Post by daisyhill on Nov 23, 2015 17:40:21 GMT -5
We have an elderly quarter-pony named Princess. As far as I know she is in her mid thirties. She is in good shape, an easy keeper, and very, very good at teaching young children to ride.
A couple of days ago, I was helping the children groom the horses, and we kept noticing that Princess smelled odd. I thought perhaps it was her feet--nope, they smelled fine. Then I went around her just sniffing--her coat smelled faintly of horse and snow. I sniffed her mouth--her breath smelled horsey, just like normal. But I still kept catching this whiff of something odd.
I would describe the smell as a sort of decaying vegetable matter scent. You know how a vase of flowers smells when it is time to throw them out? It made me think of that smell.
Today, Princess just seemed kind of "off" when we fed the horses. She was standing by herself, instead of waiting for breakfast. We brought her into the barn (she is the only one who gets senior feed, so we often feed her in the barn so the others don't try and help her finish it). She seemed happy to eat her breakfast, and took a small drink from the tank. However, the smell was much, much worse. It almost made me want to gag, and I generally am not exceptionally quick to feel that way. She appeared normal except for a small amount of nasal discharge.
I asked a friend (the one who gave us Princess when her girls outgrew her) to take a look at her, and she agreed that she thought her breath and coat and hooves smelled normal. This was later in the day, and the bad smell was far less strong than it had been in the morning. However, she thought, and I agreed with her, that it was the nasal discharge that was stinking. I also noticed then that she had a bit of gunk beside her eye as well.
Any ideas of what this might be?
She does not appear to be in distress, when I say "off" it is hard to even describe--just not quite as perky as usual, somehow. She is not lethargic or unresponsive, she was happy to have some extra attention.
A couple of days ago, I was helping the children groom the horses, and we kept noticing that Princess smelled odd. I thought perhaps it was her feet--nope, they smelled fine. Then I went around her just sniffing--her coat smelled faintly of horse and snow. I sniffed her mouth--her breath smelled horsey, just like normal. But I still kept catching this whiff of something odd.
I would describe the smell as a sort of decaying vegetable matter scent. You know how a vase of flowers smells when it is time to throw them out? It made me think of that smell.
Today, Princess just seemed kind of "off" when we fed the horses. She was standing by herself, instead of waiting for breakfast. We brought her into the barn (she is the only one who gets senior feed, so we often feed her in the barn so the others don't try and help her finish it). She seemed happy to eat her breakfast, and took a small drink from the tank. However, the smell was much, much worse. It almost made me want to gag, and I generally am not exceptionally quick to feel that way. She appeared normal except for a small amount of nasal discharge.
I asked a friend (the one who gave us Princess when her girls outgrew her) to take a look at her, and she agreed that she thought her breath and coat and hooves smelled normal. This was later in the day, and the bad smell was far less strong than it had been in the morning. However, she thought, and I agreed with her, that it was the nasal discharge that was stinking. I also noticed then that she had a bit of gunk beside her eye as well.
Any ideas of what this might be?
She does not appear to be in distress, when I say "off" it is hard to even describe--just not quite as perky as usual, somehow. She is not lethargic or unresponsive, she was happy to have some extra attention.