Respiratory Diseases - any experiences?

[Rosie2407]

Hi everyone,

Have had the vet take a look at Rosie because she's been looking a bit skinny. The grass is not brilliant this year and I'm having to feed her which I've never had to do in August before.

Anyway, he says he thinks she has a lower respiratory disease, causing a heave line and her loss of condition. He talked about possible inhalers etc
He said he thinks it's allergy related and wanted to just wait for a few weeks and see how she gets on with the change of weather etc etc but look at this photo I've taken today. She looks terrible.... really worried about her!

Any thoughts? Anyone got any experience of this type of problem? Anyone else used inhalers and did they help. She's never been thin like this before, she's normally an extremely good does which is why I'm extra concerned

 

[Rosie2407]

*bump*

 

[Box_Of_Frogs]

Hi Rosie2407. My horse Sunny has COPD/RAO caused by a pollen allergy. He's fine from about October to early May but from May onwards he gets a very bad reaction to tree (and probably other) pollen. He only started having such a reaction the spring after I moved yards, from high up above the snow line to much lower with leafy lanes, hawthorn hedges etc etc. Of course, I don't know for sure that this was the start of it because it could be just related to his age.

The first season (3 years ago) he was ok-ish but just with a noticeable but intermittent cough. I bought a couple of over-the-counter cough treatments for him that (as with all these things) did no good whatsoever. But October came and the cough went. Then 2 springs ago things got a lot worse. A chesty cough virus went round the yard which Sunny got on top of his already compromised breathing and it hit him badly. By September he'd had a couple of scary episodes when I thought he was going to collapse and die under me. He was endoscoped and the muck in his lungs you wouldn't believe. He was started on oral Ventipulmin to relax his airways and Sputolosin to break up the thick sticky mucus. Didn't help all that much but then October came and the cough went again. This spring, I tried to be better prepared. Vets had said he needed to lose a bit of weight, which I managed over the winter. In April, before the coughing started again, he went onto oral Ventipulmin again, as a preventative. But May came and by June/July the cough was as bad as before. At that point the vets said to try inhaled drugs as they go straight to the lungs rather than having to be eaten first. He is now on 10 puffs of Ventipulmin, followed 10 mins later by 5 puffs of the steroid inhaler - can't remember the name. He has that done twice a day and he's so good about it that I can do it single handed! I had to buy a child's inhaler face mask (Boots do one with teddy bears on the cylinder part!) which fits exactly over one of Sunny's nostrils. Cover the other nostril tight with your left hand and with your right hand hold the inhaler in place and press down the right amount of times on the puffer. Watch to make sure the mist is inhaled because Sunny sometimes holds his breath! He's a lot, lot better on this regime. Didn't want to give oral or injected steroids because of the laminitis risk but the vets assure me the risk with inhaled steroids is almost nil. Every time the vets are out for another horse they have a quick listen to Sunny's chest and he's much improved. I have realised though that I can't drop the Ventipulmin. It has to be the both drugs. The vets have suggested he stays on the steroid inhaler right through the winter so that his lungs are as healthy as possible before the inevitable allergic response starts up again next spring.

This summer allergy to pollens is known as Summer Pasture Disease and, as with any allergy that affects the lungs, it can cause a heave line if not treated and stabilised. I'd listen to your vets and go with the inhaler. DO NOT BUY A HORSE FACE MASK for this!!!! The "equi" face masks are £250+ - an absolute rip off. The child's face mask that fits neatly over one nostril on the horse is £13.50 in Boots. Tell the pharmacist that your vets have told you to buy one for your horse. My local Boots were absolutley fascinated by this and helped hugely by bringing all sorts of sizes out for me to work out which would fit best. If you introduce your horse gently, she'll be fine with the nostril puffing. You should see an immediate improvement but do be aware that if your girl has Summer Pasture Disease, she'll have it every summer from now on. Don't be tempted to buy Nostrilvet either. My vets say the whole concept of it is stupid and it's worse than useless. You can best help your horse by keeping her weight down to a sensible level and keeping her gently exercised even when she's coughing badly. My horse now has compromised lungs and he ALWAYS breathes deeper than normal now. This doesn't usually matter but I have to remember that he has no more lung capacity to draw on if he needs it eg going up steep hills, so I just have to think things through for him. Saying all this, he's now 25 - if your horse is relatively young, you should easily be able to keep on top of this but, as I said, it will be a permanent problem every spring/summer. You need to think about the insurance implications too x

