Infection - long term

S

springer1021

Well-Known Member
Joined
25 July 2010
Messages
492
Visit site
In mid Feb this year one of my girls coughed up some horrible thick yellow gunk.

Got the vet out and he gave her a 10 day course of Trimediazine Plain but after the course had finished she was still coughing and had yellow snot so he prescribed another 10 day course of Trim Plain along with Ventipulmin. She was no better after that so she was endoscoped which confirmed there was still infection present but also an allergy so she was given a course of Karadox and he suggested an inhaler.

I had a lesson on the Friday before last and she had yellow snot so she then had a 5 day course of Noridine (IV injection) she finished that course of antibiotics on Wednesday but again on Friday there was some yellow snot in her nose net.

The cough is a lot better it is now only now and then, she coughed about 3 times on the ride today ad only produces yellow snot when she is being worked hard.

What does anyone suggest?
 
Difficult, I'd be concerned there's till infection there-particularly as Norodine is the same antibiotic as TMPS so likely resistance is present. She mgiht ned a culture which would need sent away, i'd be ringing the vet and asking what their next plan of action is.
 
On one hand id be concerned at the color, on the other she is shifting it! It takes a lot of hard work for horses to shift icky stuff from the back of their lungs, when my mare had low grade pneumonia the vet prescribed sputolosin and regular exercise, sputolosin to help break up the icky stuff so it was easier for her to shift and exercise to help build her lungs up, she would cough and I'd work her through it because it was her body's way of helping to clear the nasty stuff out of her system, definitely check with your vet but the above worked for me :) good luck and hope she is fighting fit soon.
Also, she had a similar infection when she was younger, since then she has always had to have the odd cough to kind of clear her pipes out when working (still does this years on) your mare may be the same, but don't worry, my mares lungs and heart are heathy and strong, it didnt affect them or her performancein the slightest.
 
Just a side my first horse kept getting recurrent airway infections and was on weeks of antibiotics the last time I gave him pink powder and echinacea to support his gut and immune system and he never got one again
 
I would do as others suggest, but think about turning her out for six weeks to make a natural recovery, if stabled, I would make sure she is fed from the ground not a haynet to allow natural drainage.
 
I'm going to go and see vet tomorrow and have a chat. In herself she is fine, not off colour but again this morning there was some horrible yellow slimy gunk in her nose net although I think this was coughed up.

She's turned out 24/7 at the moment - which she isn't happy about as she likes her home comforts:D.

Would she need to be scoped again to get a culture or can I just give them a sample of what she brings up?
 
I think these sorts of issues have multiple and complex causes. What I would say that in 15 years of owning my own horses we have never had a case of colic or this type of cough or other severe respiratory illness. We do use a couple of products if horses show initial signs but apart from that prevention is the mantra. Nutrition is the first element and for me often overlooked. We are what we eat and so are horses. Give the horse the ability to fight its own infections. Are the teeth in order? If it can't chew its food properly it doesn't matter what you feed it. Have you had a worm analysis done recently (equally has the horse ever had an infestation because these can cause irreparable damage to the gut/intestines). Sort the worms out if there is a problem of course. We provide all our horses with a top quality herb/plant/mineral supplement to ensure they get everything they need and then of course good nutrition on top of that according to horse/workload etc. Just as for humans being fit and exercising regularly is excellent for health. This is not a quick fix of course but should there be anything in your current regime that might not be optimal you should start to see results in 3 months. SOMETIMES hay can be a cause of coughs so changing your hay might be worth a punt (just borrow a load from a friend for a week and see if it makes any difference) and of course chronic infection probably needs some form of drug intervention in order to break the cycle. As I said though, prevention is the mantra.
 
GoodyGoody said:
I think these sorts of issues have multiple and complex causes. What I would say that in 15 years of owning my own horses we have never had a case of colic or this type of cough or other severe respiratory illness. We do use a couple of products if horses show initial signs but apart from that prevention is the mantra. Nutrition is the first element and for me often overlooked. We are what we eat and so are horses. Give the horse the ability to fight its own infections. Are the teeth in order? If it can't chew its food properly it doesn't matter what you feed it. Have you had a worm analysis done recently (equally has the horse ever had an infestation because these can cause irreparable damage to the gut/intestines). Sort the worms out if there is a problem of course. We provide all our horses with a top quality herb/plant/mineral supplement to ensure they get everything they need and then of course good nutrition on top of that according to horse/workload etc. Just as for humans being fit and exercising regularly is excellent for health. This is not a quick fix of course but should there be anything in your current regime that might not be optimal you should start to see results in 3 months. SOMETIMES hay can be a cause of coughs so changing your hay might be worth a punt (just borrow a load from a friend for a week and see if it makes any difference) and of course chronic infection probably needs some form of drug intervention in order to break the cycle. As I said though, prevention is the mantra.
Click to expand...

Yep, teeth done every year as are worm counts but the when the vet came out in Feb he said he was a secondary infection caused by the hay but she has no hay since only haylage, she is turned out 24/7 on good grass and wont eat any hard feed as she is too stuffed from the grass:D
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top