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.
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449 answers in Health & Vet Care — page 8 of 19
Early dental trouble in a Friesian often shows first at feeding and under the bridle: wads of partly chewed hay dropped from the mouth, slower eating, a head tilt while chewing, or new resistance when the bit is taken up. Watch also for bad breath, one-sided nasal discharge, and a big, heavy head being tossed or held…
Early dental trouble in a Boer goat often shows as slower eating, dropping partly chewed forage, preferring soft feed over browse, and losing condition while pasture looks plentiful. Watch for cud balls spat out, one-sided chewing, a wet or dribbling chin, head tilting while eating, and a goat who arrives keen then…
A Suffolk sheep should have at least one routine veterinary check a year, placed before breeding so condition, teeth, feet, and ram soundness are settled before this fast-growing meat breed goes to work. Add a late-pregnancy ewe review, lamb checks around birth and weaning, and twice-yearly condition and mouth checks…
Give a Jacob sheep at least one full routine veterinary check a year, ideally before breeding, covering condition, teeth, feet, horns and eyes, fleece and skin, and parasite planning for your ground. Jacobs are a hardy heritage breed, but multi-horned heads need specific attention for horn growth toward the face and…
Take a Welsh Pony's temperature rectally with a lubricated digital thermometer, standing at her hip and keeping a firm hold until it beeps, because a small pony can wriggle free faster than a big horse. At rest her temperature is usually around 99 to 101.5 degrees, with a pulse often a little quicker than a large…
Take a Quarter Horse's temperature rectally with a lubricated digital thermometer held in place until it beeps, standing at the hip where you can see his face and he can see you. A resting adult is usually around 99 to 101.5 degrees, with a resting heart rate roughly in the high twenties to low forties beats a minute…
A quick pig health check starts where pigs are most honest: at the feed bowl, where a healthy pig arrives fast and eats with total commitment. From there, check the skin for marks and parasites, watch breathing at rest, look at the snout and eyes, watch the pig walk for evenness, and glance at its droppings. A pig…
A quick goat health check reads the whole animal in a few minutes: appetite and cud chewing first, then coat and skin, the inner eyelid and gums, rumen movement low on the left side, legs and hooves, and finally the droppings in the pen. A healthy goat is bright, greedy and busy, so one that stands apart, stops…
A quick duck health check starts with watching her swim and walk: a healthy duck is waterproof, bright-eyed and eager to forage. Handled gently, check that the eyes and nostrils are clear, the feathers repel water rather than soaking in, the vent is clean, and the feet are free of swelling or sores underneath. A duck…
A quick donkey health check has to be hands-on, because a donkey's thick coat hides its body condition and its stoic nature hides almost everything else. Watch for dullness and appetite first, then feel along the neck, ribs and pelvis for fat or bone, check the eyes, gums and breathing, run your hands down the legs,…
A quick cow health check begins from a distance: a healthy cow is alert, eating or chewing cud, and moving evenly with the herd. Up close, check that the eyes are bright, the nose moist without thick discharge, breathing calm, and the coat smooth for the season, then look over the udder, legs and feet, and the manure…
A quick chicken health check starts with watching the bird before you touch her: bright, busy and eating is the baseline. Then, holding her calmly, check the comb for colour, the eyes and nostrils for clearness, feel the crop and the keel for body condition, inspect the vent and under the tail for mess or mites, and…
A Thoroughbred in pain may look simply difficult: resistant under saddle, girthy, explosive about one lead or direction, or suddenly unwilling to stand for mounting. This sensitive breed also shows classic signs if you slow down and look: weight shifting, shortened stride, going off feed in a busy yard, sweating or…
A Tennessee Walking Horse in pain typically loses the quality of its famous gait: the running walk turns pacey or uneven, the rhythmic head nod fades or exaggerates, and the hind stride shortens. You may also see reluctance to move out under saddle, stiffness after standing in, tail wringing, or a horse that stands…
A Standardbred in pain usually shows it in the gait first: breaking stride, going unevenly at the trot or pace, tossing its head, or refusing to stretch out as it normally does. Off the track, watch for a horse that goes off its feed in the race barn, paws or weaves when it usually stands quietly, shifts weight at…
A Shetland pony in pain often just goes quiet and still: it stands parked with its weight rocked back, lies down more than usual, moves stiffly over hard ground, or turns grumpy about feet being picked up and the girth being done. This hardy little breed rarely dramatises, so a Shetland that stops coming over for…
A Quarter Horse in pain often stays polite, so look for small refusals rather than drama: reluctance to move off the leg, shortened stride, tail swishing or ear pinning under saddle, and weight shifting or a sore-looking stance at rest. In the stable, going off feed, pawing, repeatedly looking at a flank, or a new…
A Pygmy goat in pain usually stops being its round, busy self: it stands apart from the herd, hunches with its head down, grinds its teeth, and loses interest in feed it normally rushes for. You may also see repeated bleating or unusual silence, a tucked-up belly, limping, lying down and getting up restlessly, or…
A Paint Horse in pain usually shows it in stance and stride first: repeated weight-shifting, standing stretched or camped out, a shortened or uneven stride, and reluctance to turn or back up. Add ears pinned at girthing, tail swishing through work he normally accepts, pawing, flank-watching, going off hay, fewer…
A Nigerian Dwarf in pain usually stops being busy: this tiny, playful dairy breed normally climbs, plays, chews cud, and calls to her people, so a doe who stands hunched in a corner, stops cudding, and ignores the herd is flagging a problem. Listen for teeth grinding and a changed cry, and look for a tucked tail,…
With a Mustang, read distance and herd behaviour: these hardy, self-reliant horses often mask pain, so the earliest signs are standing apart from the band, staying near cover, coming last to water, and moving stiffly or lagging on ground he normally crosses easily. Watch for weight-shifting, a guarded or tucked…
A Morgan in pain typically dims in expression and shortens in step: instead of his compact, animated way of going, he carries his head lower, holds his ears back, moves with a choppy, shortened stride, and may stamp, swish his tail, or shift weight at rest. New reluctance under saddle, sensitivity at girthing, going…
A Friesian in pain loses her natural presence first: instead of moving out with that high, proud carriage, she shortens her stride, holds her ears back or flat, swishes her tail persistently, and may paw, stamp, or look round at her flank. Watch for reluctance to go forward under saddle that is new, repeated rolling…
With a Clydesdale, watch his weight and his willingness: this heavy draft breed normally stands square, moves out freely despite his size, and comes to feed steadily, so repeated weight-shifting, resting one hind leg constantly, pawing, or lying down far more than usual are early warnings. Add a dull eye, ears held…
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