Well $!#@! ventral edema

[lilitiger2]

So, it’s really, REALLY freakin’ hot. Giving my stall rest boy (yes, been 9 weeks) a sponge bath and…WTF is that on his stomach? It looks like…ah, shit. Take temp (normal) HR normal. Call the vet. Try benedryl and banamine… Outline the thing with a sharpie. Gets a little bigger, not a lot.

Today, still not going down but softer. Vet comes and looks and does a quick blood test–all normal (yay! as I was imaging all sorts of badness. Edema is not our friend) she thinks it will go down (probably horse fly bite) but he gets to go out a bit (has a little porch out side his stall) and maybe even his pen for a bit. Woo hoo! We’re hoping some movement will help with reabsorbing.

Because there are so many awful things it could be, I just can’t go there yet with this boy.
his hoof is sloooooooowly growing out (has a new shoe it, backwards to support heal and let toe grow) and just…no. Am praying this is going to work itself out.

But really? This boy just does not need one more thing! And NOT this!!!

[IPEsq]

So when mine was on stall rest, he had a large swelling in the belly button area that spread a bit down midline one evening. Vet did come take a peek the next day or so (was there anyway). We hypothesized it was some kind of bite. After a few days, swelling did go down, the area was itchy, and there was a little scabby thing like maybe it was a spider bite from all the time he spent sleeping in the stall.

Don’t panic yet

[lilitiger2]

Oh thank you so much IPEsq!! that does make me feel SO much better! i’m so hoping it’s a bite! Poor guy. I really hope that swelling, particularly in his sheath, goes down! I’ll try not to panic!!!

[Texarkana]

A positive anecdote: my problem child, high maintenance mare likes to scare me with ventral edema from time to time. Up until her, I’d only ever seen it associated with all sorts of terrible things, so I was panicking just like you the first time. She has developed it a few times-- maybe 2 or 3 more times over the past 5 years? I just try not to think about it when it happens (while still keeping a watchful eye on her, of course).

Hoping your guy just got a bug bite!

[lilitiger2]

Oh yay for positive anecdotes! Thank you Texarkana! yes,my brain goes all sorts of worst case ideas so happy to hear it’s not always doom and gloom. The first thing the vet said today was HIS HEART AND LUNGS SOUND FINE (yay!) and all bloodwork normal(also yay!!) so hoping it’s just a bite.

always something!! Thanks again!

[RJC]

I put in an after hours call to my vet a couple week for this exact thing. I was very worried. After many pictures and phone calls, horse was diagnosed with a really bad bug bite. The edema continued to get larger over the weekend, then started to subside. But it’s taking a very long time to completely reabsorb. There was a scab in the middle but the edema moved so after a few days, it was no longer in the middle.

Hope that helps!

[2DogsFarm]

Not ventral edema, but just after moving my horses to a new barn, my TB developed a good-sized bump on one side of his belly - protruded a good 2-3", hard but did not seem to bother him.
Barn vet - new to me, I had moved from another state - was there a couple days later & she immediately wanted to do surgery to remove & biopsy.

I had pastewormed just before moving them & asked about the possibility of a parasite cause for the lump.
(Forget where I had heard/read/been told expelling worms can cause such a lump)
She was adamant, I chose the Wait & See & sure enough, lump disappeared on its own.

I got a new vet.

[lilitiger2]

OMG 2Dogs…YIKES! For sure a new vet!!
no, my vet was definitely NOT recommending surgery!! I have not seen any scabby thing in the middle yet but i’m looking! It looks a tiny bit smaller today (from my sharpie outline), hard to see but I think so. He’s been stall bound for a long time but was able to get out today for a l ittle and wander around his pen, graze a bit, even roll, so that was good. I’m keeping the faith that this will reabsorb, as the alternative I just can’t think about.
Thanks a billion for the reminders!!!

Surgery…:eek::eek::eek:

[Mango20]

My small pony had an enormous ventral edema this time last year. It started as hives all over, then a small lump on his belly. The vet thought it was just the hives settling down there, but it just kept growing and growing despite having him on Zyrtec, turnout, and exercise. I’m not generally one to panic, but the size of this thing had me texting the vet. It was about 12"x18" and 2-3" high on the belly of a 12 hand pony (so pretty much the whole thing). There was a small bump in the middle so we figured it was a bug or tick bite that he had a bad reaction to. It never seemed to bother him and did eventually go away over a couple of weeks. I was scared he’d have a similar reaction this year, but so far so good.

[Renn_aissance]

LT, do I recall that yours has Cushings?

My guy does also and every summer gets bug bites around his umbilicus that will sometimes blow up into edema. Other years, particularly when it gets really hot and gross, he’ll develop edema in other places on his underline. Two years ago he had a ballooned area the length of my forearm on the underside of his abdomen about 6 inches back from his heart girth. His circulation is not great at the best of times so it takes at least 2 weeks to fully reabsorb. Based on evaluation in previous years, my vet is not concerned when this happens, although it’s inspired a more extensive annual physical. And yes, moving around does seem to help.

Hope your guy has the same experience as mine and this is symptomatic of “it’s hot, there are bugs, everything is terrible and I wish to summer in Finland” and nothing more nefarious than that.

[lilitiger2]

Wow, long day but thank you Mango 20 and Ren! Yeah, i’d be freaked out over the pony with the swelling. It’s freaking scary!!! I really do wonder about the heat. It’s been SO SO SO hot, really really HOT. Did I mention the heat? i’m out there, giving him some sponge baths. Got the big fan out there… I said it was hot, right?
i’m hoping it does reabsorb. I’m glad I used the sharpie as I can see what it’s doing. Looks a tiny bit smaller, certainly a little softer. Yay.
he did love getting out for a little stroll today. Woo hoo! First time out in 9weeks! I m really hoping hopes with the reabsorbing! No, this guy isn’t Cushings (but I might get him tested) - that was my sweet old boy,my Good Horse (I put him down in 2016)
Thanks so much for all the support. Man, that’s scary seeing that thing!!