Ten days post respiratory infection...

Dogstar

Dogstar

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My mare has been on antibiotics for 10 days (course now finished) and remains on a course of ventupulmin (have been told to finish the tub) after being diagnosed with COPD/respiratory infection. The vet told me to work her to clear the gunk. She is now hacking for about an hour mainly walk, but with some trotting and a tiny canter. This morning she coughed maybe 4 or 5 times, blew a little, no discharge that I could tell. However, she still feels droopy and flaky at trot and canter. I guess it's still very early days but can someone reassure me that she should continue to improve? She usually hacks and hunts. Would it be worth asking for another tub of ventupulmin and/or trying a herbal breathing suppliment? Thanks.
 
When my mare got a chest infection, the vet told me she must have total rest for 1 week for every day she was sick. So that was 8 weeks of being a lady of leisure in the field.
 
I'm surprised work was recommended but then I am not a vet! If she hasn't been 'ill' as ours hasn't (not remotely off-colour for even a day) I can half see where he's coming from, but not when you say she is coughing and feels lathargic. Ours hasn't coughed for well over a week but the snot has continued to drip - so now on A.B.'s and continuing on Ventipulmin. We stopped work during the coughing but are easing her back in carefully, though now on AB's we'll not ride and let the AB's work.

Dratted snot and coughs...
 
Oh gosh I hope I'm doing right then, I am sure he didn't mention time off...she was only ill-looking for a couple of days though and she looks well now. I will take her steady anyway and monitor. Thanks and good luck with yours..
 
Ours didn't say time off either - and we had been keeping her ticking over very gently. However as her defences are having trouble overcoming the snot and A.B.'s do need the body's undivided attention to work properly it's time to let her put 100% into getting right and rest her. She is out prowling round though.

I can also spell lethargic but had to dash out so didn't proof read!
 
Sometimes if COPD is the expected underlying cause (your horse is more than 8yrs old isit? ) then a course of steroids is required to get the coughing (caused by inflammation of the airways) under control. It sounds as if, 10days on yours still isnt under control. Maybe give your vet a call and ask him to re-=examine. The other (and probably better ) alternative is to get your horse scoped to see whats going on down there.
 
If the COPD/RAO is caused by Summer Pasture allergy, ie pollen, then you will only ever be treating the symptoms, not the underlying disease. If your horse is allergic to pollens then he probably has some degree of permanent lung damage. Such horses have different lung sounds from an unaffected horse. The COPD horse ALWAYS has to breathe deeply to get oxygen deep into the lung tissue where it is still undamaged. That's ok for most of the time but if the horse suddenly needs additional oxygen for his body's demands, then he doesn't have much in reserve and can start to struggle to get enough air in. I'm amazed that your vet said work him through it! If a horse just has a sticky cough from a chest infection, then getting him to breathe deeply (by working him) can help to clear the gunk out. But COPD/RAO is different. Your horse may need to stay on Ventipulmin all summer and he may need much higher doses than normal. He may need to go onto steroids if he fails to improve or worsens. Gentle exercise is fine but you may have to severely limit his workload during the summer (if it's the summer when he's worse).
 
Thanks for the comments. The mare is 13 years old. I'm sure it was caused by hay, as she's laminitic and been off the pasture and on hay in a starvation paddock 22/7 since mid March. Also, due to a crisis, I had to feed her after dark and I think she had a bad bale. Hopefully now she is out on grass with a muzzle in the day and on a little soaked hay at night she might be OK.. I would not be happy trying steroids because of her laminitis. I do need to get the vet out again in the next week(ish) for a routine jab and tooth check, so I will get her looked at again (by a different vet) and see what suggestions she has. She does not appear to be struggling to breathe but she does have slight fluid swelling sort of in front of her cheeks which could be unrelated, I suppose, but is odd...
 
Update if anyone is interested. I got a bit disheartened riding Ellie, as she seemed droopy and had the odd cough, so left her alone for about 4 or 5 days. I booked the vet for today and took her for a spin yesterday so I could report to the vet how she seemed. Well, she seemed much better; no coughing at all, the odd funny noise and some blowing, a bit lethargic but better- we cantered a whole field quite enthusiastically and chased a boxer dog that had been chasing us!! The vet listened carefully to her lungs and said they were fine, no breathing problems nor permanent damage, just some pooled gunk on her chest to get rid of! She also said she looked really well. She thought the glands were just salivary glands. I was so relieved. I forgot to ask whether that meant she had COPD, I guess not as her breathing was normal..anyway hope your horse is better too brighteyes.
 
As your mare has had AB I would give her a pro biotic / pick-me-up

I would talk to Roger Hatch from "Trinity Consultants" he does a very good one called L94. It is a Liver / Kidney pick-me-up. The Liver needs the support as horses do not have a gallbladder to filter toxins from the body and AB's slow down the good flora from the guts.

Trinity Consultants do a lot of really good things to help our horses.

Rogers Number is 01243551766.
 
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