Chronic Choke horses and preventative measures

[Long_amp_Short_Ears]

Curious as to your preventative practices for a horse who has been known to choke, background and current situation as follows. 16 year old Percheron approximately 18 hands and 1800 pounds, working carriage horse. He is on Buckeye feed( its a small pelleted feed) receives devils claw liquid and MSM pellets as well as biotin powder. He gets a scoop of water mixed in his feed and this feed very quickly “melts” into a mush. We had cut back the amount of water with it being so cold. He eats out of a feed tub on the ground and he typically drinks plenty of water, we use electrolytes in are water year round. He has access to a slow feed net and hay 24-7 He is seen by a vet who specializes in dental and had some waves and points but nothing bad and no loose or missing teeth. He does not bolt his feed but has a brick in it to encourage him to slow down.
He choked last night but was remedied with the water hose in the mouth situation was instructed on how to do this by the vet after it happened first time. He chocked last night but I do not think he was gave enough water in his feed as it has turned very cold and I think she may have skimped on the water. Before that he had not choked since about august.

  What do you do to help prevent your chronic chokers?

[cnd8]

Well goodness, it sounds like you are doing everything right! Prayers.

[Simkie]

A water hose in the mouth is a really excellent way to cause an aspiration pneumonia.

It might be time to scope the horse and see if there’s a reason why he’s choking.

[x-halt-salute]

If your horse is choking periodically in spite of not bolting feed, have you considered that he might have some sort of esophogeal stricture? Trauma to the esophagus during a choke episode can create scar tissue/narrowing of the esophagus that can make a horse prone to choking in the future. Your vet can check for this by scoping.

I’d also be leery of treating a choking horse with a water hose – I know that there’s a fair bit of variation in choke treatment around the country, but this increases the risk of aspiration pneumonia disproportionately to its likelihood of softening or dislodging a bolus of food.

If it’s not a case of esophogeal damage, I’d consider feeding soupier meals and using a bigger pan or trough so that the mash spreads out in a thinner, less bolt-able layer. It’s worth getting an electric kettle or finding some other hot water source so that meals can be soaked adequately in the winter, too.

[nzoom13]

There is a chronic choker at my barn and we use the following protocol with him: 1) We feed him where he is away from other horses, as other horses standing around makes him worried someone else will try to take his food. (Of course this may not help with all horses especially those who are herd bound) 2) His food is saturated with water making it into a thin mush. 3) He constantly has access to hay or pasture so he isn’t starving by the time a meal is served. 4) He is either fed from a large flat pan on the ground while in a stall or a PRE-VENT bucket if he is in the pasture. He had choked three times in one year before this but has not choked once in the last two years using all these strategies. Good luck, I agree that you are taking good preventative measures.

[Long_amp_Short_Ears]

@Simkie

A water hose in the mouth is a really excellent way to cause an aspiration pneumonia.

It might be time to scope the horse and see if there’s a reason why he’s choking.

I was given detailed instructions on how to do this by my vet and haven’t had any problems with it.

[Long_amp_Short_Ears]

@x-halt-salute

If your horse is choking periodically in spite of not bolting feed, have you considered that he might have some sort of esophogeal stricture? Trauma to the esophagus during a choke episode can create scar tissue/narrowing of the esophagus that can make a horse prone to choking in the future. Your vet can check for this by scoping.

I’d also be leery of treating a choking horse with a water hose – I know that there’s a fair bit of variation in choke treatment around the country, but this increases the risk of aspiration pneumonia disproportionately to its likelihood of softening or dislodging a bolus of food.

If it’s not a case of esophogeal damage, I’d consider feeding soupier meals and using a bigger pan or trough so that the mash spreads out in a thinner, less bolt-able layer. It’s worth getting an electric kettle or finding some other hot water source so that meals can be soaked adequately in the winter, too.

He was scoped before for something else and I mentioned about his occasional case of coke and Vet seen nothing wrong from the scope point of view.

[dacasodivine]

I have one of those. I make danged sure his feed is properly dampened before feeding. I also have a senior who needs wet feed. I bring hot water in a thermos so the mush is warm. Perhaps something your barn can do? Or get a bucket warmer to.warm the water. I’m sure there something that can be figured out.

btw, I also use a hose right in the corner of the mouth with a little more than a trickle of water running. Is that what you do? I think the action of the tongue trying to spit the hose out is what mostly helps dislodge the stuck food.