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Hives on our gelding

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chasingkans
Reg. Jan 2010
Posted 2010-01-01 2:40 PM (#114733)
Subject: Hives on our gelding


Member


Posts: 8

Location: Rimrock, AZ
Our gelding breaks out with the hives every summer, we thought he was alergic to the alfalfa so was medicating him. well now this winter he has broke out again. I am stumped. he is 6 yrs old and never had a problem till about 3 yrs ago when they were tearing up and repaving our street, the vet said that it was just old dust being stirred up that caused it but then it happened every summer after and not this winter. Any thoughts?
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BlazingCreekBar
Reg. Nov 2008
Posted 2010-01-01 2:48 PM (#114734 - in reply to #114733)
Subject: RE: Hives on our gelding


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Scabby gross litle buggers arn't they.  My QH gets them after spring shots.  Our Appy will get them just because.  A tick out here in New England area can make one heck of a hive looking wound.  Nerves I always thought brought on hives.

I poked around on the internaet and came up with the following:

80% are idiopathic, the medical term which means that no cause, allergic or otherwise, can be found.

Hives are very common. Although they can be annoying, they usually resolve on their own over a period of weeks, and are rarely medically serious. Some hives are caused by allergies to such things as foods, medications, and insect stings, but the large majority of cases are not allergic, and no specific cause for them is ever found. Although patients may find it frustrating not to know what has caused their hives, maneuvers like changing diet, soap, detergent, and makeup are usually not helpful in preventing hives and for the most part are not necessary.

http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=539



Edited by BlazingCreekBar 2010-01-01 3:01 PM
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chasingkans
Reg. Jan 2010
Posted 2010-01-01 2:53 PM (#114735 - in reply to #114733)
Subject: RE: Hives on our gelding


Member


Posts: 8

Location: Rimrock, AZ
Thanks for the info. Our Vet said they could do blood work but I sure don't have the 300 to 400 dollars to do it. we figure its the hay so are gonna try a grass mix pellet when i get a pen open. they don't ooze or seem to bother him but just look bad lol.
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lesliemal
Reg. Sep 2007
Posted 2010-01-01 3:23 PM (#114736 - in reply to #114733)
Subject: RE: Hives on our gelding


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Location: Georgia
Both of my geldings have had hives in reaction to bee stings. My vet keeps me supplied in Dexamethasone just for this purpose. I always get a vet's advice before adminstering it but I keep a bottle handy at all times since both of my guys have had alergic reactions. My Appy gelding also had unexplained swelling in his genital area and facial swelling, we had to give dex for that too. Dex can be dangerous as it can lead to founder, so my Vet is always my first contact when I have swelling problem with my geldings. I would not think bees would be the problem with your horse, since it is winter but just wanted to share my experience with hives. PS: had to give Dex one time for a snake bite too.

Edited by lesliemal 2010-01-01 6:33 PM
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chasingkans
Reg. Jan 2010
Posted 2010-01-01 3:40 PM (#114738 - in reply to #114733)
Subject: RE: Hives on our gelding


Member


Posts: 8

Location: Rimrock, AZ
Dex does not do anything for him, poor guy, we give him pills, can't recall the name at the moment
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Dwight
Reg. Jan 2006
Posted 2010-01-01 4:52 PM (#114741 - in reply to #114733)
Subject: RE: Hives on our gelding


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My mare broke out in hives last fall while we were at a campground.  We never did find out what caused it.  We gave her 10 benedryl tablets shoved into apples and the hives were gone by the next morning.
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gliderider
Reg. Nov 2009
Posted 2010-01-01 7:51 PM (#114743 - in reply to #114733)
Subject: RE: Hives on our gelding


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How many of you guys know about Alsike Clover? 
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huntseat
Reg. Oct 2003
Posted 2010-01-01 10:30 PM (#114750 - in reply to #114733)
Subject: RE: Hives on our gelding


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Location: South Central OK

If you keep him on shavings make sure they don't include Walnut wood.  Black Walnut can be fatal to some horses and others can react to products labeled Walnut, but the type is not specified.

