Hives on right flank only

[AlpacaTeddySJ]

Hi,

Wonder if anyone would able to help - my horse has had hives on his right flank only, which have gotten worse today.

I noticed them a few weeks ago, which was when he was turned out in the field 24/7, and assumed a reaction to fly bites - only a small patch and not very raised - wasn’t concerned then.

However he’s now in the stable on box rest and has been for the last few days, and they seem to have gotten worse, see pic below.


I sent off for an Equibiome hind gut test about 2 weeks ago and so I’m waiting for that to get back.

Any suggestions on things I can do to help him without immediate vet intervention? I will contact them on Monday anyway to find out what they suggest.

Not sure if there are herbal remedies etc. And of course I’m not exactly sure of the cause either.

TIA

 

[Patterdale]

I would just give cetirizine (antihistamine) for a few days if he was mine and see if it clears up. It’s probably something as simple as him lying on his right side.
Anyway whether it clears up or not on antihistamines at least you’ll know more about what it could or couldn’t be?

The dose for horses as given by my vet is 0.2mg/kg, so my 220kg ish pony has 7-8 tablets of 5mg but over/under dosing a bit shouldn’t do any harm. Cetirizine is non-drowsy and cheap.

 

[AlpacaTeddySJ]

I would just give cetirizine (antihistamine) for a few days if he was mine and see if it clears up. It’s probably something as simple as him lying on his right side.
Anyway whether it clears up or not on antihistamines at least you’ll know more about what it could or couldn’t be?

The dose for horses as given by my vet is 0.2mg/kg, so my 220kg ish pony has 7-8 tablets of 5mg but over/under dosing a bit shouldn’t do any harm. Cetirizine is non-drowsy and cheap.

@Patterdale Thanks for the suggestion!

Any idea if I can give Cetirizine Dihydrochloride? Seems to be a common one.

 

[Patterdale]

Yes I’m pretty sure that’s what I give. Just a cheap one off Amazon.
My daughters pony has seasonal allergies, 8 tablets a day squashed into half an apple has changed her life!

Good luck hope it works.

 

[Patterdale]

https://ayp.healthcare/360-x-cetiri...MIlo3k7cXx9wIVRfhRCh1wVgOHEAQYASABEgI8YfD_BwE

That’s what I use^

 

[AlpacaTeddySJ]

Just ordered some! Thanks so much!

 

[Highmileagecob]

Looks like a buttercup allergy. My friend's mare looks the same.

 

[nutjob]

I would be cautious about herbal remedies as my horse who had hives on several occasions was allergic to echinacea amongst several other things. Prednisolone tablets were the only thing that would calm his skin down. There after it's a question of working out what has caused it and trying to avoid contact with or ingestion of what ever it is. Much easier said than done especially if the horse is allergic to multiple things.

 

[AlpacaTeddySJ]

Been giving the antihistamines for a week now and no improvement.
Question now, is if I remove all feeds apart from hay (box rest) - does anyone know how long do I need to wait to expect an ‘improvement’ before reintroducing each individual item of feed/supplement?

 

[nutjob]

It can take a while, like 2-3 weeks. It's also possible for them to be allergic to certain types of grasses like rye grass so you may need to restrict the diet further to only timothy haylage for example. If yours only has lumps on one side maybe it's something he has been in contact with, rather than eaten. My horse got them all over so it was more likely to be something he had ingested. I was advised to change the bedding to shredded paper while doing the exclusion diet, although in his case the bedding turned out not to be relevant.