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  Discussion on Foul Smelling Nasal Discharge
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Member:
Larkie

Posted on Friday, Mar 4, 2005 - 8:39 pm:

I had one of my horses die very suddenly last weekend, and I am looking for opinions as to a possible cause. I adopted this horse from my neighbor who was moving away last summer. He was a Quarter Horse cross gelding, in his early 20's, very thin, but otherwise seemed healthy, good appetite. He had recently been examined and vaccinated by our local veterinarian, she didn't seem worried about his weight. I brought to her attention the bilateral swellings behind his jaw bone under his ears, crusty, goopy eyes and slight clear-white discharge from his nostrils. The swellings were not hot or tender to the touch, he was not running a fever, no cough and she recommended that I just monitor and call her is the symptoms worsened. Over the summer I supplemented his grass hay with Senior diet and managed to put 150-200 pounds him. I felt he was too thin. His nasal discharge cleared up although his eyes remained goopy and mucousy, even under his fly mask and he was otherwise energetic, bright and alert. This winter, I wanted to keep his weight on him so I kept him blanketed when the temperatures DrOpped. He was pastured with 2 other horses and seemed to be doing well. Then about a month ago I noticed that he was DrOpping weight. I kept a close eye on him. He had lost all the weight and more than when I adopted him, and his hair coat was falling out in sheets, it seemed a little early in the season for shedding. Then last saturday I brought him in from his pasture to groom and love him up and noticed a thick, white, very foul smelling discharge coming from his nostrils, one more so than the other. His respirations were normal, his membranes pink. He seemed to feel fine, eating well, bright and alert, so I decided I would call the vet on monday and have her check him out. Sunday morning I found him down, trembling, very weak, unable to right himself to stand. When he did manage to stand he was stumbling and weaving. I watched as his legs gave out and he went down for the last time. He had lost conciousness and was in agonal breathing when I got out to him. He remained like this until his heart stopped. He was vaccinated for West Nile Virus as well as his routine vaccinations, and we had an outbreak of pigeon fever in our valley last fall, although, none of my equines, mini-donkeys included showed any symptoms of being infected. I'm curious and looking for more information and ideas as to why this may have happened. Thank you!
Member:
Mrose

Posted on Saturday, Mar 5, 2005 - 12:49 am:

How long had he had the swelling under her jaw?
Member:
Larkie

Posted on Saturday, Mar 5, 2005 - 10:55 am:

Hi Sara. I adopted him in June of last year with the swellings present, I don't know how long before that. The swellings never went away the time that I had him, but never worsened either.
Member:
Mrose

Posted on Saturday, Mar 5, 2005 - 11:08 am:

I just wonder if he didn't have a "bastardized" or internal case of Pigion Fever. It doesn't always have high temps, or very many other outward signs. Dr. O. will have an opinion, I'm sure. But this just keeps coming to my mind.
Member:
Larkie

Posted on Saturday, Mar 5, 2005 - 11:19 pm:

Thanks Sara. I have considered that myself. It makes me wonder how he was able to keep it in check for so long before he succumbed to it.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Sunday, Mar 6, 2005 - 8:48 am:

I can only guess Leslie. The chronic upper respiratory signs, a foul smelling discharge, rapid turn around from feeling well to what sounds like neurological disease makes me wonder if there was an ascending infection from the sinuses, or ethmoid process, to the brain but what the organism was I do not know.
DrO
Member:
Larkie

Posted on Sunday, Mar 6, 2005 - 11:38 am:

Thank you DrO. At the time of his death it really didn't matter to me why he died as much as the fact that he did. Now, as a think about it I wish I would have at least cultured the discharge to see I we could identify the organism. My gut feeling tells me that my other equines are not in immediate danger, that is was something chronic that he was dealing with. I hope that is the case. I've read that the purulous discharge from Pigeon fever is odorless.???? I've been in the veterinary field for many years and I know what necrotic tissue smells like and this discharge smelled "dead". Even if I had called the vet that day to see him, I doubt there was much we could have done at that point to turn him around. Thank you for your response.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Monday, Mar 7, 2005 - 6:19 am:

The problem with nasal infections is that no matter what starts them they rapidly become complicated by secondary and tertiary infections, the result is culturing nasal secretions is surprisingly non-diagnsotic. What might have provided useful information is a necropsy including examination of the nasal sinuses and skull. Culturing the actual lesion would more likely yield the causative organism but even this might not be the primary problem: what if the infection was secondary to cancer?
DrO
Member:
Larkie

Posted on Monday, Mar 7, 2005 - 9:17 am:

Thank you again for your response Dr. O. Cancer did occur to me. Well, he is resting comfortably now and free from any discomfort, he seemed happy and content before those last couple days. You and Horseman's Advisor have helped me gain some knowledge, I appreciate that. This website has helped me many times over the last years. Thank you.
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