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Dr. Lowder,

I bought a 6 month old filly last night at an auction, and her tongue was sticking out the corner of her mouth and she was drooling. The auctioneer said she hit her head on something, and her tongue had been like that since. This morning when I went to pick her up, her tongue was back in her mouth.

On the way home, it was protruding again. A few minutes after I unloaded her, she started flopping her tongue around and got it back in. It seems to be stress related, rather than due to a head trauma. What could cause this?



If it is stress related, will she always hang her tongue out when she gets stressed? Will it be safe to use a bit on her when she's older? Should I not try haltering her (she's not halter-broke yet) while her tongue is out? Could she bite it and make it worse?

I'd apprieciate any info you could give me on this subject.

Sincerely,
Stevie Garner


Dear Stevie,

While I agree, that is most likely is some type of trauma you cannot rule out neuro problems. Get you vet to take a look. This could be EPM or a number of things.

Thanks,
Dr. Lowder