copd nightmare!

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minwood

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Hi everyone, 18 months ago I bought my 12 year old daughter a gorgeous British riding pony through people in the pony club. We had her on a months trial and was perfect exactly the right second pony to move on to. The first winter she got pretty fresh but did all the right things, back, teeth, feed check etc. got the vet out and he said she had a terrible chest had her scoped and was COPD also showed she has a very narrow windpipe. Last summer she was perfect pony now in winter again... Nightmare!!! She's now rearing with my daughter who fell off out hacking and got kicked as she bolted off. She's also been bucking in school esp when goes into canter. She's cost me the earth with every medication and nebuliser. I wanted to sell her but obviously can't as no child can try her out. I've had an adult on her and she says its like she gets in a panic. We reckon it's her breathing making her act up, vet now wants bone scans, she's still heaving on highest dose on nebuliser. I'm wondering whether to put her out of her misery, must be awful for her, she's only 11 years old! :(
 
How are you managing the COPD apart from giving her medication? if she is still heaving that suggests either she is on the wrong medication or the wrong management in some way.
Is she on hay or haylage?
Why does the vet want to do a bone scan?

I would think pts is a bit drastic at this stage if she is perfect in the summer once you get her on a good regime she should be able to be good in the winter, it may mean some serious changes such as her living out 24/7, if she is not already but it should be possible to help her be more comfortable.

More questions than answers but it would help to have more info in order to make suggestions of what else you can try.
 
Hi, by perfect in summer I meant riding wise but still suffers with heaves. She has soaked hay, eucalyptus bedding. Nebuliser, supplements in feed. Can't live out as not hardy enough loses weight and gets cold, still heaves anyway. In summer I have to watch she doesn't get laminitis being on steroids, the heat makes her heave bad. Her windpipe is very narrow which does worry me and doesn't help things. Her nebuliser has been fine up until a week ago and it's as if it's stopped working her dose is up to maximum now! Vet doesn't really know why she's acting up when ridden so wants a bone scan done to see if there's anything else going on or whether it's behavioural, her back is fine! I can't do enough for this pony she's on livery so is costing a fortune to keep and not getting any use out of her. Not only that I'd hate to think she's suffering, she's been a total heartbreak, poor pony!
 
Have you tried haylage, for some soaking is just not good enough, one of mine could not tolerate soaked hay but was fine on haylage to the point where he could stop his meds.
Most ponies can live out, I have a BRP who is not a great doer and is a cold thin skinned chap that grows very little coat, he now winters out, has not had a night in this year, with my pba who has COPD also thin skinned but a good doer, they have plenty of haylage, a decent rug and look really well, last winter was not so easy they did spend some time in as it was just so wet, it is worth trying but may mean moving to a yard that will let you keep her out and provide with ad lib haylage but it would probably cost no more especially if you could cut back on the vets bills.

Be careful with the bonescan, check your insurance will pay, they may not if they consider it to be behavioural if nothing shows up, I would probably do a bute trial first, not always definitive but worth discussing with your vet as it can certainly show that there is pain if she responds to it, if she doesn't it does not rule it out but will possibly give something to start with, a week or two on bute and haylage may show improvement and is not going to do any harm.
 
I second the out 24/7 suggestion, having seen my friend got through the same process with her COPD pony. I really think some horses are just allergic to stables. It's impossible to get rid of all the dust, even if you wash the walls down regularly and just use rubber matting (which my friend did). As long as you wrap her up and give her ad lib forage she'll cope. Having worked at a stud I was amazed how well mollycoddled TBs and show ponies transformed into tough broodmares living out without rugs in all weathers all year round!
 
Thankyou, I can leave her out where I am so may give it a go. I hadn't given her haylage because I thought might make her fizzy when ridden but she is anyway so prob wouldn't matter. I will do the bute trial when she's stopped heaving. So strange that she was nearly off the nebuliser last week and now on more than she was in the summer! Does anyone think her over the top spooking is her breathing and what can I do as my daughter won't ride her now as fallen off too many times and she has lost her confidence. Eventually I would like to sell her or maybe loan her but when Shes going better again!
 
So sorry this is happening to your pony. You say your on livery, is it. Full livery? If so is there more than one person soaking the hay? Variation in hay?
I too would wrap her up warm and turn her out with haulage, start with a mix of hay though.

Most copd can be managed BUT there is the odd one that just can never be kept under control and unfortunately p's is the only fair thing to do for the pony.

As far as bone scan as others say check insurance.
It maybe your vet suspects kissing spines which can only be found by X rays or scans and I guess could be worse if pony is bracing against breathing difficulties

I hope you can get to the bottom of it all but having been in similar position with a 12 year old that had multiple problems, one of which we never figured out, I do know that sometimes you never find out the whole story no matter how much time effort and money you put in.
 
Defiantly get the pony living out .
Don't feed any hay try good quality small bale haylage .
I hope you can find a way forward .
No pony is worth your daughters confidence and enjoyment and perhaps safety .
Sometimes you can't make things right it's not easy but sometimes you just have to say enough is enough .
 
minwood said:
Thankyou, I can leave her out where I am so may give it a go. I hadn't given her haylage because I thought might make her fizzy when ridden but she is anyway so prob wouldn't matter. I will do the bute trial when she's stopped heaving. So strange that she was nearly off the nebuliser last week and now on more than she was in the summer! Does anyone think her over the top spooking is her breathing and what can I do as my daughter won't ride her now as fallen off too many times and she has lost her confidence. Eventually I would like to sell her or maybe loan her but when Shes going better again!
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Look for a high fibre haylage, it's basically the second cut off the field so less 'fizz'. If ur lincs direction at all pm me and I'll try and sort u some to try
 
Just a thought but could it be the steroids/ and or the other meds making her spooky and fresh? If she lived out, could you cut her meds back and see if that makes any difference. I know humans can have adverse reaction to steroids so I could guess they can affect ponies in the same way.
 
Hi thanks for everyone's good advice! Steroids could be making her spook but she's been on them since I got her and has never reacted like this before in a spook situation, but can't cut them back having to increase as she's still heaving today. Not ever had her heave this long before and usually with an upped dose she's ok. Think leaving her out is a good idea, haven't done it before as she's always been ok in and likes her home comforts!
 
The only way we can keep our COPD pony happily is if he lives out 24/7 all year round and eats good quality haylage in winter. Like this he is fine and needs no drugs. One night in a stable or a small amount of hay and he is ill straight away.
 
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