[NeighNeigh]

This sounds like an "old wives tale" to me, but I've heard from horse old timers that clear mucus nasal discharge indicates a viral infection while a white/yellow/green mucus nasal discharge indicates a bacterial infection.

Can anyone confirm or disprove this? It seems oversimplified to me, but I'd like to hear what you guys think.

[paint_gurl_101]

i heard that clear means that the horse is fine..but i may have heard wrong, or the person may have been wrong too. lol

XOXO
nikki

[stephanie]

i have also heard that clear means fine, but i would love to know!

[Blistering Winds]

Clear is either allergies, dust, or a virus if there is excess mucus.


Yes, when it is
Yellow, green, yuck mucus is bacterial.

[NeighNeigh]

Originally Posted by Blistering Winds

Clear is either allergies, dust, or a virus if there is excess mucus.


Yes, when it is
Yellow, green, yuck mucus is bacterial.

BW, right as usual.

Since my OP, I talked to my vet this afternoon and he said clear or white isn't usually a big concern, but yellow or green means bacteria and the horse should get on antibiotics.

This is good info to know!

[Cyn]

Some green or yellow mucas can be a virus too... Unless you test the actuall discharge you will not know which it is...
Clear is usually safe...Neither bateria or virus..

[aqh88]

Bacteria have a tendency to cause thicker mucus with more color than a virus but it's no gurantee. That's just on average and it also depends on the severity of either one. It's not completely false but you wouldn't want to just rely on how the mucus looks to tell you what the horse(or other animal/human) is sick with.

[Shannon]

Hey, the day that I was being crowded to call you about Image, she was sneezing yellowy snot. I just wasn't sure if you knew that, and I'm too lazy to open a new window and email you

[DressageGirl]

I THINK, that clear/thin is OK, usually from sneezing from dust, pollen etc, like when we sneeze it usually gets the snot going, but doesnt mean we are getting sick.

If clear and thickish then that could be the start of a cold?

Yellow or coloured discharge is a worry I think, recently my boy (yep the Bubble Boy) had thick yellow goo out his nose (and also his eye!) and he has a chronic VIRAL lung infection!!!!!!

Edit: Soon I will learn to type like I normal person!

[aqh88]

Calling something a cold has variable meanings. In humans there is a virus called the cold that results in the usual respiratory symptoms. The problem is we've taken to calling any illness with similar symptoms a cold even if they aren't caused by a cold virus. Often times they aren't even caused by a virus. Most animal "colds" turn out to be bacterial infections better labelled URIs or upper respiratory infection. This confusion annoys me mostly because pretty much every week someone asks me if guinea pigs can catch colds from them and the answer is not simple because going by what a cold actually is guinea pigs don't even get colds. They get URIs and they can catch bacterial infections from us such as sinus infections but not the actual cold virus. Sometimes it's important to seperate the 2 and know if we're actually talking about a cold virus, another virus, or a bacterial respiratory infection.