Mee – vs – Bloodsuckers

The war is on against mosquitoes at our place.  Just in the past couple of weeks they've gotten really bad.   I had Ada County Mosquito Abatement come out and fog the place and called our Vet to make sure our horses were up to date on all their vaccinations.

Well, our mare Ginger had a severe allergic reaction to getting her West Nile shot today. She's never had any adverse issues with getting the shots in the past.  But for some reason this time her joints swelled up and she just locked up and stood frozen in place within minutes of getting her shot.   Thankfully the Vet was still in the vicinity and after a quick call he swung back over and gave her a steroid shot to settle everything down.

Meanwhile our three boys have been standing out at the gate in the front pasture hollering for Ginger to join them.  She's starting to come out of the little scare she gave us and has shuffled back into her stall in the barn and is now whinnying back at the boys in between taking small bites of hay.

Our Vet, Matt Woodington, says Ginger should be fine but she shouldn't ever get the West Nile shot again.  Negative reactions to the shot are rare and it's still a good idea to get your horses vaccinated.  Now we just have to stay vigilant and take all precautions to limit the mosquito population around our place.