Talk to me about strangles

[Breagha]

My horse tested positive on a strangles test with 0.5 (or something like that). When speaking to the vet I was seriously confused as I havent had to deal with this before. She was almost saying she has it but she doesnt have it in another sentence.

She is booked in for the gutteral pouch wash/swab tomorrow. Vet never gave me any instructions on how to deal with things in the field etc but we have separated all 3 horses as my other horse came back negative - go figure!

Obviously, I am not going near any other horses until I have changed/washed and cleaned everything within an inch of its life.

anyone else had to deal with this?

the only reason I got the test was because I am moving to a yard again.

Thanks, Bx

 

[Kingfisher95]

Horses which have had strangles in the past (either obviously or without showing clinical signs) can become persistantly infected, which may be what your vet is saying. Generally the site of persistence is the gutteral pouch so may need antibiotics administered directly there. Wise to separate and wash everything.

 

[Breagha]

Does it mean that she is contagious at this stage? I tried google for more information but it always comes up with the worlds worse case and then I panic. She has probably had it for a while as I got her bloods taken on the 25th April for a separate reason (horse lethargic) and her WCC and inflammatory markers were raised and then strangles test last Wed.

 

[claireandnadia]

Mine came up 0.5 too a couple of years back and vet originally said this was not a positive or a negative.
The guttural pouch washing showed us a much bigger issue. 2 months of daily vets visits and she was clean.

Completely quarantine from any other horses and keep people handling your horse to an absolute minimum.
Get some virkon and keep everything clean and use this as a foot dip too.

Good luck!!

 

[jojo5]

Can't remember how the readings work in terms of seriousness, sorry, but just to say that when moving my boy a few years ago we had to have a strangles test for the new yard. It came back marginally positive and we had to wait two weeks to have another test - which came back negative and clear from the vet. I presume your vet feels your reading is enough to confirm straight away and move to gutteral pouch wash?

 

[Kingfisher95]

If she is persistently infected she will be shedding at the moment, but please don't panic. Keep everything clean and keep her isolated. It may just be a marginal result and your vet can give you much more information after the gutteral pouch wash.

 

[Breagha]

Mine came up 0.5 too a couple of years back and vet originally said this was not a positive or a negative.
The guttural pouch washing showed us a much bigger issue. 2 months of daily vets visits and she was clean.

Completely quarantine from any other horses and keep people handling your horse to an absolute minimum.
Get some virkon and keep everything clean and use this as a foot dip too.

Good luck!!

Did your horse have any symptoms?

It is only myself and my OH that are dealing with them and always see to my retired mare first as she was negative and then go and sort the other one out.

Can't remember how the readings work in terms of seriousness, sorry, but just to say that when moving my boy a few years ago we had to have a strangles test for the new yard. It came back marginally positive and we had to wait two weeks to have another test - which came back negative and clear from the vet. I presume your vet feels your reading is enough to confirm straight away and move to gutteral pouch wash?

they said I can wait 2 weeks for another test or go straight for the gutteral pouch but I decided to go straight for the gutteral because of the yard move and the 3rd horse in the field has events lined up and don't want to postpone if I can get it sorted and washed out - hope this is the correct decision but my head was a bit minced after the vet talking to me.

If she is persistently infected she will be shedding at the moment, but please don't panic. Keep everything clean and keep her isolated. It may just be a marginal result and your vet can give you much more information after the gutteral pouch wash.

I am just wondering where she would have got it from - she has been out possibly twice this year BUT the 3rd horse came from Ireland in January.

We are keeping everything separate for all 3 horses.

 

[claireandnadia]

No, nothing. Had her 5 stage vetted and she passed. Bought her home the same day and turned her out straight away with my Shetland. A week and 1 day later, my Shetland got choke, vet tubed him and nothing came out, next day choke again and temperature of 42. Tested him for strangles and it came back positive, tested her for strangles and came back 0.5.
Stress can cause them to shed so a vet told me.

Did your horse have any symptoms?

It is only myself and my OH that are dealing with them and always see to my retired mare first as she was negative and then go and sort the other one out.



they said I can wait 2 weeks for another test or go straight for the gutteral pouch but I decided to go straight for the gutteral because of the yard move and the 3rd horse in the field has events lined up and don't want to postpone if I can get it sorted and washed out - hope this is the correct decision but my head was a bit minced after the vet talking to me.



