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 Uh....never mind
Posts: 2696
   
Location: Midwest Farmer's Daughter: Central Illinois | I just need to vent. And sorry for the book. Also if anyone has SUCCESS stories to share they are welcome. No flaming, no lectures, no "you should do this" unless you have had SUCCESS.
I've talked about my rodeo horse on here a lot. When I bought him I was told he had seasonal allergies (April-November) & the previous owner managed them by soaking his hay, he was on TriHist & she also gave him 5ccs Dex every other day. I had pasture so I wasn't worried about hay at that point.
The first season I owned him, I ran him hard & won a couple of rodeos & money in the 2D/3D at different shows. He got hay every trailer ride (sometimes wetted, sometimes not). I had him on AE Detox, Trihist & Dex. However, I crashed his system Dexing him. I turned him out for the winter on a big pasture & he vetted completely 100% clean that February - did a lung scope & flush - no signs of respiratory issues whatsoever. I was so excited that he was healed up.
Brought him back this year after doing a LOT of research. I had him on an antihistamine, AE Detox & Immune, he got Vicks in his nose, (which he hated) banamine & Air Power before we left for each show/rodeo & Dex only if he was having a rough time that day. I built a hay steamer for him so that when I did have to feed hay, he wasn't breathing in all of the garbage but still getting the nutrients that are generally lost when hay is wetted down. I moved & he is no longer in the nice big pasture he was in so I have to hay now.
He wasn't the same - he just didn't have the go. He went from a 2D/rodeo horse to a 4D crack horse. Kathy George told me that he didn't feel like he was in as good of shape as he would like to be & I will admit I didn't ride him as much as I should have, but his issues were more mental. He would work himself up before a run: he looked & sounded like he was going to pass out & then afterwards he would settle down. I had people voice their concerns to me, he was that bad.
The air has cooled, he hasn't been run for a month, he's getting steamed hay & 1# grain 2X a day. Except he is still wheezing like it's the middle of August. I am just SO FRUSTRATED. I'm looking into cubes & pellets to replace the hay & also a timed feeder so that he is getting a steady stream of feed like he would if he were grazing on pasture. I am also planning on vetting him again & also having an allergy test done to see what they come up with. Other than keeping him in a sealed, air-conditioned stall, I'm just at a loss, & the frustration & guilt are overwhelming.
So again, if anyone has SUCCESS stories with their wheezer, please feel free to share. Otherwise, thanks for the complaint space. |
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 Arriving at the last minute!
Posts: 5148
Location: Kansas | Try dosing him with French's Mustard for a while. If I have a horse having respiratory issues I even squirt it in the feed and it clears up. It has to be French's. And its the tumeric/cucurmin. I would try holistic stuff to heal him and many are so against herbs but if you exhausted all other things what do you have to lose??? There is a lung meridian going down the inside of the front leg to the hoof. Its starts at the front of his chest. You can google and research that stuff. I feel your pain and it sounds like you are a wonderful owner and you really care! |
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Uh....never mind
Posts: 2696
Location: Midwest Farmer's Daughter: Central Illinois | amy laymon - 2013-12-03 10:37 AM Try dosing him with French's Mustard for a while. If I have a horse having respiratory issues I even squirt it in the feed and it clears up. It has to be French's. And its the tumeric/cucurmin. I would try holistic stuff to heal him and many are so against herbs but if you exhausted all other things what do you have to lose??? There is a lung meridian going down the inside of the front leg to the hoof. Its starts at the front of his chest. You can google and research that stuff. I feel your pain and it sounds like you are a wonderful owner and you really care!
Thank you Amy - I really will do anything I need to if it will get him feeling better & back to normal.
How much mustard per feed? I will try that.
I am not against herbal remedies. I will research the meridian & see what options there are out there.
