# HELP: sick pony, lame and swollen sheath !!



## slew (Oct 8, 2007)

My gelding has a very swollen sheath and is quite lame and I really need some suggestions as to what it could be , some history on his case :

Two weeks ago I came home from work and my husband said your horse is lame you better go check it. So I went straight out to the paddock and my gelding was lame in his left front leg. I had ridden him a couple of days before and suspected a bruised foot or similar and wasn't to worried.

The next day on checking him he was noticably sore in both front feet. He was shifting weight between the two feet and very uncomfortable and unwilling to walk. I called the vet who suspected either bruising or slight laminitis. We were given a weeks worth of bute in sachets 1 twice a day. 
The soreness did not improve at all with the bute. There was no heat in any feet at any stage.

A few days later he seemed to be getting sore in the back legs also. The next day ( 6 days after the first signs of lameness ) he was unable to walk at all and would just stand and shift weight between all four feet. Still no heat ( but still on bute ) (I have not noticed the poor fella lay down at all and he is just out our back window so we can watch him all day. )

Called the vet again and his diagnosis laminitis , we had made a yard 6 days prior and he had been locked up since. I had already started him on fouderguard a couple of days after first vet visit just incase. And the vet this time gave us bute in paste form twice a day 5 mls and ulcerguard 15mls twice a day. And he gave us an anti histamine to inject for 5 days. 

Two days later he wasn't looking much better and his sheath area had swollen up. Two more days and no improvement except that he could walk slighty easier, very stiff and sore looking. Also a couple of times he had shown a few colicey signs and wasnt having much poos and those he was doing were not looking to flash. 

So another vet visit and started on parrafin oil and bran mash for the colic and assuming the colic is secondary to everything else ??? Bloods taken and the results were an elevated liver reading ( sorry dont know which one and the technical terms ) but the vet says it was only 150 above normal and that that was not much and could be put down to the colicy symptoms. Also elevated muscular reading, apparently there are two and normal is 450 and 500 and his readings were 550 and 750. So once again only slighty elevated but on the pathology results it said "horse down ???" 

We just continued on with the same regime and it is now 4 days later and exactly two weeks since the first signs of lameness, he is still very sore on all four feet, seemingly the back are worse, he continously shifts weight from one foot to the next and when he shifts the back feet he lifts them quite high, almost stringhalty. He is walking slighty better , very slow and careful and a bit wonky. Still not great poos, but most concerning he has a very swollen sheath and penis and now today the swelling is also on his tummy infront of the sheath. He is urinating and is eating well and does not seem unhappy in himself. He is drinking and tonight we have had to set up the electric fence cause he would like to escape so some signs of improvement. 

Any ideas please, I am scratching my head and just cant work it out. This horse has never foundered and I have had him for about 8 yrs, hes had some back problems in the past and colic once before but from eating dirt in the summer. He seems to come good a little bit then something worse happens, please help, any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

And Does anyone know if laminitis causes swollen sheaths?? :-(


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## arabchica (Jul 5, 2009)

he could have a bean a bit of smegma in his sheath that is causing some irritaion I would have the vet come tranq him and clean his sheath a bean will make him terribly uncomfortable you can clean it yourself however it is a very unpleasant task and if he has never had it done it is just better off if he really doesn't care what is going on let me know hope this helps


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## close2prfct (Mar 9, 2009)

Did the vet do any blood work on him? If he didn't I would call him back and demand that he did, or get a 2nd opinion. It is possible for him to have a bean but since he's had a series of problems starting with his front legs I would lean more toward other causes. Is it his his sheath only that is swollen? 
Edema tends to go to the lowest parts of the body such as legs and sheath/shaft. There can be several causes so without blood work it would be hard to pinpoint the exact cause.


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## Ryle (Jul 13, 2007)

I would really consider hauling your horse to a large equine hospital or veterinary teaching hospital for a better workup. There is so much going on that I couldn't even guess at what it might be but you obviously need to find a true diagnosis for your horse.


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## AussieDaisyGirl (May 21, 2009)

It sounds like an infection and I would have blood work drawn on him. I actually think Cindy's suggestion is the best. Hope he feels better soon!


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## slew (Oct 8, 2007)

Thanks for your suggestions but please keep them coming !

Yes, he has had bloods done, it came back with an elevated liver reading, only slighty above normal and elevated muscular reading, slighty above normal. The muscular one was in both readings about 100-250 above normal. Everything else was fine. There was no sign of any infection. 

I have given the penis and sheath a good clean and nearly got it glistening ! This morning he had the penis out and it is pretty clean apart from right up near the top where he hasnt let me get to. I will try again this afternoon.

There is no swelling in his legs, the swelling this morning is in the sheath and on his tummy infront of the sheath.

I have the vet coming out some time today again and will ask him about a visit to Werribee our closest horse hospital. I am actually unsure if this pony could stand in the float that long.


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## sillybunny11486 (Oct 2, 2009)

i was thinking the same thing. if hes that lame it would be hard for him to make a trailer ride. is it there any way you could make enough room for him so he could lie down?


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## sillybunny11486 (Oct 2, 2009)

i would consult with another vet. a second opinion wont hurt.


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## Pidge (Sep 5, 2009)

If you do have to make a hospital visit make sure there is room for him to lay down in the trailer and dont tie him when you load him so he doesnt rig his neck if he tries to lay down....

Past this I agree with all the other suggestions...get a second opinion if nessisary and i would consider getting a better work up done on him...


