normally or just acting a little off start with a short, slow walk ideally near some good grass.  A short walk, a small offer of something tasty like apples, carrots or treats or even a 2 minute lunge at a trot will often get these mild colics feeling much better.  However, if your horse is not back to normal after 15-20 minutes please be sure to call Springhill Equine so the best course of action can be determined.

Our horses were blessed with the big beautiful eyes that sit on the sides of their heads where they can poke them on things.  And leave it to horses to find plenty of things to poke them on.  Eyes can quickly become infected with bacteria and fungus, especially in Florida.  Eyelids need to be sutured as soon as possible for the most cosmetic outcome.  A few things to look for: the eye itself should be very clear, any cloudiness is a definite sign of trouble, looking at your horse from the front both eyes should be open evenly and excessive drainage could be a sign of a blocked tear duct.  If in doubt about an issue it is never a bad idea to place some plain antibiotic ointment (NOT the kind with steroids) in the affected eye and give your horse one gram of Bute.  Once you have done this, call Springhill Equine and we will help decide if an emergency call is necessary or if the next day will be fine.  Any cuts to the eyelid can be treated the same way but will require sutures within 3-4 hours.

From that random piece of barbwire they manage to find to the hole that wasn’t there this morning, horses are very good at putting their legs where they don’t belong.  Quick leg guidelines: if a cut or puncture is near a joint call immediately, cold hosing any laceration will help remove dirt and debris and always have good bandaging material on hand just in case.  The most common things we see are lacerations to the lower leg.  Many of these are managed with lots of cold hosing, Vaseline or Neosporin and a good bandage.  Sutures might be placed but most of the time we are trying to use the skin as a temporary bandage.  Because horses have such a poor blood supply to the lower leg it is difficult to get sutured skin to stay happy for longer than 3-4 days.  The most important thing to remember about legs is that even the smallest laceration can be devastating if it is near a joint so call us for help deciding if this is an emergency or can wait until morning.

A bit of planning ahead of time can make a big difference in how emergencies are handled.  Sit down and make a plan for how much you will spend on each horse you have.  We understand this may differ from horse to horse but thinking about it ahead of time makes decisions easier in crises.  Explore insurance options now.  There are a variety of ways and coverages available.  But signing up for insurance when your horse is headed for colic surgery doesn’t work very well.  Having all your horse’s health information and your wishes written down for any farm help or house sitters will make everything go smoother if you are unreachable for some reason.

We are pretty sure Murphy’s Law was written for horses