what to do when your yard has strangles

[madmare4]

hiya guys I need peoples opinion on this matter...
so our yard for a couple of weeks had a "mysterious" virus. it went around 7 different horses all of which were in the same field. only one person got the vet out who said not to worry keep and eye on his temperature then when it goes back down put him back in the field... another elderly horse came down with the same virus but was quite ill with it only then was this horse tested for strangles which came back positive was it moved into a barn away from everyone else. all the other horses with the virus continued to go out with the other horses and only when the vets told them they had to be tested they were - and all of them came back as a positive for strangles... they are still out in the field! other horses are now coming down with the symptoms including one with a full snotty nose and the owner is refusing to bring it in! now more and more are coming in with it and no one is getting the vet!! nor are they being kept in or quarantined! so now there is about 25 horses with it... all in the field! its spread across to two different fields now as well. I keep my horses in a separate paddock as I always have but now both of my neighbours have it. i'm basically a sitting duck! because the yard owners couldn't control the situation! I cant exactly take my horses off the yard because we have strangles and I don't know what to do! i'm disinfecting everything I don't let anyone use my stuff inc my wheelbarrow and I have a disinfectant mat in the front of my stables. but seriously how can I do anymore when everyone else is being so carless???? Help!

 

[Equine_Dream]

First of all - BREATH There was an outbrake of strangles near me a few weeks ago. It is a nasty icky disgusting illness but most horses do recover.
It sounds like you are taking all the necessary precautions. The main thing is not to let your horse come into contact with the disease either directly (touching another horse that has it) or indirectly (by a person having contact with an infected horse then touching yours).
With regards to them being in neighbouring fields there is some debate over whether strangles is airborne. The main thing to ensure is that your horse cant touch the others over the fence. Get some electric fence set back from the fence if possible.

 

[Goldenstar]

Most horses recover some don't and it can be an expensive job .
My second pony caught strangles she was in a field with four others had been no where it was thought I carried it home on my clothes from a local riding school .
She had to stabled to keep her away from the others ( non of the other got it )
She was never the same again .

Horses with strangles are best in the field but it's a bit much to have them out with the others , if I got that right.
Sounds like the YOer had no plan in place to deal with this ( shakes head ) .
Double fence your paddock leave the horses out if you can and handle as little as possible and go about the yard as little as possible ,go do your horses come way .
Take their temperatures at least once a day .
You have little choice but to sit it out .
Be strict about clothing hands and gloves wash your hands immediately before you go in ( a bottle of dilute hibiscrub would do the job )
Wear a overall in your paddock put it on outside the gate and take it off there .
And wash wash your clothes .
I hope it works out ok .

 

[MardyMare]

I am shocked at the YO attitude. You would think the vets would recommend stricter measures as well. When my yard had strangles a few years back (it started in the mares paddock) - all the mares were quarantined in stables and geldings were moved further away. We had foot trays and handwashes and everyone got on board with who dealt with which horses. We were very strict and vigilant and fortunately it was contained in just those 8 mares. When the last horse was given the all clear they moved back and we had the stables super steam cleaned as our vet at the time advised that snot / saliva in the correct conditions can still hold the virus for a while. One of my mares was hit particularly badly and it developed into a particularly bad strain of strangles - it is not a nice thing to go through.

I really feel for you and I hope that your horses are ok.

Also for the record of my two mares that both were affected and tested positive along with the others neither of their temps went above 38 for the entire process. Neither had snotty noses but the one most affected did abscess out of her glands. Just mentioning as I dont think every case is text book. The other seemed to have breathing difficulties and was just 'off' the whole time.

 

[Birker2020]

Your post is entitled 'what to do when your yard has strangles'.
My immediate reaction would be to say 'dont panic'. In the whole its not the nightmare people make it out to be and its a lot of hype. I Know some horses die from it, but its very very rare that this happens.

Its very hard to control and when a yard gets it most of the horses will sucumb. I had strangles twice on the yard I was at and both times the horses just had snotty noses, were off colour, lack of appetite, high temperature and depressed. Luckily it never developed into ******* strangles which can be life threatening.

To be honest I've seen worse as a result of the strangles vaccine that our yard trialled. So many horses were affected by this, it was horrible, you could walk down the lines of stables and see which horses had had the vacinne and which hadn't. One developed colic and one had an enlarged heart as a result of the vacinne. The manufacturers were told and ended up paying the liveries bill and the vet that had come out to vacinnate those horses whose owners wanted them vacinnated swore he would never use the vacinne again.

You need to use your own tools and make sure you don't share grooming equipment and water buckets. None of the horses on the yard should be allowed to go out competing, thats a big NO NO, and they shouldn't be allowed to touch other horses if they hack out.

 

[Annagain]

Some very good advice here. Above all don't panic. I hope YO has quarantined you all and nobody is leaving the yard even if their horses seem ok.

The other thing I'd suggest - seeing from the vitriol and maliciousness certain Facebook rumours in my area have caused recently is to be completely open about it (and to encourage the YO to be too) either face to face with people or, if the yard has a website / Facebook presence to place a notice on there saying there are cases at the yard and they are being appropriately treated and isolated (in terms of not leaving the yard, not necessarily within the yard).

I've never understood the stigma of strangles - it's a virus, any horse can get it. It's no indication of poor horsemanship (although allowing the spread through not taking appropriate action once you're aware of it is). It would be like parents suddenly being vicious about another child because they've got chicken pox! I suppose what I'm trying to say is if you start treating it like it something to be ashamed of the whole community in your area will jump on board and make it 10 times worse.

I hope your horses manage to avoid it, but if they do get it, don't panic very few suffer complications.

 

[Tnavas]

Unfortunately its one of those diseases that once one in a group has it you may as well leave them all together as the others are likely to go down with it too.

Sick nursing is the key with any of them, ensuring that the horse is comfortable and if weather conditions are favourable the paddock is the best place to be.

Hygiene is important if the horses are in different paddocks or stables. Everyone should be washing hands, dipping boots in disinfectant. The infected horses should be handled last and the handler then remove protective overalls before doing anything with other horses.

To safeguard others no horses should leave the yard until the last horse has a clear test.

Some years ago the horses in the front paddock got strangles, the new horse, came from a stud where she had lived for many years in a public transport truck, we think she caught it from the truck. The vet put the whole farm into quarantine for three months - my paddock fortunately was far enough away that mine didn't get sick.

Strangles spreads so easily, nose to nose contact, snot on handler or tracked from one paddock to another on a fox's pads, you can only hope that your horse doesn't pick it up from another at a show who snorted close to him.