4,777 answers about horses & farm animals
Horses and farm animals run on routine — feeding schedules, hoof and health care, safe fencing and calm handling, in all weather. This page gathers the horse and farm animal library of KinsLe Answers in one place, organized by topic from daily care to travel and senior animals. Every answer is original, written by KinsLe, and tied to a real KinsLe feature.
← All Horses & Farm Animals topics
449 answers in Health & Vet Care — page 16 of 19
Treat it as an emergency when colic signs keep returning or will not settle, a horse cannot swallow and has feed running from the nostrils, is bleeding heavily, has an eye injury, or is down and cannot rise. A mare straining in foaling without progress, a wound over a joint, a suspected fracture and a horse not…
A chicken with a respiratory problem usually shows it in her breathing first: sneezing, a runny or bubbly discharge at the nostrils, watery eyes, and a rattly or whistling sound as she breathes. Gasping, open-beak breathing, head shaking and a swollen face are more worrying, and you will often see laying drop and…
Red mite rarely shows on the hens themselves because the mites live in the coop's cracks by day and climb aboard to feed at night, so the giveaway signs are a flock that turns reluctant to go in at dusk, pale combs, restless birds on the perches and a sudden dip in laying. Run a fingertip along the underside of a…
Laminitis classically changes how a horse stands and moves: he rocks his weight back onto his heels, shifts from foot to foot, takes short, pottery steps — worst on hard ground or when turning — and may have hot feet with a bounding pulse you can feel at the fetlock. Some horses lie down far more than usual and resist…
An egg-bound hen keeps visiting the nest or squatting to strain without producing an egg; she may stand oddly upright like a penguin, pump her tail, sit fluffed with her eyes closing, and go quiet and off her food as the hours pass. You might feel a firm oval low in her abdomen if you handle her very gently, but never…
Dental trouble in a horse usually shows first at feeding time: quidding — dropping half-chewed balls of hay — eating slowly or with the head tilted, feed spilling from one side of the mouth, and weight quietly slipping away despite a full ration. Bad breath, reluctance to accept the bit, head-tossing under saddle and…
Colic signs are pain behaviours: pawing at the ground, turning to look or bite at the flank, getting up and down, rolling, sweating without work, and standing stretched as if trying to pass urine — alongside quieter clues like no fresh droppings, a tucked-up belly and little interest in feed. Because colic can be…
Choke in a horse is a blockage in the gullet, not the windpipe, so a choking horse can breathe — but he cannot swallow, and the signs are hard to miss: feed, saliva and discharge draining from the nostrils, repeated coughing and retching, the neck stretched low, and a distressed horse who has just stopped eating…
Bumblefoot shows up on the underside of the foot: a firm swelling on the pad, often with a dark brown or black scab at its centre, and a hen who limps, favours one leg or hesitates to come down from the perch. In earlier stages you may only spot redness and slight puffiness when you pick her up and turn the foot over,…
The unmistakable sign is moist red or pink tissue bulging from the hen's vent where only feathers and a small opening should be; she may strain repeatedly, look hunched and quiet, and stop laying, and there can be blood on the tissue or in the coop. Other hens are drawn to peck at the red tissue, which can injure her…
A foot abscess typically announces itself as a lameness that looks worse than a tweak — many horses are suddenly hobbling or barely willing to bear weight on one foot, sometimes within a day of seeming fine. Look for heat in that hoof, a stronger-than-usual throb in the digital pulse at the fetlock, and a horse who…
Most vets suggest one full review a year for a healthy donkey or pony, covering teeth, weight and body condition, hooves, eyes, skin, heart and lungs, plus the vaccination and worming plans for the year ahead. Donkeys need the same visit framed slightly differently: they hide discomfort well and carry their fat in…
A cast sheep is lying on its side or back, often in a dip, unable to get its legs under it — and a collapsed sheep is an emergency either way, so phone the vet first and describe exactly what you see. While you wait, work quietly: ease the sheep upright so it sits on its breastbone with its legs folded naturally, and…
Keep every farm medicine in one locked, cool, dry store — ideally a dedicated cabinet in a clean tack room or feed store, never loose in the yard or mixed in with feed. Leave each product in its original container with its label intact, and keep a simple log of what you hold, which species and animals it is for, when…
Most horses need a dental check at least once a year from a vet or a qualified equine dental technician, and twice a year while they are young and shedding their baby teeth, or old, with mouths that are changing fast. Horses chew with a circular grinding motion that wears the cheek teeth unevenly, leaving sharp enamel…
Watch the horse trot in a straight line on hard, flat ground: with a lame front leg, the head lifts as that leg lands and drops as the sound leg takes the weight — riders call it 'down on sound'. From behind, look for one hip hiking higher than the other, a shortened stride, or a dragging toe. At rest, compare both…
Take the temperature rectally with a large-animal thermometer, standing at the horse's side rather than directly behind him: a resting adult horse normally reads between 99 and 101.5 degrees Fahrenheit. Feel the pulse where the facial artery crosses the jaw, which should sit between 28 and 44 beats a minute at rest,…
Write everything down before you call: which hens are affected and in what order they sickened, the signs — breathing, droppings, egg changes, appetite, and any deaths — and anything that changed in the flock's world, from new birds to new feed or a hot spell. Take clear photos and a short video of the worst-affected…
Bring the horse in well before the appointment, give him time to settle, and have him clean: legs washed and dried, feet picked out, and a dry standing area with good light ready to work in. A calm, familiar handler should hold him — not whoever happens to be free — and for a vet visit, have his history ready:…
A modern worming programme is planned around testing rather than the calendar: your vet will usually build it on faecal egg counts taken through the grazing season, treatments only for horses whose counts show a real burden, and a tapeworm check worked into the year. The plan has to cover the whole yard, because one…
A cut can stay a yard job when it is shallow, its edges lie together, bleeding stops with a few minutes of pressure, the horse is sound, and it sits on a fleshy area away from joints. Call the vet the same day if it gapes open, keeps bleeding, is a puncture however small, sits over a joint, tendon, or eye, or the…
A good leg bandage stays put because of even padding and even pressure, not tightness: build it on a clean, dry leg with a soft pad underneath, wrap smoothly over the fetlock and back up, and finish so you can still slide two fingers under the top edge. Keep it clean by starting only on a dry leg, protecting it from…
Look for a practice with genuine equine depth rather than a small-animal clinic that occasionally sees horses: dedicated equine vets, proper round-the-clock emergency cover, and the facilities for the problems a yard actually produces. Ask owners on yards near you who they use and who turns up fastest in the middle of…
Horse insurance is worth it when a big, unexpected vet bill would force you into a decision you do not want to make, or when the horse's value and workload make injury or loss a serious financial hit. Weigh what full vet-fee cover would cost you across a year against paying for routine care yourself, and read the…
Can't find your question? Ask it here. We answer reader questions in KinsLe Answers — and we'll email you when yours is published.
KinsLe is launching soon — and the waitlist hears the date first. Join for launch updates and first access when the app opens.
We email you about the launch. Unsubscribe anytime.