Just a heads up.

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huntseat
Reg. Oct 2003
Posted 2010-01-01 10:37 PM (#114751 - in reply to #114743)
Subject: RE: Hives on our gelding


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Location: South Central OK

gliderider here is a link to some informaiton on the Alsike Clover, and yes it can be toxic but only sometimes.

http://www.library.illinois.edu/vex/toxic/alsike/alsike.htm

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Paracadista
Reg. Oct 2009
Posted 2010-01-02 8:53 AM (#114758 - in reply to #114733)
Subject: RE: Hives on our gelding




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My 4yr old philly broke out 3 days after I turned her out with 3 other horses on grass hay round bales. I moved her back to the barn and  gave her Dex and that would clear them up for 2 days.  I put her on an anti-histemine powder first and it didnt help.  Ended up giving her Hydroxyzine capsules 200mg 2x a day until we had our first killing frost and she has been fine. Hope fully they dont return next spring.  

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chasingkans
Reg. Jan 2010
Posted 2010-01-02 10:05 AM (#114760 - in reply to #114733)
Subject: RE: Hives on our gelding


Member


Posts: 8

Location: Rimrock, AZ
Thats what we found was the hydro pills, only thing that works. but now its winter and he is getting them still.
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gliderider
Reg. Nov 2009
Posted 2010-01-02 11:28 AM (#114763 - in reply to #114751)
Subject: RE: Hives on our gelding


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I know all about Alsike I have a mare that is alergic to it.  Over a three year period I had two different vets out to my place then Hauled her 150 miles where she saw two more vets and they all sold me crap for fungus.   I finally had a tissue sample sent in to a lab (the vet told me I was crazy)  But I knew no fungus could live thru my treatments, anyway the sample came back negitive for fungus.  I found a site by D.C. Knottenbelt on the web is how I found out about Alsike.  I sprayed my pasture and only get my hay from fields I inspect before they are cut.  Most hay pasutre seed sold at the feed stores has some Alsike seed in it.  Cows do very well on it.  My friend almost lost an appy gelding last winter because the hay had Alsike in it, his sheath started to swell and he got a rash and hives on his nose, then he started to retain water in his legs.  her other horse a chestnut TWHBEA was totally fine on the same hay.  Just wanted to get the word out to people that Alsike is Bad stuff for horses and even in horses who don't show external signs it can be causing liver damage. Alsike is not a native plant to the United States it was imported from Sweden
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gliderider
Reg. Nov 2009
Posted 2010-01-02 11:45 AM (#114764 - in reply to #114751)
Subject: RE: Hives on our gelding


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Huntseat, I went to that link, most info was good but  FYI  I live in Upper Michigan and the Alsike here only gets like 6 inches tall.  the article says 1.5 feet And the part about only letting them graze when the clover is dry in not true.  In my treatments with my mare I kept her stalled and only let her out when it was dry dry dry I mean dry.  My mare never got the drools, she did have a clear water discharge from her nose in early summer sometimes.  I have a sawmill next door and get free dry kiln poplar shavings so dry bedding was not my issue, her rash only cleared up in the fall.  Because she was still grazing on the clover and in the sunlight.  If you do a search with the words ,,Alsike, clover, horse, ,,there are many other sites to read about it.  Anyway two years ago I had my 20 acre  pasture done and she hasn't had a rash sinse.  I am going to do it myself this spring.  Cost $250.00 to have the guy from the feed store come and do it. You can rent a sprayer that fits on the back of a 4 wheeler it is pretty easy but time consuming.
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flatlandfilly
Reg. Jun 2006
Posted 2010-01-03 1:16 PM (#114799 - in reply to #114733)
Subject: RE: Hives on our gelding


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Location: Lincoln, NE
I have a twelve year old pastured mule who each summer gets terrible hives that itch. He rubs, scratches and chews until he has raw spots.

