Just been diagnosed with Lymphangitis

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shmoo

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Had to keep my old girl in due to snow, I never wanted to but all pipes frozen so no water in field, and she's too old to withstand a blizzard. Her leg came up yeserday (suspected Lymphangitis now comfirmed)- Vet came this morning - 2 bute & antibiotics for a week. Walking round an hour twice a day, try to get her back out as soon as possible but not looking good until the weekend when the big thaw happens round here.

Any hints / tips or general whowhow? Found an old forum mentioning alfalfa as a catalyst.

Cried all last night because I thought she was going to die. Horses are hard on the emotions. Love her too much. Still weepy - silly eh.
 
Cleavers is suppose to be good in supporting the lymph glands. I use it when my girl has swellings and it takes them down a treat. You can buy big bags on naturalhorsesupplies.co.uk Really amazing stuff. Alternatively go looking for it. Its the sticky plant. Hope your horse feels better soon. Its such a worry with them isnt it.
 
Oh dear, good vibes to you both. Not sure i can be much help though im afraid. I remember one my friends horses had this quite badly a couple of years ago after being in due to the snow, she pulled through in the end, though it was quite a long process i'm afraid. The horse did have to go and stay at the vets for a week or so-not entirely sure what the treatment was though. I remember her doing a lot of cold hosing and walking her out.
 
Lymphangitis is miserable, but totally manageable, so no need to cry. Your girly will be fine.

Important thing to remember is that once she's had it once she'll be prone, so standing in will generally trigger another attack.

Your vet's advice is perfect. Movement is the best thing for it - is there a reason you aren't turning out in the snow? My lot and all my liveries are out as normal.

Clivers is fab, but introduce it into her diet and use all the time, rather than just using it when she has an attack. It's like using garlic for sweet itch, best used constantly.

Also, learn the symptoms so you can help her quickly if it flares up again. The key symptom of Lymphangitis is a pitting oedema - if you press the swelling with your thumb you'll leave an indentation.

Most importantly, give her a cuddle!
 
She's an ex polo pony - retired last year and has an old stifle injury so favours the leg that came up, but shes never lame. She isn't used to being in at all - they winter out and are hard as nails those polo ponies. Only brought in intially to get over mud fever as they (I have two) insisted on loitering in the wet part of the field. Everyone else keeps theirs in at my yard. I just sort of followed - think thats why i'm still so sad as I did this to her. We have planned to move yards in a couple of weeks, to flatter higher fields with big shelters so they could live out all year.
Would it hurt her to turn out in the daytime with her condition - or help? I don't want her to stand around the gate being dejected - but I need her to keep moving. Big hugs - yes. Cleaver or clivers sound great. Poor girl will end up having a bucket of supplements & oils and one pony nut as a garnish the way we're going. X.
 
Mine had lymphangitis in November brought on by an injury... Similar treatment to yours and recovered in just over a week, but she was a fit 10yo. Kept mine out 24/7 (she prefers it) but as she's a complete slug in the field, we still did the walking out! Will have to watch it like a hawk if/when she's stabled from now on though as even out, if she has a lazy day (i.e. more than normal!), it's fractionally up.
 
Mine is prone to Lymphangitis, but now have mud fever, arrhhh. I was managing both conditions by leaving in but riding once a day, then cleaning, drying and bandaging over night. But with no real exercise over the last few days. I now have a horse with both conditions and the swelling had heated up and opened the mud fever. Got vet coming this afternoon to help and also advise with 2 conditions that require the opposite treatment. Arrhhhh
 
One of our had a bad attack 4-5 years ago following and injury, she is fed clivers, if we stop it we notice a difference in her legs filling. If she has to be in, which atm she is, we have a few pairs of equi stable chaps that we put on her at night, keep them washed and as clean as possible, then she gets walked twice during the day. It can re occur she has had one bad attack since, but is manageable with a little thought.

Hope yours recovers soon
 
MY old girl was rather prone to it in her already scarred and thickened hind leg (never did find the cuts that let it in each time). I found that homeopathic apis mel at 30c did a fantastic job - she could have penicillin and broad spectrum antibiotics but not diuretics and the antiinflammatories didn't work at all due to the drugs she was already on for another condition. Without the apis mel I would have been in real trouble. Dose at least 3 times per day, don't touch the tablets yourself and don't feed in conjunction with garlic or mint. Once you can get them walking the natural pump in the lymph system will do the business and sort things out. Take it seriously though as a bad dose is excrutiating for the horse. My poor old girl couldn't even spread her legs properly to have a wee :( and had to spend several days in the (luckily empty) stable nearest the tap where I'd been cold hosing the leg as she couldn't stagger back to her own stable.
 
My girl (15) had it really badly 3 years ago, all the way up through her legs, into her hindquarters - I never did find the cut/route it got in - she was in so much discomfort to even just shift her weight from leg to leg. She had a course of danilon & anti-biotics, lots of walking, and cold hosing. She is still prone to filled legs if kept in for a few days, generally I manage it by keeping her turned out as much as poss, bandaging/wraps at night when stabled, and completely removed cereal from her diet. Good luck, she will be fine I'm sure, it's just not nice at the time.
 
hi my boys got it to had vet out friday,going to get more bute and antibiotics as course finishes wed and although lots better still warm been using ice cube bags banaged over tea towels helps quite a bit but fiddley need eight hands and still horse ha ha thanks guys re cleavers
 
carthorse said:
Make sure hard feed is reduced. I give mine a bran mash with epsom salts added and bandage legs over plenty of gamgee. Walking out as much as possible and massage
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Very good advice. My 7 year old got this out of the blue, and I found a tiny patch of mud fever, which had given her a severe reaction. It took about two and a half weeks of care as mentioned, and now no more trouble (touch wood!!)
 
hi everyone
i dont want to get in to a debate and im not saying what people are doing is wrong, im just purely intrigued by what different people are being advised from vets for treatment for L'.

I was led to beleive that cold hosing is not recommended as its slows circulation and with L' you want to increase circulation.

again im not saying cold hosing is wrong, - its just contrary to what I have been told previously and im interested in what others have applied and whah has/hasnt worked in the long term management of L'.

thanks in advance x
 
My TB who is now 19 had a serious bout of this on his near hind about 6 years ago. My vet was brilliant, came out every day for a week giving him 3 injections (painkiller, antibiotic and anti–inflammatory). It was so bad that he had a serum like substance oozing from his leg which had to be cleaned off every day. Up until then he was always stabled at night but my vet recommended he stay out 24/7 which he has done since. Even in the snow! He has thrived ever since. Stick with it and good luck your horse will get better.
 
Hi, so... Saffs is on 2 antibiotics at night, one bute in the morning and one at night. Simon (our wonderful vet) has changed her feed - rearranged the quantities not the actual feedstuffs. 2 Chaff + 2 Alphabeet + 1 Calm & Condition + down to half a scoop of her 16 plus mix. Cutting down the hard, increasing the bulkers. Oils and garlic as before. So I was overfeeding the cereals !

I know what Fatpiggy means about having a wee. Saffs nearly fell last night when she tried - thats the bit that convinced me she was going to die.
I've ordered some cleavers, and have set my daughter on a mission to collect and dry bag fulls in the spring.

Our YO bandaged her legs for me last night as I was worried about doing it wrong and that helped immensley as well. By tonight she's moving freely, has rolled and is so much perkier in herself its hard to believe.

I'm now going to have a well earned G&T and a good nights sleep!

Vets, gotta love em...
 
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