(upbeat country rock music) (upbeat country rock music continues) - Welcome to A Shot of Ag.

My name is Rob Sharkey.

I'm a fifth generation farmer from just outside of Bradford, Illinois.

Do you have a horse?

Do you know somebody that has a horse, or have a pony?

Would you like to pamper that pony?

Well let's talk about pampering ponies.

Today we're talking a Kaylie Hulsey, from Toulon, Illinois.

How you doing?

- Pretty good.

Excited to be here.

- Yeah?

I'm excited that you're here.

Yes.

Toulon is northwest of Peoria?

- Yes.

- Stark County?

- Yes.

- Yeah.

Is that where you're from originally?

- From Kewanee.

- Oh boy.

(Kaylie laughs) Wow, I wish that would have been in the notes beforehand.

Kewanee's a unique town, isn't it?

- It's something.

- Yeah.

That's where our camera guy, Will, is from Kewanee.

- Ah, Hog Capital, or at least it used to be.

- See, I think that's false.

I don't think it was ever the Hog Capital.

I think you guys, you know, Bradford has the Labor Day, Toulon has what, Stark County Days.

Or whatever, I don't know what, pioneer, whatever, pumpkin days.

I don't know what you guys have.

And then Kewanee's like, oh.

We need to have something.

Let's call it Hog Days.

- Hog Days.

- And call it the Hog Capital of the world.

- I don't know if it's true or not.

That's just what I was always told.

- Yeah.

Yeah.

Do you know, Will?

Will's not supposed to talk.

I think it's a union thing.

They get really touchy when I try to talk to the camera people.

(Kaylie laughing) You should see him in the control room.

Now they're really freaking out.

Oh, he's doing it again.

But we have fun.

All right, you're from Toulon.

You are a vet tech?

- Yup, licensed.

- Oh, okay.

So tell me what that means.

- So just like a doctor or veterinarian, I had to take a state board exam, and I have to get continued education every year to make sure my license stays up to date.

- Okay.

So a vet tech, well, okay.

It's kind of like a nurse practitioner, right?

You'll say all right, you're actually, you basically you're a doctor, and they'll always correct me and say but we can't say we're a doctor.

So is that kinda like you?

- I'm gonna say like an RN.

- Oh, okay.

But still, how much schooling did that take?

- It was only two years, but I recommend doing it in three, just because they compact so much information in those two years, because it's not just horses, dogs, cats, like you gotta learn cattle and sheep, and lizards, monkeys.

- Really?

- All the species, yes.

- Do you have to, or can you just go into like, hey I'm gonna look at dogs, and cats.

- Have to, because you don't know what species they're gonna test you on on that state exam.

- Really?

So that's every vet?

- Mm-hmm.

- So a veterinarian in Chicago has to go, or a vet tech, has to go through the same thing that you did?

- Yup.

- Okay.

That's confusing, because a cow has four stomachs.

- Yes.

- Yeah.

So what do you deal with mainly?

Is it big animals, farm animals, or the pets?

- Mostly cats, dogs, horses.

- Okay.

The horses.

That's your thing.

That's what we're gonna talk about.

- Yes.

- Later.

This is not a bomb, by the way, right?

- No.

It is not.

- Why is it ticking?

- It does actually tick when it's on.

(laughing) - So does a bomb.

(laughing) Okay so did you, yeah, you're from Kewanee.

Did you go to Black Hawk?

- I did not.

Well, I did.

I took a couple summer classes right out of high school before I went to Joliet.

- Okay.

So you did everything you could to get out of Kewanee.

I get that.

- I was ready to get out of Kewanee.

Not gonna lie.

- Are you Kewanee or Wethersfield?

- Wethersfield.

- Ooh, just keeps getting worse, Will.

Were you Wethersfield?

- [Will] Kewanee.

- Oh, he was a Boilermaker.

- Ooh.

- Was there kind of a rivalry between the two?

- Little bit.

- It shouldn't be, because the Boilermakers could pretty much kick the geese rear end any time they wanted to.

- Probably.

- Yeah.

People in Peoria don't care about this, but I'm having a ball.

(laughing) Let's see, where were we?

Oh yeah, vet tech.

So when you went to school to become a vet tech, did you know that you were coming back to this area, or did you, was the world an open book for you?

- I didn't really know exactly where I would land, to be honest.

I was too focused on passing my classes, honestly, before I could worry about where I was gonna end up.

(both laughing) - You work at the Wyoming Vet Clinic?

- I do.

- So is that full time, or?

- Yeah, full time job.

- Okay.

Do you like it?

- I do.

Sometimes it's pretty stressful.

It's not playing with kittens and puppies everyday.

- I think most people think that's what a veterinarian does.

They watch Dr. Pol, and they're like, oh that's the greatest job in the world.

