Saving Eclipse, the Wry-Nosed Filly

Born with wry nose, a life-threatening condition, a Quarter Horse filly was given a chance at a normal life recently, thanks to an uncommon corrective surgery.

Wry nose is a rare congenital condition of foals where they are born with the nose deviated to the side. The true incidence of wry nose is unknown, but is clearly (and thankfully) seldom seen and few owners and veterinarians have experienced even one during their careers.

Horses are “obligated nasal breathers” meaning they can’t breathe through their mouths, so any obstruction to the nasal passages affects normal breathing thus preventing the animal from leading a life without pain and suffering, let alone having a competitive career. Sadly, severely affected foals are often euthanized.

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But that wasn’t an option for Eclipse when she was born at Lomara Equestrian Center in Washington State. Owner Laurie Johnson, who also owns the facility, fell in love with the filly. “There’s absolutely no way I could put her down, but I couldn’t let her live a horrible life, either” Johnson tells Washington State University News. “I just started searching the internet.”

Her research uncovered a corrective surgery that was costly, but she knew for her it was the right answer. As part of her research she found Dr. Claude Ragle, a professor and faculty surgeon at Washington State University, College of Veterinary Medicine, at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital where he’s performed surgery for 32 years.

Dr. Ragle enlisted the help of fellow veterinary surgeon Dr. Jim Schumacher from the University of Tennessee. The two vets have a long-standing relationship, having become board certified together in 1989.

“Variations of this surgery have been done in very limited numbers over the last decades,” Dr. Ragle tells Horse-Canada. “[And] Dr. Schumacher has likely performed this surgery more times than anyone else in the world, more than twenty. I have been involved in three foals, all less severely affected than Eclipse.”

The surgery lasted just under four hours. “During the procedure, the bones of the nose and upper jaw are transected to allow better alignment of the upper and lower front teeth, and the nasal septum is removed to provide a less obstructed airway,” Dr. Ragle explains. “Horses are obligate nasal breathers so the deviated nasal septum that accompanies a wry nose can be life-threatening and severely limit breathing.”

The surgery went well, and despite a minor post-operative infection, Eclipse is a success story.

“Considering the positive outcome of surgery for Eclipse, her prognosis is good. Full exercise potential is yet to be determined, but early signs with her now running and playing are great signs,” adds Dr. Ragle.

He also warns that this is not an operation to be entered into lightly. “Due to the nature of the condition and intervention needed, there are many potential complications that can arise,” he explains. “In addition to the risks of surgery, there is also the expense of the operation and medical care that can run into the thousands that become an overwhelming barrier to many owners regardless of their desire to try and give their foal a better chance at life.”

For Johnson, who hopes that she may be able to ride Eclipse at some point in the future, she wishes that her horse’s story will give other owners options and hope.

“If more people know about the surgery, more surgeries will happen, so it is for the good of many. But I also don’t think it’s possible for me to have put her down if I could have afforded to do the surgery,” Johnson adds. “I brought her into this world, and I had to do right by her.”