How would you treat...

jhoward

jhoward

Demon exorcist...
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the average virus/cold in a horse??

horse currently showing symptons of snotty nose.. very crusty, and ive seen a small amount of yellowy greeny snot. LOTS of coughing. and even walking down the field had her puffing (she is fit)

ive just changed from hayledge to hay, aware this may be playing part so have gone to soaking her hay but what does horse do.. go straight in and munch her bed!

chances are its a virus going about, as we have over 60 horses on yard, and the foals have all had the snots etc.

shes uptodate to jabs.. do i let it run its course? keep her in ? (downsides due to more dust etc )or put her out (very dry fields no grass, and dry hay in field)

she is seeming a little depressed and isnt drinking as much as usal (not that im anal i just know my neddie)

glads are up a bit and its proberly worth mentioning yard had bad strangles that finally ended last august (approx time i wasnt there then moved there end of october)

if no better by monday is it worth a call to the vet>? OR... i have bute and injectable abs.. .is it worth giving her a few days treatment..

okok so on the basis of my medicine cabnit i should know .. but ive not for years had a horse with the snots . also my understanding of strangles is it can live in soil for many years just being dorment.. PLEASEEEEEEEEEE tell me im wrong...........
 
sadly strangles are around lots at the moment, i would be giving your vet a call for a chat and a visit xxx
 
its very much in the front of mind, had any of the foals been worse id be much more worried.

am going to go off and google strangles now.. JUST incase.
 
intresting that once a horse has had it it can be infact be a carrier of the bactiera for months or years.. never knew that bit! (add an oh shtt to that as some of the infected horses my horse has been in contact with.)
 
Sounds like she needs antibiotics, probably ventipulmin, possibly sputilosin and definately echinacea to me! I think keeping her in would be a very bad idea because of the dust as you say. If she has copd then you need to take her of straw and preferably go back to haylage. Horses often get bacterial infections secondary to viral ones and yellow green snot is definately bacterial. Check her temperature to she if she needs bute. I also think you should get the vet out and get a proper diagnosis, particularly as its not just one horse.
 
Sam22 said:
Sounds like she needs antibiotics, probably ventipulmin, possibly sputilosin and definately echinacea to me! I think keeping her in would be a very bad idea because of the dust as you say. If she has copd then you need to take her of straw and preferably go back to haylage. Horses often get bacterial infections secondary to viral ones and yellow green snot is definately bacterial. Check her temperature to she if she needs bute. I also think you should get the vet out and get a proper diagnosis, particularly as its not just one horse.
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copd? where did that come from?

the average stable cough that goes about happens, theres a large amount of horses, the foals have come in from the winter undercondition which would automatically put there immune systems down a bit.

im not overely keen on using abs unless really needed.

due to the yard set up just changing her bed wouldnt really benifit her as shes directly surrounded by over 20 stables full of straw and hay aswell as the barn dust..

leaving her out is an iffy option, the cow bag has already jumped a 4"9 fence when put out with one other.

will give her till monday, may do her a dose of bute tomorrow to see how things are on monday aswell , i dont think its anythign to bad going around as its just accured to me that a different vet has done 6 castrations on foals in the last 2 weeks that have had the same signs.
 
COPD because you said hay made it worse - I'm not saying thats what it is but it should be on your list of diagnosis for coughing.
If the foals just have clear runny noses and coughing but are not sick then yes they probably just have a virus and I wouldn't think strangles are likely at all. The question is why is your older horse sicker than the others and like I said its probably because she has secondary bacterial infection and if she is getting out of breath walking to the field then something to help her breath better will make her more comfortable. I think leaving it until Monday is fine as long as she doesn't get worse and her temperature is under control but you did ask what to treat her with!
 
oh i ment i didnt know if the changing to the hay was largly the cause...

some of the foals have been thick and yellow.

off to see her now so will see how she is.
 
Well firstly, I think you've done the right thing in soaking her hay. If you don't already, I'd feed it off the floor as this will keep her nasal pasages clearer... the point made above about bedding is a fair one and ok, you can't control what others around you do, but reducing the amount of dust in her immediate viscinity will probably be of benefit.

As for giving her a bute... what will that do? it's a painkiller and anti-inflamitory.

re the strangles living in the soil - what a load of b******s. The only way there could be strangles at your yard is if a new horse has bought it in or there is a carrier that went undiagnosed last time... all I know is that when we had strangles there was another virus that seemed to go around with it which left the horses lethargic and gave them runny noses, a temperature and sore throats... IT WASN'T STRANGLES but needed treating with antibiotics...

