Please help!! Does any of this sound familiar?

S

Switchthehorse

Well-Known Member
Joined
5 June 2009
Messages
516
Location
Nottingham
darcyandme.wordpress.com
This could be a long post, but my horse is not very well and everyone is flummoxed!!? I just wondered if anyone had anything vaguely similar to this?

In summary:

2 days of generally being a bit 'off' lethargic etc - no real signs of being poorly just not her usual self.

Day Three - breathing rate up 25bpm resting 45-50bpm after 5 mins in hand walking. Still fine in herself. Vet comes out, full exam, nothing at all wrong, just 'like looking at a very fit and healthy horse who is breathing a bit too fast'. Temp etc all normal. Take bloods they come back clear. No wheezing etc.

Days 4 and 5 - on bute in case breathing pain related (eg muscular round ribs) no improvement, otherwise happy horse.

Day 6 - severe gassy colic (with hardly any symptoms) no increased heart rate, no temperature, just slightly irritable, breathing still up - vet out again - treated but no improvement after 4 hours so vet back out talk about referall but actually no real signs of colic apart from discomfort and being 'off colour', all vital signs normal. water pumped into tummy in case higher up impaction. hourly checks overnight and improves slightly, on exam (and this could perhaps be important) vet finds ovaries both size of tennis balls and very sore to touch

Day 7 - breathing still off, still presenting as normal but clearly gassy colicking slightly so vet out again, more painkillers, left to monitor

Day 8 - breathing better, more perky, definitely recovered from colic

Day 9 - back to normal self, turnout for 15 mins, hoon round field etc. All fine, but after 5 mins in hand walking breathing up to 45bpm

Now this is a normally fit and well horse who works 6 days a week and competes so pretty fit, although she has a high 'pain threshold' so doesnt often present until very in pain. Looking at her yesterday as she cavorted around the yard in hand you wouldn't know there is anything wrong, except for the breathing that is like she has done a xc course. We are waiting for hormone blood levels to investigate if ovaries are tumourous. Could this impact breathing/cause colic?? Is colic unrelated and just bad luck?? vet baffled, yard manager baffled, me (mum) baffled and very worried!!

Has anyone experienced anything like this before? Vet convinced breathing is NOT an allergy. And horse has no real medical probs except for one incident of colic circa 2 mths a go.

sorry its so long and thanks in advance
 
I cant offer and advice, but just hope she gets better soon. We have had a virus of some sort on our yard, and the vets have seen it on other yards in the surrounding areas (Leicestershire), horses have presented in a variety of different ways, some just feeling off, and others requiring box rest and bute. Its been mainly general lethargy and snotty nose that we have seen on our yard, with some muscular discomfort in some too... most seem to have cleared up after the virus has run its course and have come back to normal, others have taken a little longer to get better.

Best of luck! its horrible not knowing what it is!
 
Caveating this by saying I am not a vet!. So the really good news it that the bloods were clear, which would look to rule out a virus - was the liver tested as well as a poorly horse can then have an underperforming liver as a secondary result. Liver is pretty good at recovering but it does mean taking off high protein till the liver can function properly. Did the vet rule out the early stages of COPD (sorry I know this is the old fashioned name! can't remember the new one!). Mine, years ago, presented the same signs as your mare but the vet caught it in the very early stages. What is your mare fed on, has there been a hay or haylage change recently?
 
Just worth a mention though I might be way off beam, did you watch that documentary last week when they dissected a horse? The size of the lungs astonished me, they went right the way along the ribcage. I wonder if it's possible that the enlarged ovaries could be close to the edge of the lungs?
 
