03/28/2024
GARY UPDATE
Not a ton of change with our guy so far. His external abscesses have improved greatly and are healing.
His internal ones still need work. His medical team has added another antibiotic and some gastrointestinal meds to help offset the side effects (loose manure).
Dr. Marchitello explained to me that this will take a long time. He has many internal abscesses in his lungs, chest cavity and abdominal area. He will be in the hospital until his abscesses are under control and then he will move to a rehab center for a few months. This process cannot be rushed.
This is one of the worst cases of strangles we’ve seen and we’ve had to send four donkeys and two minis for hospitalization from this last group due to how nasty this strain of strangles has been.
We have seven others under close monitoring and even had to perform an emergency tracheotomy in the field due to the guttural abscesses in the lymph node area literally asphyxiating one of our younger horses. If we did not have a vet and several vet techs onsite checking the horses every day, and did not keep such a close eye on every single horse— I am positive we would have lost one.
Strangles is a highly contagious bacterial disease caused by Streptococcus equi equi. It is characterized by swelling of the lymph nodes and the formation of abscesses, primarily in the head and neck.
Disease severity varies and younger horses often exhibit more severe clinical signs than older horses.
The prognosis for uncomplicated cases is good, and some horses develop an immunity to S. equi that can last for at least five years.
Cases of uncomplicated strangles often recover fully. When complications occur (which happens in 10% of cases overall), such as in Gary’s case, the disease can have a mortality rate of up to 40%. Some horses become carriers that appear healthy but harbor S. equi bacteria in the guttural pouches. These carriers can intermittently shed the bacteria, creating a reservoir of chronically infected animals that perpetuate the disease in the population.
Strangles is not deadly… until it is. And this years strain is virulent and nasty. All of my vets from three separate states have reported numerous outbreaks with terrible side effects in PA, MD and VA. Thankfully they are experienced in dealing with strangles from working with us and are educating and working to help stop the spread.
If you’re planning to rescue a horse from an auction, or to adopt from a rescue that doesn’t do gold standard quarantine — please quarantine with a reputable provider AND be sure to strangles test!
Not familiar with gold standard quarantine? Scroll up and read our pinned post!
This is nothing to fool around with for sure.
Fingers crossed for Mr. Gary and everyone else affected by this terrible disease.
