a few questions about rescue horse

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spike123

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I took on a rescue 7 weeks ago. He was in a very bad way condition wise. I wormed him with a panacur 5 day guard and he's since had his feet done and been microchipped and vaccinated. Since I've had him he's had a minor cut which had healed over and then got infected. He was put on antibiotics (norodine) for 4 days but it hasn't cleared up and now swelling has spread slightly so will have vet back out to have another look Monday. However after vaccination (tetanus only) he had colic 5days later. Not sure if it would be related to the vaccination or possibly tape worm as have yet to worm for tape. I'm a little reluctant to worm for tape though after the colic incident being so recent and thinking maybe a prebiotic for a week beforehand maybe worth doing but basically looking for a little advice on what you would do with a horse like that. I will obviously be speaking to my vet about it Monday but looking to see if anyone has experienced similar or can give any useful advice.
 
I don't think having a tetanus jab is likely to be the cause of colic, it is far more likely to be caused by worms, the extra grub he has not been used to getting or just his general poor health, probiotics given when they get antibiotics are a good idea anyway so I would put him on some as soon as possible, then consider the test for tapeworm although it is more than likely he will have them so I would just get him wormed once he has settled down after the infection.

I think you always run a risk taking on a badly cared for animal and while there is a chance of a serious or even fatal colic you still have to get the worms under control otherwise you will never get them healthy, as long as you introduce any dietary changes very gradually and don't expect a rapid transformation there is every chance of them getting through without further colics.
 
thankyou that's pretty much what i was thinking was likely to be the case. Any recommendations for a good probiotic? He still has a fair way to go weight wise but he's getting there slowly. He's also on good grazing as well as Alfa A original and Saracens show improver mix plus hay when he's in.
 
spike123 said:
thankyou that's pretty much what i was thinking was likely to be the case. Any recommendations for a good probiotic? He still has a fair way to go weight wise but he's getting there slowly. He's also on good grazing as well as Alfa A original and Saracens show improver mix plus hay when he's in.
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EEk, NEVER put a horse in poor condition onto good grazing and add all that hard feed to the mix as well. No wonder he has had colic. He should do at least 4 weeks on poor grazing with adlib hay, then gradually improve the grazing and leave the hard feed out of the equation until at least Christmas. Imagine if you were fed just a bowl of porridge made with water and vegetable soup every day, then some nice kind person gave you smoked salmon for breakfast, a Chinese for lunch and a full roast dinner and pudding in the evening. I can guarantee your digestive tract would protest too, probably in the form of constipation. Caring for seriously neglected horses really isn't an amateur's game. I'm sorry if that seems rather blunt and harsh, but even the best intentions aren't necessarily what is right for the animal.
 
I took one on recently that was full to the brim with encysted red worm. I put him on naf pink powder for 3 months and he came out of it looking fab despite his vigorous worming regime and general poor health
 
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