The Horse 911: What's Your Emergency?

Sometimes it's unfortunate that as the author of this blog, I often decide what I would like to focus on for the week based on trends of note in the large animal emergency situations that I track worldwide. I say "unfortunate" because that usually means that somewhere, somehow, something horrific has happened to a horse--and usually more than once--hence a "trend." That is the situation this week as people are getting their horses back on trailers to enjoy the spring riding season. Perhaps your trailer hasn't been checked for serviceability or maintained as well as it should have?

How it Starts:

I called my farrier, Stephen Marshall here in Georgia, on Monday to discuss an appointment for him to trim my horses. During the conversation he mentioned that he was called last week to assist with two horses that had gone through the floor of a trailer and were trapped there. The horses had been driven at least three miles before the driver realized what had happened and stopped the trailer.

I asked him for more details, and he related that the floor of the trailer was absolutely not appropriate for anything living to be transported in, especially because the floor boards were not attached. Nothing held them to the frame of the trailer except their weight--which of course when the trailer went over a bump, they popped up and the horse went through.

When he arrived, one of the horses was trapped in the floor while the other was able to get himself out through the escape door and was quickly going into shock. The responders assisted the trapped horse out the escape door, and then triaged them. Both had severe extensor tendon damage and compromise of their tendons, and were euthanized.

How it Continues:

Yesterday, Dr. Tai Curry Fox, one of my former TLAER students from Mississippi, sent me pictures of the horrific scene she was called to that morning for a trailer accident. When she arrived, she realized it was another horse had gone through a trailer floor in a stock trailer. The flooring was not attached to the frame, and the boards were rotten even at visual inspection.

As you can see from the picture, the entire area on the front of the pastern and fetlock is destroyed (this is the severing of the extensor tendons) it is amazing that this horse is capable of standing at all. After the horse was humanely euthanized, the veterinarian noted that the fetlock on the right hind was actually dislocated as well.

Why It Happens:

Structural collapse of the trailer floor is tied to one of two things: inappropriate loading of the flooring (too much weight on the surface), or failure of a component of the floor (rust, corrosion, failure of attachment, poor support by the frame, etc.)

The entire weight of a horse is on the tiny surface area of their hoof, meaning that a floor that can withstand their weight across its length might not be able to on the very center of the floor, where the support frame doesn't hold it up. Note the pictures of an example I made, and then I allowed my horse to step onto the middle. Without the appropriate support, the board failed with 1,200 pounds of weight on it.

Trailer Flooring Choices:

As a purchaser of trailers and flooring, you as the consumer have control of the industry. Demand the best quality trailer you can get, and make sure you pay attention to the flooring options. Examine your friend's trailers and never load your horse onto a trailer that you are not comfortable with, especially stock trailers.

RUMBER

PRO: Easy to install yourself, recycling product, very long service life, softer on the legs, quiet, easy to clean, durable and impervious to oils, urine, manure, etc.

CON: Medium expense, slick so must have rubber mats or cleats on top surface.

LUMBER - (Minimum 2 inches thick and pressure treated. NO PLYWOOD.)

PRO: Easy to install yourself, cheapest, renewable resource, pressure treatment extends life.

CON: Must be cleaned regularly and kept dry as possible, crack and splinters, rots with time and exposure, replacement recommended within 10 years.

ALUMINUM -

PRO: Durable, light weight, easy to clean, long service life.

CON: Expensive, can corrode with time and exposure, transfers heat from the road.

STEEL -

PRO: Durable.

CON: Expensive, can rust with time and exposure, transfers heat from road, loud noises in trailer.

Clean Your Floors:

A regular cleaning of your trailer floors may save your horses from looming disaster. (We all know people that leave poop and pee in the trailer for months.) Efficient cleaning of the trailer after every use, by sweeping out the manure and bedding, then hosing out the urine and breakdown products once a month, will minimize rot and corrosion. Taking out the trailer mats at least once a year and performing a pressure cleaning or scrubbing of all parts of the trailer will allow you to perform a visual inspection for corrosion, rot, or boards that are not secured.

A Few More Horror Stories From my Files:

An incident similar in the UK last year.

My comments: Plywood is never an appropriate choice for trailer flooring! Even aluminum can corrode, steel can rust. Flooring of any type must be regularly inspected to ensure the quality of the channel, the ability of the floor to withstand the weight of the horse and especially on such a tiny surface area of the hooves.

Another incident where the owner didn't realize the horse had fallen out of the trailer in 2010.

My comments: It is unknown if this was through the floor or unsecured doors. And it is very easy to not notice the horse is being dragged if you do not look into your rear view mirrors constantly! An even easier solution: install a camera in the trailer so that you can observe your horse.

An incident in Chesapeake, Va., where the horse was euthanized on the scene.

More sad scenarios in 2009 and 2010.