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 Expert
Posts: 1218
Location: Great NW | Have you spoke with Bob at Total Health Enhancement? THE products have worked on every issue I have used them for. I have not had deal with the allergies you are dealing with. But maybe Bob has something that could work. |
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  Sweet Tea
Posts: 3496
Location: Home of the World Famous "Silver Bullet" | we have a 1d gelding who is not as bad but is right there. he is on 2-3 cc's ventipulmin twice a day and it helps. we use grans albutrual breathing machine, it helps. he also gets spirulina tabs, that we send though the coffee grinder. it helps too. we have done everything you have.
try a stall or dirt lot him when its hot and there is high humidity. our guy is allergic to the bactria that is nutrually accurring in grass when the humidity is high. |
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 Owner of a ratting catting machine
Posts: 2258
| 21 days of Ventipulmin at the treatment dose, then back off and hit a good middle ground treatment dose. A homemade nebulizer bag, and a nebulizer with a whopping dose of albuterol sulfate before any work. Prednisone course with doxycycline to get him cleaned up for ten days. You must get the inflammation out. Nebulizer online, all meds at your vet.
Get your dust under control. Period. Take him to alfalfa pellets, beet pulp pellets, and Triple Crown Complete. No hay.
Keep his pen soaked. No dust. Keep his feet painted to guard against thrush.
If you can, get him into an open stall with a floor, shavings soaked work best
Choice of Champions has LungAid. Very helpful supplement, also advocate OxyMax.
I have horrible athsma. Not breathing well is terrifying, painful, and weakening.
Been there, done that with my good gelding a few years ago. With better management, I got it under control.
Dex by itself and over the counter supplements just won't do it. |
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Uh....never mind
Posts: 2696
Location: Midwest Farmer's Daughter: Central Illinois | speedjunkie - 2013-12-03 10:55 AM Have you spoke with Bob at Total Health Enhancement? THE products have worked on every issue I have used them for. I have not had deal with the allergies you are dealing with. But maybe Bob has something that could work.
I have spoken with Bob & he gave me a quote for a specialized mixture that I may try next year. |
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Uh....never mind
Posts: 2696
Location: Midwest Farmer's Daughter: Central Illinois | I forgot to mention that I do have an Albuterol inhaler for him as well.
I have stayed away from Ventipulmin because, correct me if I'm wrong, it increases heart rate & that wasn't something I felt was right for him.
CPC- I will PM you.
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Owner of a ratting catting machine
Posts: 2258
| If it isn't a nebulizer, the droplets are too big to make it all the way into his lungs. Ventipulmin is a stronger version of albuterol. Both raise his heart rate. I can sympathize with your feelings of his heart rate, but is him not breathing and panicking doing anything differently? When I can't breathe, and I'm laying flat in a hospital bed, my heart rate has been all the way to 160 beats per minute just trying to stay breathing. I bet his heart rate would be better on Ventipulmin. Just a thought. |
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Veteran
Posts: 223
Location: Louisiana | I have had success with the Spirulina Powder as well. My vet also gave me a very low dose Dex Powder to 10mg per serving to keep my gelding on in the summer. I do run him on clembuteral but do not give it to him on a daily basis. I do soak his hay. The Spirulina does take about three weeks to get in their system.
Good luck - it seems that it is always the good ones that have these kinds of issues. |
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 Living on the edge of common sense
Posts: 24138
Location: Carpenter, WY | RLB - 2013-12-03 8:48 AM amy laymon - 2013-12-03 10:37 AM Try dosing him with French's Mustard for a while. If I have a horse having respiratory issues I even squirt it in the feed and it clears up. It has to be French's. And its the tumeric/cucurmin. I would try holistic stuff to heal him and many are so against herbs but if you exhausted all other things what do you have to lose??? There is a lung meridian going down the inside of the front leg to the hoof. Its starts at the front of his chest. You can google and research that stuff. I feel your pain and it sounds like you are a wonderful owner and you really care! Thank you Amy - I really will do anything I need to if it will get him feeling better & back to normal.
How much mustard per feed? I will try that.
I am not against herbal remedies. I will research the meridian & see what options there are out there.
I've skipped the mustard and just bought the spice Tumeric and topdressed feed with a tablespoon.
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The Advice Guru
Posts: 6419
| I had one horse that was on Flovent he would get 10 sprays via aero chamber twice per day. This kept his lungs clean no wheezing.
