Cough - when should I worry?

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Hi there - wonder if someone can advise? The mare has a bit of a cough at the moment. She does usually cough quite a bit, but it is a dry cough and I think it is caused by crappy hay. But this one is slightly different - it sounds 'looser', like there is something there. Then she'll have a massive sneeze and clear it. She only gets it when she starts to warm up in her work - it is not a stable cough. She does cough and sneeze her way through it and then works ok, but I do worry.
Should I be worried? And should I be resting her? I've not ridden her since Friday, when I noticed it.
I will get the vet if needs be, but our vets are really busy and I don't want to call him out for something that could be quite trivial.
Any advice gratefully received.
 
i would ring the vet and ask them! if she coughs normally does she get any treatment for that? and does she have a runny nose? also do you let her eat just before you ride her? could just be she gets food stuck in her throat. i have a friend with a pony and if he snatches a mouthful of grass out on a ride he will cough a few times to get rid of it-could be something similar?
 
Ah - good points. She sometimes gets a bit of a runny nose - either white or sort of vanilla coloured. Has had it since the day I got her and we've been together three years.
Yes, I do let her eat her hay before riding.
Only treatment is respirator licks that soothe the dry hay cough and seem to work well.
Thanks for the advice.
 
One of my ponies has a dry cough at the moment and he gets a sort of thin whitish watery discharge from the nose as well. Its infuriating as I keep thinking, right if he does it two days in a row I will definitely call the vet, but he never does! He will cough 6 or 8 times in a row and then thats it. I can't seem to pin it to anything because if its the hay or straw surely it would be a consistant everyday cough woudn't it? I don't want the vet to come out on a day he doesn't cough and waste both our times!
 
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