This is an archived Horseadvice.com Discussion. The parent article and menus are available on the navigation menu below:
HorseAdvice.com » Diseases of Horses » Respiratory System » Heaves & Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease »
  Discussion on Labored breathing...due to humidity? Stangles shot?
Author Message
Member:
rebeccab

Posted on Friday, Oct 19, 2007 - 6:52 am:

I have a 15 year old mare with a 7-month case of labored breathing. The labored breathing seems to be triggered by humidity.
My vet looked at her and diagnosed allergies...I have her on Tri-hist regularly, and Dexamethizone(sp?) during labored breathing episodes. She coughs occasionally during exercise. When she is having a breathing episode, I can hear her gasping as she inhales. Her heavy breathing is obvious, as her sides inflate and deflate rapidly. (This is the only way i can describe it). I had the vet check her again 1 month ago, and he said the same thing...allergies. I have owned this mare since last December. From December to March, I did not notice heavy breathing. In March, she had her spring shots, and the labored breathing started. My guess was this was a reaction to the the strangles shot. Could the reaction go on for 7 months? We tried watering her hay all summer. It did not make a difference. She is outside from 7am until 3pm everyday, weather permitting.
I contacted her previous owner of 7 years, and she indicated the mare had occasional labored breathing as well.
Other than this, she is eating well, active and alert.
Please offer any advice. Thanks.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Friday, Oct 19, 2007 - 9:58 am:

Hello Rebecca,
NO the Strangles vaccination is very unlikely as a cause of your horses breathing difficulties and I agree the most likely cause is allergies. The article associated with this forum explains how these allergies develop and the treatment and management that is required to return your horse to as normal as possible. Note well: watering the hay often is not enough management to prevent the allergic reaction, see the article for more on this.
DrO
Member:
rebeccab

Posted on Friday, Oct 19, 2007 - 2:03 pm:

THANKS DR. O:
The article associated with this mentioned flaxseed oil and linseed oil. Do you recommend one over the other? How much a day, for a 1000lb mare?
Also, what is my next step in determining her allergies? The vet recommended sending my mare to Cornell for allergy testing, or just taking a blood sample. Is there one route you prefer over another?
Do you recommend I avoid the strangles shot next spring? Could it irritate her lungs more?
Rebecca
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Saturday, Oct 20, 2007 - 10:16 am:

No Rebecca,
I do not have a preference and do not believe they will help one bit if you do not remove the allergen. I do not do testing for the reasons given in the article. Since the vast majority of horses I see are allergic to the same thing I first control exposure and rarely am I disappointed with a horse that does not respond. The article gives detailed steps.

The decision to give a Strangles vaccine should be make on the risk that you horse will contract Strangles. We discuss this issue at Horse Care » Horse Vaccines, Vaccination, Coggins Test » Vaccines an Overview but I would also read the article on Strangles to better understand how horses get it, the current vaccines available, reactions and efficacy.
DrO
Member:
rebeccab

Posted on Monday, Oct 22, 2007 - 5:30 pm:

Thanks again Dr O:
Last questions: Your article recommends Flaxseed oil may help with allergies. How much should I give a 1000 lb mare?
Also, Is there a specific article or recommendation you have to start determining her allergy? Remove hay, water hay, shavings, etc. The items to avoid seem endless and I know I have to remove 1 item at a time to determine the allergy. How do I go about determining the allergy?
Rebecca
Member:
dawson

Posted on Monday, Oct 22, 2007 - 6:58 pm:

We purchased a BLM Mustang a few years ago, at his previous owners and at our farm he was in excellent health. We sold him to another family approx. 20 miles away. They had him for about a month or two between March and April he displayed labored breathing, he was miserable and his weight declined. it was hard to believe it was the same horse. The feed grain, hay was still what we had sent over with his purchase, the only differences were the water, and the enviroment.
Our place may have two if any pine trees on it, his new paddock was all pine trees. We took him home for two weeks and he was back to his robust self. It was the pine trees !! (and yes we refunded the purchase)We were lucky because he had not changed much in his routine since he left us. On the other hand, I have a dog who has allergies and for eight years we still can't figure it out and give him benedryl when he is afflicted. Good luck with your detective work.
Member:
rebeccab

Posted on Monday, Oct 22, 2007 - 7:38 pm:

