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  Discussion on Unusual Breathing? Noise
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Member:
Canter

Posted on Monday, May 22, 2006 - 1:21 pm:

Hi All,
Last Sunday, I was walking my mare, warming her up before I climbed up into the saddle for a lesson. As we walked, she made a very unusual noise. Hard to describe, but it was almost a nickering noise, but kind of wet and bubbly sounding. Then, her pasture mate called from outside and my horse called back and the noise went away - almost as if she needed to clear her throat. I decided to ride and got on and heard the noise just a few more times as we continued to warm up at the walk. By the time we were fully warmed up and I started a lesson, the noise had stopped. I listened very carefully as we worked & didn't hear it again - nor did my trainer her it. My mare worked very well, plenty energetic and all seemed fine.

Since then, I have not heard the sound again and have watched her carefully and she has worked well this past week, so I started to put it out of my mind. Then, last night, after my ride, I noticed some creamy discharge out of one nostril and she was making a lot of faces (which she normally does only when I tighten the girth) & sticking her tongue out as I cooled her down, groomed and eventually turned her back out. I watched her for a bit out in the pasture and she had no trouble chomping down the hay I tossed out for her.

So, now, I'm paranoid and am wondering if I'm missing some sort of respiratory infection.

She has not been off the farm in 2 years, but the owner's daughter does show, so 2 of the horses have been taken on and off the property quite a few times already this spring. However, both those horses are kept several pastures over & don't come into contact with my mare (and neither exhibit any signs of illness).

So, is there cause for concern or am I being neurotic (as usual?). I'm assuming that if she was ill, she wouldn't have the energy, or would be off her feed, or something...? Any ideas?

Thanks,
Fran
Member:
Suzeb

Posted on Monday, May 22, 2006 - 9:20 pm:

Hello Fran,

She is out on spring pasture and you threw her some of last years hay. This is all assumptions on my part. Is she going for the dry hay or the pasture?
Member:
Canter

Posted on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 - 8:07 am:

Hi Susan,
You are correct: she is out on pasture (almost 24/7, except in really bad weather) but the pasture has already been grazed down so we are supplementing with what's left of last fall's hay. That being said, the hay still looks quite good and doesn't appear dusty/moldy or spoiled in any way.

BTW, I rode again last night and although I didn't hear the strange noise at all, by the time we were done, she had the nasal discharge again (she doesn't start out this way) in the one nostril. Last night, it didn't appear quite as "thick" as it did the previous night. Again, she was plenty energetic and willing to work.

The only thing I can think of that we are doing different is that I'm trying to make my "arena" horse more comfortable working outside of the boundaries of a fence. After a workout in the arena, I've been walking her to an open field where we do a little walk & trot and lateral work. Once she relaxes and starts to really listen, I call it quits. She seems to really enjoy this and both of our comfort levels are going way up. Once we are done, as a reward, I allow her to have a nibble at the grasses in the field. Then she's cooled out, tack is removed and we walk back to the field for some real grazing before I put her back in her pasture.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 - 8:48 am:

I do think you have a mild URT infection, or recovering from one. It would be like when you get a mild runny noise but no fever or malaise. This is unlikely to be a problem, other than what you have noted already, and will resolve over the next few weeks. If there is no fever or signs of malaise, you can continue to work.
DrO
Member:
Canter

Posted on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 - 12:57 pm:

Thank you DrO. I'll keep an eye on things, but sounds like there's not much to worry about. With a young daughter, I'm all too familiar with snotty noses (in people, anyway!). I'll do the same for my mare as I do with my daughter...wipe away the yuck and watch carefully for anything else to develop.
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