People bring in a little sick puppy, and you make it better, and the world's a great place.

It's not always that way, is it?

- No.

Well, they don't always get better.

- Yeah.

When you went to school, do they prepare you for that?

Talking to somebody and saying hey, you're gonna have to put your pet down?

- Oh yeah.

We actually have to take, or we took some classes about grief counseling, honestly.

Like how to help the clients go through that grieving process of losing an animal.

- Are you on call all the time?

- No.

- No?

- No.

- Are you on call right now?

- I'll leave that for the vets.

(both laughing) - Because I mean, you know, pets get hit on a road, or whatever, and somebody has to go in and try to save them.

- Yeah, I mean, that's the doctor's job, and if he needs help, he can call one of us in if he needs it, but a lot of times, he does it by himself, which is amazing.

- But you came out to our farm, you and the veterinarian.

You were the one doing all the work.

Me and the veterinarian were just sitting there talking, jokes and stuff, as you were working.

- Sometimes it's just easier for me to just sneak in there and do things real quick.

- You called my dog meaty.

- Was it meaty or beefy?

- Either way, it hurt her feelings.

- She's just really muscular.

- Yeah, but it's- - It's a compliment.

- But it's a she, though.

- It's a compliment.

- You don't go up and say hey, ma'am, you look meaty.

(Kaylie laughing) She's been depressed ever since you were there.

- Still better than fluffy.

- That was the other dog, wasn't it?

(both laughing) So is your, would you say, your specialty is horses?

- Yeah.

Yeah, it's definitely my main focus when I do my continued education.

It's usually equine based.

- Mm-hmm.

So what is this thing?

- A MagnaWave.

So it is a- - A MagnaWave.

In case you didn't catch that at home.

MagnaWave.

- Yup.

- Did you name it?

- No.

The company did.

- Magnawave.

(Kaylie laughing) Austin Powers, in case you haven't seen the movie.

So what, anyway.

What does this do?

- So it is a pulse electromagnetic field.

There is a loop that plugs into it, and it- - This thing?

- Yes.

- Yeah.

This looks like a- - And inside the circle part, you can drop the other part.

- Which part?

I'll give it to you.

- There you go.

- Oh, there's two of them.

Oh, okay.

What does that do?

- So inside the loop is the pulse electromagnetic field, and it's a weird feeling.

(laughing) Have you ever had a TENS unit on before?

- [Rob] A what?

- TENS unit?

- [Rob] No.

- Okay.

Well, for anybody else who has, it kinda feels like that.

- I don't even know what that is.

- It decreases pain.

- Oh.

- It's little patches.

- That sounds good.

- That you put on.

- I mean, this hasn't been inside a horse, right?

- No.

(laughing) This is actually my- - You never know.

- Dog, sheep, goat, people loop.

- [Rob] Can you use this on people?

- Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

(laughing) Do you wanna try it later?

- I kinda wanna try it now.

- There's only three rules.

- Okay.

- You can't be pregnant.

- I gotcha.

(Kaylie laughing) I gotcha.

- You can't have a pacemaker.

- No.

- And not on chemo.

- No, I'm good.

How long does it take to set up?

- Just a couple minutes.

I don't know how the electrical pulses will react with all of this equipment, so.

- It's always something.

It's always something, man.

Okay, but maybe later?

- Yeah, for sure.

- This looks like a lasso.

- Little bit.

- Or like something you would see, at like somebody's restroom.

I don't know.

I'm uncomfortable holding it now.

- You should see the one that I put on the horses.

- Is it just bigger?

- It's way bigger.

- Okay, but still run off this?

- Yup.

- And this?

- There you go.

- Oh, okay.

Nothing's gonna jump out, right?

- No.

- Okay.

Oh.

Do not open.

Warranty void if device is open.

So they don't want you to open this part.

- Right.

- Yeah.

Okay, so explain what we got going on here.

- So that loop has two plugins.

They plug in right here.

Then your power cord.

Then just your on off switch, just to get power to the machine, and then once you want it to start pulsating, you press the start button, and then you can turn it up as high or as low as you want.

- So eventually would it get to the point where it hurt?

- It can, yes.

- Okay.

- You can go have it set too high, for sure.

- But the goal is to- - Decrease.

- It's supposed to feel good?

- It's an interesting feeling.

The horses like it.

Usually they start yawning, licking, and chewing, and relaxing with it on.

As long as it's not too high.

- Is that a good sign for a horse?

- It is.

It is.

- It's beefy.

- It is.

- It's meaty.

- It is very meaty.

(Rob laughing) - See?

It doesn't feel so good, does it?

(laughing) - Still better than fluffy.

(Rob laughing) - So who's gonna call you that wants to use this?

Like someone that has a stiff horse, or a hurt horse?

- I do actually have an injured horse I have to go see later today.

