Help! Please! Urgent!

[TamaraC]

Well I have just been bopping along with this little incident, paying no mind to it, till I mentioned it on a horse chat. All of a sudden they are jumping down my throat and WOAH. Apparently this is more serious than anyone thought.
They mentioned a coggins test to determine age and i was like i have no idea what that is...they said it needs to be done because he can have diseases that are dormant and give it to others. And i said well funny you should say that because i am in an argument with a barn he was at for like 2 weeks while i waited for my spot in the barn he is at now. The barn he was at before (i have only had him 3 months) is blaming him for making their horses sick with this thing that is making their jowls swell up. And all of a sudden everyone on cchat is going STRANGLES STRANGLES STRANGLES the barn should be shut down...like, wow :/
The scary thing is that one of the horses from that barn was traded with one from the new barn. And the horses from the old barn came to his new barn for 3 weeks while they moved to a new stable they bought. One of them was separated before the disease was evident, and mixed in with a bunch of yearlings. ALL of the horses from the other stable, who were separated, are moved now...and ALL of them are sick. The scariest part is, the one who was sick that was traded and at our barn now, is in the same pasture as my horse. The vet said it was a 'mild case' of strangles and not to be worried. He also never told me anything about coggins or getting things checked out for my new horse.
Should I be upping the panic level or be taking a "quiet" pill? They really had me upset...like I don't know how to take care of my horse and I am a failure as an owner..
I just don't get why, if he has it, that the horses in the new place havn't gotten it yet! just the horses from the old barn!! I'm very confused...

[Tootsie4U]

When was his last coggins done? When was the last time he was immunized in general? If you dont have documentation to tell you, I'd be panicking too. No offense.

Stangles can be fatal. And, it spreads like wildfire. The horses who have any suspect symptoms should be quaratined immediately. The other horses should be monitored.

In my area, strange horses are not even allowed on the barn without immunization documentation and a current coggins. If they dont have any, the dont come onto the property. Its that serious.

Please check into his health records. Find out when he was last immunized. Find out what the resutls of his coggins was. Take that information to your new barn as proof that your horse isnt the one spreading the disease. If you dont have this information, assume that he hasnt had it done and have a vet out ASAP. For his sake and the sake of all the horses he is in contact with.

[TamaraC]

That's just it :eek: I DON'T have any of that info...NOTHING. I told my vet i had nothing and when my horse hurt himself he said all you need is tetnus...I am calling a new vet right now ....I feel sick...:mad: Our vet thodl the owners it's a "mild case" and now the infected horse is out with all the others :mad:

[Tootsie4U]

Laws over here require coggins and immunizations for horses like they do dogs and cats. I know that coggins testing is a strange thing and its only required every other year or something but common practice is to do it every year. Not 100% sure, but something like that.

I have a horrible memory, but I think Wally on here has had some experience with stangles. Check with her to get her opinion on your situation. I do know that if he was my horse he would not be out with the infected one!

[Mehitabel]

as tootsie said, strangles is extremely contagious. i wouldn't have my uninfected horse out with one who had it - even a mild case.

in the uk, common practice for strangles is to isolate the infected horses and treat with antibiotics and observe strict barrier nursing rules - separate feed buckets, rugs, grooming kit, handler, everything -and disinfect everything that might come into contact with another horse.
when all infected horses have been clear of it for 4 weeks and no new cases have started, then you can go back to mixing them.

it is potentially nasty, but these days is very rarely fatal unless one of the abcesses bursts internally and infects the bloodstream.

[sallym]

Hi Tamara

Don't be so hard on yourself, you can't be expected to know everything right from the start. Why not call your vet and ask about the strangles isolation procedures s/he recommends, Coggins test and any other routine vaccinations you should have? I don't know if the Coggins test is needed in all parts of North America - we don't have it at all in the UK.

Best wishes

Sally

[TBEventer2002]

Coggins and shots are required before moving a horse to a new place, as someone mentioned. Commonly in the US, Coggins test are usually taken every year. In order to go to any shows in your home state, a current (within one year) Coggins must be available. If you travel to an out-of-state show, the Coggins must be within the past 6 months, plus a health certificate -- at least, that has been my personal experiences.

My filly had strangles when she was about 4 months old. She also ended up with pnemonia at the same time because my then-trainer kept telling me she would be fine so I didn't have the vet out. Beevy barely lived and now I am abosolutely adament about vaccinations against strangles.

EDITED PART

In regards to the vaccinations: as long as you are sure the shots have not been done within the past couple of months, it is perfectly safe to give a complete round of shots to the horse. If you have any doubt about what they have been given, do boosters in 3 to 6 weeks. I did that with my mare and filly with the strangles -- I couldn't remember if they had it last year [was in hurry and didn't have vet records on hand immediately] so I just gave them the regular dose and gave a booster three weeks later.

