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  Discussion on Heaves?
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Posted on Tuesday, Jun 6, 2000 - 1:37 pm:

My TWH just turned 4 today. We have 2 paddocks. They've been on grass now for 3 weeks. 4 days ago we moved them to the smaller of the 2 to rest the large one. We have had virtually no rain (maybe 1/2") this spring. However, the grass in this paddock is high (gone to seed) and there are weeds and lots of trees. 2 nights ago we went for a ride. When we haltered them in the paddock I noticed my TWH breathing very heavy. It was the hottest day of the year. 30 Celcius (about 85 for your Fahrenheit types). There was no cough, and a slight clear nasal discharge. He seemed slightly depressed. I cut the ride very short (15 min. of walking only) because I could tell he wasn't right with the world. We put him in the barn for the night with a little hay (they get a small flake of timothy every now and then while they are accustomizing to the grass, which they love. This is last year's hay, but it's still nice hay.

This morning he was his old high-headed smart alec show-off self, running & kicking and chasing the mare around. No heavy breathing, no flared nostrils, no depression.

We have put him back in the small paddock for the day to see what he'll do tonight. We are planning on cutting everything down in this paddock and starting the growth from scratch because a vet suggested to us that he most likely picked up an allergin in the long grass.

Could this heavy breathing been something, anything else besides an allergy? Am I doing the right thing by putting him back to see if it happens again, I don't know how else to rule things out. For sure if he's heavey tonight then I'm sure it's that particular paddock.

Help! I need guidance. Am I on the right track? I want to manage his environment properly, I don't want to run to the drugs just yet if I can help it.

It seems backwards. He's heaving while being outside, and clears up when he's in the barn. Is this just a seasonal thing?

I have read the articles Dr. O. and I'm leaning towards the possibility that it's probably a mild allergic reaction, but that I should monitor it closely and keep him off that paddock for the moment, and try monitoring his environment.

Posted on Wednesday, Jun 7, 2000 - 8:25 am:

Hello Sheri,
Without examining your horse there is no way we can answer your questions. Just because he does again in the paddock does not mean is is allergic to the paddock: it could be the weather (remember humidity and wind speed are important too), perhaps he has a mild virus running through him, maybe he has a neighbor that gets him excited, the list can go on....and we have no way of checking any of this. I certainly see no reason not to go back in the paddock unless it is unshaded and the sun is very hot.

Posted on Wednesday, Jun 7, 2000 - 12:27 pm:

The paddock is very shaded, lots of trees. It just seems strange that when we remove him from the paddock he recovers - I'm not sure if it's because we remove him or because this only affects him during the day. Yes, it has been hot (hotter than usual anyway), very windy and dry all season. There is a donkey in another paddock right beside them but he certainly isn't excited by him, they are all quite good friends now.

I'm hoping this is just a seasonal 'heat of the day' thing. I really don't want to think that my just turned 4 year old horse has heaves already.

After speaking with 3 local vets, but without looking at the horse, they all seem to think that he has a mild case of heaves, probably seasonal and heightened due to the hot, dry, windy conditions we've been experiencing this year.

Dr. O, if he does have a mild virus running through him, does it need to be checked out, or just monitored for now? Would you have this horse checked out by a vet? Or would you wait until he exhibits further symptoms.

Every morning he is bouncy, happy, and breathing normally.

Posted on Wednesday, Jun 7, 2000 - 3:29 pm:

What type of trees do you have? I ask because an acquaintance had enormous problems with one of her horses exhibiting signs of hayfever, etc. and it turned out that he was allergic to a particular type of acacia tree that she had around her property.

Once she removed him from the paddock near the acacia trees, and also had to cut two down that were near the stables, he recovered.

I had never heard of this before or since - but one is always learning new things with horses!

Posted on Wednesday, Jun 7, 2000 - 3:39 pm:

Boy, that's for sure. I can't believe it - but I sure have learned a lot, but every day we seem to learn something new, or a new problem arises. Oh well, it keeps us young.

The trees are just your regular variety of good old fashioned big twisted elms that are everywhere here in western Canada. There are elm trees in the non-offensive paddock also, where he seems to recover.

Actually, today my husband went into this paddock and mowed down all the grass, weeds, everything. The grass was awfully long and gone to seed, and the weeds were tall, all kinds of flowering weeds. I'm sure hoping it is something seasonal and that the season for it is just about over. He is very mildly heavey, but heavey non the less.

Posted on Thursday, Jun 8, 2000 - 7:12 am:

Concerning the mild virus question, I really cannot make that call from here. If you are unsure as to the significance of the symptoms it is always a good time to call the vet out: remember the only thing I have to work with is what you tell me, you may be missing or misinterpreting some important detail. I find even the term heavy breathing means different things to different people.
DrO
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