Michael Leon drug suspension

[moatsngoats]

You do not need a vet to administer or prescribe Romifidine/SediVet - speaking practically and not legally. TBH I don’t think I’ve ever had a vet administer Romifidine for me, and I’ve used it plenty with no issues (for first rehab rides, for pulling manes, for the farrier…). If you have enough experience, as most horse trainers and likely many farriers, it is pretty straight forward to administer - not really a YIKES situation.

This is beside the point though, which is that I do very much doubt a farrier would give SediVet to a horse behind the trainer’s back and it sounds like this trainer is just making it up.

[Hunterammy2020]

Exactly and not even super readily available from most vets. I don’t think a farrier had this on their truck at all.

[CuriosoJorge]

@moatsngoats

You do not need a vet to administer or prescribe Romifidine/SediVet - speaking practically and not legally. TBH I don’t think I’ve ever had a vet administer Romifidine for me, and I’ve used it plenty with no issues (for first rehab rides, for pulling manes, for the farrier…). If you have enough experience, as most horse trainers and likely many farriers, it is pretty straight forward to administer - not really a YIKES situation.

You absolutely do need to be a veterinarian to prescribe this prescription drug. YOU may be quite cavalier about it, but if misinjected into a person, that alpha-2 could be fatal.

[Ghazzu]

@CuriosoJorge

if misinjected into a person, that alpha-2 could be fatal.

Word.

[SusanO]

I don’t think a farrier injected this horse but I sure do know some that will do it. Back before I retired it was hard to schedule a farrier so that I did not have to take a whole vacation day off. Many did not work on Saturdays. I had this one guy who had been trimming my mare and he wanted to come while I was at work. At first I did not want to have her done while I was not there but he had done her many times and she was fine. We had a discussion months past concerning farriers tranquillizing horses. He swore he would never do it. If the client wanted the horse sedated he pulled up the shot and made the horse owner push the plunger so he did not have the liability if something went wrong.

So I get home that night. My mare would barely walk. Seemed fine otherwise and feet were not sore the next morning. I am 99 percent certain he sedated her. Which infuriated me. I figured if he did something like that behind my back he would not tell me the truth if I asked him. I ended the relationship as soon as I found another farrier. Partly because of this and partly because he thought he was God and no vet knew as much as he did. And he did not do that great a job anyway.

Now my mare was not insured or a wildly expensive horse. But I can’t see a farrier that shoes expensive horses want the liability of accidently causing anaphylactic shock and the insurance not paying out. Because, you know, practicing medicine without a license. I hope the ones shoeing derby horses and high dollar horses with insurance are not dumb enough to be administering drugs, especially in an injection.

I may be podunk but nobody besides a vet is giving my horse a shot. Now if I boarded I might make an exception for an emergency but shoeing is usually not an emergency. And if it is an event where you need sedation, then you need a vet to do it.

[atl_hunter]

Let’s set aside the generalities of who could administer a sedative. The critical issue here involves a show horse, entrusted to a trainer, being sedated during that trainer’s supervision. In the state of Georgia, only a vet, an owner (under the direction of a vet), or an employee of an owner (under the direction of the vet) can administer this. Since it’s not likely the owner or farrier did this, and since the staff of the training farm are not employees of the owner of the horse, it is, indeed, a YIKES situation.

[atl_hunter]

You are not podunk. You are a responsible person and are aware of your limits, and there is nothing wrong with that.

I would call the vet, too - I have a rather healthy fear of needles…

[SusanO]

OK - I did not add that I am fine with giving MY OWN horse an IM injection if it is medically necessary. The times I have had to use a sedative for shoeing - it was at a vet clinic and the vet gave the shot. This was not a normal situation. But no way would I give somebody else’s horse a shot.

I have had two friends that lost a horse due to an anaphylactic reaction and one was an RN so it is not that rare.

[atl_hunter]

In Georgia, you’re totally fine to give your own horse an injection as long as a vet prescribed it and provided instruction for administration of the medication/sedative. But you’re right, you definitely can’t inject someone else’s horse.

I’m so sorry to hear about your friends’ horses. That’s awful. It reminds me of a friend whose horse was at UGA. A student gave it a shot incorrectly, and the horse dropped to the ground and started thrashing. Thankfully, they saved him, but it was a scary reminder that mistakes can happen, even with experts all around.

