Basil is back on
his Dilateral Syrup for a few days. This
helps him with his breathing because at this time of year he often has
problems. In past years he has had quite
bad attacks and I have had to call the vet to give him an injection of drugs to
help him breathe. The attacks seem to
come on very suddenly with little warning.
As we move into spring
Basil gets swollen just where his head meets his neck, his lymph nodes, this
swelling tends to come and go but I now know it is a sign that he needs to have
some help breathing. He seems to be
allergic to some type of pollen, or many types, but he is worst and has had
most of his attacks at the end of May/early June.
So, for the last 3
years I have used a prevention method and given him a helping hand to prevent
any attacks, he was alright last year,
so I have my fingers crossed for this year!
The vets have told me it is a type of Recurrent Airway Obstruction, this
is most often seen as a result of dust from hay or straw bedding. However, Basil does not suffer in the winter
and always seems better in the spring/summer after spending a few hours in the
stable - so I have concluded it is a pollen allergy. He does not show any other symptoms of an
allergy; he doesn't shake his head or anything, it is just his breathing that
is affected.
To explain a bit
more I thought I would use a blog post I wrote a while ago:
Recurrent
Airway Obstruction
What is it
RAO is common, it
limits performance and is an allergic respiratory disease. There are 2 forms of
RAO in horses one which is associated with stabled horses which are fed hay and
also summer pasture associated RAO seen in pasture kept horses.
Signs
·
Respiratory
difficulty
·
Flared
nostrils
·
Heave
line:- When the abdominal muscles help with breathing they can increase in size
and so leading to the heave line.
·
Rapid
breathing
·
Laboured
expiration
·
Wheezing:-
occurs when the air is flowing through narrowed airways.
·
Crackles:-
due to excessive mucus production.
·
Chronic
cough
·
Nasal
discharge
·
Cough
during feeding or exercise
·
Loss
of performance
Causes
Usually seen when
susceptible horses are exposed to common allergens. It is thought to be the lungs
hypersensitivity to inhaled allergens. These
are often mould or dust found in straw or hay but can be a certain type of
pollen, often oil seed rape is the culprit.
The small airways become inflamed and narrow, mucus is produced and
these lead to the signs mentioned earlier.
Diagnosis
The average age at
which a horse develops RAO is 9 years old. It can occur in any breed but there
does seem to be a genetic susceptibility.
Usually RAO is
diagnosed from a physical examination and the horse's history as there is
little to be seen from blood tests.
Radiographs may show changes to the diaphragm.
Treatment & Prevention
Environmental
management is the most important treatment and preventative measure. This is a long term commitment as horses with
RAO will always be susceptible. Horses
that suffer only mildly can often be kept healthy without drugs.
The most common
causes are dusts present in hay and straw.
Sufferers should be kept at
pasture as much as possible with fresh grass as the source of roughage. Round bale hay has been found to be
particularly allergenic.
Horses that must be
stabled should be fed soaked/steamed hay or haylage. Straw should not be used as bedding, an
alternative low in dust should be chosen.
The horse should not be stabled close to an indoor arena or a
haystore. The bedding should not be
thrown around and sweeping should be avoided close to a sufferer.
Horses with summer
associated RAO should be kept in a dust free stable environment.
Corticosteroid can
be given to reduce the pulmonary inflammation but these should be avoided in
horses or ponies at risk of laminitis. Bronchodilators
(eg: Ventipulmin) can relieve obstruction of the airways by relaxing the
muscles around the walls of the airways. They can be given as powder in food or
inhaled using a special mask.
Have
a look at my blog about the Respiratory System to understand
more about how this works.
Have you seen my last video 'One May Day' to my You Tube channel?
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Until next time!
Jo
