called it: my horse's big fever

There is a LOT that I don't know about horses. A lot a lot a lot. Because, ya know, at the end of the day, I'm mostly learning through experiences. But.... there's more to learn about horses than can be realistically experienced in any one single lifetime, right?

Actually -- that's probably my favorite thing about this blogging community:: everyone sharing all the small details of their own horsey experiences. By following along with so many other horse people online, I've been able to sorta vicariously live through certain situations that otherwise might remain unfamiliar to me.

remember this pic from a week and a half ago?

Ticks, tho.... Lol, they are definitely not unfamiliar to me. Haha. Hahaha. Yea... esp in this part of the world, we get a LOT of them. I've been pulling ticks off horses for as long as I've been grooming horses, and pulling them off myself for even longer.

And actually, at least in Maryland, any time a horse doesn't seem quite right - maybe he's not totally sound, or is behaving a little funny, or just something you can't quite put your finger on - testing for Lyme is almost always in the Top 5 diagnostic boxes to check off the list.

but really tho, what would we do without google, eh?

Since I've owned Charlie, he's been tested for Lyme at least twice -- but possibly three times. Always a very low titer, tho.  But meanwhile, in recent years, it seems like other tick borne illnesses have become more prevalent.

obligatory screenshot from the inevitable barn mgr text convo, with yet another variation of creative spelling lol

Particularly: Anaplasmosis. I swear, at least half a dozen times in the last two years - both in real life and in blogland - every time a horse pops up with a big fever, lethargy, and maybe one or more swollen legs, that's what it's been.

And idk.... There was something about that welt on Charlie's shoulder from the first picture. I've pulled a LOT of ticks off this horse. And we all know he's a fragile delicate hothouse flower.

sad freshly hosed off horse

But that big round swelling.... Idk, I've just never seen anything quite like that. Which is probably why I immediately started googling about that particular type of tick (Lonestar). And figured, based on what I was seeing, that.... Yep, wouldn't be surprised if Charlie busted out a big fever in a week or two.

Which, naturally, Charlie dutifully obliged exactly 9 days later, haha.

sad drying but still-very-clammy horse. homeboy was HOT to the touch :(

The poor guy, he really felt pretty crummy too :(

He's such a good patient, tho, such an open book. This is definitely a horse who fully expects humans to solve his problems and therefore is actually surprisingly communicative when he doesn't feel good.

yup, is a very sad charles.... look at his poor sweaty forehead and eye lids :( :( :(

He skipped his dinner, tho accepted a treat from the feeder, and explained to her that actually he was really quite feverish. 105*F to be precise, a number so high the barn mgr immediately tested again with a second thermometer. Then, obvi, administered banamine and initiated an after-hours call with the vet.

I was actually already on my way out after work at this point, so I could give him a second hose down and graze him in the shade while we waited for the vet.

and a Mikey cat, obvi, to interject some cuteness!

All signs did indeed point to tick-borne illness, tho I guess the clinical presentation is pretty similar for a broad range of particular ailments - from anaplasmosis to Potomac fever. Luckily tho, the banamine had already started working and Charlie's temp was down below 102*F.

So the vet pulled some blood, then administered a whopping 60cc IV of diluted oxytetracycline - a broad spectrum antibiotic.

 charlie was well enough on day 2 to "help" his super-groom paint the window frames lol <3

I guess you pull the blood first prior to treatment in case you need to look at liver or kidney function down the line, and/or if you decide to run a blood panel to test for the specific illness. The panel is really only necessary if the horse doesn't improve in the next 12ish hours, unless you just want to be extra careful.

also feeling well enough to tease his friend elephant while grazing lol

Lucky for Charles, he was allowed to spend the night out in the field with his friends --- definitely much more pleasant than the stuffy barn. And came in the next morning with a lower fever around 101. Much better, sir.

pictured: one f*ing GIANT syringe of (diluted) oxytetracycline

The treatment continues with banamine as needed for a day or two, and two more days of those mega IV oxytetracycline doses. The vets apparently prefer to administer this themselves, since I guess it can be pretty nasty if any gets outside of the vein. And since there's so much of it omg 60 fucking ccs..... yea, it takes a professional's touch haha.

dear lord... apparently the vet has seen this drug literally knock a horse out before?!

After that, the horse switches to roughly one week of doxy, an oral antibiotic, to complete the treatment. And... theoretically, is all better after a couple days.

We did opt to run the blood panel anyway just to rule out anything more serious, even with Charlie seeming better. I'm not expecting any surprises there, tho, based on how well Charlie's already responded.

doxy powder, and banamine just to have on hand since i had to use a barn mate's stock. barn mgr recommended the injectable formula since it can be IV and oral

And meanwhile, I'm gonna add a pro-biotic to his supplement baggies just to counteract his getting walloped by all the antibiotics. Gotta keep those gut flora happy, right? And actually, if he were a horse with a more sensitive stomach or had any serious history with ulcers, I'd probably add even more gastric support - like U7 or something.

But as it is, he'll probably be fine. And a nice bonus side effect of the doxy is that it also has some pretty excellent anti inflammatory properties haha. So who knows, maybe Charlie will come out of this feeling even better than before!

pairs well with doxy!

So ya know. Even without having the blood panel results back yet, we're feeling fairly confident in Charlie's recovery. As with so much in life, the simplest solution is usually the correct one. After that nasty tick bite, from a tick notorious for carrying anaplasmosis, it almost felt inevitable that, yup, Charlie would get sick.

Fortunately tho it seems like a fairly straightforward thing. Every horse I've known who has had it recovered without issue. Definitely a shitty couple days for the pony but.... Well. It could be worse I guess!