Chirpy cheep cheep
Jazz has come back in tonight all chirpy and apparently back to his usual self. His neck is right back to the right size, which only goes to emphasize to me just how swollen it was. No wonder the poor boy had trouble swallowing. I thought his breathing was pretty shallow too, and I think his airway must have been being crushed by the swelling. Anyway, all better now. "All" we have to do is to make sure he never gets that adjuvant again, or it could kill him next time. Of course we don't know if he'll get a reaction to a different one or not. I've agreed with my vet that we will inject him at the hospital and leave him there all day in case something goes wrong.
I've heard of reactions like this before, but I've never seen one. A horse I once sold (also a bright chestnut) had a bad reaction after I sold him. For the moment, I have no option but to have him done again next February if I want to compete him, but if he gets another bad turn I believe I can ask for dispensation for him to compete without flu cover. I'm more worried about the prospect of him being without tetanus. Flu won't kill him, tetanus could easily wipe him out. Still, these are things to be faced some time in the future.
Meanwhile, my vet is reporting this bad reaction to the manufacturers in case there is a problem with the batch. She says that as reactions go, this one was pretty severe. I['ve certainly never seen a horse cramp up and shake like it.
Of course Jazz had today off. I rode Zippy, and I am beginning to ask him to do proper work now that he is approaching four. He doesn't always want to, and he always starts a session wanting to skip around and go faster than a walk. He's certainly very lively when you first get on these days :-)!
He did some very high quality work, shoulder in, travers, lovely trot transitions. In between times he backed off and went wiggly and didn't want to work straight. But on the whole he is doing really well for such a baby. I'm looking forward to getting him outdoors and having more space to work in. It felt like spring today, so perhaps not too long now.
C
posted by cptrayes @ 6:01 PM
8 comments
8 Comments:
Good news indeed. Rumor has it chestnuts do tend to be more sensitive. At least your vet is on top of this.
I know people develop allergies without warning, so I suppose horse would be no different.
so pleased he's recovering!
I didn't know you could get exemption from the flu jab requirement! glad to hear it
I think even British Eventing would be pushed to insist that you kill your horse in order to compete it :-) Controlling flu depends on herd immunity, which I think is something like 80% of animals immune. It doesn't depend on one individual horse, so they can make an exemption if my vet writes to expain why.
I think chestnuts are worst Jean, I've seen more spookiness and sensitivity in mine and my friends' chestnuts than in any other colour. Not to say other colours aren't sensitive, just that less of them are than chestnuts.
C
What a terrible fright you had. Glad to know he is getting better.
I hadn't heard about an exemption either, but it sounds very sensible.
I have heard of reactions to flu but never to tetanus. What does the vet say. I think your vets sound excellent - most just say that the stories of bad reactions are just that - stories.
Mine is chestnut too and his skin is very sensitive. He has a bare patch where he had his flu jab. There was a lump there (which I have never seen before) and having a rub at it all the hair has come out! Luckily I think it is growing OK underneath, but I suppose that was a skin reaction to the antiseptic the vet put on before she injected him.
Judith
Phew pleased he's recovering!
Polo's only ever had tetanus injections.Ive always been worried about the side effects of the flu jabs but hopefully you can make your case and wont have to risk it again.
Nicola
Nicola, I read once about one horse which has FEI dispensation because it is so allergic to the jabs. So I assume that BE would do the same, though that may be a wrong assumption. I've got to give him at least one more try with a different manufacture first though. I'd be far too worried for him to be without tetanus cover unless it was unavoidable.
I've never seen a lump with a flu jab either Judith. But my vet told me that is a local reaction to the injection, which stings a bit in sensitive horses.
If you are worried about his being without tetanus cover, you can have his antibody titre measured - that should give you a good idea of his level of immunity. If he's had a full initial course and a couple of boosters it's highly likely that he'll be good to go for a few years without any further boosters.
My friend Jane who is a small animal vet always gives ferrets an antihistamine BEFORE vaccinating them against distemper, keeps them in the waiting room for an hour or so afterwords "just in case" and sends them home with anti-his cover for the next 24 hours. Something like that would work for Jazz, too, I am sure - although the dosage of antihistamine would be rather greater than that for a ferret!
Michaela
Ferret = lests say 500 grammes if it's a big fat one. Jazz =632 kilos. That'd be 1264 times the antihistamine :-))))) Good thought Michaela, I'll talk to the vet about that.
C
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