Lawsonia Intracellularis EPE feeding advise please

[Juniberry]

Lawsonia Intracellularis EPE feeding advise please

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Over the last few weeks I have nearly lost my foal she became depressed, high fever and anorexia. My vet came out daily and treated with abx and NSAID with gastroguard. After 5 days of not feeding Mum had dried up so we weaned the foal. The fever went at day 4 weaned the same day. Day 6 my foal looked like she would just lie down and die so I started force feeding antriee replacment milk. Foal started to pick up a bit but day 8 she developed ventral odema. Blood test showed very low protein, high muscle enzyme and signs of gut damage. As foal was now eating and looking brighter I carried on feeding milk and foal creep. Follow up blood test a week later showed increased protein (still half normall levels) and other levels became more normal. Looking around on the net I found a thread about equine proliferative enteropathy and one poster mentioned Lawsonia Intracellularis and suddenly every thing fell in to place. Spoken to my vet he agrees it is a likely diagnosis awaiting some more information from the vet. Lawsonia Intracellularis causes massive damage to the small intestine and this leads to very low absobtion from the small intestine.

My lively bonny foal has gone from a thriving 5 month old to looking like a feble 2-3 month old foal. My understanding is the damaged gut wall needs to regenerate and this takes months. So my question is what do I feed to help my foal out over the winter.

Currently I am using D&H Foal Creep, alfa beet and alfa A all high in protein, the creep is high in lactose and top spec feed balencer. Could I feed oil or as this is digested in the small intestine will this either be a waste or risk damaging the hind gut? Is starch a risk to the healing SI for example could I feed stud mix or is the starch to high? My foal is also on haylage and grass although as it is November the grass will not have a lot in it. Should she still be on gastroguard or other gut protection agent?

Do I just accept my foal will look poor all winter and spring grass is the only way to get her to pick up.
If it is relevant she is warmblood cross TB foaled early June. She and the other horses on the stud have ben wormed regularly and she was done again 2 weeks after the illness started. I am very grateful for all advise please

[Sonesta]

Been there with a foal with Lawsonia and can tell you that you can expect her to look poor for several months. Have you started the treatment for Lawsonia? Do it now. Don’t wait for lab results. They take too long and treating for Lawsonia won’t hurt - even if the test turns up negative - but if you wait until it’s confirmed, you may be too late.

If she is like mine, she will eat more hay than grain. I put lots of hay and alfalfa out for her 24/7 and gave her milk pellets free choice and separate bucket with grain with lots of oil and rice bran. If you can get her to liking beet pulp, that might help too.

It’s the antibiotic combination that is going to do the most for her. When she is feeling better, she will begin to eat.

Big hugs and best wishes. This is a nasty illness. And you can have a relapse (we did) just when you think all is well. The good news is that Fancy is now 7 years old and showing well in dressage and is pregnant (due March 15) with her first foal so that she can finish her Elite Mare requirements for AHS. No sign she was ever sick.

[Juniberry]

Thank you

By default the vet treated with antibiotics and although not the first line for Lawsonia the abx were on the treament guidelines. So yes she has had treatment with abx, NSAID and gastro gaurd for the first 7 days until her temp had returned to normal for 2 days. She is eating now but looks really poor and very young. I am feeding adlib good quality haylage, alfa a, foal creep which is close to milk pellets and alfa beet (sugar beet and alfa produced ab d soaked like surgar beet) a concentrated vit and mineral feed stimulant prescribed from the vet and an all round feed balencer. My fily eats but not very much in terms of hard feed, she will pick at grass and haylage most of the time but in the UK our grass will not be very good now until March.
How long was it after the first attack your mare relapsed? My filly won’t make it if she relapses as she has no reserves left.
Did you carry on with a gastro guard type suplement for a long time or just the first few days of treatment? My filly had gastrogaurd for 7 days.
Is there any supplements recommended in america as you have more incidences of Lawsonia over there we only have one lab which do fecal testing (high false negatives) and none which blood test so no need to wait for test results my foal has the diagnosis by exclusion. Tested clear for flu and strangles and respiratory involvment at any time

[Sonesta]

I suggest you contact my vet, Jennie Schroeder, directly to determine what she suggests. She is the one who discovered what was ailing my filly (and this was LONG BEFORE Lawsonia was known in horses - in fact, there was only ONE OTHER case out there).

You can phone her directly at 936-931-2900 or email her at jschroeder@wallerequine.com

Truly, she saved Fancy’s life. She is very nice and I’m sure will talk with you or your vet.

[Juniberry]

email sent

thnak you I have emailed Jennie as I in the UK so no one over here knows very much about Lawsonia