How to Give an Equine a Five-Way Shot

Many horse owners opt to give vaccinations at home.

A five-way shot is one of the most common intramuscular vaccinations given by horse owners. The five-way shot is typically given in spring and protects your horse against five different diseases. These diseases are commonly Western Equine Encephalitis (WEE), Tetanus, Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE), Influenza (Flu) and Rhinopneumonitis (Rhino). A four-way shot does not include protection against Rhino and a six-way shot includes West Nile Virus (WNV) protection.

Things You'll Need

• Five-way vaccine
• Halter
• Leadrope
• Disinfectant

Instructions

1. Halter the horse and have a helper hold the lead rope tightly. You do not want the horse to be able to pull away when you are giving the shot. Draw the injection out of its bottle and into the provided needle and syringe. Some individually packaged shots will come already prepared.

2. Locate the triangular area of muscle on the horse's neck. Place the heel of your hand in the middle of the horse's neck near where the base of the neck meets the shoulder. The area where your palm is resting is the area where you want to inject the shot.

   Some people choose to inject their horses on the muscular section of the hindquarter near the tail, but the neck is considered the safer location because it is out of kicking range. This is why the neck is preferred by most horse owners for regular injections.

3. Thump the horse on the neck several times directly on the injection site to desensitize the horse. Insert the needle fully and directly into the horse's neck without slanting the needle.

4. Pull the syringe back slightly to make sure no blood is pulled into the syringe. This is a technique called aspirating; aspirating ensures you are not injecting the vaccine into a blood vessel. If there is blood, you will need to remove the needle and start over. If no blood is visible, depress the contents of the syringe into the horse's neck. Remove the needle from the horse's neck and the wipe injection location with disinfectant wipe.

Tips & Warnings

• Use caution when handling horses.

References

• Mobile Veterinary Services: Spring Time Tune Up For Horses
• Alabama Cooperative Extension System: How To Give Your Horse an Intramuscular Injection