Severe Allergies - please HELP!!!

[MGA828]

This past summer my horse has been suffering big time from allergies, it has been so bad and the vet has been out so many times that I have spent over $3,000 just in the past couple of months on vet bills to get his allergies under control and his symptoms cleared up, however each time they are cleared up they just keep coming back thus the need for the vet to come out yet again.

His main symptom was a swollen sheath - his sheath would get huge, probably the size of a bowling ball, no joke, seriously it was that big. His hind legs would get really swollen, had hives, and was seriously lame from the swollen sheath and legs, once the swelling went down he was sound again.

We had tried a couple of changes such as bedding, food, field, etc and nothing seemed to work. He did have the allergy test and we finally got the results back. It took forever to get the results back - anyway, he is allergic to just about everything there is, the vet said she had never seen any horse with so many allergies before, the list just went on.

This is a very sweet and young 6 year old QH gelding, who I have had for 2 years and never once had any issue like this before. In fact this was the very first time he ever needed to be seen by the vet other then routine stuff. The vet said it is possible that he just developed these allergies and she has seen older horses then him suddenly develop allergies also.

He is going to start getting allergy shots this Monday - he cannot possible get shots for everything, but he will get as many shots as he can get. I have never had a horse that needed allergy shots before - my question is will these actually help him? He is allergic to EVERYTHING and I mean EVERYTHING, like I said before the vet has never seen a horse allergic to so many things. Will these actually help him and his symptoms?

My vet is hoping that it works even brought up euthanasia as another option as there is nothing else left to do for him.

Those of you with horses that have multiple allergies, do your shots help? Is your horse leading a normal life?

[hollyhorse2000]

Ah, so sorry . . .

My horse was diagnosed with allergies over a year ago. Vet believes allergies led to her feet problems (cracking, bleeding, lamina fatigue, etc.). It's a bit of a bizarre theory until her back left foot cracked and bled in April (right at the same time but different foot from year before) when she'd spent all winter and early spring in the stall and not on grass. (And she has excellent farrier care working directly with vet.) So we had to go along with the cockamamie diagnosis. Yes, I did start her on desensitization shots. They work sloooooowwwly. You will not see a change for at least a year. In the meantime, my horse was on an oral (human) antihistamine. This seemed to help and did not have any side effects that I'm aware of. It was not terribly expensive. Maybe $60 for 3 months worth. Ordered by vet from human pharmacy. My vet also gives my mare regular Equstem shots. These apparently help her immune system. Not sure how this relates to allergies, but that's what he does.

I do keep my mare stalled during from spring through fall to keep her out of the pollen. This may or may not be necessary for your guy, but my mare handles it just fine. I wish it wasn't necessary, but I'll do anything to get her better.

You might also think about alternative medicine, perhaps accupuncture.

Good luck . . .

[ultimateshowmom]

Interestingly we had a horse that was loosing hair. Tested allergic to everything. The horse was stabled most of the day, little turn out, in training.
We sold her, with disclosure upfront, to someone who turned her out with minimal riding and she is happy as a clam, no special food, no apparent allergies. Stress caused the problem- why she tested allergic to EVERYTHING I do not know. Try changing his lifestyle and see what happens.

[3Spots]

In my small sample of five horses I've known who have been allergy tested: they are all allergic to everything. Does anyone know of a horse who has been tested and had it narrowed down to just a couple things?

My old time vet told me that hives are a result of something inhaled, not contact.

At my old barn, my mare's hind legs stocked up like Michelin Man twice when the wind blew hard. I did not do anything overtly for the hives after the intitial treatment, but I did put her on Omega Horseshine and others on this forum have claimed it has helped with allergies. I put her on it just for coat/shine and omega 3's; if it works for allergies, it is an added plus. She has not had hives since being on it. I'm leaning towards that just being a coincidence, but it might help your guy.

[BornToRide]

It is said that the digestive tract is a large part of the immune system. He may have developed these allergies after eating some offending food and now it has blown out of proportion Therefore I would remove everything and start from the bottom. Feed only good quality, preferably low NSC hay and add one thing at a time. Ideally have the forage tested and only supplement what's needed. Stay away from any triggers such as soy, preservatives, etc and check into using spirulina to help balance his immun system.
From The Horse Journal:

This blue-green algae (not to be confused with other blue-green algae, which
can be toxic) is considered by the World Health Organization to be a
"superfood," which means it's rich in nutrients and has health benefits.
Spirulina has been given to undernourished children in third-world countries
because of its highly digestible protein, excellent amino acid profile and
highly bioavailable minerals.
It moves the body's immune system away from inflammatory and allergic
response and toward protective antibody responses. It has a direct
antihistamine effect. Components of Spirulina (Ca-Sp, an acid
polysaccharide, Japanese work) have been shown to have potent antiviral
effects. It has been found to be a strong antioxidant (Journal of
Agricultural Food Chemicals, September 2007) and significantly extended
endurance in a human exercise test (European Journal of Applied Physiology
September 2006).
Note: Never change your horse's treatment without consulting with your vet.
Remember that Spirulina may not eliminate the need for drugs, especially in
flare-ups. However, it's a safe, economical approach with no known side
effects. A full-sized horse can be treated for lung problems with the
Jiaogulan and Spirulina combination for under $1.50/day when buying bulk
powder from www.herbalcom.com (http://www.herbalcom.com/), 888-649-3931.

