Equine asthma....experiences please

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So my rubbish 12 months continues. Having rehabbed up to the grand distance of a 40 minute walk hack, last Friday for some reason my 8yo cob mare went into a very fast decline. Fine at 11.45, needing a vet at 2pm with breathing issues.
She's been on bute and antibiotics for the past 6 days but is still not right so is being scoped today.
Vet has suggested asthma.
Does anyone have any experiences to share? Did your horse get back to full work?

 

[Yeomans]

All last year my horse had a terrible cough and was scoped and was found to have a lung infection, his breathing was up to 47 a minute, vet put him on antibiotics and it seemed to clear for a while, then it came back again and he was scoped again and found to have a secondary infection to the first infection, 3 weeks of antibiotics and slowly came back into work. After about a week he started to cough again so I took him to a equine specialist in breathing and after being scoped yet again he was diagnosed as having equine asthma. I had to leave the yard I was on and take him to somewhere where there was no straw and ideally turned out 24/7. He was then put on a nebuliser with saline and steriods for around 3 months every day twice a day which helped enormously. Since moving to the new yard he only had his nebuliser for one week then I gradually took him off it. That was last October and he has not had any more problems at present. I think a lot of it has to be the way we manage them. My horse is on chippings, soaked hay and fast and fibre and out as much as possible and touch wood we are now going out in a few weeks to a show. This is a shortened version of the hell we had to go through before the end was in sight but you are seeing the vet and having a scope so that may give you a result and then you can treat as appropriate. I wish you well and hope for a good outcome.

 

[GinaGeo]

Yes.

His was started off by a Viral Infection in his Upper Respiratory Tract. He was on Antibiotics, Oral Steroids and Bute if I remember correctly (It was about nine years ago now!). And for awhile afterwards would get Ventapulmin if he needed it. We didn't need a nebuliser.

We have changed our management drastically to suit him. He lives out on an all-weather track as he also has EMS so is a little difficult to manage and grass has to be heavily restricted but being out minimises dust. He still doesn't cope very well with hay, even when it's soaked or steamed so lives on Haylage.

He's in full work, and managed like this is very good with his breathing. He had a little bit of cough this Spring with the ground being so dry and dusty - but it clears quickly.

 

[laura_nash]

Yes.

His was started off by a Viral Infection in his Upper Respiratory Tract. He was on Antibiotics, Oral Steroids and Bute if I remember correctly (It was about nine years ago now!). And for awhile afterwards would get Ventapulmin if he needed it. We didn't need a nebuliser.

We have changed our management drastically to suit him. He lives out on an all-weather track as he also has EMS so is a little difficult to manage and grass has to be heavily restricted but being out minimises dust. He still doesn't cope very well with hay, even when it's soaked or steamed so lives on Haylage.

He's in full work, and managed like this is very good with his breathing. He had a little bit of cough this Spring with the ground being so dry and dusty - but it clears quickly.

Saved me writing it! Much the same for me, including the original infection being many years ago.

Mine isn't in full work at the moment but that's more down to me and not his breathing. He's also not on an all weather track, though that would suit him, but is living out full time and cannot really tolerate stabling for long or hay, even soaked, especially indoors. He can't tolerate haylage much either, gives him hives, so is out on grass all year but restricted as best I can in spring and autumn. I keep a tub of Ventipulmin on hand in case I have to bring him in for an injury or something.

 

[wildandwoolly]

My pony's problems also seemed to have started following an upper respiratory tract infection. He was really ill the spring after the RTI, very fast respiration rate, coughing and nasal discharge and felt so rubbish he didn't even want to graze. He was scoped, lavaged and had ventipulmin and two courses of oral steriods which was scary as he's a fell pony. We think it is tree pollen which affects him, particulary birch. For the past six years he has had an inhaler, first of all using a baby spacer and then an equine haler which was expensive but is much more effective for him. As long as I start using the inhaler early, before there is too much pollen about, he is fine and I can keep the dose low. In my experience it is much more difficult to settle the symptoms down once he is reacting to the pollen. I have found that he also has a spike in symptoms in the autumn which I think is probably bracken spores. I haven't altered his management on a day to day basis and keeping him as fit as possible helps a lot. My pony is out in the day and in at night all year round due to needing to control grass intake and avoid the dreaded midges which seem to plague him. Good luck with your horse op.

 

[Translationsneeded1]

Mine is kept out as much as possible. Haylage in winter (or 12 hours soaked hay if need be)
Working most days seems to help.
Now it’s under control, I’ve been using equine America ventilator and I’ve not had to use the puffas or ventipulmin for several months now. I rate it.

 

[GoldenWillow]

My cob was diagnosed with equine asthma a few years ago, showed as an occasional cough and loss of performance. Trach washes were clear but a BAL showed it.

He's out at night, stabled through the day in a well ventilated stable/field shelter bedded on Bedmax shavings and fed haylage. Through the winter months he is fine on this management but pollen is a big trigger and during high pollen months he uses a flexineb nebuliser with a steroid/saline mix. He is able to be in full work.

 

[Fruitcake]

I have a horse diagnosed with equine asthma a few years ago. It took a while to get it under control. (Went down Ventipullmin route, then steroid inhalers).

The thing that made a huge difference was the Flexineb nebuliser. He had nebulised steroids for a few months to get things under control. He was then weaned off them and has been fine since. For a few months, he was given a few puffs of Ventolin inhaler through the nebuliser before work, but eventually stopped this too. He does still sneeze a few times when you start to trot, but it's never developed into anything more. I do make sure to soak / wet hay and he lives out but otherwise is now back to normal.

I think the thing with asthma is that, unless you treat the actual inflammation (usually with steroids), all you're doing is relieving the symptoms with the likes of Ventipulmin and Ventolin.

Feel free to PM if you want the whole, detailed experiences. ?

 

[ILuvCowparsely]

So my rubbish 12 months continues. Having rehabbed up to the grand distance of a 40 minute walk hack, last Friday for some reason my 8yo cob mare went into a very fast decline. Fine at 11.45, needing a vet at 2pm with breathing issues.
She's been on bute and antibiotics for the past 6 days but is still not right so is being scoped today.
Vet has suggested asthma.
Does anyone have any experiences to share? Did your horse get back to full work?

My late mare had it, we used an nebuliser, a nose net Gold label vapor mist, global hers airways plus, and Equine America liquid before sponsored rides.


pony has asthma no meds as not allowed, but has an inhaler and timothy haylage

ID mare has EAD airways disease, same as first horse except no inhaler used ventipulmin too