And then I also have a dog that I'm just doing maintenance on twice a week, using this loop on, just to help decrease pain associated with arthritis.

- [Rob] So like a chiropractor?

- No.

- [Rob] You go once a week, or?

Sometimes?

- Depends on the situation.

The dog I do twice a week.

I have horse clients that I do routinely once a month.

- [Rob] Mm-hmm.

- And it's just either a maintenance thing for my jumping horses, or just keeping up with pain management.

- So is it a deal like when you're doing this, you can tell they're feeling better, like they're gonna feel better the next day, the next week?

- It varies.

Sometimes it's instant, as soon as the treatment's done.

I do have a different dog client that it does take the full 48 hours after before she can jump up on the couch again.

- Really?

- Mm-hmm.

- Okay.

Now is this different than the shockwave?

- Yes.

- What's that?

- Shockwave is highly pressurized sound waves that go deep into the tissue, and it also increases healing time.

Or not increase, decrease.

- Do you live in a secret lair?

- No.

Why?

- Because all the stuff you have is like a villain would have.

- I mean, they could be used as torture devices.

- Seriously, Dr.

Evil would have this stuff.

We're going to get to shockwave.

- It's not comfortable, the shockwave isn't.

- The shockwave hurts.

- Shockwave is a little painful.

- Is it kind of the same?

Is it a box and a loop?

- It's not a box that opens up like this, but it is a big machine, and it's actually got a probe that attaches to it.

(laughing) - You live in a lair.

I know you do.

(Kaylie laughing) You could probably go to your house and hit two piano keys at the same time, and this wall opens up, and you go down in a bat cave.

- Yes.

And just all these devices.

- That's pretty cool, actually.

How do people know that you have this stuff?

- Social media is probably my biggest, what's the word I'm looking for?

- [Rob] Way to promote it?

- Yeah.

- Yeah.

- And then word of mouth.

A lot of my clients know me through the vet clinic, so that's been super helpful.

- So along with this, you do the massage, too?

- [Kaylie] Yeah, that's actually- - [Rob] How do you massage a horse?

- With a lot of body weight pressing into the horse.

- Really?

- Yeah.

- You don't do just like the, you know how they do, where they like, on the back and stuff?

You ever done that couples massage?

- No.

- We did it in Jamaica one time.

Tell you what, that's the best damn 200 bucks I ever spent.

- I have been massaged, but you can't just tell a horse to hey, okay, lay down.

- [Rob] Yeah.

- So I'm just walking around them, working on them, pushing deep, trying to get the deep muscles.

- Does, I mean, does it hurt them?

Have you ever had like, ah?

No?

- I mean, I definitely find tender spots for sure, and then I have to lighten up pressure.

I have to be able to read the horse, because they can't tell me, hey, oh that hurts.

I have to be able to read their body language.

- That's what those massaging people do.

I remember, I had a dude.

Was what it was, you know?

And he was going around, and he's like, how's the pressure, Robert?

And I didn't wanna tell him it was too much, because I felt like, you know.

- Didn't wanna feel like a sissy?

- I'd be a wimp, exactly.

(Kaylie laughing) So that one didn't feel so good.

But can you tell, like if you're pushing too hard on a horse?

- Yeah, usually.

- Yeah.

Just by the body language, or?

- Mm-hmm.

Yeah, either they'll tense up, or tighten up, or if you've got a real nice one, they'll pin their ears back and threaten to bite you.

- Really?

- Yeah.

- That's when they pin their ears back, they're ticked off?

- Yes.

- Okay.

How'd you get into horses?

- I had a horse growing up, and that as all it took.

- In Kewanee?

- Yeah.

Technically, the horse was outside of Lafayette.

I don't know if that's better.

- It is.

(both laugh) And you just fell in love with it?

- Mm-hmm.

- Okay.

Do you do like a rodeo or anything like that?

- I don't, but I do competitive trail riding.

- [Rob] Oh, okay.

I didn't know that was a competition.

- Um- - Or is it just for you?

You know it's like- - No.

- Just for Kaylie.

Everything's a competition.

- So it's not just the normal trail ride, where you're hanging out with friends, walking down the trail.

It's fast-paced, doing a lot of trotting, cantering.

And it's a timed event that's judged by veterinarians.

- [Rob] So it's a race?

- It is.

- On a trail?

- Yeah.

- That sounds dangerous, though.

- Helmets are required.

I have definitely fallen off before, like my mare tripped on a root.

She went down, and I went over.

- Oof.

That's a, that's scary.

- Yeah, you just walk it off.

Get back on.

- Horse people.

Y'all are a different breed.

You're tough.

- Little crazy.

- I was trying to be nice.

I mean, they know that from you being from Kewanee.

