HUGE Swallon sheath ADVICE PLEASE :))

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myhorses2015

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Hi all

Advice please his sheath is very swallon have given him a sheath clean but could only go into the sheath as he wouldnt get *it* out so was told i could go in it & clean but ive not managed to get his willy clean as hes dont like top pop it out (cold weather!) but have cleaned inside & the swelling is not going down at all

He does not seem bothered by this at all, is still eating, weeing etc everything fine
He i stabled no paddocks are availavle at the moment due to the weather there not allowed out (livery rules!) I was going to hack him out?, ive been told & read up that quite alot of horses get this in cold weather where no exercise can be done anyone else ever heard of this? Vet has not been out but have spoken to them over the phone they said if its not bothering him & hes still acting normal then dont worry i cannot get this vet ou as there not due until 10 days they said he will be fine im worrying myself sick anyone ever had same with there geldings?

TIA
 
Get a different vet if your usual one won't come out for 10 days (if I've read that right?) In the mean time, is there discharge? If so what colour? Is it smelly(the sheath itself)? Is there any small cuts on it that you might have missed?
 
Pennythetank said:
Get a different vet if your usual one won't come out for 10 days (if I've read that right?) In the mean time, is there discharge? If so what colour? Is it smelly(the sheath itself)? Is there any small cuts on it that you might have missed?
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We cant we are in a very rural village & they only come out here firtnightly they are a very good vets so will be worth the wait
No no discharge, no not smelly & no small cuts it just appeared one morning
 
Some geldings do get swollen sheaths from being stabled, in the way some horses get filled hind legs, if there is no soreness or obvious discharge I would get him moving as much as possible to increase his circulation, cut back on any hard feed and insist he gets turned out somewhere each day if you cannot exercise, yards that shut turnout need to have somewhere the horses can get exercised every day even if it is just an hour in the school while you are there.
 
myhorses2015 said:
We cant we are in a very rural village & they only come out here firtnightly they are a very good vets so will be worth the wait
No no discharge, no not smelly & no small cuts it just appeared one morning
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If it's just swollen then as be positive said, get him moving. Even just taking him out for walks in hand as often as possible will help and try get him turned out asap.
 
I can take him for walks along the roads to get him moving i will speak to the yard owner tomorrow & see what can be done im a real worryier vets are saying don worry as this is normal but im still worried about him
 
myhorses2015 said:
We cant we are in a very rural village & they only come out here firtnightly they are a very good vets so will be worth the wait
No no discharge, no not smelly & no small cuts it just appeared one morning
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I'm sorry but I wouldn't consider any vet that makes you wait 2 weeks for an appointment to be "very good". Personally I would be calling a vet out that could attend in the next couple of days just to double check it's definitely not something to worry about, but that's just me.
 
Moomin1 said:
No decent vet, wherever you live, only visits every 10 days. Unless you live in Outer Mongolia or the moon. I would say your horse needs vet attention asap, not in ten days.
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Our vets only make the long trip out to us if its a emergency they are telling me it is not a emergency its normal in horses to have this just give him exercise same as others are saying i have heard of it before but never experieanced myself, this is why i am on here asking everyone the same question if it is normal or not not to be judged about my vets visting dates!
 
myhorses2015 said:
Our vets only make the long trip out to us if its a emergency they are telling me it is not a emergency its normal in horses to have this just give him exercise same as others are saying i have heard of it before but never experieanced myself, this is why i am on here asking everyone the same question if it is normal or not not to be judged about my vets visting dates!
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In that case no I would not consider it normal and as mentioned before would be asking for a vet to come out in the next day or two. As far as I'm concerned it's better to be safe than sorry.
 
myhorses2015 said:
Our vets only make the long trip out to us if its a emergency they are telling me it is not a emergency its normal in horses to have this just give him exercise same as others are saying i have heard of it before but never experieanced myself, this is why i am on here asking everyone the same question if it is normal or not not to be judged about my vets visting dates!
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Do you live on the moon? How long a trip is it?? Tbh if I was a vet and my customers wanted me to come out asap to check their horse, I would be on my way.... Either box the horse yourself to the vets or get a new vet, preferably one that will look after your horse when needed.
 
