Face abcess

[Jill]

I'm really glad that you were having the vet out. I suspect there will be some antibiotics, and probably some kind of anti-inflammatory pain relief recommended, and possibly lancing.

We ultimately had to put down my first horse, an Arabian x QH gelding, due to complications from an initially "simple" sinus infection. I had him for over 15 years and he was approximately 30 when he was put down. However, that taught me that something that appears simple can sometimes get very serious. He was on antibiotics, including IV, and even antibiotic flushing of the area after the vet literally drilled a hole. We went to fairly extreme measures, but the infection eventually got into his bones. I'm sure that his age was a big factor, but the experience taught me to take even something that seems easy seriously. At first, we had thought it was seasonal allergies or a "cold", including my friend where he boarded and who has a lifetime of horse experience. She was even a vet tech at one time.

If you have it handy, you may want to give her some banamine to reduce swelling and help with pain. For banamine "injectable", 1cc per 100# in the mouth. If you don't have it, you might want to ask the vet to sell you a bottle. It's a very good medicine to keep on hand.

I'm no vet at all, but trying to imagine what I'd do for one of my horses as I picture the situation.

Best of luck and keep us posted!

 

[Jill]

PS How old is she? Reading through the full thread now, and seeing the pictures, I wonder if these are not just upper tooth bumps? Those can be a rite of passage for some horses around the age of 2.

 

[NewToMini's]

She's 9 years old.

The vet just left. We had to twitch her so he could sedate her (twice).He cut the whole covering off the abscess, then cleaned it and checked to see how deep it was. Unfortunately, it went all the way into the sinus. There was a blockage in her sinus so the saline didn't come out of her nose, but he managed to clear the blockage (he was worried about cancer, but I think clearing the blockage made it less of a possibility). He then checked her teeth, and she has a gap between her 4th and 5th molars, so he thinks bacteria most likely got in there from some food stuck there (if that's the case, she'll need to go to a hospital).

He did give me a bottle of antibiotics to give her twice a day and said the smell should go away in a few days, but of course, keep giving the antibiotics until the bottle is gone. If the smell comes back, then it's her teeth and she needs to go to the hospital.

He said I don't need to treat it topically, but I can put some neosporin on it if it will make me feel better (I will be doing that).

 

[Marsha Cassada]

I have one of those syringes that look like a caulk gun. I've used it before with a horse that had a tooth issue and pocketed chewed grass. I had to do it for about a month every day but after that he was fine. I think it cost about $50. Would that tool help in your case? It was a nuisance, but not hard to do.

I am a little surprised she had to be twitched to sedate her.

 

[NewToMini's]

I don't think it would help, unless I did it every day for forever. It's not a pocket in her gums that needs to heal, it's just a gap between her teeth.

Yeah, he got the needle in her artery, but then she wouldn't let him touch it, and it ended up on the ground so he had to change the needle. She wasn't happy at all about his help, she needed twitched 3 times and sedated twice, and she ran over him and knocked him down when he checked her teeth (she was sedated for the second time after that...). He was ok, though, he was laughing after I got her off him.

 

[Mona]

I've had horses that were absolutely TERRIFIED of needles too! NOT fun to have them like that!

 

[chandab]

I've had horses that were absolutely TERRIFIED of needles too! NOT fun to have them like that!

I have 3 that don't like needles, they do better when I give the shots, if I can keep my nerves in check. The vet was out for other work this spring, already, so I had her vaccinate everyone for me. A little awkward, but we had the best luck on those three difficult horses if we were both on the same side, so horse didn't realize two of use were right beside (vet vaccinates in the neck, hence awkward).

 

[Mona]

I have 3 that don't like needles, they do better when I give the shots, if I can keep my nerves in check. The vet was out for other work this spring, already, so I had her vaccinate everyone for me. A little awkward, but we had the best luck on those three difficult horses if we were both on the same side, so horse didn't realize two of use were right beside (vet vaccinates in the neck, hence awkward).

The funny thing is, with the one I had that was the worst (and still have her) if I put her in cross ties, she would body slam me no matter which side I was standing on. I even tried (had to resort to) lip twitching and ear twitching to get things done on her, and eventually, that did not work either, and that was when she starting slamming her body into mine as I had her in cross-ties, trying to get her vaccinated that way, so I had both hands free...one for ear twitch, one to give the shot. Finally, for some reason, I took her into a stall, tied her to the wall, and she let me vaccinate her!! I have been able to do her ever since, as long as she is tied to a wall, and not in cross ties. WEIRD, eh??!! She still doesn;t like it, but she is not fighting them the way she once did in the cross ties.