Whatever the reason, if you feel your horse is unwell after eliminating all other causes, you should get the vet out. don't self prescribe.
 
ta guys, im thinking its the hay..

last 2 days ive soaked it and fed from the floor, today after being out all day there was no crustyness around her nostrails, her breathing is still a little off but ive not heard her cough atall, (at the yard for 4 hours)

havnt tried working her again, as wanted to let it settle down so will pop her on the lunge tomorrow and see how she is.

as for self prescribing the drugs.. my vet allows me to carry a stock, as most minor things im able to treat myself, plenty of times ive rung for advise though more of a second opinion.

the bute, if she has a virus or if being affected by dust then the bute can help bring down any inflammation which may be obstructing her normal breathing .. as used in cases of copd etc.

my concern was shes fairly fit yet there was a tiny amount of rasping and flared nostrils when coming in from the field..

again this all fits in with the hay dust.

damn beastie 2 hours ive spent soaking net fulls at a time due to lack of facilities to soak and decent amounts lol!
 
grrrr damn ponies! i should of listened to myself!

horse this morning was still coughing, Glands are huge too, took temp and it was up to 38.5 so rang vet.

after a day of missed calls and egits.. i went and picked up abs (and a worm count kit whilst i was at it lol)

will monitor for a couple of days if no better vet out, i knew her temp wa up just by how warm she was to touch..

daftest conversation of the day..

me to ym.. do you have a thermoniter

ym yes why

me im pretty sure she has temp

ym why do you think that

me SHES HOT! bit of a giveaway that one.. *slaps head doh!*

he he know i know why i love forums..
 
My girl had an unidentified virus just after I bought her, depression, snotty nose, not eating. Unfortunately I was away when it arrived and she'd had it 4 or 5 days when I saw her. I called the vet immediately and she was diagnosed with a temperature of 104 degrees and a secondary infection in one lung, ie. pneumonia. Penicillin got her right, but I couldn't ride her for 2 months. If your horse is labouring to breathe in walk, I wouldn't hesitate to call the vet.
 
my main concern with these viruses is that they can lead to copd if not treated early, I know because it happened to 3 horses on my old yard. Aloe vera juice is great for fighting viruses but you still need to treat the chest/lungs which is where the breathing difficulties are coming from.
 
soulfull said:
my main concern with these viruses is that they can lead to copd if not treated early, I know because it happened to 3 horses on my old yard. Aloe vera juice is great for fighting viruses but you still need to treat the chest/lungs which is where the breathing difficulties are coming from.
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i agree, im still soaking her hay and feeding off the floor, and have 10 days of abs. shes deffinatly not her self, she coughed when going in the field today, THEN they went and put dry crappy hay out (yeah thanks for that).
Bought her back in, and a couple of hours later popped her on the lunge. totally dead and going so slowly forwards she may aswell been doing rein back. on the plus side she only done to coughs so i guess its working its way to the end.

nose was crusty again yesterday, but no signs of anything barring clear/greyish snot.

im just waiting for it to get passed to one of the other liveries and me get the blame lol.. YM told me toput my horse out with the others.. not my fault!
 
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Hope she is feeling better soon, but to be honest I wouldn't even attempt any work with her until she is more her normal self. If she is coughing just meandering around the field she wont be up to any lunge work.
 
doris2008 said:
Hope she is feeling better soon, but to be honest I wouldn't even attempt any work with her until she is more her normal self. If she is coughing just meandering around the field she wont be up to any lunge work.
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id only put her on the lunge to assess the coughing, 6 days ago she was coughing the moment she went into trot.. yesterday she had one proper cough and a bit of a clearign the throte.

shes no better in general, ive left her in today as i dont want her eating the dry hay in the field. shes so quite, she can see through her stable to the back of the barn and if im about doing nets etc she bangs the back wall, today shes been manily dozing, she just very dull. shes not coughed in the time i was at the yard, BUT there was a tiny amount of yellow/green snot oh and he glands are still really up..

tomorrow is day 9 and i need to ring the vets to give them an update as they didnt come out to prescribe abs, my own vet is also back.

poos are normal,weeing is normal and shes still eating, still going along the lines of its a virus as foals still coughing and its lasting a while with them.,

strangles still at the back of my mind, and will talk to my vet tomorrow about how much of a chance there is.. if theres ANY then he can come out and swab although as i understand swabs are nt totally accurate.
 
will be getting a vet out onmonday to do some bloods, as if anything shes got worse, althought she is still eating she is not being a greedy cow as normal, shes far to quiet, cough has got worse and she has eye and nose discharge.

one thingscaring me... equine herpes.. she has every sympton oe of which that got me worried was loss of bladder control.. well she was wetter than normal today, but the other day she was walking around the stable peeing... ok oki know im scaring myself, but will request a blood test to be on the safe side.

one of the foals is in, and is coughing and there was a large amount of green snot on the stable floor/bed so before she gets that bad i think mr vet is needed to put my mind at rest if nothing else.
 
May be wrong but sounds like Equine flu
There are a large number of horses not vaccinated in UK
The foals may not have completed primary vaccination course
It could be a flu strain not covered by your vaccination
Probably too late to say isolate cases from healthy horses

Strangles would have developed further with characteristic neck abscesses and appetite would be poor.

