borderline cushings / unwell pony

MissyThea

MissyThea

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i will write this as simply as i can as i'm quite confused myself :(

last monday my mare came in hopping lame with swollen front legs and so i thought she might have tripped or been kicked, so hosed the legs and bandaged them.

tuesday; she was completely sound but still had swollen legs with heat; vet came out and said my pony (22 years) might have a virus as she was rapidly spiralling downhill: lethargic, dull, uninterested in everything. vet took bloods and everything came back normal. :/ had a bute injection.

different vet came wednesday (same practice) and took bloods again, but suspected my pony might have cushings. another bute injection. still had swollen legs, off feed etc.

thursday; not drinking or eating. results came back from wed's bloodtest: borderline cushings. soaked haynets which helped and she began to eat it a bit. took her for walks inhand. still seemed dull. legs still swollen and warm.

friday; seemed a lot better and ate more hay, drank a bit more. legs still hot and swollen. rang vet who said to just observe her over next few days as because she was eating she must be on the mend.

saturday; had eaten all her hay and drank her water during night and seemed perfect, sound and unswollen legs! put her in field for 2 hours maximum and she came in completely sound/perfect legs, seemed very happy!

today; swollen front legs and hot, hosed them down which helped reduce the swelling. hadn't touched her hay or water again all night and seemed really miserable, kept turning around and biting herself at first then settled down. walked her inhand for about 5-10 minutes to unstiffen her and she enjoyed it, but still seemed miserable and dull. took temperature which was normal.

i really don't understand what could be wrong with her, everythings up to date inc worming, jabs etc etc, the vet said her immune system is getting weaker (probably bc of borderline cushings) but does anyone have any advice or how they coped with borderline cushings becoming fully blown eventually?

xo
 
Has the vet recommended you start her on prascend or offered any other treatment, if her immune system is struggling there are plenty of supplements that may help, Hilton herbs do one that I have used. A detox could also be a good idea to kickstart her system and help her to fight back.
She sounds as if there may be something causing pain or discomfort as she has responded to bute, can she stay on a low dose while you try and get to the bottom of the problem.
 
be positive said:
Has the vet recommended you start her on prascend or offered any other treatment, if her immune system is struggling there are plenty of supplements that may help, Hilton herbs do one that I have used. A detox could also be a good idea to kickstart her system and help her to fight back.
She sounds as if there may be something causing pain or discomfort as she has responded to bute, can she stay on a low dose while you try and get to the bottom of the problem.
Click to expand...


hey,
the vet said to wait till spring and get bloods tested again so if her score comes back higher to start the medication then? what is the supplement called by hilton herbs it sounds good? i have been recommended to try aloe vera by a friend, it looks quite benefical!
yeah thats what i think :( I'm going to mention to them about them giving me some bute for her.
 
H, I hope you don't mind me asking but did your vet tell you what level the ACTH was (if that was the test your pony had)? I was just interested to compare with my horse as she recently had the cushings test and her ACTH came back at 54. Her test was taken the last day of October and I found out the reference range for Aug - Oct was under 47. However as it was sent to the lab 1st day November she was put in the November ref range (under 29). It seems there must be a bit of a 'grey' area with the reference range around this time. My vet said she could start on 1 tablet prascend daly (1mg) but I wanted to try the herbal first as her level didn't seem that high and the vet was quite happy with that and said to re-test in the new year. I've decided to start her on the feedmark c-plus, mainly because I got samples sent and that was the one she liked as she's quite fussy! I was just interested to know if your ponies levels were similar to mine as I'm unsure if she would also be described as borderline cushings or as definite cushings. Hope your pony feels better soon x
 
Hi Lucy,
Your experience sounds similar to mine, my horse as tested on 31/10, although her results came back as 82, as she doesn't have any other symptoms than weight loss, the vet suggested leaving her and retesting on 3 months.
I've also start her on cushonaze too.
x
 
The swollen legs could be mud fever/infection from tiny scratches - especially if her immune system is hampered by Cushings.
My mums warmblood suffered filled legs, and a course of Anti Bs cleared it up - the field wasn't that muddy at the time either.
Also, they do recommend a further Cushings test 6 weeks after the first test the check the medication is at the right dose.
You should also have a liver test prior to starting Prascend incase the liver is not fully functioning
 
MT, as others have asked, what was your horse's ACTH count? The problem with Cushings is that the tumour on the pituitary causes the horse's body to be flooded with cortisol 24/7. Cortisol is the fight or flight hormone that readies the horse for attack. It causes many important bodily functions to take 2nd place to the need to be ready to run. These "abandoned" bodily functions include supporting the immune system, healing from infections and infestations, temperature regulation and a zillion other things. The horse can cope with a true fight or flight situation because (eg scary tractor on a hack) it's all over and cortisol levels back to normal within minutes. Imagine though the damage that 24/7 flooding with this hormone causes. I'd talk to your vets asap with a view to starting your horse on 1/2 or 1 prascend tablet immediately. If there's no change after a month on prascend, then it's a dead cert that the problem lies elsewhere but the weird things that happen inside a Cushings horse's body could certainly account for many of the problems you report.
 
I'd ask for copies of all blood reports, so you know exactly what was tested, and exactly which things came back as being outside the reference range for "normal" horses,

Without knowing what was included in the blood test, you can't know which problems can be confidently ruled out.

Sarah
 
Depression is one of the symtoms of cushings, so I would be looking at getting her some help, either herbal or Prascend. The herbal remedy Chasteberry can be quite effective initially but doesn't last very long. However, Prascend is very effective but once you start giving it you cannot take the pony off it.

Box of Frogs has defined Cushings very well so you need to make sure your pony is wormed regularly, teeth checked every six months and kept well groomed, any wounds attended to immediately etc. as their immune system is compromised. Laminitis is a particular risk so you should feed and treat as a laminitic all year round.

Our pony has been on Prascend for 5 years now, and is still happy and healthy.
 
I too would want to know what the ACTH was. My little New Forest Mare was diagnosed at the begining of the month with Cushings. Her ACTH was 238 and should be less than >29

There were no real signs she had it.

I have started her on the Hilton Herbs CushX and will see what the bloods say at the end of the month.

I used the free blood test that is around. Finishes the last day of November.

I would also do a detox (I always do one after worming or antibiotics) and maybe put the pony on to something like Propell Plus.
 
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