I am just wondering where she would have got it from - she has been out possibly twice this year BUT the 3rd horse came from Ireland in January.

We are keeping everything separate for all 3 horses.

 

[Breagha]

Very strange - 3rd horse in the field has come back negative. They have been in the field together since January. I really do no understand how one can be positive and others negative. :/

 

[SEL]

Very strange - 3rd horse in the field has come back negative. They have been in the field together since January. I really do no understand how one can be positive and others negative. :/

From what I understand your positive one is probably a carrier - so not actually shedding the virus. That doesn't mean he can't shed it at some point in the future though. I think that's why its so hard to eradicate. People innocently move their apparently well horses, the horses get a bit stressed and start shedding the virus and before you know it there's another outbreak.

I doubt you'd have ever known without the test!

 

[Breagha]

From what I understand your positive one is probably a carrier - so not actually shedding the virus. That doesn't mean he can't shed it at some point in the future though. I think that's why its so hard to eradicate. People innocently move their apparently well horses, the horses get a bit stressed and start shedding the virus and before you know it there's another outbreak.

I doubt you'd have ever known without the test!

It is such a complicated virus. I had her tested when she was one for strangles because she came from an area where they had quite a bad outbreak and she was negative then - if she is a carrier now, does that mean she has come into contact with someone?

It is very confusing.

 

[pretendhorse]

Mine came up 0.5 too a couple of years back and vet originally said this was not a positive or a negative.
The guttural pouch washing showed us a much bigger issue. 2 months of daily vets visits and she was clean.

Completely quarantine from any other horses and keep people handling your horse to an absolute minimum.
Get some virkon and keep everything clean and use this as a foot dip too.

Good luck!!

Can I ask approx costs of the pouch washing? I've posted another thread on strangles today and I'm trying to get my head together around next steps. Costs won't stop me testing, but it will prepare me!

 

[fairhill]

Blood tests are approx £70 a test, and 2 are needed with 2 weeks gap. The first one shows whether or not they have been in contact with strangles at some point and is a baseline figure. As it takes 2-3 weeks incubation, then an increase after 2 weeks would be treated as positive (e.g. 0.2 to 0.7). The carrier on our yard had reading of 3.5, and the infected horses 0.7 and 1.5.
0.3-0.5 are borderline results, which is why the second test is important to see if there is an increase or not.

Pouch washes are £300ish, and if a horse has one, and comes back positive then you'd need another. And another until the wash is clear.

 

[hairycob]

The blood test will show positive months after after active infection has passed. Your horse may or may not be infectious. Your vet is right that your options are to wait 2 weeks to see if the trend is downwards or to do a guttural pouch wash for a faster answer. What choice you make is down to your circumstances.

 

[Pinkvboots]

One of my horses had a snotty nose a few months back no other symptoms not ill at all, so he was scoped and had a pouch wash and they tested and he came back positive for the weaker strangles virus is begins with s I can't spell it its a big long word I will try and Google it in a bit, my horse is not a carrier he lives with my other horse who has never had any sign of the same condition, the weaker strain can just live within a horse but it's not contagious like full blown strangles, I would speak to your vet and find out exactly what your horse has tested positive to not all vets explain things so well.

 

[Kingfisher95]

Ok to clarify: strangles is caused by a bacteria, not a virus. Those that are persistently infected (I.e. Carriers) do shed infectious material but not as badly as fully infected horses. Your other horses can build up an immunity to the strain of strangles that is present which may be why they are not infected. This doesn't always happen though.

She may not have tested positive for strangles in the first test if she'd been infected in the past day or two, the body can't produce antibodies that fast. However if that was the case I'd expect her to infect your other two so I'm really not sure.

 

[Breagha]

Thank you everyone for all your answers. she is going in this afternoon to get the gutteral pouch wash/swab and they will put anti biotics in there in case she does come back positive. I am doing it this way as I am meant to be moving back to a yard and would like to try and get it all done and dusted before the end of the month if she comes back negative. If she is positive, then I will deal with it in whatever way the vet suggests.

I am thinking she may have had this for a while as I had a lesson and the instructor said she was looking a bit lethargic but it was warm and we were jumping, so I kind of put it down to that but it was niggling so ended up getting bloods done and they were a bit off and then 2 weeks later got the strangles test only because the new yard likes horses to have this done before going there.

