EQUINE VETERINARY EDUCATION Equine vet. Educ. (2018) 30 (4) 177-186 doi: 10.1111/eve.12806


Case Report


Findings and strategies for treating horses injured in open range fires


E. W. Herbert Adelaide Plains Equine Clinic, Gawler, South Australia, Australia. Corresponding author email: ewhdvm@internode.on.net


Keywords: horse; burns; fire; injury


Summary Eight horses with varying degrees of burns sustained in an Australian bushfire were treated over several months. The horses were attended at the scene of the fire and then hospitalised from 4 days to 4 months for burns sustained to the head, ventral body and legs. The clinical findings and treatment of two of the horses are described. Variations with barn fire injuries and treatment are noted. While some horses were subject to euthanasia, or died at the scene of the fire, all hospitalised horses recovered.


Introduction


Scientific literature describing equine thermal injuries is helpful when managing horses that have been burned in barn fires, but the literature regarding large numbers of horses in rural grass fires is scant (Geiser and Walker 1984; Hanson 2005, 2008; Adam 2012). In grass fires, the burns are often on the extremities and ventral abdomen, and the treatment of burns in these areas varies from the dorsal thermal injuries experienced in barn fires. While some online descriptions of injuries to the extremities exist, very little is available about the treatment of large numbers of horses that have sustained primarily ventral body burns (Heislers 2009). Emergency treatment literature primarily comes from


human-burn experience and even initial triage immediately following the fire is controversial. For example, recent literature suggests that icing may be deleterious; however, cooling with tap water may be beneficial (Raine et al. 1981; Marsh 2007; Yuan et al. 2007; Cuttle et al. 2009). Unfortunately, immediate triage and treatment at the scene of a grass fire may be limited when there are no standing facilities or running water. Several options for analgesia are available (Mathews and Carroll 2007), yet topical dressings and bandaging can be time-consuming to apply daily (Bischofberger et al. 2013). The economic burden for the owners, and often the veterinarians, of long-term treatment of burned horses can be prohibitive (Moyer et al. 2013; Herbert and Meyer 2016). In November 2015, a grass fire burned over 200,000 acres


in 5 h in South Australia. Many horses and thousands of livestock were killed or severely burned in this fire. In the first


few hours after the fire, several horses were examined in the field and then brought to Adelaide Plains Equine Clinic for further treatment. Fourteen horses were hospitalised the first night; eight were severely burned and six required long-term hospitalisation of up to 4 months. Two horses treated at the scene were subjected to euthanasia on the night of, or in the days immediately following the fire. All horses brought to


the clinic had corneal ulcers and burns on their muzzles, and most of the horses in this incident had extensive burns to the legs and ventral body; additionally, many had significant coronary band separation in the ensuing weeks. There are few reports of how to address the coronary band separation and predict outcomes, so phone conversations from anecdotal previous experience guided decisions on how to treat these horses. This case report describes the treatment for two of the eight severely burned horses from this fast- moving grass fire.


Case 1


A grey, 9-year-old Quarter Horse mare was examined and treated within an hour after being trapped in a stubble field with three other horses. She appeared to be in shock and obvious pain. Her skin was intact, but her mane and tail were singed with significant hair loss. Her coronary bands were leaking serum, her lips and face were burned, and she had bilateral corneal ulcers (Fig 1). She was treated at the scene with flunixin meglumine (Flunixon Injection)1 1.1 mg/kg bwt i.v. and was started on a triple antibiotic eye ointment containing zinc bacitracin 500 iu/g, neomycin sulphate 5 mg/ g and polymyxin B sulphate 10,000 iu/g (Tricin)2 q. 12 h and a cloxacillin benzathine eye ointment (Orbenin Eye Ointment)3 q. 24 h. Silver sulfadiazine (SSD) (Flamazine Cream)4 was applied to the coronary bands, lips and other burned areas on her head and legs. She was transported to the clinic a few hours later when vehicles were allowed into the fire area and a tetanus toxoid vaccine administered upon arrival. In the first few days, daily icing of tissues was suggested to


stop further destruction of laminae, but we chose not to ice based on reports about possible deleterious effects of loss of local circulation. The local human burn specialist suggested that hosing with tap water was preferred to protect the tissue (J.E. Greenwood, personal communication 2015). The next day, 18 h after she was burned, the mare began


to show signs of abdominal and limb oedema. She was eating and drinking with difficulty due to her burned muzzle and still showing signs of pain. She had tachycardia (76 beats/min) and a normal temperature (37.4°C). Auscultation of the mare’s heart was over the burned skin, so placement of a stethoscope may have increased her resting heart rate. She was observed passing red urine twice; thus, she was placed on i.v. fluids (Hartmann’s Solution)5 10 mL/kg bwt/h for 3 h until she appeared to stabilise and was observed eating and drinking, after which no more discoloured urine was observed. The following day, 42 h post rescue, in-house blood biochemical analysis6 showed increased muscle enzymes,


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