Pony choked today....Long

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Apalacia01

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Hey all..

Had a bit of a scare today. Got the animal in, tied up a haynet....a few munches later and I hear some coughing...then ...she starts making this awful almost screaming noise through her throat. I thought she was choking as she started to almost collapse...was screaming at OH to come and help but he is deaf....

Anyway...I manage to stuff my arm down her throat and grab a huge wad of non chewed hay (she is a pig) but it continues. By this point my arm is totally scraped up. Ring emergency vet .....have to send a 'page' .....meanwhile OH is shouting that crap is coming out of her nose....argh!!! Anyway, go back over, do all I can and her eyes are even watering....then....splutter....another wad of unchewed hay. She stands there looking slightly confused, gives me a dirty look and tries to eat the grass (removed hay immediately). Vet rings....5 minutes too late! Anyway, wathced her for the next hour and took her for a walk and seems fine.

IT was HORRIBLE! I have never heard an animal make that noise. Totally horrible. Even her little eyes were watering.

Anyway...she is alive...and well....but that was really a horrible day. I am so happy I didn't totally freak!
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had one with choke about a month ago her owner had fed her some calm and condition (i think) she took a big mouthful swallowed and got it stuck half way down her throat. called vet when she came out said it was so compated nothing she could do as if tried to tube it could go through osophegous (really bad sp) gave a cocktail of drugs then came back next day and after it was loosedned up tubed it. had a very sore pony for a few days!!! All fine now though. Glad all is good for yours now.
 
Oh dear. I'm guessing that this is your first experience of choke? Generally you don't shove your hand down their throat and you certainly don't shout around them. I know it would have been a shock, it always is the first time, but if it happens again do try to remain calm and quiet, then firmly but gently stroke her oesophagus downwards.

Gunk will likely come out of her nose/mouth; don't let that scare you; they can still breath. Generally choke clears within 10 minutes or so, if it doesn't then you may need to call the vet for some muscle relaxants.

Pleased it cleared without any further intervention, as is normal.
 
Yup -first choke scare. She was fine for 10 seconds...choking for a few...then fine...it was very strange. The vet said the same - just rub down oesophogus - I think I did get a large chunk of it out but will know for next time! I'm not a big screamer- more of a shouter at boyfriend - but she took it all very well - well as you would if you had a hand shoved down your throat when you were trying to clear it!

xcalicox - what is a tie down?

Yup, it cleared within about 5 - just was just a shock as have never seen a proper one before. Always chop carrots properly etc and this was just hay. Need to give her some chewing lessons I think!
 
Thought this might be an opportune moment to say that horses don't breathe through their mouths so don't usually expire from a choke (although you may get naso-gastric reflux i.e. ick coming from the nose).
Hope your pony recovers. I've always found apples in hard feed esp cubes, can be liable to make them choke.
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Choke is horrible - my mare is very prone to it. Luckily my vet is great and now we've taken loads of measures to stop it she hasn't had it for a while (touch wood). The first time I will admit to freaking out
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but after a while I learnt how to deal with it and she only needed tubing twice.
 
Its so scary isnt it!!! A similar thing happened to my daughters pony but he choked on a carrot, being small he put his head up over the stable door and I gave him a small carrot, it went straight down his throat and he started staggering around the stable and then just collapsed, I just screamed and ran to get the vet as we have an equine vets on the same site as our stables and when we got back to him he was fine, I think by collapsing and going into semi conciousness it must have relaxed his throat and it went down, I had to keep an eye on him for the rest of the day. I was very worried as my dog died the year before he choked on a peice of chicken and died in front of me in minutes, you seemed very brave and on the ball to put your hand down your horses throat, well done!!!
 
Sadly as I thought it wasn't the right thing to do...just a spur of the moment thing, and she was such a good girl not to crunch on me!! Just a little bleed across wrist and skinned my fingers!

Shilsadair - thats good...wish I had known that! Just took me by surprise, and she cleared up very quickly! Bloody hay - its a menace!!
 