A horse in a field across the road came back with the same result as mine as it is in a field with 4 other horses who came back negative. The infection really baffles me.

 

[Pinkvboots]

Some horses test positive for the bacteria streptococcus without having any symptoms of strangles it often presents as a upper respiratory infection the horse may have swollen lymph glands in the jaw the temperature may be higher than normal, the next thing to do is scope the horse and look inside the gutteral pouches they will probably flush them then they put a gel type antibiotic in them that slowly drains out on its own.

my vet told me not all horses will pick up the bacteria my other horse lives with the other one he has not shown any signs at all.

 

[Pinkvboots]

Thank you everyone for all your answers. she is going in this afternoon to get the gutteral pouch wash/swab and they will put anti biotics in there in case she does come back positive. I am doing it this way as I am meant to be moving back to a yard and would like to try and get it all done and dusted before the end of the month if she comes back negative. If she is positive, then I will deal with it in whatever way the vet suggests.

I am thinking she may have had this for a while as I had a lesson and the instructor said she was looking a bit lethargic but it was warm and we were jumping, so I kind of put it down to that but it was niggling so ended up getting bloods done and they were a bit off and then 2 weeks later got the strangles test only because the new yard likes horses to have this done before going there.

A horse in a field across the road came back with the same result as mine as it is in a field with 4 other horses who came back negative. The infection really baffles me.

not all horses present as being ill because it's not strangles it's a respiratory disease so often you won't see any symptoms at all my horse has had this twice he has been his normal self both times apart from having a snotty nose, the only time he goes off his food is after the scope it can make the throat sore for a few days so your horse may experience this after the procedure, I hope it all goes well for you today.

 

[Breagha]

not all horses present as being ill because it's not strangles it's a respiratory disease so often you won't see any symptoms at all my horse has had this twice he has been his normal self both times apart from having a snotty nose, the only time he goes off his food is after the scope it can make the throat sore for a few days so your horse may experience this after the procedure, I hope it all goes well for you today.

Many thanks - was the gutteral pouch clear/negative when you had it done?

I will remember that about having a sore throat in case I start panicking when I take her home for her dinner.

 

[Pinkvboots]

Many thanks - was the gutteral pouch clear/negative when you had it done?

I will remember that about having a sore throat in case I start panicking when I take her home for her dinner.

yes full of pus the first time then had to be re scoped 4 weeks later and he had even more in there his due to be scoped again in 2 weeks time I am hoping there is no more in there, I panicked when he didn't eat his feed and hardly any hay I rang the vet in a bit of a state as it's just not like him not to eat his so greedy but they said it's normal and he was fine the next day.

It might be worth soaking your hay for a few days afterwards if you don't already it's easier on the throat.

 

[Breagha]

Well that is her had her gutteral pouch scope. No puss or nodules to be seen, looked very healthy. Sample was taken and antibiotics put in. Fingers crossed results come back negative

 

[Breagha]

It is going to feel like a long wait until the results come back

 

[Pinkvboots]

That's good at least there was nothing there to flush

 

[Breagha]

That's good at least there was nothing there to flush

Yes, the vet was quite positive about that but again knowing my luck at the moment, she will test positive - not what you need 12 weeks before a wedding.

 

[claireandnadia]

Can I ask approx costs of the pouch washing? I've posted another thread on strangles today and I'm trying to get my head together around next steps. Costs won't stop me testing, but it will prepare me!

My total bill for my two was just under £4k - thankfully insurance covered it.

 

[Breagha]

My total bill for my two was just under £4k - thankfully insurance covered it.

OMG 4K. I am hoping that she comes up negative from the sample that was taken. I have insurance so its not the end of the world if its positive.

 

[Breagha]

SHE CAME BACK NEGATIVE on gutteral pouch testing - thank god! Thank you all for your advice.

 

[SEL]

SHE CAME BACK NEGATIVE on gutteral pouch testing - thank god! Thank you all for your advice.

Whoop, whoop!

We've got one in isolation on our yard with a cold and cough who is being tested - vets say there's a lot of it about at the moment. Great news that yours is clear.

 

[Breagha]

I will not take it for granted how easy it is to get etc now.

Hopefully it comes back negative too. X