Would you scope or see how they go?

[Britestar]

A few years ago a friend of mine had a horse that ended up at a vet school.
I can't remember all the details but the horse had a ball of something in her stomach. They thought it had been there a considerable time. The stomach had stretched.
Nothing they could do to break it up. It was solid.

The horse was sent home with medication, but it did not help, and unfortunately she was pts.
I think they did a PM , but I can't recall what it was.
I could find out if you wanted.
Not really what you want to hear, sorry.

 

[Snow Falcon]

I hope that things improve in the morning. It is such a worry.

 

[Tiddlypom]

Be prepared that the vets might want to refer your horse on. Is your mare still insured for the investigations? You are near the 12 months limit.

It’s best to be forewarned that this could get very spendy.

 

[nutjob]

Is your mare still insured for the investigations? You are near the 12 months limit.

Most policies will continue to pay out if the treatment goes past the end of the policy period so long as they have already been notified and treatment is underway. Good idea for OP to check the specific wording in the small print though and inform the company of current situation which is going to be much more expensive than a simple scope.

Good luck today OP, hope you get some better news.

 

[Melody Grey]

Sorry to hear this. Is the blockage definitely all food? Just wondering if it could be an aggregation around a foreign body of some kind, like a rock? hence why it’s so determined? Is it in a place where ultrasound could be used?

ETA- have re read and see that the food is in the stomach too. Agree with the above poster re: sounding like a stomach emptying issue.

Fingers crossed for answers tomorrow x

 

[Stenners]

Be prepared that the vets might want to refer your horse on. Is your mare still insured for the investigations? You are near the 12 months limit.

It’s best to be forewarned that this could get very spendy.

She got referred to a vet hospital yesterday. The are currently flushing her with fluid 5 times a day and will re scope tomorrow to see if it has cleared. They did re scope last night but a lot of it was still there. I feel so bad that she has now been starved since Tuesday night

 

[nutjob]

Hope they get it shifted soon for her she sounds really stoical to be putting up with all this poor girl.

 

[Birker2020]

I hope she is okay, what a worrying time for you.

 

[Goldenstar]

Stenners is she a grey ?

 

[Tiddlypom]

How are things going, Stenners?

 

[Stenners]

Stenners is she a grey ?

No she isnt

 

[ycbm]

Stenners is she a grey ?

We're you thinking melanoma?
.

 

[Stenners]

How are things going, Stenners?

Thanks for asking . Unfortunately she had a violent attack of colic on Saturday night but luckily they were there at the time so able to treat her quickly. They hoped she had passed the compaction through so re scoped on Sunday morning and she hadn't L(. She's been on fluids all weekend as very dehydrated. They have been continuing to lavage her 5-6 times a day and the vet was back in this morning and they have rescoped her and finally the her stomach is now empty. She still has the megaesophagus will probably never go away however they have found an abnormality in her small intestine ;(. They are worrying it could be a Lymphoma - which could have been the cause of all of this. They said it could be inflammation so are giving her steroids to to try and reduce it down (but im not sure they are convinced). She will be on 4 x hard feeds per day for 3.5 weeks to see if she's able to pass anything through. (gradually from a mash up to normal hard feed over the coming weeks) along with grass. I'm hoping to bring her home on Thursday and in the meantime they will feed and monitor her.

 

[ycbm]

Most policies will continue to pay out if the treatment goes past the end of the policy period so long as they have already been notified and treatment is underway. Good idea for OP to check the specific wording in the small print though and inform the company of current situation which is going to be much more expensive than a simple scope.

Good luck today OP, hope you get some better news.

Most policies are one year of payments from the date of the start of the problem. If they link this to last January's colic, as is likely, then the current problem has probably run out of insurance money.

I hope there's better news soon Stenners.

ETA Cross posted. Fingers crossed she starts passing food through soon.
.

 

[Goldenstar]

We're you thinking melanoma?
.

Yes

 

[nutjob]

She might be better fed from a hook over bucket on a fence or stable door so it's higher up. Then she can swallow downwards.

My horse had a barium swallow to see how the oesophagus was working, it was interesting for the vets but of no help to me. Better to experiment a little with different feeding regimes and foods.

 

[Tiddlypom]

Thanks for the update. Fingers crossed for further improvement, and that the steroids settle things down and that it’s not a lymphoma behind all this.

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

Fingers crossed for you

 

[Stenners]

Thanks for the update. Fingers crossed for further improvement, and that the steroids settle things down and that it’s not a lymphoma behind all this.

me too - such a worry but she still looks so healthy and bright - its very weird!

