Strangles is a highly contagious upper respiratory bacterial infection in horses.
Route
The disease is contracted through environmental contamination, nasal discharge, or direct contact with infected animals.
Symptoms
High fever of 103 to 106 degrees F, loss of appetite, a moist cough, clear nasal discharge that becomes yellow, difficulty in breathing and swallowing (as if strangling, hence the name), and swelling of submandibular (under the jaw) lymph nodes that rupture
Treatment
Isolation; antibiotics such as penicillin can be used before abscesses develop; antibiotic treatment should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis
Prevention
Vaccination
See Bacterial Diseases of the Horse for more information.
