Blood test interpretation

Zuzzie said:
I have been reading this thread with interest. My 21 year old gelding who has always been a livewire - to the point of being dangerous, has recently become a plod. It has come as a major shock. A couple of months ago I called the vet to have a blood check as I was so concerned. This lethargy came on within a few weeks. Bloods were clear, including a Cushings test. Vet suggested it could be hock arthritis. X Rays confirmed a diagnosis and he had his hocks injected. However, this was not the miracle cure I was expecting as he is still reluctant to work. His sparkle has gone. Even in the paddock he is quiet - not like him at all! I am now wondering if there is Cushings present even though the blood check was negative. I have no idea what his ACTH levels were as I wasn't given this information. Is there any possibility they have got it wrong??? He has none of the classic signs of Cushings, thick coat etc., but he does have a crest. Should I ask for a re-test??
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mine tested negative twice but had strong symptoms and reacted very positively to prascend. However there are lots of reasons why a horse could become lethargic other than cushings. Pain could be one of them. I would go back to the vets as you are obviously not very happy and ask about a re test.. There are lots of signs of cushings appart from the coat. Excessive drinking, excessive peeing, muscle loss, prone to infections. If you ask the vet they should be able to give you the exact cushings test result number.

You could also ask the vet if you could use bute for a short period to see if reducing pain (if there is any) made any difference to his attitude. You may find that on a high dose of bute for a few days he becomes a different horse in which case you will have an answer, or it may make no difference in which case it may suggest something else.
 
Thanks paddy555. I was thinking along the same lines. I need to have a good chat to the vet but I think trying some bute maybe the quickest route to ruling out quite a lot. Cheers.
 
Ester thank you - have printed the voucher off and will call vet again tomorrow - wouldn't it be nice if they could talk! Paddy thank you for all of your help, really appreciate your time, at some point I guess I will get to the bottom of it. I am praying it's not pain related as I promised him he would never have to be in pain again after the dreaded KS and the amount of time it took to diagnose, but he is sound (I think I'm pretty sure he is as I agonise about him daily!) just no oomph! Fingers crossed - not sure if I want a positive or negative result!
 
Zuzzie, my vet also suggested hock arthritis, he was bone scanned and it showed hock and fetlock hotspots nothing else anywhere. Fetlocks were discounted as generally a hot area and he had both hocks injected with low risk steroids/anti inflammatories 12mths ago. He has lost his mechanical lameness and is working much more happily from behind and in the last 3mths became very sound, although the canter on the left rein still causes him to swing his haunches in but I can't get him to do enough work to build fitness which I think is why he's doing it. If I can get him working every day he improves hugely but then after 3 or 4 days of work in a row he just can't cope energy wise and I am only doing 20-30mins in the school with lots of walk or a 40 min hack also mainly in walk with some short trots. This is a horse who a while back was able to trot non stop for 45mins in the school (clearly with stretching stops!). I'm now asking whether it could be because I took him barefoot 2 yrs ago and he can't cope but his feet are fantastic and he happily walks over flinty fields without too much of a problem and is the most sound on tarmac! Can't work it out, if it were arthritis wouldn't he be crippled on hard ground?
 
good luck to you both. If it is cushings it is not the worst situation. There is lots to do to help maintain them and far better to know than not to.

Mine are all barefoot. Tarmac is a very easy surface. It is flat. Could it be that the foot is landing squarely and level rather than say on rough uneven stones or hard rutted ground when it will be landing one side first which could irritate a joint. Just a thought.
 
BethH said:
Zuzzie, my vet also suggested hock arthritis, he was bone scanned and it showed hock and fetlock hotspots nothing else anywhere. Fetlocks were discounted as generally a hot area and he had both hocks injected with low risk steroids/anti inflammatories 12mths ago. He has lost his mechanical lameness and is working much more happily from behind and in the last 3mths became very sound, although the canter on the left rein still causes him to swing his haunches in but I can't get him to do enough work to build fitness which I think is why he's doing it. If I can get him working every day he improves hugely but then after 3 or 4 days of work in a row he just can't cope energy wise and I am only doing 20-30mins in the school with lots of walk or a 40 min hack also mainly in walk with some short trots. This is a horse who a while back was able to trot non stop for 45mins in the school (clearly with stretching stops!). I'm now asking whether it could be because I took him barefoot 2 yrs ago and he can't cope but his feet are fantastic and he happily walks over flinty fields without too much of a problem and is the most sound on tarmac! Can't work it out, if it were arthritis wouldn't he be crippled on hard ground?
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Sounds like you're in the same boat as me! Its so frustrating not knowing what to do for the best. I know that the vet has correctly diagnosed arthritis in the hocks but I can't help feeling that there is something else going on. I've decided to call the vet in the morning and have him come out to visit so that I can discuss it. I would be almost glad if he did have Cushings because I've had two horses in the past with the condition and it can be managed quite well. I just want my horse back as he used to be.
Soft ground is easier for them to handle but working on hard ground shouldn't be crippling as far as I know.
 
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