[Sticky_Situation]

There’s a massive difference between giving your own horse an IV or IM injection of a vet-provided medication without the vet being present at the time of the injection, and a farrier going around sedating client horses (and presumably charging for it). The latter is 100% practicing veterinary medicine without a license.

[bamboopole]

Y’all gotta be crazy to employ people with bad histories. The “real world” does thorough background checks. The horse world should be way more careful.
First, protect your horses. Second, protect your reputation.

[Natty_s_Batty]

Newbie to this story, are there any articles covering the incident you talked about? Or if you would want to, could you share a little bit about it?

[Peggy]

You can start here.

Michael Leon: Info please!

[QUOTE=Beezer;4295837] I hope you find your pony well but, alas, given this “professional’s” history, I think you are likely to find the trail and stories muddled. This guy is one of the very, very few I’ve ever known to have a website (alas, now apparently defunct) to track his alleged misdeeds. And people wonder why the rest of us want an unbiased way to get reliable information on the alleged professionals in this business. If I can find out about a doctor, dentist, real estate agent, dog …

[Natty_s_Batty]

Thank you so much!

[Sands_644]

Michael was suspended for 2 months for his clients horse testing positive for Romifidine at a show in GA last fall. There was a huge Tik Tok put out about how he is going around the system by having his assistant trainers and all of his business (Windsor Stables) equipment present at 4 shows since his suspension on June 1. USEF rules say that no one on the suspended persons payroll (or their spouse) can attend these shows. His personal horse was suddenly leased out to a junior client of his right before his suspension started (probably so it wouldn’t be suspended and could go to junior hunter finals). He put out some statement that his farrier was the one who administered the Romifidine. Which is what most of this thread is now about…basically he seems like some big wig with big money and big money clients trying to cheat the system. Same story with USEF, different day.

[moatsngoats]

Yes, I agree with your general point. I said, “This is beside the point though, which is that I do very much doubt a farrier would give SediVet to a horse behind the trainer’s back and it sounds like this trainer is just making it up.” Which wasn’t entirely clear but a farrier giving this drug to a horse behind everyone’s back is a very scary thing to imagine (and as you already said, very illegal) and I actually cannot imagine a farrier ever doing that. A farrier, especially one employed by a training program, is working at the direction of the trainer (and owner) and if a horse is too unruly to shoe without drugs, the farrier would be in discussion about that with the trainer. I think the trainer is lying, and if he weren’t, he would give the name of the farrier because that farrier should be exposed and has in fact cost this trainer a LOT.

By the way, if you’re confident enough and experienced enough to give SediVet on your own in the way I described, it’s because you’ve gotten experience under the guidance of your vet - you know what the vet would consider, you’ve gotten guidance in the past, and you’re giving the amount you know would prescribed in these circumstances. It’s not rocket science, and if you’re a trainer with a trusted vet, it’s usually something the vet endorses. I’m not going to call my vet every time I ace a horse to pull it’s mane or put it in turnout after 3 days of stall rest. I’m not going to call my vet every time I give a horse a gram of bute. And to be clear, I do call/text my vet regularly with any questions, and our working relationship great.

This isn’t directed at you necessarily - I’m replying more to the idea that my attitude towards SediVet is “cavalier”.

[atl_hunter]

I understand your point in general, but let’s be clear: this happened in Georgia, where we are bound by Georgia law, and it strictly prohibits this. Entrusting an injection to a non-authorized individual is an undeniably cavalier and unlawful act in Georgia. Maybe not in the other 49 states, but it is here!

[moatsngoats]

I think you’ve made your point. Thank you for the admonishment, I’ll be sure to take it into consideration.

[CuriosoJorge]

@moatsngoats

It’s not rocket science, and if you’re a trainer with a trusted vet, it’s usually something the vet endorses.

It’s practicing veterinary medicine without a license. Most equine vets no longer leave bottles of drugs at barns for this very reason.

[DMK]

While I get what you mean that just isn’t what is happening in my experience. Leaving a bottle of bute powder or a tub of tucoprim or even adequan is the same action, the same offense from the perspective of the regulation.

What I think is almost unheard of these days is leaving those drugs without a prescribing then to a specific horse and having the corresponding evaluation of said horse.