Strangles!!

[GrassChop]

I posted in the thread about lethargic horses yesterday as my mare seemed so off. My friend on the yard has checked her horse for strangles this morning as he had been the same and he's got a high temp and swollen glands.

I'm so stressed. I've never dealt with this before. My mare is 19 and lives with my other who is 3.

What should I expect? What do I check to know for sure, should I just get the vet? It's highly likely she has it as horses in the yard down the road got it too.

 

[Lucky Snowball]

You should isolate any horses you suspect and use separate equipment, handlers must wash well etc, think covid!!

 

[dorsetladette]

Get the vet to check it will either confirm your suspicions or put your mind at rest.

In the meantime get your bio-security up together. as above think covid (or foot and mouth.) boot wash and hand wash on and off the yard keep everything separate as best you can.

hopefully your horse is just a bit off due to the weather changing.

 

[GrassChop]

Get the vet to check it will either confirm your suspicions or put your mind at rest.

In the meantime get your bio-security up together. as above think covid (or foot and mouth.) boot wash and hand wash on and off the yard keep everything separate as best you can.

hopefully your horse is just a bit off due to the weather changing.

Thank you. Everything is separate anyway with my things but will take all precautions.

Will they be okay?

 

[dorsetladette]

Will they be okay?

I think you need to ask a vet that question.

It sounds like yours are quite mild. I have not had first hand experience (since I was a young teen)to be able to give you any more advise apart from keep taking precautions.

Take care!!

 

[khalswitz]

I experienced a big outbreak at a large yard once. We managed to isolate the infection to one stable block, and horses in the same fields were kept isolated from others. We changed clothes between groups of horses, washed everything, and went from 'clean' to 'dirty' during the day and not back and forth. I didn't visit any other yards during that period.

My horse was quite sick with it, but he was also on box rest for a traumatic injury so not as his best anyway. One other horse ended up with an inflamed area where the penicillin was being injected. Otherwise everyone was a bit snotty and under the weather but ok. We did avoid the foal and lactating mother getting it but just leaving them turned out and not bringing them near anyone else.

Honestly, it's way more common than you think, and most horses do not get complications. Just work with your vet and get strict on biosecurity.

 

[Goldenstar]

Take your horse’s temperature twice a day .
It will rise if she catches it .
As the others have said isolate as best you can .
The Yard owner should take charge of all that .
Keep your self to your self
Strangles is extremely contagious
Even a wheel barrow is a potential infection carrier

 

[SEL]

And warn your vet if they come out that it's likely strangles. One of our liveries didn't and because she used a different practice and just asked for bloods the poor vet had to go home rather than her next call.

Not every horse gets it and not to the same extent. The hygiene was awful when we had an outbreak and despite my horses being in a well separated paddock my mare (who was 7) showed sky high antibodies, but her 11 yo companion had nothing - he was imported from Belgium and I think it's pretty common over there. The mare was negative on guttural pouch wash and I think that's pretty common too.

Fingers crossed for you

 

[GrassChop]

And warn your vet if they come out that it's likely strangles. One of our liveries didn't and because she used a different practice and just asked for bloods the poor vet had to go home rather than her next call.

Not every horse gets it and not to the same extent. The hygiene was awful when we had an outbreak and despite my horses being in a well separated paddock my mare (who was 7) showed sky high antibodies, but her 11 yo companion had nothing - he was imported from Belgium and I think it's pretty common over there. The mare was negative on guttural pouch wash and I think that's pretty common too.

Fingers crossed for you

Thank you.
I'm so worried. We are all on lockdown now. The vet has advised to just let them ride it out but they can give painkillers or a paste to help bring temperature down if needed or if they get particularly unwell or uncomfortable.
Just really hoping it's not too awful for them. Feels very weird to think that we won't be able to do anything until next year now!

 

[scats]

I’ve experienced strangles. I had a gelding who was very poorly with it back in 2007. He made a full recovery.

 

[SEL]

Thank you.
I'm so worried. We are all on lockdown now. The vet has advised to just let them ride it out but they can give painkillers or a paste to help bring temperature down if needed or if they get particularly unwell or uncomfortable.
Just really hoping it's not too awful for them. Feels very weird to think that we won't be able to do anything until next year now!

I think out of 40 horses only 4 got the full blown symptoms. Many showed antibodies on blood tests but were otherwise OK - just their immune system doing what it should. The ones with symptoms were all young and 3 had travelled together from the dealer (the source.....)

