Today on the program I am going to talk about a disease called pigeon fever and this is not a disease of pigeons but of horses.  The disease is called pigeon fever because it routinely causes a swelling on the horse’s chest region that causes the chest to extend outward like a pigeon’s breast.  The swelling is caused by a bacterium called Corynebacterium that causes an infection and subsequent abscess in the horse’s chest, as well as many other areas.  In fact, these abscesses can develop internally in a horse and can be extremely serious. 

Pigeon fever is typically a disease common in Southern California and Colorado but this past year it has been very common in many areas of Texas.  I suspect this may be due to the severe drought conditions in most of Texas but how transmission of the bacteria occurs is not completely known.  Flying insects are believed to be involved in transmission and outbreaks on farms do occur.  However, the disease is not incredibly contagious, as most horses that are exposed to infected horses do not become infected.  If you see a swelling on your horse, be sure and contact your vet and do not use antibiotics.  Antibiotics have been shown to decrease maturation of the abscess so the use of antibiotics is not recommended unless a life-threatening infection is involved.  Ichthammol ointment can be used to encourage maturation of the abscess and once it has matured, it can be lanced by your veterinarian and flushed with antibacterials.  Horses with draining lesions should be isolated because the organism will remain in the ground and could increase the possibility of infecting other horses.