viruses in horses

[DressageCob]

Hello,

A bit of a stupid question here - how do you tell if a horse has a virus? My friend's horse has a suspected virus and the vet has taken bloods. My horse was in the lorry with her a few days ago. He hadn't been in contact with strange horses before then and was his usual self riding. So now I want to keep an eye on him and check for signs of illness. What should I look out for?

I'm also feeling guilty in case it was my horse which made the other one ill I don't see how it could have been but you never know!

Sorry it's a stupid question. Whilst I can spot signs of colic, tying up, lameness etc I am still quite inexperienced when it comes to other horsey complaints.

Thanks in advance.

 

[be positive]

A virus usually shows in a similar way to us getting a cold, feeling a bit under the weather, possibly a slight temperature, coughing, sneezing off their food, sometimes they seem fine and just shake it off other times it can linger and the horse may lose its ability to pick up again without a little help.
A blood test can tell you if the horses immune system is fighting off a virus, most will run their course and need nothing doing other times it can develop into a respiratory infection and require anti biotics to clear it.

Your horse could have picked up a virus without any ill effects and passed it on but the other horse could have just as easily picked it up anywhere so do not feel worried about it, most viruses are fairly mild and the horse should get better soon.