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I have 3 Friesians in Northern California. The 23 year old has an abscess that we have been soaking, but she is eating and not running a fever. The other two are 16 years old and 2 years old. Both are picking at their feed. The younger one has a fever of 102.5 and the other is at 102.
We have not been around any other horses. There are a couple of horses several acres away.
They had several apples today that we had picked from an apple farm. At first I wondered if we had overdone this, or if the apples could have something in them.
We did have pigeon fever on the property in 2012. So far the two horses that had it, never had it again. I think the immunity is supposed to be around 5 years, so we are due. The two year old has probably never had it.
We have been feeding the same hay. Orchard Grass and 50/50 alfalfa grass (feeding sparingly because it is rich.)
They are interested in what we are doing, and half-heartedly looking for feed/snacks. So not totally depressed, but definitely off.
The 16 year old laid down, which she never does, but doesn’t seem to be in distress. I’m not detecting pain/colic.
I guess I’m at a loss of what they could have both picked up given that we are in the middle of winter with no flies or mosquitoes. So far, I haven’t been able to find a tick. (The two that are sick both have had ehrlichiosis – I don’t know if there is any immunity there.)
They do have a pond that they will drink out of on occasion. But doesn’t Potomac Fever yield a much higher temp?
No upper respiratory issues. No nasal discharge.
What presents with a low grade fever and mild depression like this?
Thanks,
Laurie
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Hello Laurie,
I think your confusion stems from the idea that the degree of fever includes and excludes any disease that causes fever. This is not true. Even diseases known for causing high fevers can present with mild or no fever. Perhaps the peak was missed, perhaps the horse has partial immunity, or the opposite where the immune system is not recognizing the pathogen. The same is true with diseases that typically present with low grade fevers in some individuals might cause a remarkable one. Fever per se is not diagnostic for any particular disease, the article presents a extensive list.The fact that 2 are infected at the same time strongly suggest a infectious or toxic cause. A complete exam, CBD, and Chemistry work up should help further define the problem but a week of low grade fever and mild general symptoms is often, but not always, self limiting. I usually chalk these events up to undiagnosed viral disease and have sometimes had trouble identifying the source. I cannot assure you this will be your experience so recommend a exam if you remain concerned.
DrO -
We are still kind of picking at our food this AM, but more normal-acting. Hungry. But hay was left behind from last night. Everyone got LMF Senior feed this AM, and it was eaten. The hay is kind of begrudgingly nibbled on.
The 16 year old temp was 99.8. The 2 year old filly is at 104. However, the older horse is laying down now – very unusual for her.
I think they got about 5-6 apples through the course of the day yesterday. I keep wondering if there could be some bacteria involved in aging apples that could have upset their intestinal tract. However, I have been eating them and feel fine. Just looking at what could be common to them.
They have been eating this hay for a couple of weeks now.
We do have a lot of ducks and geese coming and going in the pond right now as they prepare for breeding season.
Monitoring this AM, and have a tentative appointment to draw blood.
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Bloodwork was not going to come back until the following Monday, and I know that any of the tick-borne diseases take longer to get. The emergency clinic said that I could pay for another $100 to bring a lab tech on-site on top of the normal bloodwork charges. So since it wasn’t in nosebleed territory, I decided to see if it was going to spike further before I started diagnostics.
The filly didn’t have a problem eating the senior feed, so I monitored the fever every hour on the hour. It started to drop into the evening on Friday ending at 102.8. The next morning it was back to 104, reached 105 by mid-day, but then it dropped to 101 and 100.5 by the end of the day. It’s been normal ever since. No other symptoms. Eating normally.
I guess what I thought was so weird about this is that the 3rd, unsick horse never ran a fever or went off feed. But then you have 2 other horses getting sick at the exact same time. All 3 horses fed the same feed and are on the same 3 acres. They both got bit by the same mosquito?
I don’t know. Just strange, but I’m glad that we seem to be on the other side of it.
Thank you for your thoughts an advice.
Laurie
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Sorry, I didn’t see you following questions.
About 10 days later, all 3 horses ended up with snotty noses. Even the older mare that didn’t present with a fever. The youngest horse was snotty nosed for only about a day. The oldest horse was congested for the longest, but finally resolved. No fevers. All is well.
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