# warbles in horses, diagnosis and treatment



## lynnandbella (11 August 2013)

after ongoing vet call outs, no treatments, little concern etc ive been researching, my pony had a lump next to her spine appear in feb/march, and lots of large bumps under her skin, first vet visit: wash with maleseb daily, used a whole bottle and no better. second visit was given an antibacterial to put in feed, still no better. Lumps started getting worse in heat after riding etc so washed down with diluted hibiscrub or antibacterial shampoo, lumps fade slightly but still present. vet came to do jabs , she had been wheezing and lumps still present, gave vetapulmin, told to keep washing. friday 8th aug lump burst and something white came out, that lump has gone now leaving sore skin. i have clipped of the areas where the lumps appear to help keep them cooler and cleaner and put fly rug on, still washing and now putting sudocrem on to suffocate anything lurking beneath! changed vets and new vet coming on weds. has ayone had anything similar or know about any long term effects from warbles. i am very worried.


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## Moya_999 (11 August 2013)

lynnandbella said:



			after ongoing vet call outs, no treatments, little concern etc ive been researching, my pony had a lump next to her spine appear in feb/march, and lots of large bumps under her skin, first vet visit: wash with maleseb daily, used a whole bottle and no better. second visit was given an antibacterial to put in feed, still no better. Lumps started getting worse in heat after riding etc so washed down with diluted hibiscrub or antibacterial shampoo, lumps fade slightly but still present. vet came to do jabs , she had been wheezing and lumps still present, gave vetapulmin, told to keep washing. friday 8th aug lump burst and something white came out, that lump has gone now leaving sore skin. i have clipped of the areas where the lumps appear to help keep them cooler and cleaner and put fly rug on, still washing and now putting sudocrem on to suffocate anything lurking beneath! changed vets and new vet coming on weds. has ayone had anything similar or know about any long term effects from warbles. i am very worried.
		
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I was always taught that with warbles (don't hear of them much these days) once the lava has made its way up to the back.  There are only two options:

 Leave well alone till it pops out of its own accord
 get the vet to remove it.


 Either way riding is a no no till its all healed up.

 Sounds like the warble has come out now, so check with the vet what creme to put on till its no longer sore, red, oozing and hair has grown back, before putting saddle back on.


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## lynnandbella (11 August 2013)

many thanks, she is still covered in lots of big bumps though, will there be any long term damage?


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## The Fuzzy Furry (11 August 2013)

I hope you kept the 'something white' that popped out, to show your vet?
Warbles are horrible, big fat maggot that comes out - havent seen one for years tho. No long lasting damage (usually) tho in rare cases the skin can be necrotic round it, more likely that the hair may not regrow. Had the latter on my old pony, tho this was 40odd years ago!
Really hope that you do not have multiples of them (if they are warbles)


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## lynnandbella (11 August 2013)

no didnt think to keep it as just thought it was hard puss at the time, hadnt researched it until now, had read about neurological problems etc hoping that was rare , shes only four.


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## lhotse (11 August 2013)

I think you will find that warble flies are no longer to be found in the UK, the use of ivermectin has eradicated them. What I would suspect is that the lumps are collagen granuloma.

ETA, they are best left alone, they usually disappear by themselves, messing with them just irritates the skin and makes them sore. My mare has a few, they cause no problems. Also should add that warbles are a notifiable disease.


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## lynnandbella (11 August 2013)

sarcoids?


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## lhotse (11 August 2013)

I very much doubt they are sarcoids, but do look up collagen granuloma, because that sounds exactly like you are describing. I would stop messing with them to be honest as you are just compromising the skin over the top. Just make sure you use a clean saddlepad.


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## lynnandbella (12 August 2013)

I thought that callogen lumps are pretty much sarcoids??, and looking at it yes they are almost identical to what she has, i googled it and the pics that came up were the same


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## lhotse (12 August 2013)

No, they are totally different from sarcoids. I'm surprised your vet hasn't told you that is what they are, or maybe they just wanted to up your bill by selling you washes and antibiotics!


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## Alyth (12 August 2013)

I remember warbles back in the 50s!!  Having googled callogen lumps it seems like vet intervention is needed....perhaps he (I assume he!) could excise one to extract the contents so you can be sure of what you are dealing with and use appropriate treatment....the other option would be to wait for another one to pop and save the contents for the vet to examine....but surely the vet should have known about the possibilities??????


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## lhotse (12 August 2013)

Unless they are causing problems, my vet says to leave well alone. They can be injected with a steroid, and years ago on a previous horse that had one which rubbed, I used Dermobion cream, but it's not available anymore. Prodding, squeezing and overwashing will just increase the risk that the skin will get sore, and cutting them out will just cause an open wound which risks infection. Just make sure your saddle fits, use a clean pad, a sheepskin one if you feel it would give more cushioning, and leave them alone!! My mare had several last summer, some quite large, I left alone and they are practically non-existant now.


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## Izzwizz (12 August 2013)

My horse had something like this on the edge of his saddle area.  Vet said collagen granuloma (sp) and to leave well alone.  Have you changed anything like your numnah?  I had to a Le Mieux one.  It was too thick and tipped my weight back therefore creating a pressure point where the lump was.  Saddler said this.  Saddle checked and went back to using my Nuumed half wool one after the lump had gone down.  I didnt ride atall when it was at its worst.  Ive never had one since and sold the numnah, lovely as it was it wasnt suitable for my horse.


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## lynnandbella (12 August 2013)

ok thanks, they really dont seem to bother her (brushing,tackng up, touching) , just the one that was along her spine just where saddle was which had burst, now healing well. maybe i'll cancel vet and wait for that bit to clear up then call the saddler. i change numnah and wash brushes regularly as we thought it couldve been bacterial.


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## Hairy Old Cob (12 August 2013)

Warbles were  erdadicated at the end of the 70s we used treat the cattle with Tiguvon if I remember correctly.


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## lynnandbella (12 August 2013)

ok so  if it is callogen granuloma which seems very likely , it is usually a reaction to a bite or sting and after more research the best option is a corticosteroid injections, which could get expensive if its an ongoing thing. would a topical corticosteroid such as a hydrocortisone, or eumivite cream be worth a go, as it is a mild steroid. have tried antihistamines and they did not work. I would just leave it, but as she is only 4 and it only effects the saddle area , i really dont want her to become saddle sore and start refusing her saddle, as she is very good and loves her light hacking. She has currently had just over a week off as the lump got sore, its just about healed up now, shes had her back checked, and feet pedicured, just need to save up for the saddle fitter , we've done ok with the wintec until now but to avoid the chances of any saddle sores i will get that sorted .


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## FairyLights (12 August 2013)

............................................deleted


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## lynnandbella (12 August 2013)

?? ??? why delete?


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## Orangehorse (12 August 2013)

When there was a fashion to import Russian horses a few years ago (obviously bought for pennies and shipped over) some used to come complete with warbles, but they were getting very rare by then in the rest of the horse population.


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## Alyth (13 August 2013)

Even though it seems possible that the warble fly was eradicated it is possible that it wasn't....but whatever the reason the vet should be interested enough to find out what it is and to sort it out.....lumps are not good under any saddle cloth and saddle.....


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## TrasaM (13 August 2013)

I've only seen a warble fly larvae once and that was on a cow when I was a child..long long ago  it was very distinctly maggoty and I don't think you'd confuse it with pus if it was a larvae. Horrible things. Good to know they were eradicated.


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## Caballito (13 August 2013)

Could just be eosinophillic granuloma and nothing sinister. Hope you get it sorted


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