[Lori T]

My draftx developed allergies last year at the age of 4, after being here in Florida since he was 6 months old. He tested positive for over 26 things....most of what he was eating (alfalafa, beet pulp, flax for starters), the grass, spanish moss, on and on. For starters, there is only one shot to give. You will get a starter of 3 vials, with you starting with vial 1. Each vial contains the same allergens, however vial 1 is alot of saline/dilute, vial 2 is less saline/dilute and vial 3 even less so. As you progress, you will be increasing the doses, while eventually decreasing the days in between. By the time you get to vial 3, the maintenance vial, you should only be giving a shot once every month. It will take about a year to take effect. They will only put the allergens that your horse tested most positive too..strong positive reactions on the test. Those will be the ones in the shot. Other positives that he tested for you may be able to change...especially food related. Tucker showed some improvement when I changed his diet and took him out of his nighttime pasture, which had spanish moss on the trees. I work for a dermatology vet specialist, so have learned all about allergies!!
Also, I STRONGLY recommend that you read the thread here on adult onchocerca (neck threadworms)....you may see some improvements by following the double dosings that are suggested.

[HOH]

Lori T is "right on" in her description to you of the allergy treatment. In my experience with my own horse's allergies as well as another horse at the barn there were only a few variances. Our maintenance shots are once a week and our vet told us we'd see improvement in 3-4 months, which we did.

The horse at my barn that has been on the allergy shots for a year has GREATLY improved! According to the allergy tests, he was allergic to just about every pollen, food and insect you see around horses. One year later, you'd never know he had an allergy problem and was even able to discontinue the maintenance shots. I'm hoping for the same results.

In the meantime, the vet suggested Relief hydrocortozone spray and shampoo to relieve any itchiness.

You and your horse are going through way more than we have, so I'm hoping for the best for you! I'm glad you are giving the shots, as all other medications/treatments like Dex were always temporary "fixes".

[ridenslide]

Having had an "allergic to life" horse,I can tell you that SOMETHING triggered his allergies. Once they calmed down, he was able to go back to being a normal horse.:yes:
He was overreactive to corn & any of its byproducts- even distillers dried grains. He is now fine with that. It may have started with something introduced environmentally.Maybe even- :eek: dust mites!
or mini goats.Who knows. But he is a very happy fat successful horse now who loves his girl!:winkgrin:

Hmm-On windy days,he would get icky hives,too!!!:confused:Oh,well. I put him on Histall by Animed during allergy season.

[Peggy]

A (former) barnmate, whose horse seemed to be allergic to about four months of the year, two in the spring and two in the fall, got the tests and then the shots for her mare. It definitely worked, and the last time I asked the mare was still doing fine. She was so bad as to be unrideable some of the time and, IIRC, went into anaphelactic (sp?) shock a few times . I don't remember what she was allergic to.

A current barnmate just had her horse tested and has now started the shots. He's had coughing issues during the summer for several years, but things escalated this year and he even started to get wheezy. He was allergic to apples, but not carrots, along with pine, bermuda, and a number of things that most horses eat (alfalfa maybe, beet pulp maybe). He's living outside, with paper bedding, eating oat hay, bermuda pellets (the process of making the pellets denatures whatever the allergen is, or so I've been told), and plain rolled oats. It seems to be getting better, but very gradually, and he's nowhere near full work yet. He's generally gotten better with colder weather so hopefully that will help him again this year.

[MGA828]

Thank for all the reply's - my main concern right now is are these shots going to help him to the point where he will have some quality of life. This guy is only 6 and the past 3-4 months he has had no quality of life.

Right now, he is not ridable at all, but that is to no concern of me. At this point I don't care if he is ever ridable again due to allergies - my concerns are what type of life could this life and is it worth it.

He is so swollen up that he is dead lame, I'm talking 3 legged lame and he has been that way off and on due to the swelling most of the summer. Once the swelling goes down he is sound again, but that usually only lasts for a couple of days before the swelling comes right back. Just touching his hind legs with one finger makes him cringe, his sheath is so swollen that he looks like a stallion if you stand facing his side you can see the sheath just falling down and watching try to pee is heart breaking.

His symptoms are very odd - he gets no cough or runny nose, his eyes are not watery at all, he has gotten hives on a few occasions, but they have cleared up within 3 days. His only real and major symptoms he gets is his hugely swollen sheath and his hind legs get massive also. On occasion his front legs will get swollen, but that has only happened a couple of times. His legs are the first to go down and the sheath takes about 2-3 weeks to go completely down. His sheath is always the first to come back and then the legs and death lameness.

He can't stay in all the time because he needs to move to help the swelling go down, he can't go out with other horses because he can't walk and will never be able to get away or defend himself, so he is currently going out in a very small pasture alone.

My main concern is will these shots help with reducing the swelling, so he can actually walk around. Will he have any sort of quaility of life? I am just so lost and feel so bad for this guy. He is such a nice and sweet horse, but is it really worth it to have him suffer and go on like this?

Any advice would really help!

[hollyhorse2000]

The allergy desensitization shots work slowly. They are not a quick fix. I have never heard of allergies causing the symptoms you mentioned. It seems to me that he might need something more immediate (think steroids or antihistamines) along with a more long-term solution like allergy desensitization shots.

It sounds to me like you need to get more information from your vet or get a second opinion, IMHO. I'm so sorry. It does sound heartbreaking . . .

[MGA828]

He has been on steroids and antihistamines for the past 3-4 months. I have spoken to my vet several times about everything and the only thing left to do is the shots. We have tried everything else, he has had many different tests and everything else has already been ruled out.