My gelding had an enormous swollen sheath. it was like a balloon. At first we thought it was a bite or sting, but later blood tests showed up piroplasmosis. I would definitely get the vet out. You are the one with your horse, you know whether it is an emergency or not. Trust your gut.
 
It is not an emergency, you have done the right thing by phoning for advice, followed the advice to clean and examine him, he is "normal" in every other way, there is an explanation for the swelling, lack of exercise, a couple of days addressing this to get his circulation moving properly and cutting back on his feed should resolve or at least reduce the swelling, if it does not or gets worse then call the vets and ask for an earlier visit.
It would be a good idea to take his temperature each day, if it is at all high get onto the vet but otherwise I would not panic I have seen it in geldings on box rest and also when they have a little mudfever in the area, a few days of care and they usually go back to normal.
 
The OP has spoken to her vet, outlined the problem, been given advice and acted in it. She has done more reading up and discovered that this could be a lack of exercise, so she's going to try that. The horse doesn't appear to be in any discomfort.

I'm quite sure the vet said to keep in touch and they'll come out if they need to, but right now it doesn't sound - in their professional opinion - as if they do need to.

OP, follow your vet's advice, and I think you need to prioritise finding ways to keep him exercised - it sounds as though he's in 24/7 without getting any at present? That's a bigger concern to me and may well solve the sheath problem anyway.
 
is it just his sheath that is swollen OP? or if you press his abdomen do you leave finger marks in it? if you do he has swelling under the skin on his abdomen also and needs attention of a vet to take bloods and do a proper clinical exam. If he does have swelling beneath the skin in his abdomen, i would be wanting the vet out sooner rather than later, and i wouldn't be waiting until the next zone visit day .......
 
My heavy cob had a swollen sheath for a considerable amount of time last winter. He was vet checked thoroughly, blood tested and was in a1 conditin apart from a large sheath. He was at the time on a livery with limited turnout and this was the only reason for the swelling. I have sinced moved him. He is not allowed to stay in at all during the day in the winter. He gets turned out for exercise every, single day regardless and this winter (I am obsessed with looking at his under carriage!) he has remained normal.
I can only suggest, if turrnout is an issue, consider moving yards. I know there are of course many reasons for a swollen sheath but hopefully the chances are it is down to lack of turnout, exercise and long hours stood in the stable. Hope he recovers soon.
 
My gelding had a swollen sheath, vet came out, gave it a good clean and it was pretty much back to normal the next day. OP, your horse might and probably will be fine, I dare say most cases are. But if it was me I would have the vet out or take my horse to them if that was easier.
 
I had a HW cob who was prone to sheath swelling if stabled for a couple of days or if there is snow on the ground and he couldn't be bothered to walk around to forage for the grass - just stood and ate his hay and then stood until it was time to come in. Exercise got the swelling down. Not a steady amble down the lane but a good hack out with some trotting or a good schooling session.
 
Hi all thank you for the kind words from people was debaiting coming back on here, yes i took vets advice went for a hack today someone said to me more trotting will be better dont no if someone on here said BUT i think its working came back hacking & it was half the size :) :) So looks like it is just exercise im so so pleased as it seems this was just the case after all, spoken to yard owner who has allowed me to turn ot in the school when its empty! So happy its going down for him been so worried Thank you everyone
 
myhorses2015 said:
Hi all thank you for the kind words from people was debaiting coming back on here, yes i took vets advice went for a hack today someone said to me more trotting will be better dont no if someone on here said BUT i think its working came back hacking & it was half the size :) :) So looks like it is just exercise im so so pleased as it seems this was just the case after all, spoken to yard owner who has allowed me to turn ot in the school when its empty! So happy its going down for him been so worried Thank you everyone
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That's good news.
 
I have a gelding who suffers from sheath oedema, it is only problematic when he stands in for a few days, your boy does need to see someone to confirm thats all it is, but if going down with exercise it sounds very like it.
 
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