They started appearing when he was about four and occur each year once it warms up. Like someone flipped a switch the problem stops as soon as we have a hard freeze in the fall. Each year the condition got worse for several years. The last few years the condition seems to be less severe.

After consulting several vets and doing much research I think he has "summer itch". Here in Nebraska winters are cold enough and long enough so that all bugs die off. Thus no insects, flies, gnats, mosquitoes, etc, to bite. Summer itch is an allergy to bug saliva. It may be an allergy to only one kind of bug or several.

The different vets diagnosed fungus and ring worm, both contagious, and recommended iodine shampoo. Which of course didn't help. My two horses have never shown any skin problems over the years they have all lived together. It seems to be an individual sensitivity like most allergies.

What you describe with your gelding seems very similar. Do you live where it's warm enough to have bugs all year? Is he stalled all the time or in turnout or pasture?

Fly spray, fly sheets and masks, leg wraps etc seem to work the best. I suspect good manure control is important, too. Plus if he is near low-lying boggy ground it might help to keep him somewhere higher and dryer.

Good luck with this problem.






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jakey1
Reg. Dec 2003
Posted 2010-01-04 8:36 AM (#114836 - in reply to #114733)
Subject: RE: Hives on our gelding


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Location: Newton, NJ
Knew of a horse who was allergic to wool... could not wear a wool cooler or saddle pads!
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chasingkans
Reg. Jan 2010
Posted 2010-01-04 9:04 AM (#114841 - in reply to #114799)
Subject: RE: Hives on our gelding


Member


Posts: 8

Location: Rimrock, AZ

Flatlandfilly, we live in Arizona (northern) it gets pretty cold here in the winter, he is in a pen but large enough to be a small pasture but its all dirt. I think its the hay, our bugs have died off already. we had a mule that would break out every summer on is legs and chest but that was the flies.

these don't seem to itch him. I just hate having to give him pills all the time. they are more of an ugly sight then anything

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flatlandfilly
Reg. Jun 2006
Posted 2010-01-04 11:25 AM (#114847 - in reply to #114841)
Subject: RE: Hives on our gelding


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Posts: 201
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Location: Lincoln, NE
Chasingkans - That bug allergy must be something mules are prone to experience. My mule gets hives mostly chest legs and muzzle also.

That is a blessing if your gelding's hives don't itch. Poor Festus suffers mightily during bug season and chews and rubs raw spots on his legs and body.

It could be the hay as you mentioned. I'm not familiar with what kind of hay is fed in Arizona. Here in Nebraska we feed mostly brome or prairie hay. Some horse owners feed alfalfa but it makes my horses too hot.

I think there are so many allergens out there in the world it's surprising more humans and animals don't experience allergy symptoms. Not only allergies caused by natural plants and animals also allergies to all the chemicals man uses.

The soybean fields here get aerial spraying once a year and it's impossible to totally control drift. The farmers put on fertilizers and weed killers. They try to do it on a calm day but around here the wind blows most of the time so again there is drift. The stuff smells nasty.

Good luck with finding the cause of your gelding's hives. You'll need to put on your detective hat.
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loveduffy
Reg. Feb 2006
Posted 2010-01-04 10:52 PM (#114882 - in reply to #114733)
Subject: RE: Hives on our gelding



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Location: NY
I do not known for sure but a barn near me had a horse that Brock out because of the hay I am not sure what type of hay but is was not alfalfa the own ask me for some of my hay and that work I feed just orchard grass
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chasingkans
Reg. Jan 2010
Posted 2010-01-05 10:05 AM (#114903 - in reply to #114733)
Subject: RE: Hives on our gelding


Member


Posts: 8

Location: Rimrock, AZ
Thanks, we feed alfalfa and i put him on grass and it went away but grass is so hard to find here and expensive.
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loveduffy
Reg. Feb 2006
Posted 2010-01-07 10:40 PM (#115018 - in reply to #114733)
Subject: RE: Hives on our gelding



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Location: NY
good hay is hard to find every were I thing we are paying 6:25 a bale
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