[JustBetMe]

Everyone here has good advice. If you don't know the vaccination history of the horse (and can't get it) I would schedule the vet to do the basic vacc's. At the barn where I board I believe we do the flu, strangles, rabies, and tetanus in the spring. In the fall it might be the flu again (can't remember off hand).

Strangles is highly contagious. A good/knowledgeable barn owner shouldn't put possibly infected horses out in the herd. Strict quarantine is the only way to be sure it isn't passed through to the herd.

There is one mare at my barn that was forever changed after having strangles. She isn't right in the head so to speak, was normal before. The disease affected her brain/nervous system and she will never be useable for anything but being a buddy horse or broodmare.

Coggins test has nothing to do with Strangles...

[TBEventer2002]

Coggins are for checking if the horse has EIA -- equine infectious anemia. I have never seen a horse with this... What exactly is it like?

[lisae]

TBEventer is right, the Coggins test is specific to a single disease and it isn't strangles. They are that strict about the Coggins tests because the disease it's keeping in check (EIA) is under control. It would be very rare to see a case of EIA in the northeast since it's a virus spread by biting insects and more common to the hot southern states. BUT it is possible to get it anywhere, obviously. There was a big outbreak a couple of years ago at a sale barn in Pennsylvania. EIA has a 50% mortality rate and the survivors have long term neurological effects and have to be kept in separate quarters with mosquito screens! because there is some fear they continue to spread the virus even though they recovered themselves.

Strangles is a nasty staph or strep bacteria that is becoming antibiotic resistant and so the high level of response needed. Quarantine your horse that has it and get your healthy one away from even a 'mild case'. When bringing new horses into your barn, that's why they recommend keeping them apart for 10 days, especially if they came from a barn with lots of horses in and out. But strangles at least has a treatment protocol...

[Nerys]

Some Information...
http://www.michigan.gov/mda/0,1607,7-125-1566_2310_2411---,00.html

Prepared by the Michigan Department of Agriculture
Animal Industry Division (517) 373-1077

Initial signs of EIA may include: an intermittent or continuous fever (sudden rise from 100 degrees Farenheit to 105 degrees Farenheit), profuse sweating, rapid breathing, depression, and weight loss (even though the animal continues to eat well). Disease signs occur 7 to 21 days after primary infection.

The initial signs of EIA pass quickly into one of four patterns: acute, subacute, chronic, or carrier.

Acute cases are more the exception than the rule. These animals rarely survive and can die within 3 to 10 days after the virus enters the bloodstream.

Subacute cases can also be very sick and then become chronic. These animals exhibit no signs of the disease for a long time, then progress to a state of continuing weight loss, rough hair coat, and anemia. Relapses of increasing severity are common.

Chronic cases may have occasional attacks and develop classic symptoms which can include a poor hair coat, weight loss, weakness, anemia, and swelling of the lower legs, chest, and abdomen. These signs will later subside, but may never recur. These symptoms commonly develop after stress from hard work, hot weather, pregnancy, or from other diseases.

Carrier animals appear to be healthy, but harbor the agent of the disease. An animal will carry the virus for its entire life and never show signs of the disease, but it is potentially able to transmit the disease. These animals may develop into acute or chronic cases after hard work, severe stress, or from other diseases.


EIA is transmitted by the exchange of certain bodily fluids, usually blood, from an infected to a noninfected animal. One mode of transmission is through insect bites. Horseflies, stable flies, and deer flies are blood feeders. Their bites are painful, and an animal often interrupts the insects' feeding, forcing them to relocate. A fly usually will have residual blood on its mouth parts from an interrupted meal. If the fly moves from an infected to a noninfected animal, the virus may be introduced into the noninfected animal when the insect breaks the skin.

The virus is also transmitted by mechanical means. Instruments, such as hoof knives, needles (tattooing or bleeding), syringes, etc., that were previously used and contaminated with blood from an infected animal are mechanical procedures of infecting a healthy animal. Blood transfusions have also been implicated in transmitting the virus.

During gestation, if the levels of virus in the blood are high enough, transplacental infection of the foal is possible. Approximately 10 percent of foals delivered from infected mares are infected at birth and remain life-long carriers of the virus. Because of the presence of maternal antibodies to the virus in the mare's colostrum, foals born to infected mares will themselves be antibody positive at 24 hours of age. Maternally acquired passive antibodies should be gone by six months of age. If the foal is infected at birth, its own antibodies will persist after six months.