 

[NewToMini's]

She doesn't like the antibiotic. Took 1 bite of it last night and decided she was done, so I put honey in it and she wouldn't even try it. This morning I tried giving it to her again and she ate a little but wouldn't eat all of it. I broke up some treats into it, and she ate it, but she did dump the pan over and spilled some of it (the honey had some of the antibiotic stuck to the pan, so with the treats, I did get her to eat what didn't fall out when she dumped it. I hope she ate enough of it to do some good.

Tonight, I will be giving her a paste that I made with the antibiotic, a crushed up treat, and some honey. It made too much for the deworming tube, though, so in the future I will either have to just give her the paste if she likes it, or just use the honey and antibiotic in the tube without the treat.

 

[Strangeaddiction]

For horses scared of needles (or vets) try putting them in a stall and putting a hand towel over their eyes. I usually run it through both sides of the halter so I don't have to hold it and can hold the lead. Let them relax and usually they will be fine.

 

[bevann]

Try using molasses Most horses love the taste and it is much stronger tasting than honey for years we have done butt shots.Takes 2 people 1 at horse head with horse pushed against wall.Person giving needle at rear with tail pulled up in air so hind feet are barely touching ground.shot site is about 2 inches below rectum and about 2 inches in from crease of cheeks(hard to explain)works great especially on foals. Less soreness than neck shots.

 

[Cayuse]

Or if the molasses does not work, applesause might. Mine seem to tolerate that pretty well.

I would syringe it into their mouth followed by a carrot "chaser."

I hope she will be feeling better soon! Sounds like you have a pretty good natured vet and that's half the battle!

 

[Mona]

What form of antibiotics did the vet give to you? Pills or liquid? If liquid, just fill a (needless) syringe and give it to her like worm past, putting it through the dental space and putting as far back as possible, but making sure not to squirt it directly down the back of her throat, as you don;t want it to go to her lungs. Place it sort of to the side she she will have to swallow it, and hold her head up a little for awhile so it doesn't just run out of her mouth right away. If pills or powder, (crush pills) and mix with a taspoon of applesauce, draw up into a large syringe and place towards back of mouth towards throat. Good Luck!

 

[NewToMini's]

I could try the molasses, thanks. I assume I would have to get baking molasses? I only have blackstrap and it doesn't taste good to me, so I wouldn't want to give it to her, lol

 

[NewToMini's]

He gave me pills. Told me to crush them and mix them into her feed.

Do larger syringes have larger openings? I have both 3mm and 6mm syringes and the openings are too small.

 

[madmax]

What I do if the meds are in the form of pills: take an empty 12cc syringe (no needle), break the pills in half and place in the syringe, then draw up water through the tip and shake well or just let sit and dissolve for a few minutes.. I squirt into the mouth on top of the tongue. A drop of molasses in the water sometimes. They have always swallowed the meds for me. I also squirt some water as well afterward to rinse their mouth and it also cleans out any residue of the pills for no waste.

Edit: if you have smaller syringes you could do the same thing but divide half pills into more than one syringe.

 

[Jean_B]

For pill meds, crushing into their feed never worked for me. They are incredibly good at eating everything except them. I've always just soaked them until dissolved, and put them in a 60cc drenching syringe, made just for this purpose. I found that pancake syrup is easier to add to the mix, and after one or two treatments, they are standing there waiting for that treat. Here is the one I use: http://www.unitedvetequine.com/horse-vaccines/60-cc-Dosing-Syringe.asp

 

[chandab]

He gave me pills. Told me to crush them and mix them into her feed.

Do larger syringes have larger openings? I have both 3mm and 6mm syringes and the openings are too small.

See if you can get a catheter tip syringe or an oral meds syringe.

These oral syringes are great for meds. I've tried both the 35ml and 60ml, the 35ml is a handier size and easier to manipulate: http://www.horse.com/item/oral-meds-syringe/SLT901173/

[i pull the plunger out and load the meds from the back side, then very carefully put the plunger back in, finger over the opening, tap down the meds to plunger end, before taking your finger off the tip (or it'll go everywhere).]

 

[Jill]

I wouldn't treat it topically unless the vet said to. With horses, you want things to heal from the inside out. The neosporin can make the outside heal too fast, and actually lead to another abscess.

 

[Mona]

What a great syringe you posted the link to, Jean! I have never seen one like that before, but that is a super thing to have on hand, for sure!! You can also take a tiny drill bit to the opening of a large syringe to drill the opening so that it is a little larger, making semi-solid stuff go through easier. (like applesauce, thick molasses etc.)