UPDATE- On Beena who was diagnosed with septicemia Wednesday.

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QueenDee_

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Just thought i'd give you all a quick update...-

I'm pretty sure its due to her strong and sometimes stubborn pony will and personality that shes still busy fighting- she had a pretty good day yesterday, vet said her temperature was down to pretty much normal which was fantastic news, her pulse was still a bit high and she said that odds were probably now 70/30 so everyone was more positive all round, still on drips and antibiotic injections, eating fairly well and drinking a bit.

Noticed this morning that her breathing had become a bit 'gaspy' and the vet was coming out this morning any way, and confirmed her respiratory system has become infected, temperature was still down but pulse was higher, so shes still on drip and now antibiotics for that infection, on a better note he said that her gut was sounding good which is a sign her kidneys are recovering slowly and we also confirmed that it was acorns that caused it- we found a considerable amount in her droppings. Questioned this as we have gone years with oaks in out fields and no problem, and he said that ponys can sometimes acquire a taste for them...

But went out to clean her out and give her a brush and talk to her a bit just now and she seemed a bit brighter than this morning, and gave her some hay which she was soon tucking in to, also I think her breathing sounded better than this morning too..

So all fingers crossed, i'll keep you all posted,

-Elena.
 
Been following this with interest and keeping my fingers crossed. So pleased she appears to be improving. However, I am a bit puzzled as to how acorns can cause septicemia? I know they can cause colic if eaten in too large amounts but not blood poisoning. Interested as some of our paddocks have oak trees.
 
Wagtail said:
Been following this with interest and keeping my fingers crossed. So pleased she appears to be improving. However, I am a bit puzzled as to how acorns can cause septicemia? I know they can cause colic if eaten in too large amounts but not blood poisoning. Interested as some of our paddocks have oak trees.
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I am not 100% sure on this myself, currently having a look round the internet for it, wasn't actually there when the vet was, my mom saw him, but will defo be asking this tomorrow..someone posted about possibly acorns when I first posted asking about ideas :confused:

-Elena.
 
Lea1985 said:
Glad you girlie is on the up! SCARED!!!! my paddock has acorns :( x
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Thankyou, me too! But still not out the woods yet...as for the acorns, like I said, in the many years we've had horses here we've never once had a problem with them, neither have my friends who have acorns, also many posters on the internet say the same- they are only really a problem if they are eaten in large quantities, however we are probably going to put electric fencing round the perimeter of the trees...with whats happened, better safe than sorry :o
 
ADD-

Just adding a bit about acorn poisoning that I found on the web for anyone who is interested/as a warning:

- When the persimmons or acorns start falling, some horses will congregate under the trees to eat them. It appears the attraction to acorns is individual, but once started these individuals will spend much of their time waiting for the next acorn to fall! Since this obsession is to the exclusion of other activities, such as grazing, the horse eats a tremendous volume of acorns.

All of a sudden, the digestive tract is loaded with the high protein meal of nuts. The combination of high fat and high protein is a sudden change. The intestines’ natural response to such a strange feed is to purge it from the body. Fluids rush into the intestine to dilute out the new feed and form bulk which stimulates bowel activity. The protein of the nut meat inflames the lining, stimulating even more activity. The result of all this is a hyperactive bowel and a very watery, loose stool. So much water will be moved to the bowel the rest of the body will become dehydrated. The lining of the bowel can be so inflamed it swells, reducing any absorption of fluids the horse may take in. The combination of a hyperactive bowel, the swollen lining, the fluid loss, and resulting dehydration of the body can lead to a life threatening situation within hours. We may find the horse standing with its head down, breathing rapidly, and a watery stool wetting down the tail and hind quarters.

If you find a horse in this condition, and some of us will, treatment becomes an emergency situation. Large volumes of fluids are important to counteract dehydration and stabilize the blood flow. Protectents will line the intestine and protect it from additional contact with the acorns. Other medications will be needed to counteract shock.



- Other posts included comments about horses becoming 'addicted' to acorns, causing problems, and the tannin in acorns & oak leaves causing liver and kidney damage..
 
A travellers horse illegally tethered near our old house (illegal cos not on own land and no permission, not cos it was tethered) had to be put down by vet recently as it had kidney damage and liver damage due to combination of ragwort and acorns which was all it could find to eat :-((((((( Had been reported to RSPCA weeks before but you can guess how useful they were.
 
Thanks. I will keep an eye on my horses then. They have been in the acorn paddocks for years and do occasionally pick at them. We have one horse that gorges himself on them and so he has to stay out of the affected paddocks. If they appear to be eating too many then I will either shut those paddocks or tape around the trees.
 
Glad to read the positive news. fingers crossed she keeps it up. :-)
Re the acorns - not worth the risk imo. we had one die on our farm - nobody had realised there were oaks outlining her field. she was massively toxic. Mine will try to drag u to them if the see any - they're so addictiv
 
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