Kopfschüttelndes Pferd Wird Eingeschläfert: Besitzer äußert Sich Zum Barttrimmen

Die Besitzerin eines Pferdes, dem eine Überlebenschance von etwa 50 % gegeben wurde, weil er solche Schmerzen hatte, sagt, dass sie nie wieder Schnurrhaare trimmen wird.

Eloise Townings ehemaliges Rennpferd Blue Blooded (BB) entwickelte sich im Sommer 2017 innerhalb weniger Wochen von seinem normalen Selbst zu einem unreitbaren Kopfschütteln. Sie gab Tausende von Pfund aus, um seinem neuen Verhalten auf den Grund zu gehen, ohne Erfolg.

„Ich liebe ihn über alles, aber als ich im Oktober in der Pferdeklinik ankam und der Tierarzt sagte, wenn es ihm nach der Behandlung nicht besser ginge, müsste er zu diesem Zeitpunkt eingeschläfert werden. Ich wollte nur, dass er keine Schmerzen hat “, sagte Eloise zu H&H.

„Es war egal, was ich wollte; Wenn das die einzige Option gewesen wäre, hätten wir es getan.“

Eloise hatte BB 2016 gekauft. Er hatte sich eine Kreuzbandverletzung zugezogen und kam im nächsten Sommer wieder zur Arbeit, also räumte sie ihn auf, einschließlich des Trimmens seiner Schnurrhaare, wie sie und ihre Familie es immer getan hatten.

„Ich habe die Verbindung nie hergestellt“, sagte sie. „Er fing an zu nicken, und in den nächsten fünf Wochen war es so weit, dass er mit geschlossenen Augen hinten in seinem Stall stand und sich nicht bewegte, es war schrecklich.

„Der Tierarzt hatte gesagt, Kopfschütteln sei etwas, das nicht oft gut endete; das Pferd muss oft eingeschläfert werden und ich dachte ‚Was meinst du?‘ Ich hatte noch nie von Kopfschütteln oder Neuralgien gehört.“

head-shaking can be caused by hypersensitivity of the trigeminal nerve in the head, which responds as if it has encountered a painful stimulus. although it is a misfire, the pain felt by the horse is real.

by the end of september, eloise had had a battery of tests carried out but was no nearer to finding the cause of bb’s issues.

“he was so uncomfortable; walking round the field, flipping his head or in the back of his stable,” she said. “he was referred to the equine hospital, where the vet said if the treatment they were going to do didn’t work, he’d pretty much have to be put to sleep.

“she said he was in so much pain; it’s sensory overload, and like having a migraine, and ants running all over your head.”

bb was given pens neuromodulation treatment, which is also used in humans to give relief from neuropathic pain. the aim was to try to override the nervous system and almost reset the trigeminal nerve.

“he had another treatment three days later so he had to stay there,” eloise said. “i was dying because i couldn’t see him, and they kept texting to say there was no improvement.

“two weeks later, he had another go, and when he got home, he was slightly better, but still head-shaking.”

over the next few weeks, bb got better and better; by november, he was back in ridden work, and he has not looked back since.

“it lasted from august to december, and that’s how long his whiskers took to grow back,” eloise said. “my vet, who’s incredible but old-school, told me not to be so stupid, that can’t have been the cause, but the more i think about it, the more it makes sense.”

owing to the ligament injury, that summer was the first time eloise had trimmed bb’s whiskers. she was warned it can often be a seasonal conditions, so she dared not plan any competitions the following spring, but he has not suffered since.

“there’s no science behind it being his whiskers and lots of people think differently; he could have just got better, but the more i investigated, the more it made sense,” she said. “the vet kept saying he had sensory overload, it was all in the head, and the whiskers are sensory, and it’s all the same area.

“some head-shakers only do it in daylight, but he did it all the time; it makes you think.”

eloise said she had always trimmed whiskers, without realising their true function.

“i had no idea,” she said. “i’m never touching them again.”

“it is very possible that this will affect the horse’s brain and potentially trigger head-shaking. it will be interesting to see if the new legislation will reduce the incidence of head-shaking going forward.”