What to Do When your Horse is Tangled in Your Fence
Written by Brittany Oracheski from horsefencing.net where the #1 goal is safe horse fencing
which is reflected in the type of products they carry. Everything is manufactured specifically
with horses in mind.
You are out to feed and whistle for your horses to come up to the fence. The herd trots up, but
they took longer than usual, and one is missing. Fearing the worst, you head out to check for
him in the direction that the rest of the herd came from. Your fears are confirmed when you
spot your horse down on his side, thrashing his legs, with one front leg tangled in wire. What
should you do?
Be Prepared
When setting up or preparing a pasture area,
be sure you have close access to an equine first
aid kit and a pair of wire cutters. This tool is of
utmost importance if you have wire fences.
Wire cutters (the Gallagher Maun is a good
one) can even be an asset if you don’t have
wire fences, as you never know what could be
beneath the soil and uncovered at any time.
You may consider hobble training your horse as
preparation for a possible entanglement
situation. A hobble trained horse’s reaction to being stuck in the fence may be much calmer
than a horse that has not been hobble trained. Keep in mind, though, that even with hobble
training, sometimes a horse who is tangled in the fence will still be overtaken by their flight
instinct and struggle to free themselves. Hobble training is not a guarantee.
When going outside to check horses or feed, it is important to bring a cell phone. If there is no
service by the pasture, know where you can find the closest phone or location that has cell
phone service. In situations of entanglement, injury, or sickness, it can be a matter of life and
death for your horse to be seen by the vet as soon as possible.
1) Call the vet- Before approaching your horse, call a vet! Fence entanglement almost
always requires veterinary attention. If you are alone checking or feeding your horse, it
is also important to call a vet before approaching the struggling animal, as if you are
injured in the process of freeing the leg, you know there will be someone who will be
coming out to treat the horse and they will see you also. It is also advisable to contact
another person to come help you as soon as possible.
If you decide to call 911 as well, ask that they approach with sirens and lights turned off
as well as that they approach to a staging area a distance away from the horse. The last
thing you need is for your horse to get spooked while you are trying to help her.
2) Distract other horses- Although other horses being around may bring your horse more
comfort, having them in the area as you try to free the horse or the vet tries to treat the
horse can bring a lot more risk, such as kicking or fighting between the other horses in
the herd. It would be ideal to distract them with feed or close them off from the area
that the entangled horse is in. If possible, a buddy horse may be used, if they are calm
and if you have another person to hold the buddy horse close by. A buddy horse’s
presence may be calming to a tangled horse.
3) Free the leg(s)- Ask for your vets recommendation in this, depending on how badly the
horse is tangled. Sometimes the risk is too great to release a panicked horse yourself. It
may also be physically impossible to free them, if they are tangled in a metal panel, for
example. The horse may require sedative first, which your vet would be able to
administer upon arrival. If the horse is laying relatively still, sometimes they can be
distracted with hay or grain while you cut wires with the wire cutters. Special care
should be taken with electric fence, the charger should be turned off so that it is not live
as you are cutting and trying to free the horse. Wire does not have to be cut close to the
horse’s limbs, keep a safe distance from the horse and out of kicking range when cutting
any wires. Removal of any wire that is embedded in flesh should be performed by a vet
when they have had a chance to assess and possibly sedate the horse.
If/when you do decide to work to free the horse’s legs, work from the back of the
recumbent horse and stay away from their head. It’s not enough to stay out of kicking
range as being hit by a horse’s head is like being hit with a 70 lb sledgehammer. Wear a
helmet!
You ought to work with a buddy or two (or the fire department if you’ve called 911) to
keep the horse on the ground (try leaning on their neck) and minimize struggling which
could further injure the animal or you.
4) Do Not Remove Impaled Objects- It may be the case that some of the injuries your
horse sustains are very obvious. Impalation by fence posts, branches or other objects is
one of the more obvious and dangerous. Do not try and remove the object, this can just
make things worse.
5) Await veterinary care- If you are able to halter your horse, do so. Do not try to move
your horse far, his wounds could be far worse than what you can see on the surface, and
movement could worsen his condition. If you have someone who can help you, have
them wait for the veterinarian by the driveway or gate, so they can lead to your location
by the fence line.
Blanket your horse just as you would a person going into shock.
Entanglement injuries are not all that uncommon with horses housed with wire fencing, so if
your horses are pastured behind barbed or smooth wire fencing, it is likely that you will
eventually need to react quickly to a panicked situation involving the fence. Personal safety is
the most important part of the process, so exercise caution when attending to an entangled
horse, and seek professional veterinary assistance before you do anything else.
Other fencing systems pose a risk of entanglement as well, such as wood rail, metal panel, and
pipe, but these do not pose nearly the same risk as smooth or barbed wire fencing do. Horse
owners can virtually eliminate the risk of entanglement by choosing quality fencing systems
that offer safety features suited to their individual herd. Your horses will thank you.
I suggest looking into a High Tensile Polymer rail like Centaur’s if you can afford it or for the
budget-minded Finish Line’s cable-less polymer line. Both are designed specifically with the
safety of the horse in mind and both are beautiful looking options as well.
-Brittany Oracheski