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  Discussion on Safety around barns and in pastures
Author Message
Member:
vickiann

Posted on Sunday, Nov 15, 2009 - 5:23 pm:

Just received an E-mail about a very nice mare that had to be euthanized yesterday, who belonged to a friend of mine. It underscores the necessity of baby-proofing our pastures and barns.

If there are hazards (anything sharp, anything sticking out or up, anything potentially hazardous to legs or eyes, or that they might run over the top of or become tangled in, anything they might run into that could break their neck?) within their area, it is often a matter of when rather than if an accident will occur.

My friend's mare somehow managed to impale herself in the gut with the handle of a pitchfork. When my friend went to feed, her mare was found with her guts hanging out. The pitchfork, with the handle broken off was found and the broken piece had blood on it. My friend is very upset and blames herself for this tragic ending for her beloved mare.

Look around your pasture today. Think about a horse being excited, frightened, or even panicked, and acting at times like the prey animal that it is. Also about that blind spot within the range of their vision.

Too many of my friends have lost horses in tragic circumstances, sometimes after the offending object was in their pasture area for years. Better to be safe than sorry.
Member:
mrose

Posted on Sunday, Nov 15, 2009 - 6:13 pm:

Good reminder. DO NOT Leave anything in a horse's stall like a apple picker, shovel, rake, etc. while you go dump the wheel barrow. I had a good friend almost loose her stallion because it impaled itself on the handle of the apple picker. Horses are like little children; if there's a way to possibly hurt themselves, some of them will.

People aren't immune to hurting themselves this way either; as a child I stepped on the handle of a small rake and it stuck in my knee. I learned young to be careful of such things.
Member:
scooter

Posted on Sunday, Nov 15, 2009 - 6:51 pm:

VICKI! Guess where my apple picker is.

I took the horses out to graze on the lawn today for awhile, when I put Hank back I hung his halter with lead rope on a fence post in the paddock.

Went out and fed supper later and noticed it hanging there, thought aw heck I'll put it away tomorrow, halfway back to the house images of one of them hanging themselves on it appeared and I went back and put it away.

Guess I'll go out and move the apple picker I wouldn't think they could impale themselves on something like that... horses
Member:
ajudson1

Posted on Sunday, Nov 15, 2009 - 7:07 pm:

Thanks for sharing such a tragic story that helps to refresh our memory regarding those safety issues.

I have one of those tool things for the fork, shovel and such. It's under the stairs and sometimes I get in a hurry & leave the fork stuck in a partial bale, or in the garbage can I put the twine strings in.

I was just thinking I need to do some re-organizing before winter, with horses being in more and all. I don't think having the twine strings in a garbage can with no lid on is safe, huh? All it would take is ONE string in their guts.

And hubby was saying he probably shouldn't leave his bags of deer corn in the barn aisle. Even though the horses would have to open 2 doors, and a webbed fence gate to get to it, I do think it needs to put in a different building. With the luck of things that can go wrong with horses, they would get out in the yard from the pasture, and walk in the big open doors on the other end where the corn is and gorge themselves!

O.k., now I won't sleep until I head back to the barn to double check everything. Don't know if I can move 100 pound bags of corn myself!

Please give your friend my condolences.
Member:
vickiann

Posted on Monday, Nov 16, 2009 - 2:15 pm:

Thanks, Sara, Diane and Angie.

It is not hard to become complacent or overlook things, and we all make mistakes sometimes.

It is good to walk our pasture and barn areas frequently with a critical eye.
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