My comments: Rarely does a horse survive this type of injury. When the feet go through the horse struggles to right itself, and the asphalt is a very efficient abrasive, especially at speed.

There is a short video on how to do a trailer safety check you can check out on the site.

I welcome your comments and stories related to this blog. Remind your friends to check their trailers or take them to a reputable trailer maintenance facility to be inspected and cleaned.

Do you know what is going on around you most of the time? Are you aware of the smells, the sounds, and the sights around you at all times? Can you tell me what is the color of the car that is driving behind you (without looking in the mirror)? Or are you one of those people that tends to float down the street with your nose in your cell phone... trusting that others will step out of the way for you? When you ride your horse, are you blissfully unaware or are you paying attention to their footfalls, their rhythm, their ears turning, and their focus?

Situational awareness (SA) is originally a military term for a person's ability to perceive the dynamic elements around themselves and how your actions can change that, and being able to estimate how those factors and influences may transform with the changing of variables such as time, people, space, etc. In the emergency services, this is the gift of wisdom that comes with years of exposure to situations of many types, and the added complexities of human, politico-social, environmental, stress and leadership factors. Generally, SA is a highly-valued trait in leaders, managers, and decision makers--especially for people who work in jobs that have a lot of information flowing into the situation (disaster management and emergency scenes are a good example) or a high probability that something tragic will happen if you fail (nuclear power plants, pilot of an airplane, combat medic, etc.).

Interestingly, you have some level of SA, too--if you have ever driven a car, ridden a horse, or played an instrument with any level of skill. To perform any task, whether difficult or seemingly easy, requires SA of your vicinity, of the changing conditions around you, and of what can happen if you don't keep the car on the road, etc. Olympic-quality athletes and ace pilots have very highly developed skills of SA. Heck, even signing your name requires command of a multitude of tasks and intense concentration by your brain. Best of all, SA is a skill, implying that it is something that with practice you can IMPROVE!

Jockeys and eventing riders have to have excellent SA to prevent injuries in their riding pursuits... or is it luck?

For all of us it can be obscured at times and we "daydream"--how often have you jerked awake while driving and realized that you don't remember the last mile (or 50 miles) of roadway? That is a good demonstration of a loss of SA. In accidents and incidents that are commonly attributed to human error, many times the person's lack of SA is a contributing or defining factor to the tragedy that follows (and chemical involvement in the form of drugs, lack of sleep, or alcohol is a common depressor of SA).

Although it is unknown in this wreck who was at fault (subscription required to view article), it is probable that some combination of lack of SA by at least one of the drivers contributed to the incident.

Situational awareness is crucial to emergency responders, and one of the ways that you can assist on an emergency scene with your horse is by giving all the needed information about the incident to the dispatcher at 911 when you first make the call for assistance. You are the "eyes and ears" for the dispatcher. For example, telling her "there has been a trailer wreck on the road" is a lot different from "I'm southbound on I-85 at the 26 mile marker, and there is an overturned horse trailer with at least 6 horses in it. One is loose." The more details you can share, the better and more efficient will be their response.

The same idea works with your veterinarian. Telling him "one of my horses is sick" is very different than "my aged mare just came back from a trail ride this morning, she has a temperature of 102 deg F, minimal gut sounds, and she isn't interested in her food this evening." Details allow the responder of any type to better be prepared to deal with the incident when they arrive.

When you get involved in a team, SA becomes even harder to achieve because it requires intense good communication of the objectives and goals, or rules of engagement, along with each member of the team achieving their responsibilities and remaining within their role on the team. Furthermore, sorting through the "noise" of incoming information and filtering for that which is relevant, and that which must be shared, is a huge challenge to overcome and maintain safety. Whether the team is a sports team, a squad of Soldiers, or a fire truck responding to a barn fire, the challenges are inherently similar.

Measuring SA is very difficult to do in a quantitative or qualitative manner - but all of us know people personally that have these characteristics - many times they don't even seem to realize it. You instinctually have SA of those around you who have that "sixth sense" or ability to predict what is going to happen. Now, go practice to make it your own skill!

Over the last few months, animal science as a degree has endured some negative publicity, even mocking by bloggers and various websites. How does this affect the equine industry? Deeply. A large percentage of our large animal veterinarians, nutrition experts, horse trainers, and educators come out of this pool of students. Interestingly, there is evidence that very good faculty members are out there, and I recently met one of them.

Dr. Clay Cavinder, assistant professor of equine science at Texas A&M and came to speak at the Animal Transportation Association (ATA) International Conference in March at Vancouver. He was asked to share his cutting edge ideas for initiating a new (2011) course that is receiving high marks from his students in the Animal Science Department (the largest university animal science department in the United States, with 56 faculty and 831 undergraduates). His new "Equine Marketing and Development" course answers the requests from A&M students looking for alternate careers in the horse industry. Currently the standard responses from students are that they can be: trainer, veterinarian, educator, or owner. Awareness of alternate and interesting career options includes reaching outside of normal equine instructional and career paths into things like: disease, outbreaks and effects; liability and law; safe handling; marketing skills; emergency and disaster preparedness; or research in the equine industry.

