Horses at the Olympics and Paralympics

Pre-competition:

With horses from 40 different countries on 6 continents it is no wonder prevention of disease is taken so seriously.  The screening process for the horses are even stricter than the riders!  They start with an initial health check off-site which is carried out by a veterinary team to make sure they have no signs of infectious disease or injury. This is standard bio-security procedure at all international events.  The horses are reloaded, and the ramps and doors are then security sealed with tape from the outside.They are escorted to the Olympic park then straight to their stables and given a complete health check by an official from FEI.  They are then checked against their passports to check if it is the horse the passport claims it to be.  They then have a 24-hour veterinary team incase anything does happen. There are four supervised treatment boxes, overseen by the FEI veterinary commission, where onsite experts provide a range of treatments including endoscopy, radiography, ultrasonography and physiotherapy.

During Competitions: 156 jumping horses were tested for hypersensitivity just before the show jumping and the only one that failed was Victor, belonging to Tiffany Foster . He has a small nick on the coronet band, a fleshy ring where the hoof joins the leg. He was disqualified much to team Canada's distress leaving them with only 3 team members putting pressure on all 3.  So hypersensitivity is one of many tests carried out among with detecting heat to try and detect where trying to cheat is happening, however this can cause problems when boots and bandages rub.  The horses are also subjected to multiple health checks especially during the cross country to make sure the horses are in optimum condition to try and prevent as many falls and injuries as possible.

The stables are outfitted with closed-circuit television cameras and round-the-clock security, and the lights go out from 11:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. (midnight to 5:00 the night after cross-country) to give the horses a chance to rest. If a groom, say, wishes to enter a stable during the nighttime hours, he or she must be escorted in and out by an FEI steward to ensure proper security.

So it appears horses at the Olympics in 2012 are looked after more than their riders are and it isn't as simple as just seeing what happens in the ring.  Many people are behind the scenes making sure those horses are at their peak condition and to ensure there is no advantage to any riders.

 

Pet Insurance

I have had an amazing school holiday! I had the most amazing time doing work experience, I met loads of new people and gained valuable experience.  I worked with horses, at a kennels and at a small animal vets.  One thing that struck me at the vets was the distress when people find the massive bill waiting for them at the end and not being insured.  

From what I have seen I would never not have an animal insured.  I have seen bills stack up to thousands of pounds worth of treatment (luckily those owners were insured!) But many are not and especially with bigger animals, the cost of general anaesthetic for a bigger animal costs hundreds in itself! 

You may be sat thinking 'but why would my perfectly healthy animal ever need general anesthetic' but going back to the post I made earlier after a talk on gum disease, I was watching operations and consultations for a week at a local practice and almost every day there was a dental in and almost every single animal that came in that week over the age of 10 had gum disease. Then the cost starts stacking up because to put an older animal under GA (general anaesthetic) is a risk so most practices would recommend taking blood samples to check organ function and the level of red and white blood cells so reduce the risk (but they cost around £70) and then on top of that is the cost for the procedure and a simple tooth extraction due to gum disease can cost a substantial amount!  Leaving the tooth in would not be an option if it was grade IV gingivitis as although they seem fine, some will refuse food which causes severe weight loss and it will be causing them pain but they just cannot say like we can.  

That is just the common problems that stack up to substantial amounts, if anything unexpectedly happens to your pet emergency vet treatment can leave a huge hole in your pocket and I find that it is better to be safe than sorry.  

Of course each pet is different so depending on which insurance you use prices will vary so you need to find the cover best suited for your needs and cheaper cover doesn't cover as much but the more expensive may be ridiculous etc. My dog is covered at around £10 a month which is reasonable and better than getting the huge bill if anything does happen.  But I would from personal experience check out pet insurance if you are not already insured.*

*I am not saying you MUST as some people may not find pet insurance a financially viable route as the cost of treatment may be cheaper than the insurance itself but I do recommend you look into it.