KW 2009
Pigeon fever is at a high in northern California this year. Pigeon fever is a disease that is caused by the bacteria Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis. The disease is accompanied by abscesses and sores along the pectoral muscles of the chest, midline of the belly and the groin area, getting its name due to the chest sores that swell up “resembling a pigeon.”
Pigeon fever is also called dryland distemper and is more common in dry, hot climates of late summer and early fall. The bacteria lives in the soil and can enter the horse through wounds, broken skin or mucous membranes. There is no vaccine. It is not transmitted to humans but the bacteria can be carried on shoes, clothing, hands or supplies from one horse to another. It is believed that it is transmissible by flies.
Symptoms:
Besides swelling in the chest, legs, belly or groin, other symptoms are lameness, lethargy and a temperature.
Treatment:
A veterinarian must make the diagnosis and can assess the severity. Infected horses should be isolated. Often anti-inflammatory drugs and antibiotics are used to reduce swelling and will help to combat the formation of an internal abscess which can be dangerous and difficult to treat.
Hot and cold packs can be applied to swelling to encourage rupture. Once the abscesses open and rupture, they should be drained and regularly flushed with saline or iodine solution. The drained fluid is contagious and must be handled and disposed of properly.
Careful and complete disposal of the fluid from the abscess is extremely important. Hay, straw, bedding, manure, etc. must be disposed and stalls, paddocks, equipment and tack must be cleaned and disinfected. Fly control is also critical.
Prognosis is usually good, especially with external abscesses. Recovery can be from two weeks to over two months.
Incubation Period:
According to equine veterinarians at Colorado State University's James L. Voss Veterinary Teaching Hospital, horses may become infected but not show abscesses for weeks. The disease can easily infect multiple horses on the premises. The bacterium can survive in the liquid draining from the abscesses (including in hay, straw, manure or shavings) for one to 55 days.
Comments
Thanks for the article. Definitely I have seen more than a few cases of pigeon fever this year.
I saw one in Ocala,Florida this year.
Go back and read Dr. Voss' article and others that state antibiotics can be counterproductive. I like this from another vet: "Giving antibiotics in the early stages of these abscesses is usually counterproductive. The antibiotics may look to be helping by reducing some of the swelling, but you don’t usually kill the nidus of the infection, and the abscess will flare up once antibiotics are stopped. Once the abscess breaks and drains, it should be flushed well and treated with a topical wound agent. Fly repellants are indicated to keep down the fly contamination and threat of spreading the disease.
These are atypical infections with this disease that can be more threatening because of location. Structures such as tendon sheaths, walls of lymphatic channels or internal organs are examples. In these cases, one needs intensive long-term antibiotics under supervision by your veterinarian. Horses having had this infection seem relatively immune to it for a few years."
My vet says unusually high number of cases this year in the Sacramento area. My need to butte the infected horse because of the pain associated with it until it opens and drains. .
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