what could be wrong with her??

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Pencarnan-miniatures

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I have a 2 year old miniature horse filly, she is usually fighting fit and feisty but for the last 6 months (since the 26th (ish) of november) she has been poorly her symptoms are she's lethargic, thick yellow discharge from her nose, and wheezy/bubbly breathing, we have had the vet out on numerous occasions, he tested for strangles and its not that (thank goodness!) he took a swab test of the mucus and it came back as a bacterial infection, he gave us the medication that should have cleared this up fine.. NO CHANGE, he came again, took another swab, gave us another type of medication that *should have cleared it up.. still NO CHANGE!, He came back again and had a look inside with a endoscope, he said that her lungs where clean and that the mucus was just forming in her nose so said it was probably an elegiac reaction so gave me a course of steroids (we dissolved these in water and gave them to her in a syringe so no feed was given) for her that should boost her immune system enough to get her body to start fighting again, but still :( no change!, she has been kept out and rugged this whole time, she is in a field with only grass and water with natural shelter from trees and bushes, she has no access to straw or hay/lage, and she is not on any hard feed, and now we have a new problem!.. the field she is in is too lush and she is getting too fat, but all my other paddocks have shelters in that still have straw in them and haylage, (this call all be cleared out but it would be a big job for my little wheelbarrow and im just posting around some forums first!) now on the 16th of may she is still no better, she may be worse! now her face has started to swell? her nasal passage on both sides is swollen and she also has a hard bump just off center of her forehead on the right hand side, this has gradually got worse over the time scale of approx. 2 weeks.
A friend of mine said that a horse of hers had something similar and the mucus had built up in her head and it had to be drilled an " either side of her eyes to allow it to drain! this sounds horrific to me and im really hoping that this isn't the case with my girl!, Has anyone els had a similar experience or any advice? we are considering getting the vet out again but i thought i would just ask on here first as the vets are so expensive!! i have also just got a number for a cranial therapist but again she is very VERY expensive so this is my last cry for help before we look to yet more medical assistance.
thank you for reading and i hope to hear back from some of you!

Ella Richardson
her name is Pencarnan Barley Sweetpea and she can be seen on my website www.pencarnan-miniatures.co.uk
 
Sounds like a classic blocked and infected sinus. Yes, they can drill into the face to flush it all out - don't panic, it sounds far worse than it is. Just a local anaesthetic and the hole is plugged afterwards and heals well. I wouldn't hang about, having had a sinus infection myself for a month I hadn't realised just how awful I'd been feeling until the penicillin cleared it up.
 
Hi Ella, its Sally ( Inky ) here!!

Sorry to hear about Barley.Its sounds to me as if it could be teeth/sinus related. She is about the age where her teeth are developing and it could be that she is having problems with her upper teeth developing, maybe impacted thus causing an infection? If she is having antibiotics specifically for the right bacteria then it should clear up. However if the infection is being caused by something else then the infection wont clear up till the problem is sorted.

I know sinus's can be drilled as one horse on our old yard had it done and recovered well. Hope it doesnt get to that point :(

Give her a big hug from me and say Hi to your mum !

xx
 
 
I wonder if she has an infected tooth??

Has the dentist had a good look in her mouth? And are you planning x-rays of the head??
 
If its a tooth problem, you will likely need Xrays to confirm. My horse had an infected tooth which was causing an infected sinus. He had to have it extracted under sedation. Unfortunately, removing the tooth did not clear up the infection and he was prescribed a course of antibiotics which did nothing to help. They then took a swab to identify the bacteria which they then hit with a specific antibiotic. Still the sinus infection persisted. Vet wanted to remove a piece of bone under the eye to get into the sinus and clean it out but I refused to have this done straight away and instead I turned my horse out 24/7. Having his head down to eat grass all the time drained the muck out of the sinus and it cleared up naturally.
Good luck.
 
