Ataxia in my horse

T

Torsten Dahl

New User
Joined
10 June 2012
Messages
9
Location
Aberdeenshire
Visit site
Help!!!

Can any one give me some information on ataxia?.
My 22 year old had a very sudden bout of ataxia, I called the vet out and he did all the usual tests, also did bloods and only thing they came back with was high calcium levels. He got a steroid shot and an anti inflammatory and has been put on danolin for 3 weeks until they come and do a further blood test..
After a few days he just seem to get better everyday and seemed to be back to normal last week and seemed a different horse , he had all his mojo back..
When I went yesterday I couldn't believe it he was back ataxic again!!!
Vet said the first thing with high calcium levels would be a Tumor, but how did he get better for a week ?, he told me to cut out all food at the moment and no supplements to see if his calcium levels drop,
Any info would be grately appreciated as vet seems to be stumped!!!!
 
Hi sorry to hear your horse is ataxic what level is it? Mine was level 4 which meant straight off to the rvc and kept in a stable with a hoist just in case he hit level 5. Mine was 15 yrs and after many tests had a brain tumour he was given many drugs which reduced his symptoms so they could test him as he needed to be still. Sadly for my boy there was nothing that could be done however I am sure that there are other reasons for ataxia infection maybe push for further investigation if you can I know it's hard it's horrible seeing them like it. My boys insurance had stopped for vets cover and the bill was £7k so having conclusive answers can be costly. Good luck wishing you and your horse well.
 
dukesmum said:
Hi sorry to hear your horse is ataxic what level is it? Mine was level 4 which meant straight off to the rvc and kept in a stable with a hoist just in case he hit level 5. Mine was 15 yrs and after many tests had a brain tumour he was given many drugs which reduced his symptoms so they could test him as he needed to be still. Sadly for my boy there was nothing that could be done however I am sure that there are other reasons for ataxia infection maybe push for further investigation if you can I know it's hard it's horrible seeing them like it. My boys insurance had stopped for vets cover and the bill was £7k so having conclusive answers can be costly. Good luck wishing you and your horse well.
Click to expand...


The vet didn't say what level, all he seemed to say was the only thing in the blood tests was high calcium, which first thought was Tumor, but since he got better he seemed to rule that out, he had a course of norodine granules along with his danolin, which I suppose ruled out infection as well, he is certainly not as bad as he was first time round but is still a lot worse than he has been.
I might go for a second opion as the vet don't seem to be coming up with much to be honest. He not in pain as the first thing he does in the morning is goes and rolls and get up no problem, I wonder if it could be a magnesium deficiency as I have heard that that can cause ataxia ?
 
When my old mare was ataxic she went through a few test before they diagnosed wobblers syndrome, however she got steadily worse rather than better, so doesnt sound like this is what your boy has. Hope you figure it out :)
 
Kamakazegirl said:
When my old mare was ataxic she went through a few test before they diagnosed wobblers syndrome, however she got steadily worse rather than better, so doesnt sound like this is what your boy has. Hope you figure it out :)
Click to expand...

Well when I went to see him today he wasn't any worse than he was yesterday, I have the vet coming back out this week but have asked for a different one to see if they can give me any more information.
I can't understand how he got better for a week then has gone ataxic again but on the other side.. Before he leant to the right now this time he is leaning to the left.
What kind of tests do they do to diagnose wobblers ?
 
Torsten Dahl said:
What kind of tests do they do to diagnose wobblers ?
Click to expand...

Sadly I've just been through this. Wobblers have a malformation of the vertebrae in the neck that they are born with. It can be seen on xrays and a really good physio can spot it from manipulating the head to move the neck muscles, as mine did. My horse was not obviously affected until he was ten and was put to sleep two weeks ago :(

His did come and go in severity, though he was never less than grade 2 out of 4 once it was obvious.

I hope that yours is something that will recover. Has he been tested for Equine Herpes - he should have been as that can do it?
 
Hmm that is odd. When they thought it might be wobblers they took her up to the surgery for a full work up exam. So trotted her up, made her go backwards,little circles etc and then did some x rays, where it showed up. With her it was that the vet said it looked like her back and front end weren't connected. Maybe you could at least get the vet to rule it out. Good luck x
 
Sorry to hear that cptrayes, my girl was 15 when she got diagnosed. My vet says he thought that a fall or something in the field may have triggered it. That was 3.5 years ago, and I still don't properly understand it!
 
cptrayes said:
Sadly I've just been through this. Wobblers have a malformation of the vertebrae in the neck that they are born with. It can be seen on xrays and a really good physio can spot it from manipulating the head to move the neck muscles, as mine did. My horse was not obviously affected until he was ten and was put to sleep two weeks ago :(

His did come and go in severity, though he was never less than grade 2 out of 4 once it was obvious.

I hope that yours is something that will recover. Has he been tested for Equine Herpes - he should have been as that can do it?
Click to expand...


Ah I'm sorry to hear about your boy:(
Well I did wonder if it could come and go, the vet has never mentioned wobblers it just myself doing research on the net trying to find out what's wrong, he has been tested for everything herpes included and the only thing was high calcium level, my guy is 22, I have only had him a year and a half as i rescued him , he is a companion for my other horse, so I don't know much about his history, I certainly don't want him suffering, but it certainly sounds like what he has :(
 
Did your horse go ataxic again after the Danilon was stopped?

My friend's horse has just been diagnosed with the neurological strain of EHV, which causes Wobbler's like symptoms due to the spinal cord swelling. Danilon helped as it is an anti inflammatory, but when stopped she went back to how she was.

I hope you find out what is causing it and that it can be easily cured, fingers crossed for you :)
 
sychnant said:
Did your horse go ataxic again after the Danilon was stopped?

My friend's horse has just been diagnosed with the neurological strain of EHV, which causes Wobbler's like symptoms due to the spinal cord swelling. Danilon helped as it is an anti inflammatory, but when stopped she went back to how she was.

I hope you find out what is causing it and that it can be easily cured, fingers crossed for you :)
Click to expand...

Hi, he is still on one danolin a day until Wednesday,thats when vet coming back to do another blood test to check calcium level again, so he did get better for a week but still while on the danolin,!!! It's strange, i hope ur friends horse is on the mend:)
 
Kamakazegirl said:
Hmm that is odd. When they thought it might be wobblers they took her up to the surgery for a full work up exam. So trotted her up, made her go backwards,little circles etc and then did some x rays, where it showed up. With her it was that the vet said it looked like her back and front end weren't connected. Maybe you could at least get the vet to rule it out. Good luck x
Click to expand...

The vet did all those things except x rays, so maybe that's what needs to be done, thanks for ur help. X
 
Another friend had thermal imaging done, which was much cheaper than an x-ray (so she says) and it was very useful in determining the cause of her horse's lameness - can't vouch for it myself but it may be worth considering :)
 
sychnant said:
Another friend had thermal imaging done, which was much cheaper than an x-ray (so she says) and it was very useful in determining the cause of her horse's lameness - can't vouch for it myself but it may be worth considering :)
Click to expand...

Hi there, just thought id let you know, that I got a differant vet out (from the same practice), and she was excellent, she has diagnosed sam with cushings disease, which i got the blood results back today and they confirmed it, so he is now on one tablet a day to start with, also she diagnosed sam witha very weak left side with bad arthritis, so although he cannot be cured the cushings and the arthritis can be controlled to a certain degree, so today was some good news!!!,
Thanks to everyone who helped me .. :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top