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Discussion on Foal born with rapid breathing
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New Member:
Watchman
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Posted on Tuesday, Jun 20, 2006 - 10:01 pm:
Our foal was just born yesterday morning. The delivery was normal, but the mare retained her placenta for approx 10 hrs. She was given oxytocin and we flushed her uterus yesterday and today. The foal is large, strong, & active. But she has had labored, rapid breathing since she was born. Over 100 breaths per minute. They felt around for broken ribs, and didn't find any tender spots or fractures with palpation. We ultrasounded her lungs - found that just the very end tips of the lobes were not inflating. (She had some 'comet tails.' No weazing or coughing. Full CBC work done - everything came back normal - but just a touch dehydrated (she looks more hydrated today). Her temp was 103.5 yesterday, but has been 101.5 since last night. She was given Naxcel, Genasin, UlcerGard yesterday and today (as preventative, I guess?). We put them up in the barn in an air conditioned stall to get away from the heat and humidity yesterday afternoon. It is very comfortable temp inside now. But, what is the cause of her rapid breathing? The vets don't seem to have a clear indcation of what's causing it, other than she's having a hard time regulating her temperature. She's still active, nurses well, no depression or weakness. When can I expect her breathing to get closer to a normal rate? Today she was at 56 breaths/minute. Any suggestions/ideas?
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Tuesday, Jun 20, 2006 - 10:54 pm:
It sounds like it has happened already Amy, since she is now 56 and down from over a hundred. The usual causes of rapid breathing include:- temperature regulation
- blood CO2 (and to a lesser extent O2) regulation
- pain
A normal CBD does not rule out infection and in the absence of other symptoms it should be at the top of the list of possibilities of a foal having problems. We cannot examine your foal Amy so we cannot diagnose the problem but if the folks who are looking closely at your foal do not know why this is happening you should ask to a referral to someone who can figure it out.
DrO
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Member:
Dres
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Posted on Tuesday, Jun 20, 2006 - 10:56 pm:
Amy, lovely foal.. looks like it will gray out as well.. Did the vets ask you to keep the foal contained.? I would think that you would want to keep it quiet till the respiration became normal.. that would be my thoughts..
On the first day God created horses, on the second day he painted them with spots..
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New Member:
Teckelx2
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Posted on Wednesday, Jun 21, 2006 - 2:59 pm:
Hi Amy. I had the same problem and know of others as well. I sent mare and foal to the vet for a week of x-rays, ultrasounds, tracheal wash, etc., etc. My filly had no real temp increase, was acting completely normal in all other respects. Gave fluids for dehydration, antibios, banamine, and brought her home a week and $$$ later - much better but with no clear diagnosis. She's 3 mos now and fine.
I also had a friend with a similar problem with her 3 day old about 3 weeks ago, and it was heat related. Put her in a cooler environment and it cleared up quickly.
Good luck
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New Member:
Watchman
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Posted on Wednesday, Jun 21, 2006 - 8:18 pm:
Thank you all for the input. It's always helpful to have a second opinion. The filly's breathing has continued to settle down over time. About 40 breaths/minute this morning. They've been in the barn 24/7 in full air conditioning since Monday afternoon. The vet is coming out tomorrow morning for a check up - I'm anxious to see what she thinks -
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Member:
36541
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Posted on Wednesday, Jun 21, 2006 - 9:55 pm:
Rapid respirations can be the first sign of sepsis in baby humans - I would think it would be possible for foals as well. Dr O., is it part of the initial workup to do blood cultures on a foal such as this before antibiotics are initiated? If not, I would think that a number of these patients could have septicemia that resolves because they are given IV meds...
Congrats on a such a lovely pair and best wishes
Stacy
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Thursday, Jun 22, 2006 - 8:29 am:
Usually blood cultures are only done in a hospital environment Stacy and would be rare in the field. We do know from surveys that these are often mixed gram negative / positive infections requiring aggressive broad spectrum therapy for the best outcome however.
DrO
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New Member:
showboat
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Posted on Wednesday, May 31, 2017 - 8:27 am:
DR O,
Have a 3 day old foal which has rapid breathing...
Our vet came out and found her normal in all other respects and said to watch her and put a fan on her.
We did with no improvement. After meeting her at the clinic she said take her to LSU. Ultrasound didn't reveal any broken ribs. When u refer to regulation of CO2 and O2, does that resolve or what can be done to resolve it. Vet at LSU tried to get blood gas unsuccessfully.
Any suggestions?
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Thursday, Jun 1, 2017 - 7:10 am:
It depends on the cause of the gas imbalance Olivia. And resolution would depend on correcting the cause. I think more often in foals they are having trouble with temperature regulation or infection including possible pneumonia. LSU needs to continue to look for the cause so it can be corrected.
DrO
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