Posted 2005-04-26 9:56 AM (#24318) Subject: health cert.
Regular
Posts: 79
To those of you that travel with your horses and need to have a health cert. from your Vet, does your Vet require you to go to the Vets office and sign the piece of paper or do they just mail it out to you?
I m getting ready for a out of state trip and needed a coggins test and health cert. done. so I had the vet out, paid $25. for the coggins, and $25.00 more for the health cert. and a $35.00 trip fee.(I also had other stuff done, like teeth worked on and I had 2 colts gelded-it was a good deal of money spent for the Vet) I got my coggins from the state just fine, then I got a call from the VEts office and they told me I had to come in a sign the Health cert. form. that they WOULD NOT mail it too me. Im angry as all get out- I had to drive 53 miles ($$$FUEL$$$and time spent) round trip for this danged thing and think I was abused !!
So- to anybody out there - does your vet just mail it to you when its ready? thanks for your replies and listening to my VENT on this !!
jody
Posted 2005-04-26 10:53 AM (#24324 - in reply to #24318) Subject: RE: health cert.
Member
Posts: 43 Location: Dry Prong, LA
That is for the vets protection and I believe that you must sign it in front of them so they can be sure its for the right person, wittnesing the signature so they won't have any repercussions for it being used for another horse. hope this helps. as horse owner we are at the mercy of what ever laws they come up with to make us spend more money for having them.
Posted 2005-04-26 11:01 AM (#24327 - in reply to #24318) Subject: RE: health cert.
Regular
Posts: 79
thanks for your reply Rick- But there is no place on the form for a signature. there is a place to print your name and address. it does not ask for a signature at all. they had me sign in the margin. Im not a horse dealer or trader. Im a private kind of person. I dont even know the "local horse people" Ive used this Vet many times before- but never had to get a health cert.
I just think its not right. I think they made this up- I think they didnt have stamps or Im the first real horse owner who travels and they dont know how to handle it. its a very small town.
I cannot hardly believe ALL the horse people out there who travel have to make a trip to the VEts to pick this piece of paper up in person. Im still riled up about it and Im not a redhead....
I always just paid that Vet in full for all of my Vet work at the time its done. and they cant even give me a 37 cent stamp. last week I spent $600 with her.
Posted 2005-04-26 11:28 AM (#24329 - in reply to #24318) Subject: RE: health cert.
Member
Posts: 43 Location: Dry Prong, LA
You might want to contact your state agricultural and livestock department and find out if they have any laws or particulars regardig mailing heath certificates. If its not mandatory that you have to be there in person to sign it and pick it up then you might be able to make your vet pay you for your fuel. just a thought. I am in Louisiana and I have to have my vet ultrasound my mare next week to see if she is in foal so I will ask her if that is a requirement. Hope she (mare) is expecting,( not the vet). Then I'll have 11months to be nervous. ha
Posted 2005-04-26 11:44 AM (#24331 - in reply to #24318) Subject: RE: health cert.
Regular
Posts: 79
Well- Guess what ? the Vet just called my house and apoligised. It seems the office girl made this up and the Vet is gonna have a talk to her about it. It must be a sad life that little girl leads to have to have a power trip over making people jump through hoops like I had to to get this worthless piece of paper.
Posted 2005-04-26 7:41 PM (#24369 - in reply to #24318) Subject: RE: health cert.
Expert
Posts: 1989 Location: South Central OK
Don't feel bad about asking for the trip fee to be waived. They should do it to keep your buisness. I mean if you were coming in you "could" have brought the horses. I'd ask for the fee to be waived...I'd love to hear them try and explain it. They more than made up the fee in charges alone.
I always plan my coggins around when they will be running them. My vet does them in house. I just hang around for a few minutes, getting other shots and such and I take mine with me at NO extra charge. I guess I've been looking my gift-vet in the mouth!?!
Posted 2005-04-30 12:23 PM (#24531 - in reply to #24318) Subject: RE: health cert.
Expert
Posts: 1719 Location: PA
Are you certain that you actually needed the health certificate to travel into the other state? I travel out of state on a regular basis and have only needed a health cert. to enter one state, FL. I have had to have them for entry to some show grounds though. BTW, I think health certificates are a total waste of money.
Posted 2005-05-02 1:47 PM (#24580 - in reply to #24318) Subject: RE: health cert.
Regular
Posts: 79
well- in my case- it was a requirement of the stable owners that we were a guest at while attending a horsemanship clinic. and I agree-its a big waste of time and money- the Vet didnt even take the horses temp. its just a bunch of "hueey" as far as Im concerned- it turns out the person asking for the certs, was a Vet at the barn-she was just making money for other Vets. she didnt look at the horse to see if the description matched or anything. it was just one Vet scratching another Vets back.
Posted 2005-05-02 4:11 PM (#24588 - in reply to #24318) Subject: RE: health cert.
