Something attacked my Yearlings face :(

[I_Heart_My_Twhs]

So this morning I went out to feed the horses and I saw that my yearling, Spirit had a bloody face.

Whatever bit him punctured the right sinus. His eye is swollen shut and watering. His nose was bleeding a little bit. It looked like some dog bit him but I’m not sure. There are coyotes in the fields across the street, but they don’t seem to come close to the horses pasture.

I gave him some penecillin. Flushed the wound and his eye. And put a pad with anti biotic ointment on the punctured area and wrapped it. And before I went inside for the night I gave him some bute.

I’m afraid to sleep tonight. I check on him every half hour and I kept the outside light on. WhAt else should I do?

[I_Heart_My_Twhs]

I’ll get pictures tomorrow.

[dotneko]

I would get the vet out ASAP.
Whatever got at him could have anything - Rabies?
At the very least, tetanus booster and antibiotics.

[DressageFancy]

What dotneko said!

[arapaloosa_lady]

This doesn’t sound like a situation that would be best treated by Dr. Google.

[sid]

[QUOTE=arapaloosa_lady;8200125]
This doesn’t sound like a situation that would be best treated by Dr. Google.[/QUOTE]

Yes, Dr. DVM needed.

[sid]

Vet.

[Chall]

Ugh, vet now.
I’d go to the doctor too. You may need rabies shots.
Contact of saliva from rabies on open skin can infect you.
Not trying to scare you, but id check it out.

Vet may also have knowledge of loose dogs, similar attacks.

[Didi]

Agree with all - vet asap and keep us updated, please!! Jingles for you and your yearling!

[AKB]

I would be worried about whether or not the eye is ok. Also, a coyote tooth could go deeply enough to puncture the skull or bring infection to the tissues around the eye. Penicillin won’t be enough to get rid of that. If you can’t get a vet out right now, I would trailer to a major clinic now. I assume the yearling is up to date on rabies and tetanus vaccines, but may need boosters.

[merrygoround]

All of the above ASAP! Penicillin alone may not be the drug of choice, and some booster shots for rabies and tetanus are both dictated in a situation like this.

[thatmoody]

I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but I agree with the other posters STRONGLY. A long time ago (10 years?) a bobcat got into the pasture where I board and attacked two horses. Someone killed it and sent it in, and yes, it WAS rabid. This has been a nightmare of mine ever since. My horse ALWAYS has his rabies UTD (I board in a very rural area with a robust coyote and bobcat population).

[DJohn]

I’d bet a loose dog.
Coyotes aren’t the type to take on a horse (that I’ve ever seen) and we have lots of coyotes/coydogs in the area.

Make sure the Tetanus/Rabies are UTD as others have mentioned.

[Highflyer]

I would not discount the possibility that he somehow did it to himself. But I agree that it sounds like a vet is needed regardless.

[cayuse]

What everyone else said. Vet asap. Pen may not be the antibiotic of choice and you won’t know how much damage was really done to the surrounding area until it is thoroughly examined. And the rabies concern, if the wound is from another animal. If the wound was somehow self-inflicted I would be concerned about foreign objects being stuck or embedded in it.

[Simkie]

This has to be a troll. No one would would have a horse come in with a punctured sinus and NOT call the vet…right? :no:

[I_Heart_My_Twhs]

I did call the vet… It was early this morning (around 1am) They came out and gave him a tetanus shot. And he gave me some gauze pads and better ointment to put on the wound. His eye wasn’t punctured, but was cloudy and watering. Said to wash his eye out twice a day with saline.

Turns out he whacked his head on our neighbors fence post. And it had a nail that was sticking out.

[sid]

[QUOTE=I Heart My Twhs;8200764]
I did call the vet… It was early this morning (around 1am) They came out and gave him a tetanus shot. And he gave me some gauze pads and better ointment to put on the wound. His eye wasn’t punctured, but was cloudy and watering. Said to wash his eye out twice a day with saline. [/QUOTE]

Did they examine the eye for a corneal scratch or major eye trauma (with an opthalmoscope - not just by eye or penlight)?

I had a horse that was hit in the eye with a hail stone and it smashed his cornea to his retina.

Took a lot more than saline to deal with that (like atrophine for months to keep the pupil open and from shutting down completely due to scar tissue and becoming blind in that eye – and antibiotic ointment).

Don’t mean to armchair vet here, but “cloudy” with an eye is a real red alert. If, when they opened the eye and it was bright and clear, that’s one thing. Cloudy…not so good thing.

[Didi]

OY! hang in there!!