Just an afterthought here; you might want to soak her hay for a couple of days as when they have choke, the oesophagus can sometimes become scarred and inflamed. Keep her on mushy feed for a couple of days and hopefully she won't have another bout.

You did the best you could and although it's scary, it's another experience for you; so it isn't all bad.
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My old yard used to have problems with horses choking on haylage I know it happend to 3 of them. Its just so scary and I am such a flapper too, so rubbish in situations like that and with choking you dont have any time to waste.

Glad your horse is ok tho...
 
It's late, so I can't remember if anyone mentioned this - but your girl will have a slightly swollen gullet (oesophagus) from this, maybe with a few scratches in it, so will be more prone to choke again for the next few days.
Dampening hay and feeding off the floor may be wise for at least a couple of days (or rationing if she's a piglet)
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She's out 24 hours -- so if she is dead tomorrow I am b**gered!Really, didn't even think about that. Damn. Hope she is ok...you have me worrying now. Fed her from the ground (floor is for inside only isn't it
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) and she was ok....but will go up and check her after my day in the library tomorrow...unless I get a 'dead pony' phone call in the morning!
Thanks for advice and other people's experiences!
 
[ QUOTE ]
She's out 24 hours -- so if she is dead tomorrow I am b**gered!Really, didn't even think about that. Damn. Hope she is ok...you have me worrying now. Fed her from the ground (floor is for inside only isn't it
smile.gif
) and she was ok....but will go up and check her after my day in the library tomorrow...unless I get a 'dead pony' phone call in the morning!
Thanks for advice and other people's experiences!

[/ QUOTE ]

If she's out eating grass (and hay from the ground) you should be ok. Don't worry. Mostly when they choke, they clear themselves anyway...so don't risk arm amputation
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LOL!! Shilasdair is right; don't worry about it. Choke is generally a fairly trivial thing and usually clears without any help whatsoever.
 
Thats what OH Said actually - how many times must this have happened when she was on own in stable or out in the field! Will keep you posted...

Ah, I don't need my left arm - never did me any good anyway!
 
My old pony once did something similar with a carrot. Pinched it off me before I had chance to do anything with him. And they say horses can't be sick. Well I know that can't but......... he ate the carrot. Then started coughing loads and loads, pawing the ground and eyes rolling. then making this horrible noise and all his body contracted - you could see it - and he kept doing it and doing it. Rang the vet. Pony collapsed then got up and this must have dislodged it as I swear the next thing he opened his mouth and everything just came back out, carrot, loads of froth etc etc. When the vet came he said it is very very rare that a horse will choke to death. But he advised that again as others have said he will be sore for a few days and give him soft food etc etc. He never did it again and lived until the age of 40.
 
This happened to my mare a couple of weeks ago, it is very scary but very common, my mare also sorted herself out in no time at all. She also lives out, and my first thoughts were how many times must this have happened before.
 
Our old companion had choke, we think she ate her hay too quickly. My friend said it was horribly, she was moving backwards and pawing at her throat and lots of gunk came out of her nose. But she has never had it again, thank go and touch wood.
 
my pony had choke last summer, i gave him his dinner (a handful of happy dieter) and the next thing i know he's collapsed and making this sickening groaning noise, i've never heard such a horrible noise before. i thought he was dieing, having a heartattack or something i burst into tears and called the vet. by the time the vet arrived alfie was back to his normal self but he gave him some anti inflammatories and said to only feed him wet food for a few days as his oesophagus may be sore.

its not something i would ever want to see again, but i suppose i would know what was happening and would know what to do.
 
Choke is so scary. My horse had it just a week after I had bought him. I thought he was going to die!
I had read about the condition so I knew to stroke under the neck but the gunge coming down his nose really scared me!
I also wasn't prepared for how quick they recover - I was still in shock with a heart-rate of about 200 while Jerry was quietly grazing normally 10 mins after it had happened.
I will just add that he hasn't had it again since that one incident last summer.
 
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