Regular
Posts: 53
Each state is different. Traveling in the west (Colorado, Wyoming, Montana) you better have a brand inspection too. They can stop you and if you don't have the brand inspection or something showing you own the horse they can take it from you. We got permenant brand papers on our horses and we live close to the Wyoming border and trail ride in Wyoming often. We've never been stopped but I wouldn't want to take the chance either. I had to have health papers when I moved my horse from Minnesota to Colorado - again, I was never stopped and asked to produce them but I also didn't want the hassle if I did get stopped.
Posted 2005-05-02 6:07 PM (#24590 - in reply to #24588) Subject: RE: health cert.
Expert
Posts: 1719 Location: PA
In FL, you are supposed to stop at the border and have the papers checked. That state is pretty serious about those damn papers. Thing is, you can get health papers 2 weeks beforehand. The horse can be healthy at the time the vet issues them and sick as a dog, or, umm, horse, by the time you hit the state border. Just another way to create revenue!
Posted 2005-05-02 9:03 PM (#24604 - in reply to #24588) Subject: RE: health cert.
Expert
Posts: 2828 Location: Southern New Mexico
What do you do if your horses aren't branded? When you moved to colorado, did you have to stop at the weigh station? I've been trying to find a number for the one (or any one who would know) I have to go through to find out what kind of paperwork they check, or that I need.
Posted 2005-05-03 1:13 PM (#24650 - in reply to #24318) Subject: RE: health cert.
Regular
Posts: 53
We have one horse that doesn't have any brands on him. The brand inspection paper will outline the markings that your horse has - you know the form has different views of a horse standing there and the inspector marks where your horse has blaze or star or any scars or socks, etc. The brand inspection has to be certified by the brand inspector - basically it's an official document. When I brought my horse from MN to CO I didn't have a brand inspection because they weren't required in MN. I did have my coggins and my health papers. I think you can look out at the states vet board and find what is needed. It's been so many years ago that I moved that I can't remember where I found the information.
It lists each state's requirements. If I'm not mistaken, any time you enter a different state, you are SUPPOSED to have a current HC. But alot of state's are not tough on it. When living in MI, we hauled to shows in IN & OH alot - always had negative coggins, but never got the HC unless a particular show required it. Had we ever been stopped, we'd have been nailed. I do believe it is tougher out west....in MT, you can get yearly or permanent brand inspections on your horse & if you leave the COUNTY, you need to have one. (reminds me I need to get one on the new horse). So if you're going to be traveling around, it pays to be aware of what is required.....then it's up to you if you want to take the chance or not!
Posted 2005-05-08 10:18 AM (#24846 - in reply to #24707) Subject: RE: health cert.
Expert
Posts: 2828 Location: Southern New Mexico
I went and got the health certificates and I think they are a joke. They don't really check anything. The papers were filled out in the office and given to me before my vet even looked at my mares. Of course this is my regular vet and he knows anytime my animals have so much as a runny nose I take them in, so maybe he is more through with unknown horses. He said it's just a way to make people waste money since the papers are good for 60 days and could catch something by the time you actually go anywhere.
Oh, yea. My appy mare is preg.!!!! She was with my stud from May 4th to the 12th. Now I need to go find that gestation chart someone sent me.
Posted 2005-05-13 12:02 PM (#25062 - in reply to #24846) Subject: RE: health cert.
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 560 Location: Mena, AR
I was able to get my horses micro-chipped, instead of branded, and get a six month health-cert that was good between TX, LA, MS & AR. It's cheaper in the long run if you travel out of state often. I've never been stopped on the road and checked, but I have had to produce a health cert entering the show grounds several times. It's been awhile since I've needed one, so I don't know what the current status on the six month health-cert is.
Posted 2005-05-13 3:52 PM (#25076 - in reply to #24318) Subject: RE: health cert.
Expert
Posts: 1989 Location: South Central OK
They don't use 6 month cert's any longer due to the spread of West Nile, etc. I have almost never been checked at a breed show, open shows are more careful. I agree the health cert means nada...I could have had a horse that was incubating something BAD and he looked pretty good. I don't blame states for shutting their borders. The only way to be 100% woud be to test or isolate horses and that is unreasonable.
Posted 2005-05-23 8:37 AM (#25477 - in reply to #25076) Subject: RE: health cert.
Expert
Posts: 1719 Location: PA
Guess what! I just found out that PA is requiring health certificates for all horses showing from out of state. What a joke! That will probably kill the numbers at the smaller shows.
Posted 2005-05-24 4:34 PM (#25601 - in reply to #24318) Subject: RE: health cert.
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 560 Location: Mena, AR
There was a group visiting after cutting practice Thursday night and a local Vet stopped by to chat. Since a large group is hauling out of state (TX) to OK for a show this weekend, the coggins/health cert issue came up. He said the surrounding states are enforcing the health cert as well as the coggins and sending inspectors to shows to check. If you get caught w/o a health cert they can impound your horse and issue a fine. He had this happen to a client and it took him four weeks to get his horse back. I'm getting my health cert on Thursday. :-)
BTW: My vet checks the temp, breathing, eyes, & nose.
health cert.
to see if she is in foal so I will ask her if that is a requirement. Hope she (mare) is expecting,( not the vet). Then I'll have 11months to be nervous. ha
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