Prepurchase Exams
A waste of
money or piece of mind?
Every done a
home inspection? It starts with you sitting down with the home inspector on a
table and signing several pages of waivers and exclusions. Then you hand over
your cash or cheque and the inspector starts getting his tools ready. A
flashlight a moisture-meter, a ladder…
It was my
first time last year do witness- and pay for a home inspection and the most
important thing I learned was If I have to sign 5 times minimum in order to acknowledge
there can be hidden defects and damages in an innate object, that are not
readily detectable to the trained professional, I probably should “upt” the
paperwork of my prepurchase forms significantly.
So what do
you get and expect from a prepurchase exam for the horse you picked?
This is what
I sometimes hear when talking to the prospective buyer:
“ I just
want to make sure he doesn’t go lame further down the road”- or “ I once had a
horse with navicular-I need to make sure this one stays sound” – or “ we love
him so much, he needs to stay healthy”
Do you feel
the pressure??
This is what
you can expect from a prepurchase exam – or vet check as it is also called.
I try to get
a concise history from the owner about the horse in question, not only the
medical history but its workload, feeding program, supplements and routine
medications.
Then the
exam starts with a clinical exam of the horse at rest, I try to get an overview
of type, conformation and temperament.
The head, ears, mucus membranes (conjunctiva, nasal mucusa and gingiva) are
assessed, next I listen to his heart, lung sounds and gut sounds. Check
temperature? The simple process of taking the temperature can be challenging in some horses – and by
now I have already learned a lot about that horse, if nothing else then to be
more careful around it.
The eyes are
examined with a flashlight and a special tool called ophthalmoscope.
Opening the
mouth, holding the tongue in order to assess the teeth can be another challenge
for some of my patients.
After that
the body and skin is checked for lumps, scabs, injuries and scars.
All four
legs are lifted, the joints are examined for swelling and range of motion and
the tendons and ligaments are palpated.
The feet are
tested for pain and sensitivity with a simple but very useful tool called “ hooftester” and the horn quality of hoof wall, sole and frog is assessed.
This brings
me to another comparison with everyday buying and selling. Ever tried to sell a
car with worn and flat tires for a lot of money??
No ? Well, I
have seen quite a few sale-horses, no matter how high the price tag was, that
would have desperately needed a good trim or shoeing job before the vetcheck.
Once the
initial exam is done, we look at the horse in motion. Walking on straight line
in walk and trot, lunging on hard and soft ground. And again here is the
challenge, how do you trot a horse in hand that never learned how to do so? Or
doesn’t know how to lunge.
Welcome to
my world…
Next step:
Every ageing’s vet favorite- the flexion tests. One leg after the other is held
in flexed position for approximately a minute, then the horse is trotted off.
We do this
in order to detect joint pain often related to wear and tear, but we have also
keep in mind that especially older horses, that perform perfectly well in the
show ring, might not flex that pretty sometimes.
Now it is
time to get the heart rate up, with lunging in trot and canter while listening
for respiratory noise (roar), I will again look for any lameness. After that I
will auscultate the lung and heart again, in order to check for irregular
heartbeat or abnormal lung sounds.
We are
coming towards the end of the basic exam, some other tests, like backing up the
horse, circling in a small circle and checking the tail tone are part of my neurologic
assessment.
Then it is
time to talk…
All the
findings are considered confidential and it is completely up to the buyer-my
client, to share that information with the seller or not. As there is neither
the perfect vet, nor the perfect horse there is always something to talk about.
If the buyer is happy with the findings, we will proceed with x rays if requested.
There is no standardization in Northern America about which views and how many x rays to take in the pleasure and sport horse world. As it is quite often a money issue – the x rays can be by far the moist expensive part of a prepurchase exam – only a limited number of x rays are taken, I try to do that on a risk based assessment in these cases. For example in an ex- race horse I will have a close look at the knees (carpus), whereas if it is a warmblood I probably spend my clients money better on feet and navicular rads. Although I xrays are an important part when buying a horse, it is important to realize that even after imaging every possible joint, there is no guarantee for future soundness of the horse, it will however give you an important baseline about the joints and bones at the time of the exam.
Depending on
the situation other tests or diagnostics might be done, endoscopy of the airways,
ultrasound, blood work, specific tests for hereditary diseases and blood for a
drug screen. Due to the fact that “bute”, “banamine” or other “painkillers” are
readily available there is of course the risk that you get a horse presented
that has “bute on board….”
Needless to
say that this is a nightmare for the exam and the interpretation of it.
My personal
advice to clients is, if we take blood it should be tested immediately.
It is
possible to take blood and freeze it, and to only have it analyzed if a problem
arises a problem down the road, but I will advise that, while it might unveil a
“dirty deal”,
at that point the chances of successfully using the results in court – should
it go that far - are slim, due to what is
called “ a broken chain of custody”. The opposite lawyer will argue that
the blood sent to the lab 4 weeks later could be anybody’s.
There is a
wide variation of how pre-purchases are done between veterinarians and also
between countries all with the same goal, to gather as much information about
the horse in order to reduce the risk that is involved in buying a horse.
But like may
other things in life –“ no risk – no Fun” and every horse owner will tell you
that owning your own horse is one of the most rewarding things in life.
And finally
here is an example of a disclaimer and while nobody is a fan of reading
disclaimers, mine is a lot shorter than our home inspector’s….
Disclaimer:
It is important to remember that the pre-purchase
examination can only give us information about the horse’s health and condition
on the day of the exam. While this information is very important, it can never
be a complete picture. Many factors that impact a horse’s health are not
necessarily detectable on the day of the exam. The veterinarian cannot predict
the horse’s future, and no guarantee can be issued.
Our role as veterinarian in the pre-purchase examination
is not to “pass” or “fail” the horse. Instead, it is to help you make an
informed decision by providing information about the horse’s health.
Ultimately, the decision to purchase this animal can only be made by the
prospective buyer. Remember, your veterinarian is happy to discuss any
questions the prospective buyer may have about the exam findings.