thank you everyone for replies:), and well done Sally on your wins at MHCGB spring show!! :D, I had never thought of teeth!! nor had my vet :confused:, we may have to resort to x-rays but if i can help it i will stay away from them for as long as possible as she is not insured!! :(, not sure if it makes much of a difference but there is discharge from both nostrils and she has been turned out with other horses the whole time so it is not contagious. she also has very puffy eyes at the moment but this is probably because her grass is to green!! :(.. one problem after another!!
on another post someone had said that it may be she is alergic to grass :eek: !
and that she has a horse that can only be turned out in a bare paddock between 10pm-4am as the grass doesn't grow at this time! is this common?
i must sound so simple :confused: !! i am 18 and a large majority of my horsie knowledge is self taught and learning from past experiences.. every days a school day and all that!.. so please bare with me and i really appreciate all your help and suggestions!
thank you
Ella
 
Pencarnan-miniatures said:
on another post someone had said that it may be she is alergic to grass :eek: !
and that she has a horse that can only be turned out in a bare paddock between 10pm-4am as the grass doesn't grow at this time! is this common?
Click to expand...

It is massively uncommon to the point where I doubt it actually exists at all.

When she was scoped did the vet look in her guttural pouches? I agree that head x-rays would be the next logical step, as well as a thorough oral examination.
 
X rays won't cost a packet, and at this stage I'm not sure you have much choice. And start stacking the cash away because if its a back molar and subsequent bone infection your looking at an expensive extraction via surgery.
 
I agree with sinus/teeth beingb the provblem although youre not keen on going to xray route it could save you money in the end at least you/vet would have a clearer understanding of whats happening in there ,
 
Get her xrayed. I know a horse who had your ponys symptoms, and he had quite a complicated surgery to extract a tooth that had cracked at the root.
Your pony is probably feeling quite sore - having sinus problems myself I know his she must be feeling.
I would also be tempted to get referred to a decent horse vet in your area, if your vet didn't consider sinus' he may not be the best person to diagnose and perform the associated treatment.
Hope this doesn't come across as too blunt, it's really not meant to. Hope you get her sorted soon. And in the meantime can your parents help out financially in any way? Dont think you can wait to save up for this one sadly.
 
Sounds like someone I know whose horse had a strange fungal infection in the gutteral pouches but went so long misdiagnosed they lost the horse.

I would give your current vet a kick up the backside or change for someone else as this kind of thing can't be left, it must be got to the bottom of asap.

Very best of luck
 
The most likely thing is sinus or tooth problem. X-rays should not be that expensive and they will give you a quick diagnosis. I appreciate cost is always a consideration for everyone, but if there is an infection and you don't get on top of it you will face a much higher bill eventually. Good luck!
 
Pencarnan-miniatures said:
t someone had said that it may be she is alergic to grass :eek: !
and that she has a horse that can only be turned out in a bare paddock between 10pm-4am as the grass doesn't grow at this time! is this common?
Ella
Click to expand...

Ella it's not an allergy to grass that is resoved through nighttime turnout, though sometimes it is far easier to describe it to people that way. It is a sensitivity to grass sugars in the gut and an inability to digest them properly. It can cause lumps in the skin, soft feet, thin soles, low grade laminitis and other odd things. The solution for the least difficult cases is to turn out overnight when the sugars are lowest in the grass. There are an awful lot of barefoot horses who need to be managed this way so they don't get footie in the spring/summer months. Your case does not sound like this to me.

It does sound exactly like a friend's mare who has happily lived with a little hole in her head for the last ten years. I think most of them can be closed over with skin, so even that shouldn't be an issue if your tiny needs that.

Good luck!
 
Last edited:
thank you everyone for your replies i really do appreciate it!, and i also cant believe that my vet has said none of this!!! :confused: :mad: :(

her guttural pouches where checked when she and her endoscopy and where said to be clean of infection.

I am going to track a local dentist this morning, thanks again all, i will post any updates and again any other suggestions are very appreciated!
Ella.
 
I just edited mine, because it sounded like I thought grass sensitivity could be the cause when I actually think it very unlikely.
 
Thanks Ella it was a shock! :D

It might be she has just retained her caps thus preventing her adult teeth coming through.
At 2yr old Inky had upper tooth bumps and eventually had to have his caps removed by the dentist. you can see in these pictures his head at yearling stage then at two. The swellings below his eyes were due to upper tooth bumps. All gone now!!

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inkyweyhill2008120-1.jpg
 
she is a little stunner. I do hope you get her sorted soon. Could you maybe talk to a herbalist and get a cleansing blend made up? Inexpensive very natural and may bring relief and help. I use Folklore herbs - Stuart is very helpful.
 
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