Catch 22 - laminitis - what to do?

pottamus

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I have always carefully managed my lad as he has had laminitis in the past. He is in at night on soaked hay all year round and on a bare paddock and strip grazed throughout the year.
Over the last year or so he has had a couple of spells of mild laminitis for no particular reason. He has one now, which I can only assume is a combination of time of year, coat change, too much grass and less riding due to the dark mornings before work...tipped him over the edge.
The vet is well aware of his situation and is happy for me to manage the situation with bute and box rest and keep them informed.
My farrier feels that he might be a case for cushings and that this may be the reason he has had a few niggles of laminitis despite careful management. The problem is that I cannot test him as he has to be sedated to have any form of vet care now and they cannot test accurately for cushings when he has been sedated.
The vet has said they may consider putting him on treatment based on a visual diagnosis but at the moment they are not convinced enough.
So I am wondering about trying him on a herbal equilivant like Feedmark C-Plus for cushings to see if it helps.
My concern is how I will manage things if I do nothing in case he gets more episodes or more serious ones.
Has anyone experienced this and tried something non drug related? Any experiences, gratefully received. Thanks
 

MrsNorris

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Surprised your vet is resistant, current thinking seems to be that a very high proportion, if not all laminitics, have either Cushings or EMS. My vet had no problem with a prascend trial for my boy, turns out it didn't help and was stopped (he has never had laminitis, just unexplained lethargy and a borderline, then negative test). I would push a bit harder if I were you, it can make a world of difference to some horses. How old is he and what's his body condition like?
 
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Suby2

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Agree with the above. My pony has low grade PPID and was only on a quarter of Prascend. Vet suggested trying her without as it made her ACTH levels very low. She is fine at the moment but vet has also suggested testing her for EMS which I will be arranging soon. At least then I will have all the information on her health to decide on treatment.
 

EmmaB

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Would he have to be sedated just for a blood test?

It could be worth trying the medication just incase, you will notice the difference after about a month if he does have cushings. Does he look like he has cushings, like his coat, weight, pot belly ect?

Good luck sounds like you're doing all you can for him
 

_HP_

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If you have Facebook try the group ' Equine Metabolic Syndrome (EMS) Cushings PPID and Laminitis U.K.'
The lady that runs it and ' the laminitis site' is very knowledgable in the latest information regarding anything laminitis related and will give you good up to date advice based on current research and experience .
 

pottamus

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EmmaB - yes sadly he would have to be sedated, we cannot event give him his booster without sedation now...long story!
He does not look like a typical cushings pony, although does have some fat deposits and above his eyes are filled...have been for years.
I just wondered about trying the herbal equlivant first and then pushing the vets again...
 

Fruitcake

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My pony had to be sedated for the Cushings blood test. Vet didn't mention any problem with the sedation at all.

As it turned out, the Prascend, for him, was awful stuff and he just couldn't tolerate it. He was on a quarter of a tablet a day in the end and was still really depressed with dreadful ataxia. Vet totally agreed that taking him off it was the only option for quality of life. We put him on Vitex 4 Equids from the Laminitis Clinic about two years ago now and he's doing really well!
 

Fii

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After taking into account all of the above, have you considered changing his routine a bit, keeping him in during the day and out at night (at least through spring and summer into early winter) and maybe using a paddock paradise system (which i would love to try but OH is against) the PP S allows them to move about a lot more than strip grazing without giving them more grass!
 
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