Thanks "Dawson":
I don't know where to begin to figure out her allergies. She is a great mare and I can't think of selling her. I just want her to be comfortable. Our barn is spotless...I know I can't avoid hay, dust, etc. It is a barn! Then what? What if the allergy is unavoidable?
Any advice would be appreciated.
-Rebecca
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Tuesday, Oct 23, 2007 - 7:51 am:

You are making a simple problem complicated Rebecca. Start with the most common cause of heaves and work hard on that. It works 95% of the time. Many of your other questions become moot. If it does not work, you probably have not been diligent enough, then if after following all the recommendations to the letter, and giving the horse adequate time to recover, you still have the problems you can ask those questions. This is a common problem in our area. I have treated dozens if not hundreds of such cases. The only time I can't keep a horse well is when the owners insist on field cured hay or exposure to the barn. I had one yesterday, after many months of being well they decided to try him back on there new clean hay and now he is heevy again. But he will be fine in 21 days now that he is back on just pasture, even much quicker since we started him on a short course of dex.

Is we assume Dawson's problem is in fact allergies to pine it would be the first case I have ever heard of. I should note there would be many differences between the two locations and even though they took them some of their hay, its storage may not have been ideal or the barn dustier or... On the other hand if it is the pines that should be easy to rule out but let's take care of what is likely to be the problem in the vast majority of cases.
DrO
Member:
rebeccab

Posted on Thursday, Nov 15, 2007 - 8:30 pm:

Thanks Dr O:
At the request of our barn manager, as a step to get my Mare's heaves under control, she was blood tested for allergies...she is allergic to everything. Just as you said...Hay, grass, molds, dust. We have moved her from the main barn where the hay is stored over her head, to another barn with just 3 stalls, no hay storage. She will be on hay stretchers(?), senior feed, and in a sand paddock instead of a grass paddock. I will keep you posted on all of the changes! Thanks for your help in pointing me in the right direction, which is to eliminate/lessen exposure to the allergins.
Member:
rebeccab

Posted on Thursday, Nov 15, 2007 - 9:36 pm:

PS: Is there a way to determine how much damage has been done to her lungs? Or is there a way to determine how much functioning lung she still has?
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Friday, Nov 16, 2007 - 7:37 am:

The test finds them but of course your horse is not allergic to all that stuff. If the other horses are fed hay in this barn or it is the least little bit closed up it may not be good enough Rebecca. Also I don't think you have anything to fear from a grassy paddock, in fact it would be considerably less dusty than a sand one.
DrO
Member:
rebeccab

Posted on Friday, Nov 16, 2007 - 7:41 pm:

Thanks Dr. O
Still wondering: Is there a way to determine how much lung damage has been done and/or how much functioning lung she has left after being exposed to allergens for so long (7 months with me and on and off for 7 years with her previous owner)? I do worry about how much to work her now. If she only has half lung capacity, she'll just be a trail horse. I might retire her from jumping and competing.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Saturday, Nov 17, 2007 - 7:14 am:

Yes the most accurate and least expensive way is to determine this is to treat acute symptoms aggressively, do everything possible to prevent further exposure, then give the horse a few months. Start up light rides gradually increasing the amount of time out as you condition the horse. Use elevated rate or difficult respiration that does not recover rapidly when rested as a primary guide for when the horse over works. Then you will see what the horse is capable of and many folks are quite surprised at how much the horse can do when managed aggressively.
DrO
Member:
rebeccab

Posted on Tuesday, Nov 27, 2007 - 4:09 pm:

THANKS DR.O!!!
I am happy to report that since my mare has been moved to a well-ventilated barn, with no hay storage, and she has been taken off hay, all signs of labored breathing are gone.
She has been in the new barn for 2 weeks. She is on senior pellet feed and hay stretchers, and no signs of labored breathing at all. I will keep my fingers crossed that this is the answer!
Thanks so much for your dedication and help.
Rebecca
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Wednesday, Nov 28, 2007 - 6:47 am:

Congrats Rebecca,
I don't usually post replies to discussions in the newsletter but this is definitely going because we still have members who do not get this very simple principle: if they are still treating COPD with drugs you are not managing it properly. I understand that it can be difficult to manage a horse without hay and barn exposure but is truly the only long term treatment. If you start having problems again it may indicate the barn air is not clean enough.
DrO
Home Page | Top of Page | Join Us!
Horseadvice.com is a BBB Accredited Business. Click for the BBB Business Review of this Horse Training in Stokesdale NC