Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

msar-riders - Re: [MSAR] Interesting article on Hiccups in Horses

msar-riders@lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: Mounted search and rescue

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: "D'Arcy Demianoff-Thompson" <cest.mon.virage@gmail.com>
  • To: spanishequines@yahoo.com, "Mounted search and rescue" <msar-riders@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [MSAR] Interesting article on Hiccups in Horses
  • Date: Thu, 7 Aug 2008 14:33:30 -0700

Very interesting article.  Thank you, Karen.  This thread just went through Endurance Net's Ride Camp list recently.  I'll forward this onto them if that is okay!
 
D'Arcy

On Thu, Aug 7, 2008 at 10:42 AM, Karen Nesbitt <spanishequines@yahoo.com> wrote:
The following is a forwarding:
 
To view this article online: http://www.aces.uiuc.edu/news/stories/news4462.html
       
The Hiccupping Horse

Author: Ashley Mitek
<b>An archive of Pet Columns from the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine is available online at www.cvm.uiuc.edu/petcolumns/.  Requests for reprints of this article may be directed to Mandy Barth, mandyb@illinois.edu.</b>


One of the best known cures for relieving someone of the hiccups is a good, old-fashioned scare. However, what do you do when it seems that your horse has a case of the hiccups? Sneaking up behind a 1,000 pound Thoroughbred and yelling "Boo!," is not advisable for several reasons.  For one, you might just get a surprise of your own.

The medical term for the noise we commonly refer to as hiccups is synchronous diaphragmatic flutter or singultus.  But in horses it has been specifically called thumps since 1831 when a veterinarian first reported a thumping noise coming from the abdomen of a horse that just ran 13 miles.

"Thumps in and of itself is not a problem," says Dr. Cristobal Navas de Solís, an equine internal medicine resident at the University of Illinois Veterinary Teaching Hospital.  "But if a horse does have thumps, there is usually an underlying cause that needs to be treated," he explains.

Many horses that present with the anomaly are endurance athletes that have an electrolyte imbalance and significant fluid loss after an exhaustive workout.  For example, thumps is common in Arabian horses competing in long distance races that last 25, 50, or even 100 miles.  "Typically these patients are dehydrated and have low blood calcium levels," mentions Dr. Navas de Solís, "but once you treat the underlying problem the thumps usually disappear on their own."

Thumps in horses, and hiccups in humans, although both referred to as synchronous diaphragmatic flutter to the medical experts in each field, are slightly different variations upon the same theme.  For one, hiccups in humans are not commonly associated with electrolyte imbalances.

Secondly, the location from which we hear the characteristic noise coming also differs in horse and man.  The "hic" we hear in humans is caused by the closure of the vocal chords after the diaphragm spasmodically contracts, quickly inflating the lungs.  In horses, however, veterinarians and owners that have witnessed the ailment can attest that the abnormal noise comes from the animal's side.

Low blood calcium levels are the classic abnormality associated with thumps.  This may make the phrenic nerve, which runs along both sides of the heart and controls diaphragm movements, more easily excitable.  But it is also a good idea to check all electrolyte levels, especially magnesium, potassium, sodium and chlorine.

In a typical scenario with a dehydrated horse and abnormal electrolyte levels, the phrenic nerve might begin to fire at the rate of which the atria of the heart contract.  In short, the nerve is inappropriately obeying firing instructions from the heart, instead of the brain, to control diaphragm movements.

"Usually we see the horse's abdomen contract 40-50 times per minute," says Dr. Navas de Solís.  Typically, each contraction occurs at the same time the heart beats, but in rare cases that does not always happen, nor do the thumps have to occur on both sides of the horse.

Though hiccups in humans are quite harmless, thumps in horses are usually linked to an abnormality that warrants attention.  If you hear the telltale sounds--and don't suspect your horse has merely gotten into the Kentucky bourbon--contact your veterinarian as soon as possible.

<b>An archive of Pet Columns from the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine is available online at www.vetmed.illinois.edu/petcolumns/.  Requests for reprints of this article may be directed to Mandy Barth, mandyb@illinois.edu.</b>

Veterinary Extension/Office of Public Engagement<br>
University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine<br>
217/333-2907


Source: Dr. Cristobal Navas de Solis
       
-------------------------------------------------------------------------   
This news release is a service of the University of Illinois College
of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences. Releases on
other topics can be found on the ACES News Web site
http://www.aces.uiuc.edu/news
If you have questions about your subscription, or wish to subscribe
to other topic areas, please contact Gary Beaumont (beaumont@uiuc.edu)
   =========================================================
 
I thought this would be of interest to the group since some of us here ride endurance horses and some of us have been on lengthy searches with our horses...
K. Nesbitt
VMSAR
Iroquois County - Illinos
                
 
 


_______________________________________________
MSAR-Riders mailing list
MSAR-Riders@lists.ibiblio.org
http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/msar-riders




--
D'Arcy L. Demianoff-Thompson
cest.mon.virage@gmail.com




Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page