I also second the ventipulmin yes it can increase the heart rate but not being able to breathe can increase the heart rate more. |
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 Expert
Posts: 5290
| I have a horse that allergic to dust. Ventipulman when he runs and Inhaler if needed. Ventipulman and Albuterol are not the same thing. One is clenbuterol. Yes it makes them jumpy a little but learn how long to give before a race so its still effective and no jitters. FOr my horse it is 5-6 hours 5cc. My vet warned me about giving just pelleted feed and eliminating hay all together. It can really increase chances of colic. Instead I use a slow feed hay net with really small holes. That way he can't bury his face in it. Seems to be working. |
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 Coyote Country Queen
Posts: 5666
| I've been dealing with a breathing issue with my mare. Noticed it almost immediately when I started her as a 3 year old. She's now 5, and I think I've finally found something that works. She has been scoped two different times, and both times only found minor irritation. The vet that scoped recommended Ventipulmin prior to riding and Lasix and Ventipulmin for runs. I was getting along well with this. When I ran out of Ventipulmin, my local vet suggested I try Tri-Hist daily, and continue the Lasix for runs. Also felt like this was working. Unfortunately, the back order of Tri-Hist left me looking for something else. I found a product called Super Wind from Gateway Products and feel like this has actually made my mare feel the best. They make a paste and liquid, and I'm using the liquid. It has honey, apple cider vinegar, menthol, alcohol, eucalyptus oil, and lemon juice. The first time I ran her on this product I couldn't believe how good her breathing felt. I think she couldn't believe it either, because she was running so hard she almost forgot to turn! I'm still using the Lasix for runs, and the Super Wind anytime that we'll be doing a decent workout or making a run.
I think that my mare probably has a dust allergy. She seems to feel better after we get some moisture. But we've been in a drought for several years, and there really isn't anything I can do to fix the dust problem, just waiting on Mother Nature! We do wet down her hay and feed her on a rubber mat that we sweep off prior to feeding.
I don't know if this would help your horse or not, since yours is a seasonal allergy rather than a dust allergy. But it's a pretty inexpensive product that might be worth trying. |
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Coyote Country Queen
Posts: 5666
| FLITASTIC - 2013-12-03 1:02 PM
I have a horse that allergic to dust. Ventipulman when he runs and Inhaler if needed. Ventipulman and Albuterol are not the same thing. One is clenbuterol. Yes it makes them jumpy a little but learn how long to give before a race so its still effective and no jitters. FOr my horse it is 5-6 hours 5cc. My vet warned me about giving just pelleted feed and eliminating hay all together. It can really increase chances of colic. Instead I use a slow feed hay net with really small holes. That way he can't bury his face in it. Seems to be working.
I agree about them burying their noses in the hay. With my horse, we wet the hay down then spread it out so she can't bury her nose in it. |
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 Vodka for Lunch
Location: Lala Land | I have one with Recurrent Airway.... I started feeding hay in a big tractor tire on the ground he did have a raised feeder (I read a vet article that said that could help for them to eat on the ground so the mucus will drain), I feed Triple Crown, he gets Flax powder also, and when it was hot & muggy I had good luck with Lung Aid or Silver Lining Respiratory. I tried Oxy-gen 2x at first but he would still cough. I put a Vicks type rub I found at tack store in his nose and down his neck before I ride, luckily I haven't had to use Ventipulmen after the first month of diagnosis. I hope you find something that works for him!! |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 999
Location: Sunny So Cal | I saw earlier that you talked to Bob and he already quoted you. But I am a firm believer because he fixed my horse with severe allergies. I had him base it off of her blood test. She was having severe breathing problems, I didn't even want to ride her because I could hear her wheeze. He is worth every penny. |
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 Firecracker Dog Lover
Posts: 3175
| I had one that coughed without fail at the beginning of every spring. Not to the severity that you have but I put a bag of Silver Lining Respiratory through her and she never had the problem again. Also - I love THE products and I'd give it a try for sure. If they don't work they have a money back guarantee. Good luck to you. |
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