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  Discussion on Mikey frothy nasal discharge
Author Message
Member:
deborahg

Posted on Monday, May 25, 2009 - 9:47 pm:

I have a fifteen year old Standardbred Trotter, whenever worked, a frothy white discharge comes from his nose, I noticed he doesn't have the best breathing pattern, he sounds laboured...he is not your typical standardbred, he has been referred to as a draught cross, he is very stocky and a big horse, any thoughts.
Member:
hollyw

Posted on Monday, May 25, 2009 - 11:45 pm:

How is his normal breathing, Deborah?

How long have you had him? Is the frothy-ness something new?
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Tuesday, May 26, 2009 - 7:31 am:

I too am interested in the history of the frothy white discharge Deborah. You say "whenever" worked, he does this with very light riding during cool weather?
DrO
Member:
deborahg

Posted on Tuesday, May 26, 2009 - 8:10 pm:

I got him from a Standardbred rescue in Hamilton NJ. His previous owner had him at Bridgewater college in West Virginia an Equine college, the daughter needed a horse willing to jump over three feet, and Mikey would not slow down at the jumps enough. He did have a wheeze to him in Winter months, but as soon as it came it disappeared. His regular breathing is pretty normal,but whenever he walks, trots canters, he breathes very heavily, I thought it was because he was out of shape, he is now on a better more active regimen, but the frothy nose is still apparent at the walk after about 15 mins, and the trot....so far during warm weather.. I am going out tomorrow to work him, i'll see how he is doing, it is going to be a lot cooler, i'll up date you. and send a picture of his nose
Member:
rtrotter

Posted on Wednesday, May 27, 2009 - 7:10 am:

Hi Deborah,

I'm curious, does this horse have a freeze brand on his neck, or a lip tatoo on his upper lip? Do you know if he raced? Are you sure he is a cross? If he does have a tatoo or a freezebrand, I could look him up and get you a little of his race history, if you are interested.

You might want to get him scoped to see if anything is going on. He also may be allergic to something, or it may be that he needs a little work to bring up the secretions in his respiratory track.

Does he eat off the ground or from a hay rack? What is his environment like?

Rachelle
Member:
deborahg

Posted on Sunday, May 31, 2009 - 12:12 pm:

He eats off the ground, no racks.... his grain is from a feed bucket in his stall.... his tattoo is N1123 his Sire and Dam are both registered standardbreds, I would absolutely be interested in any info you can find on him, I really do not have a lot....
Member:
rtrotter

Posted on Sunday, May 31, 2009 - 1:04 pm:

Deborah,

I looked Mikey up, he is a full standardbred, not a draught cross and his full name is Mikey Ten Speed ( Baltic Speed-Gentle Cycle). According to the USTA, he did not race and my guess is that either his size or a breathing problem kept him from doing so.

It does not surprise me that he was described as a draught cross. Standardbreds are the only breed that does not have breed specific conformation and they can look like any other type of horse. When showing in regular shows, (not Standardbred shows) Standardbreds can sometimes be discriminated against, so their owners say they are some other breed, like thoroughbred cross,or Sporthorse or in your case a draught cross to avoid the stigma attached to the breed name.

Personally, I love the breed, they are tough, dependable, generally very stoic and things that bother most other horses, don't seem to bother them. In addition, with the right training can do just about anything.

A number of years ago, A friend of mine competed in a battle of the breeds, she won on her Standardbred. There were quite a few events, including team penning, barrels, jumping, driving, pleasure horse english ( walk, trot,canter) pleasure horse western ( walk, trot, gallop), an obstacle course and equitation. Her horse was the only horse to do all the events and she was first or second in every event.

I wish I could give you more information on Mikey, but it looks like he has been a riding horse for quite some time.

Good luck with him and I hope his breathing problems clear up soon.

Rachelle
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Monday, Jun 1, 2009 - 7:55 am:

Deborah I still find the frothy nasal discharge difficult to get a handle on. It could be:
1) normal nasal discharges being run through a unusally turbulent event, causing it to froth.
2) chronic mild irritation that causes more fluid and normal nasal turbulence causes it to froth
3) finally some type of mucopurulent discharge

As to the sound under exercise we have many possibilities and you can read about them at Diseases of Horses » Respiratory System » Noises and Decreased Performance in Exercising Horses: Roarers. To the degree that this represents air flow turbulence it may be related to the discharge. A thorough exam including investigation of the nature of the froth and scoping the upper respiratory track would be a good first step to figuring this out.
DrO
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