The Straight Scoop on Strangles

Strangles. The mere mention of the word can send chills up a horseowner’s spine. The "epidemic" of fear and mis-information, it can spread faster and do more damage than the disease itself. Following is a brief outline of this disease and an account of how one barn manager handled the problem.

Cause: Strangles is the most important infectious disease affecting horses. It is caused by a bacterium, Streptococcus equi.

Signs: Swollen lymph glands that may burst. Pus discharge from nostrils. Typically, horses suffering from strangles have pus discharging from the nostrils and swellings (abscesses) forming in the lymph glands under the jaw. These abscesses often burst and exude a thick yellow pus. Affected horses can have fever, be depressed and may stop eating.

Most animals recover, but horses that contract even a mild case of strangles must be isolated and removed from training or heavy work for up to 3 months. In some cases the infection can cause chronic illness or even death.

Epidemiology: Strangles is very contagious, especially with foals, spreading easily from horse to horse and often leading to large outbreaks with many horses affected. It is spread in the discharges (pus) from the nose and burst abscesses. Objects such as water troughs, feed buckets, brushes, reins and other equipment, if contaminated with infected pus, can also spread the disease.

Recovered horses can spread the disease for up to eight months, even though they can appear clinically healthy and normal.

Immunity: In common with other respiratory diseases, such as canine cough and feline respiratory disease, immunity is short lived and incomplete. In fact 25% of horses infected with strangles do not appear to develop immunity. This makes it very difficult for a vaccine to provide complete protection and it is not claimed that the vaccine is an absolute preventative. However, field experience has shown that vaccination can control the disease by reducing the degree of clinical disease and reducing the number of horses affected.

Treatment: Penicillin is the antibiotic of choice against S.equi. Abscesses may need to be opened and drained and good supportive care is vital for recovery.

Control: It is strongly recommended that all horses be included in a regular program of vaccination. It is particularly important that booster doses be given prior to periods of greater risk of infection, such as the breeding or performance season. Pregnant mares may be vaccinated up to two weeks before foaling.

Consideration should be given to vaccinating high risk horses (eg. broodmares, stallions, performance, Pony Club, racing and eventing horses) every six months. In the event of an outbreak of strangles, horses should be segregated into three groups and handled as follows:

(a) Those affected by the disease should be treated, but not vaccinated
(b) Horses with no known contact with the disease should be vaccinated immediately
(c) Horses known to have been in contact should be observed for seven to ten days and vaccinated only if they have a normal temperature and show no clinical signs of the disease.

This information was obtained from the internet at:http://www.cyberhorse.net.av/csl/strangles. htm

One Barn’s Approach
Strangles has "traditionally" been handled with silence. It’s been considered as one of those nasty little secrets that you don’t tell anyone, but Sonya Levitsky, manager of Meadowview Stables in Mettawa, IL disagrees. She, like most other barn managers, has had the headache of dealing with strangles in the barn. She learned everything she could about the disease from consultations with veterinarians and adopted a policy of "total disclosure." Because of the highly contagious nature of this disease, she felt it best that anyone who may come into contact with these horses should know. "We let as many people as possible know, so they don’t pet all the horses as they are going down the aisle or pass feed from one to another."

They have discovered as most everyone else has that it is practically impossible to keep it from spreading, but they follow all the precautions they can ?to minimize the spread. Once a horse is has contracted strangles, they follow the prescribed treatment and let the disease run its course.

Though strangles is neither a "reportable" disease nor one requiring quarantine, Levitsky continues to work closely with her veterinarians for treatment and immunization program and she has also worked with the nearby forest preserve district (which many Meadowview horses ride in) to accurately educate them on the facts associated with strangles. One veterinarian made the analogy that a stable is like a daycare center. If a child comes down with the flu or mumps, you don’t close the place down, but take precautions and notify and educate the parties involved to help avoid the spread.

She’s also continuing her own education through various sources including the internet where she can find the latest on strangles treatments and vaccines. Meadowview management is doing their own experiment focusing on the effectiveness of strangles vaccinations by tracking the incidence of the disease occurring in vaccinated horses, versus non-vaccinated horses at the barn.

It’s an ongoing battle, but it can be more easily addressed when you face it well-informed.