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## slew (Oct 8, 2007)

we have had the vet out again and waiting on more blood results. he is thinking founder in the front legs and maybe by componsating with standing differently he has reinjured an old back injury and hence the funny walking with the back feet. but the bloods will tell us more. the sheath is still very swollen but penis looks ok and there is still swelling under the tummy. when taken near pasture he eats ravenously so he is hungry and wanting to eat. the poo looks ok but not much of it. i will post the blood results when they come, also then i will decide the next step, whether we go to hospital or not.


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## equus717 (Aug 20, 2009)

Hope your pony gets to feeling better soon!!!!!


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## slew (Oct 8, 2007)

The bloods have come back with the liver one being elevated a bit more than the last test and the muscle one about the same. The neurofils ( cant spell it) i think white cell count is now also raised. Today we have took him off the bute and founderguard incase its causing reactions or something. And the vet just came out and gave him vit b 12, b complex and an anti biotic. if theres no improvement by this evening or early tomorrow we are going to hospital tomorrow for some further investigation.


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## Appyt (Oct 14, 2007)

I hope you are taking your horse to the hospital. To make him more comfortable during the trip please try to pad his soles. Use a dense foam padding(camping or exercise mats work well). Vetwrap and then duck tape the pads to the hoof, setting the pads back just a bit behind the toe so the pressure is not on that area. If you have access to hoof boots you can use them, just be sure you have a pad inside the boot. Prayers your horse will be ok, but it's not sounding very good.


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## Ryle (Jul 13, 2007)

Is he drinking well? Running a fever? 
The neutrophils are a type of white blood cell and the elevation is indicative of an infection.


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## Domino95 (Jun 5, 2014)

*Sick pony, swollen sheath, midline ventral edema, liver infection*

My 10 yr old gelding has the same symptoms that you described. The first symptom was stiff legs. We thought it was laminitis. He had laminitis 2 years ago but in July. This year it happened in May, before we were aware of his condition. Last time, we kept him in a stall till the pasture has been baled and it turned brown. He was in about 3 weeks, lost the belly and the crest on his neck, and was turned out and healthy till first of May.

This time, vet has tried 2 rounds of medicines, steroid, antibiotics, b12, & sulfur powder, without luck. His blood work showed a liver infection. He was quite lethargic, working his mouth a lot, yellow mucus in the mouth, and the skin was red around it. His urine was brown and there was very strong ammonia smell in the stall. He also had 2 large beans removed about 2 weeks ago. After a few days of medicine, He was seemed great for a day or so, then the same problems came back. The sheath went down for one day but was swollen worse the next and has stayed that way.

After the last round of medicine, he's spirited, alert, eating his all pellets(10% protein, low starch) and hay, but still has the midline ventral edema & swollen sheath & a little stiff in his legs. He is not extending out all the way to urinate and the urine might be a little dark. We put a muzzle on him so he can walk with his best horse friend about 2 hours, twice a day.

Did you ever find out what was wrong with your horse? I would appreciate your help. My horse has been sick about 4 weeks. We're going back to the vet tomorrow, but I think he's close to sending us to a specialist.

Thanks


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## loosie (Jun 19, 2008)

G'day,

My first thought after looking at the subject heading was laminitis - swollen sheath/udder is also a sign of insulin resistance/'metabolic syndrome - after reading your post I still think laminitis.



slew said:


> shifting weight between the two feet and very uncomfortable and unwilling to walk. I called the vet who suspected either bruising or slight laminitis.


He'd call that 'slight'??:? Aside from the bute, did he advise anything else??



> Called the vet again and his diagnosis laminitis , we had made a yard 6 days prior and he had been locked up since. I had already started him on fouderguard a couple of days after first vet visit just incase. And the vet this time gave us bute in paste form twice a day 5 mls and ulcerguard 15mls twice a day. And he gave us an anti histamine to inject for 5 days.


The yard - is this to keep him off the grass? What's he getting instead? If grass hay, are you soaking it? Does the yard have soft, yielding footing, so he's comfortable & is he happy/able to lie down? I'd personally look further than founderguard as a helpful supp - it is an antibiotic, whereas other 'anti-laminitis' supps are nutritional supps, which can indeed be helpful. I don't know anything about giving antihistamines for laminitis. What did the vet advise re diet/nutrition & hoof care/protection? If you do continue with Founderguard, I'd keep up the ulcer treatment, feed an Mg 'buffer' & consider probiotics at the other end of the day(not sure how well these will survive with the antibios).

I don't know about liver & muscle 'readings', but yes, colic could definitely be a result of ongoing laminitis & the meds. Re muscles, magnesium is something that is commonly deficient, especially in a metabolic horse &/or one under stress(eg. chronic & acute pain). It is also responsible for relaxing muscles, among other things, so that may have a bearing on 'muscle readings'.

What did this vet say about laminitis, his diet, etc?

And after seeing you mention Werribee, if you would like to PM me, I can possibly give you more than virtual help :wink:


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## Elana (Jan 28, 2011)

This thread was from 2009. Pony either lived or died....................


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## loosie (Jun 19, 2008)

Oh I hate that!


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## waresbear (Jun 18, 2011)

His sheath is swollen because he isn't moving and because he is overloaded on the proteins that cause the founder.


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## smrobs (Jul 30, 2008)

loosie said:


> Oh I hate that!


I know! It sucks to find a topic and get all involved in the story, then write out this whole long post trying to help....only to find out the thread is several years old and the OP never came back to tell us the verdict.


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## waresbear (Jun 18, 2011)

Yeah, it's like the last chapter missing out of a book you were reading, arggghhh!


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## Jayda18 (Jun 5, 2014)

Im sorry for your pony! I really hope he gets better soon!


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