But- (both laughing) I'm trying to think, there was a movie, where Aragorn from "Lord of the Rings", he was doing a race, and he took an American mustang over to the desert, and won it.

Is it kinda like that?

- That's a little extreme.

- [Rob] You know the movie I'm talking about, though?

- I just think of "Hildago".

- That's it.

- Okay.

- Yeah.

That's what you do?

- Kind of, only not through a desert, and not with traps that my horse is gonna fall into.

- That was like 2000 miles too, wasn't it?

- I don't remember the mileage.

- Oh.

- I only do 25.

- [Rob] That's a lot, though.

- It takes about six hours.

- Yeah.

And I mean, riding a horse is not riding a car.

- No.

- I mean you gotta, there's a lot of muscles going on.

- Yes.

- Are you sore?

Do you put this on when you're done with the race?

- Sometimes.

Sometimes.

(Rob laughing) - Okay, there's a, sometimes you think of a joke, and then you think I better not say it.

(Kaylie laughs) That's right now.

So tell me some of the situations that you would use this on a horse, like they have a broken leg.

I don't know what a horse does.

- I've had a couple cool cases where horses had minor injuries on their legs, and I have a loop that's actually smaller than that that I can wrap around their leg daily, I did it daily, and just the progress, how fast they healed, was amazing.

And I actually have picture proof of one of those horses, where you can see the increased blood flow from this, because it had an abrasion on its leg, so it's missing skin, so you can see the tissue.

Well, before we started, it was kind of pale.

And after just a couple minutes of this on it, the tissue was pink, and it just looked so much healthier, and it was amazing, seeing how fast it got color to the injury.

- Nice.

- It was pretty cool.

- Okay.

Right here, I have a perfectly square piece of paper.

I'm gonna hand it to you.

(Kaylie laughs) This is great TV right here.

Do you feel pressured?

- A little bit.

- Are you glad that actually nobody watches this show at this point?

- It's all right, because they're gonna be impressed for those who do.

And I can thank 5th grade for this skill.

- [Rob] Can you take like the cherry stem and tie a knot with your tongue?

- I can.

- Kewanee.

(Will laughs) Am I wrong?

(Rob laughing) How much time we got left on this show, Juanita?

- [Juanita] Four minutes.

- Four minutes.

Can you do it- - Oh, I'm almost done.

- Oh, you're almost done?

That's really fast, actually.

Have you ever hurt yourself doing this?

- No, but I think this is the fastest I've ever tried it.

- Wonder what it's gonna be.

Hope it's an alligator.

- It is not.

- You learned this in 5th grade and you still remember it?

- Sure do.

- Do you ever think about going into business just making these?

- No.

- Yeah.

It's a flying goose.

- It's a crane.

- The Wethersfield flying geese.

Can you pull the head and the tail, and the wings?

- Mm-mm.

- Oh.

It's still pretty impressive.

- There you go.

- There we go.

- [Kaylie] New desk decoration.

- I might take it home.

(both laughing) That's actually very cool.

All right, we do have a few minutes left.

People watching at home, it's serious, I mean, what you do is very important.

What do you want people to know about being a vet tech?

- That it's just not playing with puppies and dogs.

I think that is the biggest wrong concept that people get, is like they think it's just, oh, you have the best job.

No, it's really not always that great.

It gets pretty dark.

You talked about emergencies earlier, and last night, we did have a hit by car dog come in right before we closed, and doc was finishing up with an appointment, so I'm the one that's trying to assess it, and check its vitals, and I'm hurrying up placing an IV catheter and getting fluid started, and then going and grabbing him like, what do you wanna give?

Giving the emergency drugs.

And then we can only do so much there, so we sent them to the emergency clinic in Peoria.

And they tried to for a couple hours, but she didn't end up making it.

- [Rob] Yeah.

- And it's really sad.

- Are you able to leave that at work?

- Oh, no.

- Yeah?

- No.

- You probably wish you could.

- I actually usually try to keep the brave face at work, and then once I leave is when I can kinda, any emotion I have, let it out.

- Yeah.

Yeah.

Well thank you for what you do.

Seriously, I mean I've spent the last half hour kinda having fun with you, but what you do is extremely important in this world.

If people want to find you on social media or the old internet, do you have a spot they can go?

- Yeah, I do have a Facebook page.

It's called Pampered Ponies Therapies.

And honestly, I don't care if people just add my personal Facebook, either.

Just Kaylie Hulsey.

- Kaylie, you spelled it wrong.

You spelled it with a K. It's supposed to be a C. - Says who?

- Kewanee.

(Rob laughing) Kaylie Hulsey from Toulan, Illinois.

Thank you for taking your time and coming here.

I had a lot of fun.

And thank you for the swan, as well.

Kaylie, thank you.

Everybody else, we'll catch you next time.

(upbeat country rock music)