Guide

Contacting your vet: information to have at hand

Tell your vet what you have noticed, when you noticed it and where your horse is. Do not delay the call to complete notes, find documents or take measurements.

Content checked on 20 October 2026.

In brief

  • Contact your vet when you are concerned and share the information you already have.
  • Give the horse’s current location, access instructions and a number you can be reached on.
  • Keep observations, existing medication, available measurements and the advice you receive identifiable. Say when something is unknown.
On this page

Identify the horse and location

Give your name, the horse’s name and the location where the horse is now. If you are calling on someone else’s behalf, explain your role and who is with the horse.

  • The current address or precise location.
  • The entrance, field or stable and any access instructions.
  • A telephone number the practice can reach you on.
  • The name and contact details of the person with the horse, if that is someone else.

Make clear if the horse is away from its usual yard.

Describe what you have observed

Describe the change in your own words. Give the date and time you first noticed it, whether you saw it yourself and what has changed since then.

The time you first noticed something may not be when it began. If the onset is unknown, say so. Identify observations passed on by another person.

Tell the vet about relevant recent events and anything already done. Keep the sequence factual rather than deciding what caused the change.

Share existing records and measurements

Have current medication instructions and recorded doses available if they are to hand. Tell the vet what is recorded as given, when and by whom, and identify any uncertain dose or amount.

Share measurements you already have with their units, date and time. Include who took them and any known circumstances, such as recent exercise. Do not replace an unmeasured value with an estimate or a reference value.

Mention relevant previous reports or photographs that are available. Ask the practice how it wants to receive them; gathering or sending them should not hold up the call.

Keep the advice and agreed next steps

Record who you spoke to and when, the instructions you received and any follow-up you agreed. Ask for clarification if you are unsure what an instruction means.

Keep an expected callback, an arranged visit and a visit that has taken place as separate events. Record actions when they happen, with the actual time if known.

Keep any written report or updated instructions with the conversation notes. Make the current instructions available to the people carrying out the agreed care.

Keep the visit and its follow-up together

The health overview shows a dose that has not been recorded yet, a rest period and the latest recorded weight, with upcoming appointments below.

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Health shows a dose marked Not recorded yet, a rest period, recorded weight and planned appointments.
Health shows your horse’s medication dose, rest period and recorded weight, alongside planned appointments.
Keep medication instructions with the dose recordRead what to keep when your vet prescribes medicine, including the original instructions, recorded doses and subsequent changes.Read about medication records

Sources

  1. British Horse Society: Horse emergencies and emergency care planningSource reviewed on 2 October 2026. Checked on 20 October 2026.