Besides two graded exams, there are three oral presentations, field trips, and guest speakers to provide a variety of exposures to the students outside the classroom. This new course also hopes to soon fulfill the school's requirement that students achieve three credits in an "international cultures and diversity" course.

There is strong emphasis on oral communication and presentation skills so that students feel confident for job interviews, delivering information, etc. During the inaugural course, Dr. Cavinder included a historical overview of equine transportation in his lectures and a review of modern transportation methods. (Many of his students were not aware that horses also travel on planes!) The class visited a farm that quarantines horses for international travel and discussed quarantine procedures, avoiding liabilities, shipment procedures, and the impacts on economics of the equine industry.

During the course, the welfare of horses during transportation was investigated, companion animal versus livestock definitions, and the Unwanted Horse Coalition and issues associated with slaughter were explored. Dr. Cavinder noted that the USDA's role in equine health monitoring has changed significantly in the last century. In 1900 over 79% of farms had horses, while today only 18% of farms are estimated to have horses. Interestingly, we have about half the number of horses in the USA today than there were in 1900--even though they are not considered required for transportation any more.

Specifically, transport issues (safety concerns, balance methods used by the horse, moving trailer physics, and how horses try to maintain themselves in transport) were explored by the students. Obviously, transport is required in an industry that requires animals to be moved for purposes of commerce, show, competition, and breeding; and the importance of ATA recommendations and OIE guidelines for the welfare of the horses was stressed. Additionally, the logistical and educational challenges of evacuation and transportation for disaster preparedness were investigated.

Currently, Dr. Cavinder is looking for internships for his students to give them a chance to expand their horizons in the equine industry. He can be reached through the university email system.

I would like to applaud Dr. Cavinder for reaching out into brand new territory and making the effort to involve his students in new aspects of the equine industry, and I further hope that his example will be followed at other programs around the country. The only way to keep our industry fresh and cutting edge is to ensure that our students are well educated and have a variety of experiences and choices in their educational paths.

The Animal Transport Association (ATA) was able to meet with Clint Lancaster of the National Association of Trailer Manufacturers (NATM), who gave a presentation on "The Trailer Industry - Today and Tomorrow" as the Technical Director of the National Association of Trailer Manufacturers.

This is the first time that ATA has been able to attract a person of such stature that represents the over 400 manufacturers of light-to-medium duty trailers in the US and about 20 in Canada.

Their logo on a trailer is an excellent indicator that their members have undergone an audit checklist every two years of their "compliance verification program," which used to be voluntary, but, as of 2011, is a mandatory portion of their program for members. Look for their logo on trailers that you are considering purchasing, and demand that manufacturers at least comply with these standards.

Current Issues and Efforts:
Lancaster delivered an excellent overview of the regulatory considerations that Transport Canada (TC) and the National Highway Transportation Safety Association are considering, based on efforts for C.A.F.E. carbon reduction and increasing gas mileage fuel economy for vehicles and towed trailer, as well as Canadian improvements in rear impact guards and tire/rim testing for trailers under 10,000 pounds (TC).

There are concerns that the new possible requirements for low friction tires and mandated aerodynamics will increase trailer costs, but Lancaster also mentioned that as customers demand these improvements, they will drive the manufacturers to make them available. (The horse and livestock trailer business is very customer driven.)

Lancaster admitted that there are some issues with trailers that have come to the forefront of their attempts to improve: from rear light visibility changes that will be implemented by 2014, to problems with electric breakaway brakes and batteries, to wheel fastening methods that generated both a research project and a 350 page study, as well as an ANSI standard for attaching wheels onto trailers.

Part of these issues can be solved by educating the manufacturers and owners that change out their own wheels during maintenance and/or manufacture.

The NATM is working to make these improvements and is asking for assistance with this research. They're even hoping to standardize the trailer terminology that is used around the world. NATM recently has identified ASTM standards for paint performance on trailers, and is working on standards for chemical resistance analysis for the very special requirements of livestock and horse excrement, urine, and sweat that commonly is found in horse trailers. This is a well-established contributor to the destruction of trailer flooring and can cause tragic scenarios for owners. He pointed out that since there are very low barriers for entry into the trailer manufacturing business at this time (another words, almost anyone with a welding shop can build and sell a horse trailer) NATM is emphasizing that legitimate manufacturers should join and allow audits of their production of trailers. Otherwise, there are many people who might have purchased brand new trailers for their horses (usually on the cheaper end of the spectrum) that do not meet the minimum standards. But there are minimal enforcement arms to solve that.

