# Gelding With swollen sheath and Lump



## Dleggett1687 (Sep 5, 2012)

I have a Gelding with a swollen sheath and lump in front of his sheath on his stomach area. This comes and goes- We have him in a smaller pasture where the barn is where we provide hay, grain and water daily (there is little grass beacause he eats it up so fast). His sheath swells and he gets this lump the size of a hand, it's squisy not hard. One time we gave him antibiotics and it went away. The next time it came up we moved him to the larger pasture were after about 2-3 days of eating grass all day long the swelling and lump went away. This has happened about 4 times.. He acts and seems perfectly fine with no problems.

I'm just wanting to figure out-- Is he getting too Much protein from the hay and grains to cause this? So whenever he gets the grass in him it evens out? Is this possible?


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## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

Dleggett1687 said:


> I have a Gelding with a swollen sheath and lump in front of his sheath on his stomach area. This comes and goes- We have him in a smaller pasture where the barn is where we provide hay, grain and water daily (there is little grass beacause he eats it up so fast). His sheath swells and he gets this lump the size of a hand, it's squisy not hard. One time we gave him antibiotics and it went away. The next time it came up we moved him to the larger pasture were after about 2-3 days of eating grass all day long the swelling and lump went away. This has happened about 4 times.. He acts and seems perfectly fine with no problems.
> 
> I'm just wanting to figure out-- Is he getting too Much protein from the hay and grains to cause this? So whenever he gets the grass in him it evens out? Is this possible?


 Has your vet seen him? 
I dont think that its a good idea to guess these sort of things but if the flies are really bad he might be causing oedema/edema in that area by constantly kicking at himself in the same place. Maybe when he has grass to eat his attention is more taken up with eating than with swatting flies


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## waresbear (Jun 18, 2011)

It is from too much protein and not enough exercise. That is reason it went away when when you let him out on a larger pasture, he had to walk around to forage. When you kept him in a smaller area & fed him grain it swelled up. I have seen this happen many times & the owners will argue with me up & down saying the sheath needs to cleaned or this or that. Sure clean the sheath but take the horse off rich food & exercise him more, the swelling will be gone.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Dleggett1687 (Sep 5, 2012)

*thanks*

I was thinking too much protein- the way it comes and goes-I wanted to hear a second opinion- the vet just threw out it was infection and gave us antibiotics which made it go away but didn't explain it (thinking he didn't know either) - but I figured there was more too it- People kept throwing out cancer and tumor and hernia. But those things don't just come and go. Thanks for the second opinion help.


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