Choke: No Heimlich for Horses

Unfortunately, even if you could do the Heimlich maneuver on your equine friend, it probably would not help. That’s because choke in horses is completely different than when a human chokes, at least from an anatomical perspective.
Share
Favorite
Close

No account yet? Register

ADVERTISEMENT

Wrapping your arms around a 2,000-pound Percheron, or even a 900-pound Arabian, might not be possible unless you are Hulk Hogan. Even at that, you might have a hard time locating your mare’s belly button so you can place your hands slightly above it for compressions.

Unfortunately, even if you could do the Heimlich maneuver on your equine friend, it probably would not help. That’s because choke in horses is completely different than when a human chokes, at least from an anatomical perspective.

Eric Carlson, DVM, an equine intern at the University of Illinois Veterinary Teaching Hospital in Urbana explains that, "choke is an obstruction of the esophagus," not an obstruction of the windpipe as when a human chokes. He goes on to note that it can be caused by several factors. "Feed impaction due to poor dentition or ravenous eating habits are the most common reasons horses get choke," says Carlson. Foreign material such as apples and wood chips can also cause the problem.

While a child choking on a piece of hot dog may grasp their neck before turning blue, a horse presents differently. "Horse owners should look out for signs of excessive salivation, coughing, and food dripping from their nostrils," says Carlson

Create a free account with TheHorse.com to view this content.

TheHorse.com is home to thousands of free articles about horse health care. In order to access some of our exclusive free content, you must be signed into TheHorse.com.

Start your free account today!

Already have an account?
and continue reading.

Share

Written by:

Related Articles

Stay on top of the most recent Horse Health news with

FREE weekly newsletters from TheHorse.com

Sponsored Content

Weekly Poll

sponsored by:

How much time do you usually spend grooming your horse?
435 votes · 435 answers

Readers’ Most Popular

Sign In

Don’t have an account? Register for a FREE account here.

Need to update your account?

You need to be logged in to fill out this form

Create a free account with TheHorse.com!