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Member:
Penner

Posted on Sunday, May 18, 2003 - 4:02 pm:

I just bought a horse that was shipped to me 1100 miles (1st time I ever bought a horse other than locally). He now probably has shipping fever & I wanted to share these things I found about it to all of you - so that maybe you can help prevent it in your horses. I am disgusted with the shipper - he did all of these things wrong. They had assured me my horse would be treated well.

LIMIT STRESS WHEN SHIPPING HORSES
by Bob Mowery, Ph. D. Extension Horse Commodity Coordinator North Carolina Cooperative Extension
Results from several research studies in the United States and Great Britain have provided insight into the effect of transportation on the health and performance of your horse.

Research indicates that trips over twelve hours in duration create the greatest stress on a horse. Dehydration, reduced immune response, respiratory infections, fatigue and reduced muscle function are typically seen as a result of stress in transported horses. Several of the following blood parameters are used to evaluate equine stress in research studies:

cortisol - a hormone that increases with increased stress
glucose/lactate - indicates muscle activity and fatigue
white blood cells - increased levels indicate an active immune system
hematocrit and protein - increased levels indicate dehydration
Blood parameters increase immediately after loading, remain high throughout transportation and take at least 24 hours to return to near normal levels. Researchers believe the loading portion of a trip is the most stressful. Horses that are trained to load with minimal effort have consistently lower blood parameters, which indicate less stress.

To prevent dehydration during transport, horses should be offered water every four hours. Prior to transport, feed the last concentrate mix as a mash to combat potential dehydration during long trips. Add one to two gallons of water to the concentrate mix. Let the mash sit for 10 minutes to permit expansion of the grain prior to feeding. Grain or concentrate mixes should not be provided while traveling or immediately after a trip. Hay, wetted to reduce dust, may be fed free choice during transport. Hay intake helps to retain water in the horse's gastrointestinal tract, which further combats dehydration.

Under ideal hauling conditions horses can safely be hauled 400 miles or eight hours without a break. Surveys indicate that horses hauled in excess of 500 miles without a break encounter more stress-related problems. Ideally horses should be rested, prior to doing intense work, at least one week after long trips involving several consecutive days. Plan a recovery period into a long trip.

Driving technique and properly maintained towing vehicles and trailers will reduce stress on horses. Driving at a smooth consistent rate of speed in trailers with a leaf spring suspension and low-pressure radial tires provides the smoothest ride. Reducing speed to 55 mph or lower when hauling on rough roads reduces the vibration felt on the horses's legs. Vehicles with exhaust pipes exiting out the rear of the vehicle directly at the front of the trailer deposit significantly more exhaust fumes inside the trailer and should be avoided. The inside and roof trailer vents should remain open to maximize air flow, but a direct draft of cold air should be avoided. The inside of trailers should be cleaned on a regular basis to remove feces, urine, hay dust, and eliminate other pathogens. If transported with the rear trailer doors open, debris from the floor will be circulated throughout the trailer and will increase the likelihood of respiration problems.

Shipping fever remains one of the most frequent and severe problems resulting from transportation. It is a form of pleuropneumonia characterized by excess fluid and infection, caused by streptococcus zooepidemicus.

Streptococcus bacteria are normally found in the horse's upper respiratory tract. The presence of a strong, healthy immune system prevents the movement of the bacteria into the lower respiratory tract. The transported horse's challenged immune system permits the movement of bacteria into vital airways, resulting in shipping fever. Unfortunately, since there are so many different variants of the streptococcus zooepidemicus bacteria, shipping fever vaccines are not effective. Research also indicates that dry nasal passages, that occur with moderate dehydration, and an elevated head position, with tips of the ears consistently higher than the withers, contribute to the development of shipping fever. Horses need to be watered frequently and be able to lower their heads to rid their nasal passages of the dust and pathogens frequently found in trailers.

Research has not shown an advantage of reduced stress in horses hauled in either a front load or slant load trailer. When shipped untied, 65% of the horses in a University of California study faced to the rear of the trailer and 35% faced forward. No horse choose the stand at a slant. Horses that are untied and permitted an option to choose their own stance direction showed less stress and recovered quicker from the trip than horses that were tied in a specific direction.

Additional research is needed to determine the ideal amount of recovery time required after long trips. Good management practices, advance training on loading, safe driving practices, and common sense will help ensure a safe ride and a healthy horse.



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Preventing "Shipping Fever"

"Shipping fever" is a serious and potentially fatal disease in horses. The medical name is pleuropneumonia [ploo-row-new-moan-ya], which means infection of the lungs and chest (pleural) cavity. It occurs most often in horses that have been transported long distances (over 500 miles in one trip), hence the common name "shipping fever."

