anyone know anything about guttural pouch infection?

[CazD]

My mare has been diagnosed with a staphylococcus infection of her guttural pouch. She started off with a kind of vibrating sound on breathing inwards one evening and I got the vet out the next morning who prescribed antibiotics as she had a high temperature. Her nose then started streaming with the most stinky snot you can imagine. Then the one side of her face swelled. After x rays of her teeth and an endoscope up her nose which revealed nothing, she was sent to horsepital for three days where she had her guttural pouch flushed out. She has been discharged with more antibiotics and although slightly improved, still isn't eating well and her nose is still snotty, although not smelly and the swelling is still there. Temperature is now normal. Horsepital don't know what it is (definitely not strangles) and say it is an unusual staphylococcus infection.

anyone come across anything similar or got any ideas?

 

[flaxen]

My old pony had major issues with her gutteral pouches. She had the most vile smelling snot ever and it was like super glue!! She had lots of courses of antibiotics and as soon as she had finished them it came straight back. She was admitted to horsepital and had head xrays ( also sent to paddy dixon at dick vet school ) and had her gutteral pouches scoped, they were soo full of pus that they couldnt actually get the scope in them. She had to have needles inserted into them through the side of her head to flush the pus out amd came home on antibiotics of about 2mths. My ponys problem stemed from a livery yard where they stored hay above the stables and and despite our request she be fed from the floor they kept putting her hay in hay racks designed for 17hh driving horses, she was only 14hh. Once we had got it cleared up she was managed on shavings and haylage and not stabled next to horses stabled on straw/ hay and never had any further issues but her treatment cost £1000's and we learnt later on after moving to a different yard she was the second horse to develop the same problem from the same place.

 

[Cortez]

Have cared for a horse with gutteral pouch infections (although in his case it was a fungal infection), and they can be the very devil to treat. He ended up with tubes coming out of his head, daily flushes and months of treatment that in the end didn't work and he had to be retired to living in the field.

 

[CazD]

Thank you both for your replies. The mare has been retired for 2 years and lives out so I don't think it is a straw/hay/dust problem. The horsepital have no idea how the problem could have originated. Unfortunately they cannot even tell me if she is contagious or not(!) which is a huge problem as we have other horses. She lives at home so no other horses coming in and we haven't ridden since Christmas so none of ours have mixed with any other horses. Fortunately none of the others are showing any symptoms. The snot initially was a cream colour and very runny and smelly but has now gone thick and yellow. We've spent £2k in two weeks and, as she's not insured, I'm hoping this is not going to take months to clear up! I suspect she's going to need at least another course of antibiotics though.