Our horses suffer as a result of low and no standardized production of trailers when accidents and tragedies occur. We, as the horse industry, need to demand that the manufacturers align themselves with these standards, and continue to improve our expectations for safety of our animals and the occupants of the towing vehicle.

Future directions:
NATM is looking at the trailer brake standards for light and medium duty trailers - including both electric and hydraulic brake systems. They are trying to develop a testing procedure to meet the performance criteria - especially one to be used in the field. Trailers for consumers (horse and small livestock trailers) are not regulated like the commercial haulers, so these are state-to-state regulations that can differ wildly: in some states horse trailers do not even have to have brakes!

As the driving public, it is our duty to make an effort to improve these laws so that fewer people and horses get injured. In Texas a trailer is only required to have one set of brakes to stop a 4,500-pound trailer and the second set of brakes at 15,000 pounds. To me, this sounds like we have a long way to go to improve things ourselves.

The best news is that, as of 2013, the Society of Automotive Engineers has announced that is has agreed (Dodge, Ford, etc. all the light truck manufacturers) to a standard test to establish towing capacity for their towing vehicles. This is wonderful news because until now, they were able to basically say what they wanted to from a marketing and sales perspective. This change will allow truck buyers to compare apples to apples. They will test for stability as well as propulsion.

Lastly, looking forward to 2018, as smart vehicles become more widely distributed, the NATM will be looking for ways to innovate smart trailer technologies from tire pressure monitoring systems and electronic stability and sway controls to a trailer anti-lock brake system, similar to that in cars, and backup cameras.

NATM features a book by Lancaster entitled "The Trailer Handbook" which is available for purchase.

George Winegar, past president, Robert D. Campball award winner, and a member of Animal Transportation Association since its inception, gave an overview of historical horse transport at sea (remember that we as humanity have shipped by sea for much longer than we have shipped by trailer (150 years) and air (75 years). 

The Ancient Romans first developed horse shipping, and improved techniques were made by the Arabic peoples in the time of the Bible (remember that these were ships powered by oars or sail.) Ships were built for this purpose and designed with stalls to hold horses. Some even had slings to support the horses in case of rough seas and could move 20-30 horses per trip. Some lifted horses like cargo with slings onto the ship; some loaded and unloaded directly from the beach; some loaded the horses through a door in the hull. Some, when unloading, pushed horses off the ship and let them swim for the beach

The use of the horse for Cavalry changed the importance from being ridden and pulling carts to direct action in warfare and made them even more important. (Many of us have heard the quote, “The success of man has been borne on the backs of our horses.” It is truer than I can convey here.) Thus, the Italians had the capacity to ship up to 100 horses for short transport in the Mediterranean documented before 1000 B.C. By the French invasion of England in 1066 (represented on the Bayeaux Tapestry) the Normans invaded with 2,000 to 3,000 horses for this campaign. After winning the war, they continued to import horses for improving bloodlines of their breeds.

Of course we know that by the time of the Spanish, French, and English colonial periods, horse transport by sea was extremely common. Shipping during this time had significant logistical obstacles. Consider the logistics of calculating the correct amount of water, hay, and feed for even a short trip with 20 horses across the ocean.

Many millions of horses were shipped for the two World Wars, using what had been learned over the centuries before and adapted to steam- and diesel-powered ships that shortened the trip.

Interestingly, there are no U.S. regulations that specify space requirements for horses in air transports (that is normally configured by the shipper based on the variety of horses’ size and temperaments) but there are for sea transport. And there is minimal published research conducted for this subject (Do horses get seasick? Physiological effects? Etc.) because so much of it was done based on what the stevedores’ knew. We do know that there were efforts to increase ventilation in the hold for the horses using windsails and cowls that forced air into the ship – but probably nowhere near the modern requirement of 45 changes of air in the space per HOUR. Horses must have excellent ventilation to prevent respiratory sickness. In modern times, we usually ship by air for small numbers of horses because of these concerns. Contemporary requirements USDA APHIS Part 91 regulations have more specifics on how transport and housing should be done for animals.

Even into the 1970s a shipment of over 100 horses from the UK to Australia (a distance of 12,500 miles) notes that they required their grooms to exercise the horses daily on the top deck. So they had learned that standing in stalls for long periods of time gave problems that could be minimized with exercise. They recommended that 2 horses be held in a pen that was able to hold 7 cattle – recognizing the need for horses to move around. And they had two large desalination processing stations to provide the fresh water needed by the animals as well as for the constant cleaning of the facilities. In 1983, to replace the destroyed livestock on Faulkland Island – a $165,000 shipment (called Noah’s ark) of numerous animals including 20 horses and ponies was coordinated by an ATA member who reported the challenges with having enough hay, water and food for them.

In 2000, WSPA efforts to remove donkeys from Monserratt to St. Lucia involved use of a livestock ship to transport them to a better life.