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  Discussion on Death of My Horse from Reaction to Rhino Flu Vaccination
Author Message
New Member:
shedwall

Posted on Monday, Oct 5, 2009 - 10:04 pm:

On April 27, 2009, my horses received their West Nile and Rhino Flu vaccinations (Fort Dodge). West Nile was given in the left side of the neck and Rhino Flu in the right. All of my horses have reacted with stiff necks in the past and it resolves itself with bute in three days. Not this time. Maximo acted sore for the first three days and was given bute per the veterinarians instructions. He was lethargic and not eating his full portion of hay - but was consuming all of his grain. On day 4 he hung his head out of the stall and nickered at me. I thought he was doing much better. He readily consumed his grain and started in on his hay. About 2 hours later I headed back to the barn. Max stuck his head out of the stall and could see that his mane was hanging funny. I pushed it back and could see that his entire neck was massively swollen. I ran back to the house to call the vet. By the time I got back to the barn, Max had developed a swelling on the front of his chest. It was about the size of a golf ball. The vet came and gave him a shot of banamine. He was pawing the ground and tossing his head. I gave him about an hour and could tell that he was not improving. The vet came back out and told me I needed to get him to an equine hospital asap. Max had a toxic gumline and was going into shock. She had me stop at her office so she could start him on an IV. The swelling on the front of his chest was now baseball sized. It took about an hour and a half to get to the hospital.

It was hard to unload Max from the trailer as he could barely move by this point. The vet listened to his gut and took blood from him. Max was shaking uncontrollably and was wanting to lay down. She told me I should let him if he wanted to. Max went to lay down and just collapsed onto his side. His eyes rolled back in his head, he went into seizures and died.

FYI - My other gelding who received his vaccination from the same lot developed an abscess and was sick for a month.

Please note these were horses who had only suffered a stiff neck in the past.
Member:
scooter

Posted on Monday, Oct 5, 2009 - 10:50 pm:

Shelley I am so sorry for your loss. My horses can't tolerate FD vaccinations well and I switched to intervet with great success.

My condolences
Member:
ajudson1

Posted on Tuesday, Oct 6, 2009 - 7:14 am:

I am so sorry Shelly.

Like Diane, I don't use FD vaccinations either. I used to give the rabies and always had to watch my horses suffer for days afterwards. All had different levels of reactions, it was still more than I cared for.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Tuesday, Oct 6, 2009 - 8:25 am:

My condolences Shelly I know this was a terrible experience.

It is important to note these were not reactions to the vaccine itself but infections (one clostridial the other sounds gram positive aerobic) that probably were introduced or maybe even activated when the the vaccine was given.

Concerning the brand of vaccine used reactions are a funny thing. The brand that is used the most and the brand your horse has been exposed to in the past will be the one that gets the most reported reactions. Often when one vaccine causes recurrent reactions in a individual switching to another brand can help quite a bit as often the horse's immune system is over reacting to the adjuvant: the immune boosting agent in the vaccine. However over the years with recurrent exposure some horses will start developing reactions to the new vaccine too. It is the nature of the immune system to react more strongly with recurrent exposure. We use Fort Dodge vaccines and despite tens of thousands of dosages given over the past ten have a very low reaction rate.

There is more on each of these points in the article associated with this discussion.
DrO
Member:
vickiann

Posted on Tuesday, Oct 6, 2009 - 11:32 am:

Sincere condolences for your loss. Shelley.
Member:
erika

Posted on Tuesday, Oct 6, 2009 - 1:39 pm:

Oh, what a horrible experience you had! So sorry for your loss.
Erika
Member:
mrose

Posted on Tuesday, Oct 6, 2009 - 2:22 pm:

I echo the others in this being a horrific experience for you to go through. I'm so sorry you had to go through this. To loose one horse this way was terrible, more than one dreadful.

Out of curiosity, what was the age of the vaccine? Was is current? I take it you did your own vaccinations and have done so in the past?

At one point I had considered doing our vaccinations, but after a lady up the street had one of her horses get very sick after getting it's vaccinations from the owner, I changed my mind. She used FT. Dodge she obtained through a catalogue. She said they had been in her fridge for awhile and might have been out of date but she figured they were still good.

I've heard so many stories about reactions that I just prefer to let the vet come out and do the vaccinations. I've been very lucky, I guess, because I've never seen a reaction to any of the vaccinations although I watch the horses carefully for a day or two afterwards.

Again, my sympathies.
New Member:
shedwall

Posted on Tuesday, Oct 6, 2009 - 6:28 pm:

Thank you all for your well wishes. It was extremely difficult to lose a loyal partner and friend. As I am sure is true with all of you ... it rips out a piece of your heart. I felt it was important for Max's story to be told.

Sara, I did not specify in my post, but the vaccinations were administered by my veterinarian. She has always come out to do well checks, vaccinations, teeth floating. So I did not give my own vaccination. Max checked out healthy prior to receiving his shot. Two of my mares received their vaccinations that day as well. Their shots were drawn from 2 remaining doses from an old vial. They were fine. Vaccinations for the 2 geldings were drawn from a new vial. Max died - the other gelding was sick for a month with a neck abscess.

My vet suspected that the vaccine was bad and returned the vial to Fort Dodge for testing. Have yet to hear from FD.

Thanks everyone.
Member:
leslie1

Posted on Tuesday, Oct 6, 2009 - 6:52 pm:

Im sorry ((Big Hugs)) What a hard thing to see and have happen.
Please do post the FD testing results when you get it and Thanx for sharing this info
L
Member:
mrose

Posted on Tuesday, Oct 6, 2009 - 8:15 pm:

I,too, will be very interested in results of testing, and almost wonder if I were the vet if I'd want a separate lab to test in case FD was concerned about liability issues.

Sorry I just assumed you'd done your own vaccinations; a lot of people do them. I just, evidently falsely, assumed that if the vet did them there would be less of a chance of a reaction. Weird that Max's were from a new vial,too.

Thanks for sharing. We all take many things for granted, I think. We need to be reminded that even simple things can involve a risk factor.
Member:
leslie1

Posted on Tuesday, Oct 6, 2009 - 9:11 pm:

Well Pumpkin had a reaction this spring to Fort Dodge Vaccine that the vet gave her. Now, I dont know if it was due to him giving all shots in same side(Duh) or due to a bad batch. Fortunately nothing like Shelley and Max went thru...but next spring when its time to vaccinate===Max will be on my mind ...
FWIW, heres my thread
https://www.horseadvice.com/horse/messages/3/311687.html
New Member:
shedwall

Posted on Tuesday, Oct 6, 2009 - 11:23 pm:

I was surprised (and disappointed) that my vet had returned the vial to Ft. Dodge as well. I hope to have results from them ... however, I sent them a certified letter requesting the results - they signed for it on August 3rd, and I am still waiting to hear from them. No condolences - nothing .... not a peep. Hmmmmm .... starting to think they are avoiding me.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Wednesday, Oct 7, 2009 - 7:12 am:

One reason I use Fort Dodge products is the excellent technical support I have received from them in the past. If it has been awhile have your veterinarian contact them, he can talk directly to technical support at anytime.
DrO
Member:
lilo

Posted on Wednesday, Oct 7, 2009 - 9:43 am:

Shelley - so sorry to hear about your horrible experience. It is so sad to lose a horse, but to lose them when you are doing the right thing - namely practicing preventative medicine, is particularly hard.

My condolences,
Lilo
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