uterine infection

yellerroseintx · Aug 19, 2009

I have a mare that I have been trying to get pg since February..a real hussy but no luck...she has had previous foals before I got her and the last one was in 2007......sooo..off to the Vet.. had her cultured and got the results back today..she has a uterine infection....vet says either the shots or have her flushed which brings the antibiotics up close and personal....I am leaning towards having her flushed but I have a few questions....is this infection personal to just her or can the stallion have been infected also? Will I have to have her done again next Spring...is this a chronic problem or a one time infection that once healed is gone?.....

which option do you like better and why? Thank you in advance..hate to sound like a dummy but she is my first to have an infection and I want to know everything.

Lisa Strass · Aug 19, 2009

I don't have a lot of experience with this, but I have had good luck with uterine flushes in the past.

jleonard · Aug 19, 2009

The vet that I work for flushes mares with infections, and has a lot of sucess with getting difficult mares in foal. He usually injects DMSO into a saline solution which helps reduce inflamation and remove mucus, draines that out, then injects the antibiotic into the lavage tube. It will likely take several days of treatment, and can sometimes take multiple cycles to get them cleaned up.

It could have been that the stallion passed the infection to the mare and it will be a one time deal that will clear up and not be an issue in the future. I had a non-breeding mare with an infection last year that we believe was caused by her wind-sucking (sucking air into her uterus). We treated mares that had poor reproductive conformation that prevents the uterus from draining normally, and the retained fluid would cause more of a chronic problem. Sometimes the conformation of the vulva makes it so that manure can cause an infection. Another mare had a bad distocia, tore her cervix, and had trouble keeping foreign material out.

Good luck, hope you are able to get her in foal soon!

mizbeth · Aug 19, 2009

Hi

Either one should work well for you. As for your other questions, I would ask your vet. I am sure a mare can get a uterine infection from many/any source and it could of course repeat itself each year but not by the same cause.

Such a puzzle these little guys sometimes.

Good luck,

Beth

Miniv · Aug 19, 2009

Ummm.... why not BOTH?

Larry and I do both flushes and infusions on our own mares. If it were me, I'd flush the mare, then infuse....AND give her the oral antibiotics that the vet recommends. Usually, it's SMZ's during the last part of her pregnancy.

If you have several broodmares, it's not a bad idea to ask your vet (if you have a good one) to teach you how to flush/infuse. The procedure is actually very simple. Your vet will sell you everything you need.

Willow Tree Miniatures · Aug 19, 2009

I ALSO WORK FOR A VET... SO I AGREE WITH THE COMMENTS FROM JESSICA... I HAVE HAD GOOD LUCK WITH MY OWN MARES, PLUS SEE THE RESULTS FROM CLIENTS WHO BRING THEIR HORSES TO THE CLINIC. I HAVE ALSO HAD GOOD LUCK DOING THE INFUSIONS/LAVAGE BEFORE AND AFTER BREEDING. WE DID THAT ON TWO DIFFERENT OCCASIONS WITH GREAT SUCCESS. GOOD LUCK!

ANGELA

Matt73 · Aug 19, 2009

To be safe, my mare's uterus was flushed and she was on powerful oral antibiotics (after she tore her cervix during partuition). P.S. Some vets would flush, give a shot, AND have the mare on oral antibiotics for 10-14 days.