Does this sound like a virus?

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Christmas Crumpet

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Horse is so lethargic, coughing, feels like everything is a huge effort and seems miserable and very tired.


I’ve rung the vet asking for bloods to be taken and a trach wash. She’s already on ventapulmin and it’s making no difference at all.
 
Is she eating?

Mine completely lost her appetite. She would also stand in the corner of her stable with her head down looking very sorry for herself.
 
No temperature this morning. Eating hard food and grass but not hay or haylage. I have wormed her (36 hours ago) and did see a red worm in her poo last night. Could it be the worming making her feel shit and the cough something else?
 
Vets can't come till Tuesday. So will wrap her in cotton wool till then. She came over from Ireland 6 months ago and came to me about a month ago. Old owner says she didn't have any snot and was always cheerful which she was when she came. But riding this morning was dreadful literally like she couldn't put one foot in front of the other. I did notice she had slightly sweaty sides when I went to tack her up by her girth but at the time thought it was where she'd been lying down.

I do wonder whether worming her has made her feel awful to add to her list of symptoms!
 
It could be the wormer the cough may have been a coincidence, when my horse had a period of getting a virus he never lost his appetite although he is a greedy pony, the one time he has ever had colic he was still trying to eat
 
I wouldn't be happy with a vet that could;dn't come till so far away./ if a horse is at the stage it's coughing and lethargic then it could be something like a case of septic pneumonia and a few days can make all the difference between it getting very bad or getting sorted. if it's a lung infection you could need antibiotics. if it's wormed you need to get it sorted quicker or else it can cause damage. no wanting to sound hysterical about it, but leaving the horse for 6 more day seems a bit risky.
 
Agree the vet needs to come now. If she was bright I would say she can hold off but a lethargic horse is not good. Antibiotics/steroid make a huge difference.it goes without saying you probably shouldn’t be riding her until she’s seen the vet.

eta be sure they know she’s been wormed recently (After unknown history of worming I assume) and worms spotted in the poo.
 
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Just spoken to feed place where we get our wormers and they are pretty hot on all that kind of stuff. Says the chances are as she's been wormed with Equest Pramox, she might have a tiny bit of colic and be uncomfortable because she had a worm burden. He said 36 - 72 hours later are normally when they show signs of colic if they are going to have it.

Ringing vets back again.
 
One reason I will never use pramox it is well known to have quite severe reactions in some horses. Hopefully the vet will be out soon and sort things out but not eating is more of a sign of colic than a virus unless the temperature is really high
 
The only time mine has ever coliced was after worming with equest pramox. I worked in the evening and the next morning he was wobbling like a bowl of jelly. I thought he was tying up but it was colic, needed vet intervention. I won’t use it as a wormer now.
 
Vet today. Not sure you are taking this seriously enough if the vet thinks it can wait until Tuesday?? Not sure why you are dictating to the vet what they need to do either though?
 
Surprised Pramox was suggested for a horse with an unknown worming history.

I have certainly heard plenty of anecdotal evidence of horses reacting badly to Pramox.

I certainly wouldn't want to be with a vet practice that couldn't come out within a reasonable timeframe which 6 days most certainly isn't.

The lack of a high temperature would make me less inclined to think it is a virus.
 
Glad she’s feeling a bit better but good that the vet is still coming out.

I don’t understand how Pramox is still on the market. Ask any SQP and they will agree that horses can often colic after getting dosed with it, and not all of the colics are minor, either.

A high worm burden is often blamed, but I’m not sure that stacks up if the cases were analysed correctly.
 
I won't be using it again! I've never had a horse react to a wormer before. I do worm counts usually and worm accordingly if required. Apparently its quite well known for causing issues but weirdly it was the first time the feed place have ever mentioned how it can cause colic in some horses when I bought it. Normally they just say don't let your dogs eat it or your children. Wonder if there have been more cases of colic recently.
 
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