 

[meleeka]

Mine was given, I think antibiotics and bute when he got a high temperature (I can't remember exactly as it was years ago). He didn't actually get proper Strangles in the end, but he felt poorly for a day or so. The horse next door who he caught off did have proper Strangles. I nursed her through it too (as her owner was useless!) and managed to not give it to my other ponies. I wore disposable gloves every time I went near her and overalls, and which lived in a nearby shed away from my ponies. I also had a foot bath and of course I washed my hands each time I went from one to the other.

 

[GrassChop]

Temperatures checked last night. Youngster was 33.7 and mare was 35.5 but she had very slightly swollen glands and didn't like me touching the area to check. Youngster seems fine at the moment!

 

[Jambarissa]

I'm on a 50 horse diy yard with no real management. We've had strangles 3 times, it went round the yard each time and I'd say half the horses had some level of illness and 3 (younger ones) had it quite bad but recovered.

I guess I'm saying don't worry too much, if it's strangles you can deal with it. Start isolating immediately and get the vet to confirm.

 

[lynz88]

Been there. As others, hygiene hygiene hygiene. Keep everything separate, multiple pairs of clothes/boots/shoes to change in and out of and keep them all separate. I bagged all my stuff immediately and brought home and washed. It was absolutely disgusting when the absesses popped but horses that did catch it made full recovery.

 

[santas_spotty_pony]

Definitely get Vet involved and then disinfect everything and keep the ones with it separate if they have got it. I’ve been on a yard that had it many years ago and most were fine but it was the ones with underlying health conditions that didn’t make it but it sounds like you have caught it early if they have got it.

 

[sunnyone]

Make sure you do not go anywhere near young stock, their immune systems will not be fully resistant and can develop guttural pouch complications leading to death.

 

[Kaylum]

We had one come in on a yard many years ago. The vets then didn't know how to treat them or what they were dealing with. He nearly died. He was about 4 years old from what i can remember. This must have been 30 years ago now. But luckily another more experienced vet stepped in and saved him. He was quarantined and made a full recovery to go onto be a police horse. All the others on the yard had flu like symptoms.

 

[GrassChop]

Okay so vet said I probably did their temps wrong as they were too low. Taken again last night, youngster was 37.8 and mare was 37.3 so that sounds a bit more normal. He's still fine and her glands are still only slightly swollen.
Vet doesn't want to come and test.

 

[GrassChop]

Make sure you do not go anywhere near young stock, their immune systems will not be fully resistant and can develop guttural pouch complications leading to death.

When you say youngstock, would this include my 3yo? He lives with my mare but he seems completely fine at the moment. He was born on the forest where it's rife so perhaps has some sort of immunity.

 

[Jambarissa]

The ones that got properly ill on my yard were all under 5. But still all recovered fine.

I do think immunity is widespread, one of mine had 2 strangles cases on either side of her and not a flicker of illness. She lived in a forest herd until she was 3.

Hope you see an improvement soon.

 

[sunnyone]

When you say youngstock, would this include my 3yo? He lives with my mare but he seems completely fine at the moment. He was born on the forest where it's rife so perhaps has some sort of immunity.

Yes it is rife on the forest, that's how mine caught it. I would think by 3 they have had had some exposure so he should be OK but I'm not a vet!

We bought 4 NF weanlings at the Beaulieu Road auction, brought them home and isolated them for a good 2 weeks. 1 showed signs and was treated. Then our 2 ridden horses who were still on our field up the road came home for shoeing, they were on site for maybe 2 hours and did not have any contact with the ponies, but a few days later the broodmare and 18 month old in the horses' field had strangles! Mare recovered quickly, 18 month old died over the millenium holiday as the vet said he hadn't built up a sufficient immune system. Still heartbreaking.

 

[GrassChop]

The ones that got properly ill on my yard were all under 5. But still all recovered fine.

I do think immunity is widespread, one of mine had 2 strangles cases on either side of her and not a flicker of illness. She lived in a forest herd until she was 3.

Hope you see an improvement soon.

Thank you!

 

[EventingMum]

Go overboard with hygiene and isolation procedures - there are good online advice sources such as Strangles Awareness Week on Facebook which includes operating a traffic light system where horses are in red, amber and green groups according to symptoms and exposure. Any horse that that has had any possible exposure will need guttural pouch washed even if they are symptom free to prevent possible further spreading of it as not all horses show the classic symptoms. Also bear in mind how it can be spread via things like yard cats etc.

 

[SEL]

When you say youngstock, would this include my 3yo? He lives with my mare but he seems completely fine at the moment. He was born on the forest where it's rife so perhaps has some sort of immunity.

My vets reckoned they build up a very good immunity if they are exposed young and don't die - so fingers crossed.