Porcupine Quills

[sea horses]

Yesterday morning my gelding was hobbling around. Easy to see why, he had 20 or so quills in his back legs. Vet suggested Banamine and try pulling them out. It went well, and he was trotting off as soon as they were out. But this morning he is very lame on one back leg, I have a call in to vet, gave more Banamine and I am going to shave the leg close to see better.

I am going to insist on antibiotics, but not sure what else to do. Anybody have any ideas?

 

[chandab]

I've had three full-size horses stick there nose where it didn't belong and get a muzzle full of quills. We pulled the quills and applied antibiotic ointment, that's it. I think on one, all I had was aloe vera gel, so that's all she got for treatment.

Your gelding might still have a quill or two in deep causing the lameness. Shaving is probably a good idea to make sure you got all the quills out. [be care not to shave the quills, so you have something to grab hold of to remove any that might remain.

 

[sea horses]

Here is a pic I took this morning after shaving his legs. I found a few more small quills in the other leg, but none in the right. You can see that his hock is enlarged. Still waiting for the vet to call.

 

[vickie gee]

Poor horse. I am no help but just want to say I hope he gets relief soon.

 

[JAX]

A friend has a dog who went after a porcupine. She was FULL of quills. Her leg was swelling and the vet said that one of the quills may have worked its way into the joint. She was kept on antibiotics for a long time and had to have that joint checked several times but is now fine. Quills in joints are not good so i hope that is not the case! I hope your guy is doing better.

 

[sea horses]

The vet put him on antibiotics, keeping him on Banamine. I sure hope he gets better. He is such a good driving horse, never spooks, goes anywhere I point him.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

I hate porcupines!

One suggestion I've heard from a Ranger is to snip the quill before you pull it out. They have air in them, which makes them swell. I heard about this AFTER our last bout and haven't had a chance to try it--hopefully I'll never have to try it.

One of the reasons I keep banamine on hand...

Sure hope you guy recovers quickly. What a worry!

 

[Reignmaker Miniatures]

Marsha, the clipping really seems to be mostly an old wives (er ranger's) tale. I have tried it both ways and other than taking longer I found no improvment in removability at all. What I did find is my horse got more difficult because every time I touched one it hurt and I had to touch them all twice, once to snip and once to pull. There is also a theory that soaking them in vinegar will soften them and numb the flesh they are in making removal easier. I haven't tried that because honestly, it seemed a poor idea to pour acid (which vinegar is) on a wound. I have found the best option seems to be needle nose pliers and patience.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

Marsha, the clipping really seems to be mostly an old wives (er ranger's) tale. I have tried it both ways and other than taking longer I found no improvment in removability at all. What I did find is my horse got more difficult because every time I touched one it hurt and I had to touch them all twice, once to snip and once to pull. There is also a theory that soaking them in vinegar will soften them and numb the flesh they are in making removal easier. I haven't tried that because honestly, it seemed a poor idea to pour acid (which vinegar is) on a wound. I have found the best option seems to be needle nose pliers and patience.

I, too, had reservations about the additional touching of the quill. Glad to hear the benefit of your experience! Better to give a quick jerk and get it over with. If the animal was sedated, I wonder if snipping the quill would make removal easier?

We trapped 5 porcupines a few years ago and have not had any here since. They destroyed several ornamental trees near our house. No more quills in horses since; we wonder how long before they move back into the territory.

This is a funny picture from the Year of the Porcupines:

http://www.cassphoto.com/scarecrow.jpg

 

[Marsha Cassada]

The vet put him on antibiotics, keeping him on Banamine. I sure hope he gets better. He is such a good driving horse, never spooks, goes anywhere I point him.

Is the swelling down today? Hope your horse is better.

 

[wildoak]

I've never had any experience with porcupines.....cactus is bad enough! We did sell a little gelding several years ago who ended up with a face full of quills. She got them out, but he seemingly never recovered and they lost him a few months later. He had colicked pretty badly before she took him and I didn't see him afterwards, so don't really know what happened but they suspected a lingering infection that he couldn't shake.

Jan

 

[sea horses]

The swelling is down and he is more comfortable. Today was the last day of Banamine. I guess time will tell if I missed any. My biggest fear is that I did and they migrate into the joint or tendons. Thanks for your thoughts guys.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

The swelling is down and he is more comfortable. Today was the last day of Banamine. I guess time will tell if I missed any. My biggest fear is that I did and they migrate into the joint or tendons. Thanks for your thoughts guys.

So glad to hear the swelling is down!