Dont exercise--horse will need quite a long rest after recovery--wind can be permanently damaged
Do feed from floor--to drain any ''gunk'

Animal Health Trust are collecting info on the different strains and have recently asked vets to notify them of outbreaks--because of concern about low uptake of vaccination
 
Cuffey said:
May be wrong but sounds like Equine flu
There are a large number of horses not vaccinated in UK
The foals may not have completed primary vaccination course
It could be a flu strain not covered by your vaccination
Probably too late to say isolate cases from healthy horses

Strangles would have developed further with characteristic neck abscesses and appetite would be poor.

Dont exercise--horse will need quite a long rest after recovery--wind can be permanently damaged
Do feed from floor--to drain any ''gunk'

Animal Health Trust are collecting info on the different strains and have recently asked vets to notify them of outbreaks--because of concern about low uptake of vaccination
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to be honest i dont think any of the foals are vaccinated. not been exercising her, she doesnt even have the energy to canter up the field to the others, and she has been being fed from the floor.
 
How is your horse now? Is there any improvement? Regarding strangles I witnessed a large outbreak a while back where a number of horses developed only a cough and snotty nose others also having a temperature, raspy breathing, swollen glands and lethargy and only a small number developed the typical abscesses. All of those horses were tested and came back with positive results for strangles. As you say you are on a big yard there is probably a lot of movement on and off and it is possible for any horse to bring it on or to be an unknown carrier strangles now would probably be unlinked to a previous outbreak providing that all horses involved in a previous case were repeat swabbed clear at the end of an isolation period though that in itself is not completely reliable.
It is probably worthwhile having a vet out for your own and fellow liveries peace of mind and I would have thought that a yard that had suffered a previous strangles outbreak would be keen for it to be ruled out quickly too.
Blood tests are available for strangles now although the timing has to be right as they can be done too early and give a false result.
Certainly soak and feed hay from the floor as that will help your horse whatever the diagnosis.
 
No offence but i cant believe you didnt call vet sooner it must have been early 2 weeks before you did?? Her symptons sounded quite bad and i see where another member was coming from when she said COPD you did say you were walking round the field and she was out of breath.

Hope im no talking out of term just my opinion. Hope shes feeling better very soon
 
Lila said:
No offence but i cant believe you didnt call vet sooner it must have been early 2 weeks before you did?? Her symptons sounded quite bad and i see where another member was coming from when she said COPD you did say you were walking round the field and she was out of breath.

Hope im no talking out of term just my opinion. Hope shes feeling better very soon
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i did call the vet, and discussed at length, also discussed the foals that have been ill and the fact the yard had, had strangles last year. the vet at the tome agreed would of exmained in the same way i had, and at the stage of calling the vet she was slightly off with a cough, and a bit iffy. the VET decided to treat with abs, which i went and collected as vet also didnt think it warrented a call out,. it has only been since saturdays se has got worse.. see UPDATE further down vet has now been. they again didnt think it warrentied an emergancey call out at a weekend.

oh and just to clarify.. it is 2 weeks tomorrow since the first cough.. which we at first put down to **** dusty hay.. as she was showing no other symptons of anything
 
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Funny that - treatment exactly what I told you a week ago, poor horse, I hope she doesn't have chronic damage. The fact she had a high temperature should have brought your vet running out to see her straight away, I hope you have got it in time and she doesn't get pneumonia. Please tell me she doesn't have a temperature now?
 
Sam22 said:
Funny that - treatment exactly what I told you a week ago, poor horse, I hope she doesn't have chronic damage. The fact she had a high temperature should have brought your vet running out to see her straight away, I hope you have got it in time and she doesn't get pneumonia. Please tell me she doesn't have a temperature now?
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she hasnt had a tempreture since last monday pm about 8 hours after we fist took it., and it was only just above the normal. dont forget she has still been under the vet, and has had treatment.

i first spoke to the vet last monday then again wednesday then again friday, so please do not suggest that the mare hasnt had the treatment she needed.
also other vets have been on the yard and have examined the foals etc.
 
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yes, the bloods showed nothing, but the swab came back clear BUT showed up some bacteria, normally accossiated with pnuemonia,but in general it was a normal type of bacteria.. if that makes sence
but the vet said it was unlikly as ned was still fairly bright in herself and on the day she came out her temp was normal.

So vets have put it down to a virus.

horse wise shes ok, still havin gthe odd cough, but it is just the odd one, and ive not seen any snot for 4 days. breathing is ok, but not 100% today is the last day of the ventipulmin so will see how she is mid week,

im struggling to get her out now, as vet didnt want her out in the rain, and thats all weve had along with a good few inches of mud!
i cant put her loose in the school as shes likey to go nuts and jump out! so weve been taking slow walks up the drive munching grass. (our drive is half mile long up a hill.)

so shes getting there.. just slowly!
 
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