ridecamp@endurance.net: Re: Dryland Distemper

Re: Dryland Distemper

Lynn Kinsky (lkinsky@silcom.com)
Fri, 17 Oct 1997 08:35:36 -0800

>REPLY TO 10/17/97 07:40 FROM ridecamp@endurance.net: Dryland Distemper
>
>
>Has anyone else had experiences with dryland? The experts really don't know
>too much about it. It seems to hit horses randomly (at least no one I know
>can find a pattern). Anyway, we're trying learn as much as possible so that
>we can effectively treat these guys. Right now, its with antibiotics but my
>friend is going to try some homeopathic remedies.
>
>All and any info would be appreciated! Thanks.
>
>Carol Barrett
>Tehachapi, CA

Local vets reccomend
>AGAINST antibiotice. Reason is when you feel the lump, you WANT
>it to abcess as soon as possible. On the big mare, I put hot
>compressed over the abcess to encourage it to come to a head. If
>you inhibit the progression of the abcess with antibiotics, you run
>the risk of it rupturing internally. This happened to a horse
>down the road, and it almost died, hence the warning from the vets.
>Both my horses had the abcess for about a week, then it pretty much
>healed up.

Dryland is coming on strong in this area as well, and the vets STRONGLY
recommend against antibiotics. I've only had two horses (out of the 10
that I keep) who have ever had it, one of them twice. The abscess looks
awful (the swelling of the chest is why it's also called pigeon fever) but
once drained and cleaned out it heals just fine without any scarring. A
little bute will comfort the horse during the initial achy period before
the abscess ripens, but that's all that's needed in an uncomplicated case.
Apparently it's caused by a corynea bacterium that stays as spores in the
ground usually -- and then it's the flies that spread it. I put the
affected horse in a stall, and then clean the stall with disinfectant
afterwards as a precaution.

-- Lynn K. (Santa Ynez, CA)
http://www.silcom.com/~lkinsky

Home Events Groups Rider Directory Market RideCamp Stuff