Can choke cause a horse to collapse/faint??

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mollymurphy

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Ill pony on our yard collapsed outside his stable tonight. Owner had just administered some oral antibiotics via a syringe - pony fell in a heap on the floor about a minute later. He fell very hard on his back and couldn't get up (i wasn’t here to see this - i arrived about 30mins later) - owner thought that KICKING him would help him to get back up! (You know, like how you kick a person when they faint!!!) Anyway, it didn’t work and pony was down for about 20 minutes. Owner didn’t want to get a vet at first, but did in the end. Pony got up 2 minutes before vet arrived (typical)!

Vet reckons pony chocked on the anti-b's, fainted, landed hard on his back, hurt it and couldn’t get up. As far as i know, there was no sign of any chokey symptoms. Would you say this sounded correct?? I'm doubtful, but she's the vet!

Pony was practically carried into his stable and looks as if he's brain damaged - VERY uncoordinated and wobbly. Also banged his eye, which is bleeding and swollen.

I've never witnessed choke before, so have no idea if it can cause a horse to collapse in such a short space of time. Any ideas??

Poor boy's been in the wars lately.

Lou. x
 
Bloody hell! Sounds awful. I've seen choke and it isn't normally like that at all. Horse starts a terrible hacking retching noise. Head hangs lower and lower. Slime and dribble and mucus drools out of the mouth but not food coz as we all know they can't vomit. They try and try to swallow and cough and panic all at the same time and it can go on for ages. Some just get terribly introverted as they wrestle with dealing with it and they can appear quite calm. Some might look worse than they are but some are potentially nasty. I suppose if the obstruction was so horrendous that it cut off the breathing by pressing on the windpipe, that would cause the pony to collapse but I would also expect it to cause the pony to die! Sounds a lot more like a severe allergic reaction.
 
Not normally like choke, but I was feeding a friend's horse once in the middle of a field and he took a few mouthfuls and just dropped down! I was panic stricken and ran for help, by the time we had run back he was back up and OK. That was choke, but certainly not like I had ever wistness before, which is usually as Sunnymum says.

Horse was absolutely fine afterwards and it never happened again whilst I new him, but he was sold about 6 months later.
 
Possible that the horse got some of the food down the windpipe but it doesnt sound very choke like. I would be more inclined to suspect an adverse reaction to the antibiotics . This is something that would need to be checked out with the vet and the manufacturer.
 
I'd have thought it was a.b. related too (or possibly just something related to his current unexplained illness), but the vet reckons not.
He's still really bad this morning. His face is swollen, his eyes are clouded over and the whites are completely red. He cant walk AT ALL. And he wont stop eating - it's almost as if he doesnt know what he's doing. Very odd.
Vet's been out again and says it's just because he's sore from the fall.
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It must be getting on for a month now. Started off with impaction colic. He's pooing again now, but it's pretty much a cow pat. Possibly sloppier!
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I just wish the owners would get a different vet out. I dont like the one they've got.
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[ QUOTE ]
I'd have thought it was a.b. related too (or possibly just something related to his current unexplained illness), but the vet reckons not.
He's still really bad this morning. His face is swollen, his eyes are clouded over and the whites are completely red. He cant walk AT ALL. And he wont stop eating - it's almost as if he doesnt know what he's doing. Very odd.
Vet's been out again and says it's just because he's sore from the fall.
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This all sounds very worrying and I have to say I would be seriously looking for another opinion now.
 
Sounds very sinister. I certainly wouldnt be relying on a non equine vet by now. Id be worried stupid.

When the pony first impacted did they tube it with paraffin? I only ask because its possible the tubing may have done some physical damage and thats created some sort of internal wound which would have allowed the a/bs to get straight into the blood stream.

I have known a couple of horses who inadvertantly had intramuscular ab's injected in error intravienously. Both died after fitting.
 
I agree that doesn't sound like choke at all! The horse I mentioned who dropped to the floor, was absolutely 110% once he had dislodged what ever it was that had caused the problem.

That pony sounds in severe distress! Poor thing. The owners need to get an equine specialist out now!
 
No, they're farmers and havent got much of a clue about horses!
Spaniel - he had parafin tubed into him about 5 times i think.
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He's still really bad today - still cant walk, his entire face is swollen and his eyes are bloody. He's acting like a zombie.
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Owner says "he's fine"!
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Also found out today that he collapsed TWO SECONDS after being given the AB's! No way could he have choked and gone down so quick!
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I've not seen the owners yet today, but i saw the pony this morning. He's pretty much the same.
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Obsessively eating and very zombie-like. Still unable to walk properly, face and eye still VERY swollen...just a bit of a mess really.
I'll text the owner now and see when the vet's next coming out.
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Thank you for asking though.
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Hi there, Im so sorry you've been upset by this. This does NOT sound like "Choke". Choke is caused by a few things, but mainly horses eating stuff they shouldn't - that might be because there is nothing decent/else in the field to eat (ie, they are starving) or something has become lodged (like unsoaked sugar beet/lumpy turnip/carrot etc).

Im concerned by the owner administering anything oral, unless of course its been previously prescribed by the vet. In which case there must be an underlying cause for this pony's ailment. To my (limited knowlege) there are very few oral anitbiotics allowed to be administered by owners - most are via injections. In addition, Icant think of ONE oral for horses that isnt either powder or paste form (like wormers? - but Im not a vet).

However, there is NOTHING that merits an owner kicking this pony when it "faints" - horses do NOT "faint"! - horses only drop to the ground when ill. They are "fight or flight" animals, the last place they want to be is on the floor when they are weak or ill.

Is it possible, since you think the pony was wobbly that he was given a sedative? Was the pony up for sale? The eye will just be a bang, and hopefully superficial.

If it was on my yard? - I think I would be very, very rude in my language.

Scotia
 
I am sure mollymurphy will reply with more detail but this pony has a recent history of being ill.
Regarding oral antibiotics, we had to administer a liquid oral antibiotic to Murph last year when he had a virus he couldn't shake off. Can't remember the name but it was horrendously expensive, but did the job thank heavens. It came as a powder and had to be mixed up with sterile water and syringed into him. However our vet did show us how to do it first. Have just looked at my bill, the antibiotic was excenel, £345 for 4g!
Any news on the pony today mollymurphy?
 
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