 

[Snow Falcon]

I have everything crossed for you. Have been thinking about her.

 

[SO1]

Sorry to hear about your horse. Sounds like she had a gastric impaction.

Sadly Homey had this and even after 5 weeks on the special diet of just 7 hours if grazing on short grass with muzzle short and soft chaff and mashes his stomach was full again and food was seen in his oesophagus when he was rescoped. He spent a week in hospital having his stomach flushed with coke and it did finally clear it but sadly the impaction returned.

They think in his case it was nerve damage and it was delaying gastric emptying. Vet recommended he was pts as he would become uncomfortable again and colic with the risk of his stomach rupturing. He was my best friend and 20 I had had him 15 years.

Gastric impactions are really rare and the first case my vet had seen. Homey was still pooing as well but had had a spate of colics that were happening more frequently and we thought might have been ulcers hence reason for scoping.

They had another case in a few weeks later and that horse made a full recovery and went back to a normal diet. So I really hope you horse makes a full recovery.

 

[Stenners]

Sorry to hear about your horse. Sounds like she had a gastric impaction.

Sadly Homey had this and even after 5 weeks on the special diet of just 7 hours if grazing on short grass with muzzle short and soft chaff and mashes his stomach was full again and food was seen in his oesophagus when he was rescoped. He spent a week in hospital having his stomach flushed with coke and it did finally clear it but sadly the impaction returned.

They think in his case it was nerve damage and it was delaying gastric emptying. Vet recommended he was pts as he would become uncomfortable again and colic with the risk of his stomach rupturing. He was my best friend and 20 I had had him 15 years.

Gastric impactions are really rare and the first case my vet had seen. Homey was still pooing as well but had had a spate of colics that were happening more frequently and we thought might have been ulcers hence reason for scoping.

They had another case in a few weeks later and that horse made a full recovery and went back to a normal diet. So I really hope you horse makes a full recovery.

Thanks so much and so sorry to hear you lost your boy due to it. It's soooo worrying and apparently so rare. She has shown no signs of any pain whatsoever the whole time so it's a very worrying time.

 

[Wizpop]

hmmm - would think carefully if i were in your shoes, my boy went in for a scope and found his ulcer's. He then went for a second scope and it caused a really bad colic, so bad they phoned me on route to practice in horsebox and told me to turn round as he was coliking.

Two months late he colicked again ( prob results of second scope, really bad one = RVC = surgery and then was pts. Be wary if he has to have a second one to check up.l

But this isn’t the norm is it? I’ve had 2 horses scoped twice due to ulcers and all was fine after the scope.- as have many other people I know. Agree it’s not a nice procedure to watch, but in the case of OP, I wouldn’t want to put her off as her horse clearly needs investigating.

 

[Stenners]

But this isn’t the norm is it? I’ve had 2 horses scoped twice due to ulcers and all was fine after the scope.- as have many other people I know. Agree it’s not a nice procedure to watch, but in the case of OP, I wouldn’t want to put her off as her horse clearly needs investigating.

She was scoped last week - jus didn't get the results we had hoped for.

 

[Stenners]

Just an update for you all. She came home on Friday having finally cleared her stomach on the previous Monday after 6 days of trying. She's on grass a 4 feeds of mash a day and back on Friday for a re scope as when i collected her on Friday her stomach wasn't totally empty so they don't want to leave it too long before being rescoped. However on the positive note they could no longer find any abnormality in the small intenstine and the megaesopahgus had improved quite a bit

 

[lauragreen85]

I would scope too, peace of mind!

 

[foxy1]

Great update, hope all is still going well

 

[poiuytrewq]

I would scope too, peace of mind!

She's been scoped.

Stenners great to read she's improved and home!

 

[Stenners]

Unfortunately Fridays scope wasn't such a positive outcome ;(. She's been on a mash and grass diet for a week and after 16 hours of being starved, her stomach still had a lot of food in it (mash should take 45 minutes to go through). The vets told me they could clear it if she spent a few days there but once she's fed again it will just come back. They told me they can do no more for her and will be a matter of time and seeing how she goes. She will never make any more than a light hack at most (we were eventing last year), she won't be allowed hay for the rest of her life, purely a grass and a small mash diet only so she will be high maintence. She is at a high risk of colic and choke daily and also once she get scompact again her stomach could rupture at any time ;(. Absolutely devastating.

 

[SEL]

Oh Stenners I'm so sorry you must be devastated after something seemingly so minor has turned out to be so serious - it's just not fair xxx