Horse Coughing

[24071997]

I recently bought a horse to event up to nov- int in feb.
This horse seemed to have a cough when I first brought her home which only came about when put into trot/ canter but she really wouldn’t stop coughing, it was a fairly severe cough that kept pulling me forwards to clear her throat but seemed to disappear as she got further into a session, at this time the horse was in by night out by day and on Haylage

The vet put the horse on ventipulim and the cough seemed to go be hugely better within 2 or so weeks but the cough seems to be coming back the last week or so.
We are currently turned out 24:7 and have been for the last month and the horse has not received a blade of hay etc in the past month, surely meaning it’s more of an allergy. Or maybe the dust from the dry ground?

The horse seems to clear her nostrils a lot at the start of a session and doesn’t tend to cough really in till the work becomes more strenuous. For example, I can walk, trot and canter with the odd little cough but if I Extended the period of canter or push the canter on a little more on bringing back to trot the horse is literally pulling its head down and forwards coughing/choking for a few strides and then seems ok again after almost a 10 second coughing fit.

With the current situation my vet is going to send me out some steroids as feels this is necessary as he think it could be a form of Equine Asthma and wants to reduce the inflammation in the lungs.

Does anybody have experience with this or can help with the management side of things? If I treat this early enough and manage this right, worst case scenario it is asthma, still be able to compete this horse to the level I was originally expecting? If so how can I manage this?

Could this just be 2 separate coughs within close proximity to each other that aren’t so serious?

Is there anything else this could be?

The horse is 7 this year. Kwpn x TB,
I’ve also know the old owner for years and has competed her and never previously had any problems and I would like to think I could trust her 100%.

 

[Equi]

Is the arena dusty? It could be due to that. it is very dry at the moment.

 

[TPO]

Really you need the vet to come out to scope the horse and take samples for testing so that they can properly diagnose the issue and treat accordingly.

I wouldn't be riding a coughing horse as it puts strain on already compromised lungs and this can cause long term damage.

Long story short I ended up taking an abandoned/neglected horse that I liveried beside on loan to "save" him. He always had a low grade cough that the owner would rarely get ventipulmin for and more regularly just use an off the shelf cough medicine.

They all passed it off as "just him" and rode him regardless. When the owner knowingly abandoned him to a neglectful loaner she didnt even buy the cough medicine for him.

I had the vets out as soon as he became my responsibility. Apparently lung inflammation is graded out of 6 and he was a 6. He was then properly medicated and his management totally changed to be as dust free as possible. However the damage caused by ignoring the cough, not getting proper treatment and continuing with ridden work meant that he was never able to fully recover and that was the end of the road.

This was a long term issue that was ignored so unlikely to be the same.amount of damage with a relatively new issue but just something to be aware of.

 

[Yeomans]

I have exactly the same problem as you. My horse was coughing and vet called out and put on Dilaterol, once that finished was given another course of Dilaterol which helped but the problem didnt disappear. Vet has now said that I need a Tracael wash (which I will have once he can come out) and in the meantime I could give him a 10 day course of steriods. I do not want to put him on the steriods for fear of lami especially with the spring grass coming through. So he was on straw but now on aubiose, hay soaked, on Airway Plus, Kof Eze and Benalyn and it has improved but I still feel there is something there so will wait for vet to come and do the wash. I also think that the pollen is very high and the fields are very dusty which doesnt help.

 

[24071997]

The vet can’t come out at the moment as this problem isn’t essential but again offered me the steroids so will see how these work.
We are not allowed in the school at the moment but only hacking and through the fields....
the horse will hack out without a cough, and do a complete dressage lesson without a cough but you push the canter on and exert her and it comes on.
In terms of riding her is almost a must, she is a ‘competition horse’ and has to be ridden like one and the problem doesn’t come into play in till put into strenuous work so I’ve just been hacking her out quietly to try and keep her sanity.

As soon as we are out of lockdown I will get the horse scoped to look further into it.

Thank you for your replies

I’m hoping someone will come forwards in regards to having a horse with a respiratory problem that has competed to a high level. Or is this going to be a no go for me if for example she had IAD?

I’m also confused as to why the cough went away for at least a month when she was in still by night, schooling etc and is now out 24/7 and the cough has come back. We have to ride from the field at our yard at the moment, so it’s not as if she has even been in for an hour.

 

[Yeomans]

My vet is coming out Monday morning to do the Traceal Wash. Hopefully I will get some answers.