 

[dianeholmes]

My 10yr old ID/Andalucian cross has summer allergies. It was diagnosed last year but I think it has been building up for a little while. He is on inhalers too, a steroid and a broncho dilator plus oral ventapulmin at a high dose. He has not been able to work this summer at all other than the odd gentle lunge. He has also had nose bleeds. It was difficult to get him to co-operate with the spacer as he was als holding his breath and then tossing his head when he needed to breathe.

The inhalers are not working for him and are very expensive to buy. I am not blessed with the best vet I now realise. He has lead me into some significant expenditure which has done nothing for the horse!! One of the inhalers he had him on was £110.90 and it lasted 6 days!!!!!

We have started desensitisation vaccinations but had I realised they were for life once a month I would never have entertained the idea. I work professionally with animals and routinely give vaccinations but the practice will not let me give Winston them myself. This is just too expensive to sustain. The evidence base is very poor for these in horses.

My advice would be to check everything your vet suggests and check the prices of things like inhalers carefully. As someone said to me about a staff group I had years ago, the vet knows the value of everything and the cost of nothing!!!

Winston is also damaged I beleive and will never do Endurance again. I am faced with a very difficult decision at the moment as there is no way I can afford the vet bills (£1012 last month and he is off insurance for this). He will come right in October for a few months but by April he will be breathing badly again and after a whole summer where the inflammation has never settled I fear he may not be as good as he was last winter. The vet has not wanted to use oral steroids as they would interfere with the vaccinations.

He does struggle with hills, can do flat lessons in the winter and can hack for an hour or so, again in the winter.

I think Winston is an exception to the rule on seasonal respiratory disease and has other chronic metabolic problems which have masked this one until he had a severe enough problem for this to be diagnosed. I am sure you will get better service from your vet than I get from mine. It can be managed!!

Good luck!!

 

[Noodlebug]

My horse was see by Rossdales last year with an allergy/cough. It started in May and he coughed when being ridden. He went on an inhaler at £50.00 for ten days. The expert at Rossdale, Celia Marrs took him off the inhaler and told me to keep him fit. She also recommended Ventilate. My vet also recommended Aloe Vera (Holland & Barrett 1ltr £4.99) I also put aloe vera gel on nose before I ride!! This seem to really work. He has been fine all winter and summer but has just started coughing the last couple of week. My Mare has had a virus so hoping it is this. Vet coming Wed to listen to lungs. I had him checked in May and they has never been so good. I also find he yawns alot down certain bridlepaths??

 

[thinlizzy]

Hi if you re my posts i have had a runny nose put down to allergies this last month.I had known horse since he was six month old and always disputed it vet gave me a course of pirotin, got snotty had him swabbed and results were respiritry infection .from swabbing he was on antibiotics and when results were in respitin .I would advise swabbing to confirm what your horse has . Vet recommends no riding with this virus
Forgot to add, a new horse had come onto yard with snotty nose and had a occasional cough obv. livery kept stump and put it down to allergy and we all believed her (

 

[lisab]

Hi my horse has COPD from a lung infection 6 years ago. He was very, very ill and we went down the scoping/tracheal wash/ventipulmin/sputulosin/antibiotics route and nothing worked.

They then put him on a steroid inhaler, which he has been on ever since. He has both sorts of allergies - the dust one that is all year round and the pollen one in the summer. He is absolutely fine most of the time, provided that I manage his routine properly. He has Horsehage and is bedded on Aubiose.

He has 6 puffs of his inhaler every morning. When he gets bad (which - touch wood - isn't very often) I just up his inhaler to 6 puffs twice a day for 10 days then gradually cut it down to normal.

I do everything that I want to with him. We have a jumping lesson once and week and do BS every week. He does XC too and we sometimes go and hire some racehorse gallops and he goes like stink.

He is 14 now and is showing no signs of slowing down.