Esophageal Choke

Cazzabombazza

Cazzabombazza

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Mums horse broke into the tackroom and managed to snatch a mouthful of unsoaked sugar beet before she got him out. Whilst eating his food a few mins later, she assumed that he'd choked on a pony nut because he was coughing, frothing at the mouth and spewing mucus from his mouth and nose. he calmed down but continued to cough up mucus, so she rugged him up and put him in the stable with plenty of water and hay.
Just been up to bed them down, and he is still occasinally coughing mucus up, he hasnt touched his food or hay or water, and was looking very sorry for himself and standing still (he is usually a very rude, bolshy Sec D)
We have phoned the vet and she said it can clear on it's own but she could come to do some invasive stuff involving a tube down his esophegus. However due to other priorities we've had to leave him overnight.
Has anybody else experienced this? What would you reccommend? Any info and/or advice is very much appreciated :)
 
I wouldn't leave him overnight as he's obviously very uncomfortable.

I had a mare that choked very badly once and she was in serious discomfort for about 40 mins and she managed to clear it just before the vet arrived.
 
Most horses clear choke themselves, especially if they have just choked on a small amount of food (even unsoaked sugar beet!)
Veterinary intervention is required only if the horse is very stressed, they may have inhaled some food or the choke doesn't clear in a reasonable amount of time. Otherwise I would leave the horse in a non edible bedded stable with only water and no food until the choke has cleared-if left with hay they may try and eat before the oesophagus is completely clear and cause more of a blockage!
Although choke can be a worry it is important to remember horses can still breathe as they are obligate nasal breathers, it just stops them eating temporarily!
Hope this helps, if worried I would get the vet to check your horse over. They do sometimes require bute or antibiotics.

I hope your horse is ok.
 
1st of all remove water, as it can go down the wrong way and end up on the lungs etc.

walk the horse,

give the throte a gentle massage all the way down.

if a horse was looking like it was still choking id be demanding the vet came out, as simple as it seems it can become more serious if not treated.
 
Mine chokes on hay regularly but it clears quickly when I massage her throat. However as it was unsoaked beet it has swollen up and caused choke I would be getting vet if not cleared in 30 mins- friends horse did this but she was distressed and acting colicky and had to have tube down throat to wash out blockage and was not allowed food for the night
 
I would have the vet out asap as it has gone on too long. My horse has recurrent choke on haylage and hard feed and if it hasnt passed in 30 mins the vet comes out. He then tubes her and clears it. You cant take the risk that the food hasnt gone down the into her lungs and can cause more issues. Do not offer the horse food until the choke has cleared because any extra food the horse eats adds to the issue.
 
Thanks for advice - as he is 5 it was best to let it clear up on its own as invasive action may have made it worse. Went back down a couple hours ago and he was back to his normal self so all should be well :)
 
I hope that your horse is better now but my mare - also welsh cob, got the same thing and although the vets scoped her and did all sorts of things to the poor girl, I eventually took her to other vets and they agreed she should be pts immediately. It broke our hearts, we had rescued her and had her for 11 years. I still cannot forgive them (first vets) or us for not sorting things quicker. Please be careful, it turned out that she had paralysed larynx and numerous other problems. I hope your horse gets over this quickly, sorry to be negative but this send chills of horror down my spine every time I think of iot! Good luck!
 
I'm very sorry your horse didn't pull through oldhat, its a tricky one choke, and needs an expert to know if they'll clear it themselves or need intervention early.

Very sad :(
 
Cazzabombazza said:
Thanks for advice - as he is 5 it was best to let it clear up on its own as invasive action may have made it worse. Went back down a couple hours ago and he was back to his normal self so all should be well :)
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I do a newsletter for our yard every month and in August 2011 did an article on Choke. Here are some abstracts about choke.

What can cause choke :

Causes of Choke can be varied. It can be because the horse is not chewing the feed completely, due to dental problems, such as missing or painful teeth, sharp points, etc. Rectify this by ensuring your horses teeth are checked annually by an EDT (Equine Dental Technician). Another common cause is that the horse is not producing enough saliva to wet the food when eating. Always ensure food is well dampened prior to giving it to the horse. Some horses will bolt their food down which can cause choke so a good way to prevent this is to put some large stones in the horses feed bucket which has the effect of slowing the horse’s eating down. Finally choke can be caused by partial obstruction of the esophagus due to a tumour or from scarring from old injuries. The vet will advise on this.

And why you should never leave choke to resolve itself:

Necrosis or death of tissue can result if distention of the oesophagus walls occurs from the mass of hard, dry food and this can eventually lead to muscle tearing or the oesophagus itself can rupture. You should never feed your horses late since the threat of choke after feeding requires that they be observed for a little bit of time after they have finished eating. A serious situation can result if you put food in their buckets and then leave the yard, especially if a choking horse won’t be found until the next morning.

And what to do until the vet arrives:

It is best for the horse owner to condition choke as a minor emergency. The food may be allowed to pass by removing all remaining food and trying to get the horse to relax by gently massaging their neck. Remember that you massage must be gentle in order for it to soothe the horse and soften the food mass in their oesophagus. Keeping the horses head down will prevent food them breathing food into their lungs which can cause aspiration pneumonia.
 
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