How should horse strangles be treated?
Much will depend on the severity and stage of your horse’s case. Penicillin has been shown to be effective against Streptococcus equi, but application of it should be done during the initial stages of strangles or after any abscesses have ruptured. Once the disease has caused abscesses to form, penicillin can actually delay the abscesses from opening and draining the pus. As such, it’s usually best to let the abscess work its course (or have the vet cut it open), then apply penicillin after the draining has begun to wipe up the remaining bacteria. There is some debate as to whether applying penicillin can actually inhibit a horse’s ability to form a natural immunity against strangles, or worse provoke bastard strangles. Unfortunately there really isn’t enough scientific proof to connect antibiotics to the increased chance of developing bastard strangles, but I can understand why many veterinarians would rather play it safe for light cases that can be healed naturally. When a couple of