How strange...i hope you get to the bottom of this...
My mare had rapid breathing and mild colic signs 2 weeks ago...vet called out on a Sunday!
I got her in from the field and she was sort of spaced out (evn the vet put it like that!)...but seemed fine...put her in stable and she suddenly stood there fast breathing - like shewas hyperventilating - not wanting food or drink...she did do a poo though. Her nostrils were expanded and her belly was hardly keeping up with her breathing, only once did she look at hertummy and only once did she kick at her tummy half heartedly but just stood in her stable.
Vet came out and did an internal and found nothing untoward but dont think he went as far as ovaries but cleared out everything else! all normal...her breathing had calmed by now but she was still not right...hearbeat fine...no sweating. She had anti-spasmodic and painkiller and we waited to see her recover. The vet was slightly concerned that she didnt seem to recover very quickly but she then perked up and was looking around for food!
She has never colicked with me before (in 15 years) so it as rather unusual - no change to feed or routine.
She is very quiet at the moment and I am going to get her blood tested (also considering if she is the first stages of Cushings) and I htink after reading your experience I might get her ovaries checked as well...it does sound rather similar. She is a retired ex-racehorse aged 23...so doesnt do anything physical anyway anymore. I think her rapid breathing was a sign of distress but from what and why I dont know.
I hope you have some luck...it sounds kinda similar and if I find anything out I will let you know..and keep us posted on your situation. It really helps to build up a knowledge of these strange occurrences...there is so much we dont really understand!
 
Thanks all for the thoughts and wishes so far!! It is very frustrating not knowing - compounded by the fact i am supposed to be going on holiday tomorrow and don't want to leave her!

The liver test was absolutely normal, all bloods were fine, absolutely NOTHING has changed in terms of food, hay, routine etc. Every test that has come back has been 'more than fit and healthy horse'. The good news is the last couple of days aside from the breathing she is definitely back to normal in every other way.

And how strange pitpony sounds very similar - only my mare throughout the colic wanted to eat and was acting pretty much normal throughout!?

The vet has ruled out allergies and anything like COPD as no sounds on her chest, no coughing, no nasal discharge etc - nothing. Its like there is no reason for her to be breathing like she is. Sometimes its shallow and sometimes more 'belly' breathing and then approx every 3 mins she takes a huge breath.

Because we have never really checked her ovaries before we dont know if they have always been that size - which is why we are waiting on hormone tests. It might be they have always been that size but agree with the comment about something restricting the lungs, that is what it seems like is happening, her belly seems a bit swollen compared to normal and it is like she physically has to work to take bigger breaths only the effort is more physical like it is to do with 'room' as opposed to a wheeze or actually struggling to breathe.

I was so hoping someone might say 'i had that and it was this' :) sounds like there are some similarities - will definitely keep you updated re bloods and what progress is made. She definitely doesnt feel poorly, we put her out for an hour this morning for the first time and just heard back that the yard cant catch her :)

My plan is when i get back from hols to probably refer her for a full mot scope/xray/ultrasound etc as it seems to be the only thing i can do!?


AAAARRRGGGHHHH so frustrated and worried!!
 
Going out on a limb here - but we're right in the middle of harvest at the mo. Is her turnout anywhere near crops which might have recently been harvested? Any harvest is going to produce a certain amount of dust particles etc. which might not be particularly noticeable, but if the horse is subject to plenty of them, then perhaps it could potentially affect the breathing? Just an obscure thought...
 
If both ovaries are really swollen, it's unlikely, though not impossible, to be a tumour as they almost always occur on one ovary only. My horse suffered from a hormonal problem for years which caused her ovaries to be swollen all the time, and she came into season all year round. I never got a definite diagnosis, but my theory was that she was particularly sensitive to plant oestrogens (also known as phyto-oestrogens if you want to Google it) and this affected her ovaries. She seemed to have a particular problem with soya (try finding a feed without that in it!), but was also affected by linseed, rapeseed and multiple other things - in the end it got so bad that she couldn't even go out in her field as she was being affected by something growing in it which we never identified. Eventually I had no option but to have her ovaries removed, and the subsequent vet's report noted that the increased size of her ovaries would have caused her significant pain - although my horse never had colic, it might be enough to cause the symptoms your horse has been showing if something similar is going on. Although your horse's routine has not noticeably changed, maybe something that you are not aware of has changed? I had a problem when the one feed that I could give my mare changed its formulation and suddenly started containing soya - very helpful!

The vets were pretty dismissive of my theory, but I know that plant oestrogens have been shown to cause all sorts of problems in other animals, apparently female sheep show infertility if you graze them on red clover, and fish living downstream of a sugar beet processing plant changed sex!!!!

Anyway, hope this is useful information and good luck.
 
My old girl used to suffer from ovulation pain and to anyone who didn't know it, it looked exactly like spasmodic colic. On one occasion she even went and lay down flat in the field, so she must have been bad as she normally only lies down in her stable. Pain certainly makes me breathe heavily, and us girls know how bad period pains can be.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top