We finally got Blade freeze branded today with the 'US' placed upon his shoulder. A previous attempt had failed because Blade does not get along with the mil vet and wouldn't stand still to be sedated. Debbie worked with him for a couple weeks to see if he was afraid of needles, but it turned out he was just afraid of the vet. The vet managed to sedate him today, but not enough to compel him to stand still for a brand. She asked me to hold him while she tried to apply the brand, but he was having none of it. She tried additional sedation and manged to get the syringe into his neck, but Blade danced away before she could push the plunger. Fortunately, he was less afraid of me, so I was able to administer the sedation. I stroked his nose and calmed him down until he stood still. I went to the bucket where the brand was and calmly walked over and applied it to his shoulder where the vet had shaved him. I was holding on to Blade's lead rope with my left hand and applying the brand with my right. After a few seconds, Blade could feel the cold of the brand and began to move, but I kept the brand on for the full 15 seconds required. I don't think I got a good brand because of a ripple in his upper arm muscle. Because of the angle I was holding the brand at and Blade's movement, I couldn't really push the brand flat. The 'U' should come out okay, but the 'S' may not be complete. It will be a few months before I know for sure.
After all that, we then had to put the microchip in. We put microchips in all our horses. Ruger got his today, but he was no trouble. Blade, not so cooperative. Again, the vet managed to get the syringe with the chip into his neck, but I had to grab it and push the plunger. After all the trauma, I stood with Blade and stroked his nose to calm him down. I removed his feeder since he was too "drunk" to eat properly, but after an hour he was pretty much back to normal. It amazes me how some horses can resist sedation. Anyway, Blade has his "gang tat" now and is a full member of the herd.
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