Signs of pleuropneumonia:

depression - mild at first, but may become severe as the disease progresses
disinterest in food - at first the horse may just pick at its food or eat grass and hay but refuse its grain; as the infection worsens the horse may go off feed completely
fever - typically over 102 F, sometimes over 104 F; the horse's temperature may be only slightly elevated at first, and may actually be normal if the horse has been given "bute," Banamine, or other similar drug
increased respiratory rate - mild at first, but becomes more obvious as the disease progresses and lung function deteriorates
abnormal respiratory pattern - breathing is labored, but the horse takes shallow breaths, often with the nostrils flared; in some cases the horse stands with its elbows held out
stiffness - usually because of chest pain and general "malaise" (feeling bad), but may also be due to laminitis ("founder"), which is a fairly common complication of severe pleuropneumonia
colic-like discomfort and restlessness - not seen in every case, it is likely due to chest pain
nasal discharge - uncommon and usually slight when present; a foul odor to the breath is a bad sign
coughing - uncommon; when present, the cough tends to be soft and "wet" sounding; coughing is painful, so the horse tries to suppress the cough
The first signs (which may be subtle) can appear during travel, within the first 24 hours after transport, or up to 2 weeks later.

Two factors are important in the development of shipping fever:

1. Head position

keeping the horse's head at or above chest level for several hours at a time
dramatically increases the number of bacteria in the horse's lower airways

When the horse's head is up, clearance of inhaled particles, mucus, and bacteria from the lungs is decreased. As a result, bacteria that travel down into the lungs from the upper airway (nasal passages and throat) accumulate and multiply in the lungs.

Preventing a horse from lowering its head for 24 hours is enough to cause pneumonia on its own.

in addition, the stress of long-distance transport decreases immune function within the lung for several days

A double whammy - not only are there more bacteria in the lungs, the lungs are less able to deal with them.

2. Particles and other irritants in the horse's air space

dust from hay and bedding materials (e.g. shavings)

Circulation of air through the trailer or truck compartment picks up particles from the floor and the hay net and moves them into the horse's breathing space.

Dust particles and mold spores cause airway inflammation, which causes constriction of the small airways (bronchospasm) and excess mucus production - an excellent environment for bacteria.

exhaust fumes, ammonia from urine, and other airway irritants

These irritants can initiate or aggravate airway inflammation.

Preventing Pleuropneumonia

Pleuropneumonia can quickly become a complex, expensive, medically challenging problem that may have long-term consequences on a horse's health and athletic ability. It is far easier to prevent pleuropneumonia than to treat it successfully. Below are some tips for preventing pleuropneumonia:

1. Keep your horses properly vaccinated against respiratory diseases - influenza, "rhino" (equine herpes virus [EHV] types 1 and 4), and strangles (depending on risk).

Viral respiratory infections compromise the lung's defenses for several weeks and make the lung more prone to secondary bacterial infection. As viral infections are spread most readily when horses congregate (e.g. at shows and other competitions), it is particularly important to keep horses that travel frequently and mix with others current on the viral respiratory vaccines.

2. Horses in good physical condition (fit, and not overweight or underweight) are less likely to become ill, or are more likely to survive the illness.

3. Keep a sensible competition and transport schedule (i.e. don't overdo it!)

4. Avoid transporting horses long distances in hot weather.

5. Avoid transporting horses with respiratory problems (however mild the problem may seem).

6. Do not feed hay during travel, or soak it thoroughly beforehand (and again during travel if it dries out). Also, do not use loose bedding materials, such as shavings, on the floor of the truck or trailer.

7. Do not leave the engine idling for long periods while the horses are loaded, as exhaust fumes can build up in the horse's air space.

8. Modify the truck or trailer compartment so that the horse can get its head down during travel (see below).

9. If such modifications are not possible, limit the time on the truck or trailer to 8 hours/day.
Let the horse get its head down for several hours after each leg of the journey; e.g. allow the horse to graze or put its feed and water at ground level. Short stop-overs (e.g. 30 minutes to 1 hour) are not enough to improve clearance of bacteria from the lung.

It is also worth noting that treatment with penicillin or other antibiotics before or during shipping does not necessarily protect the horse from pleuropneumonia.


Member:
Hwood

Posted on Monday, May 19, 2003 - 10:09 pm:

Dear Penner,
I checked your profile because I was hoping to e-mail you privately, but I will have to post my question here.

First of all, thank you for posting the excellent article on shipping and shipping fever. I sent it on to several friends and farms that ship horses from around the country. I also sent it to several shipping companies and individuals. I am so pleased that the fellow I will be using to ship my horses from Vermont to Colorado next month follows the practices outlined in the article . . . .this guy is great and really puts the horses first.

My question is (and you don't have to answer this on the site if you don't want to) who was the shipper you used to ship your horse? I hope you made him/her/them aware of your displeasure and sent them a copy of the article.

You can e-mail me at: hollysjubilee@hotmail.com
Thanks,
Holly
Member:
Penner

Posted on Tuesday, May 20, 2003 - 2:54 pm:

Hi Holly,

I emailed you..
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