b"Vet continued from page 5They have breathing problems. Respiratory allergies tend to produce nasal drainage, a cough and labored breathing. Other nonspecific signs of environmental sensitivity include runny eyes, general malaise and sometimes headshaking. Very occasionally horses will have an acute, severe allergic reaction to something like a vaccine. This type of allergic reaction is called an anaphylactic reaction. A horse having an anaphylactic reaction may have white froth pouring out of the nostrils, sweat profusely, breath rapidly, have an elevated heart rate, and be in obvious distress. This is an extreme veterinary emergency, but fortunately, its very rare. If your horse has reacted to a particular vaccine Portrait Artistin the past, avoid combo products that include it Art Faschanbecause you don't always know which portion iswill create athe problem.graphite paintingThe problem with allergies, of course, is that you from your photos! often cant figure out what the cause of the problem is, because, for the horse, they are everywhere. Nevertheless, there are three approaches that people usually take when they are worried that their horse has allergies.Elimination. Basically, what people try to do is stop exposing the horse to potential allergens. Of course, thats a lot easier said than done. It can be almost Art Faschan impossible to eliminate the cause of the horses allergy if it stems from his environment. EliminationControl the problem. There are some things /artfaschan diets can be tried if a feed is suspected but foodthat you can do that will help, dont cost a lot, and allergies are uncommon and a poorly understooddont require much effort. For example, you can disease in horses. Food allergies are usually nonimprove ventilation in your horses environment to Call 727-919-3661seasonal, but not alwaysif the horse is allergic tocontrol dust. You can put on fly sheets or bodysuits or email Art ata plant that grows only in the summertime or a hayto protect them from insects. Fly control systems drawhide42@gmail.com for sizes and price quote. fed only in winter, for example. It is possible for aare available to install in barns. Sometimes these horse to have an adverse reaction to a food, suchsimple steps can really help keep your horses allergy as alfalfa, without it being a true allergic reaction,signs under control. You might also want to talk but the treatment is the same, either way. Eliminateto your vet about the role supplements may play it. Many types of pelleted products contain alfalfa.in supporting your horses respiratory system and Some medicines or treats have alfalfa in them if theyoverall health. Research suggests that providing are cubed or pelleted. And its not just alfalfa; dietaryantioxidantsespecially Vitamin Cmay be items reported to cause adverse food reactions inbeneficial to horses with airway disorders. Some of horses include barley, beet pulp, bran, buckwheat,the other ingredients in this category include omega chicory, clover, malt, oats, potatoes, wort, wheat,3 fatty acids, MSM, N-acetyl cysteine, and herbs. feed additives, and feed supplements.Even if you cant find out whats causing your Find out what the problem is. Some folks willhorses allergy problem, you may be able to control expend considerable amount of time and moneysymptoms using one of two drugs. Corticosteroid to try to figure out what the horse is allergic to,drugs like dexamethasone given by inhalation or understandably figuring that if they know what itorally generally work great, but many people seem is, it can be eliminated. There are two ways to doto have an unreasonable fear of them and are overly this: serum testing and skin testing. The tests haveconcerned about side effects.Anti-histamines seem two things in common: 1) They are fairly expensive,not to work as well, probably because they are given and 2) They dont seem to work all that well. after histamine has already been released. Your veterinarian can give you advice on dosage, and dose Skin testing seems to be the more accurate of thefrequency. There are also some reports of allergies two approaches. With skin testing, small amounts ofbeing helped by feeding 1 pound of soaked flax seed allergens are injected into the skin and the reactionor 1/4 cup of ground flax seed every day. is measured at intervals from 30 minutes to 48 hours. Swelling at the site of injection indicates aKnowing whether your horse has an infectious positive result. disease caused by bacteria or viruses or an inflammatory condition caused by environmental Serum testing is the easier of the two approaches,factors is the key to developing a treatment and known as the radioallergosorbent test (RAST), itmanagement plan. On the one hand, your horse may involves a blood sample taken to study the amountneed antibiotics, repeat nasal swabs, and quarantine. of allergen-specific antibodies that are present.On the other hand, corticosteroids and fresh air When the body encounters something that it ismay be prescribed. An accurate diagnosis helps you allergic to, it produces antibodies against it. Theseselect the appropriate course of action while not antibodies then signal the body to release certainselecting the wrong approach. It also gets the horse chemicals, such as immunoglobin E, or IgE, which isfeeling better more quickly and, in the long run, may strongly linked to the bodys allergy responses. Theactually end up costing less. The good news is that RAST identifies allergy triggers by looking for theseallergies tend to be seasonal and its always worth it allergen-specific antibodies.to make your horse more comfortable. 6 January 2024"