Headshaking - UV-itis or HSS?! Any opinions welcomed!

mrsjcmking

mrsjcmking

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Hi

So I recently changed the bit in my horse, and he started headshaking, about 20 minutes into the ride. I initially put it down to the bit change, just him getting used to it, it wasnt too severe. Then last weekend, I was told he was so bad, he was losing his balance, throwing himself around. So I rang the vet, booked him into a zone visit for Friday and started investigating. First thing I did was remove his tack, put him on a headcollar and lunge line, okay at first, and then started the shaking. So i ruled out tack issues. He is also shaking it in the field, but okay when stood still.

Reluctan to ride him in case it was back or neck issues we spent the week doing some groundwork in various lights, temperatures, wind strength. When the vet came - of course he didn't shake it at all, even when lunged. The vet was happy it wasn't back or neck, he was walking and trotting fine, no pain that she could feel. The vet said keep recording what he's doing and when etc, if he does it again video it and email it to her, and if I want to get some bute I can pick it up whenever. So when she left, I tacked him up and rode him. After about5 minutes he started again. So I hopped off, untacked him, walked him around the school (sand and rubber) and managed to video him, emailed it to the vet.

Yesterday I went up in the evening, as the sun was setting. I tacked him up, had a nose net and a fly mask at hand. Rode him first without, half the school was in shade half in sun. He seemed to react when we were walking directly into the sun, so I hopped off and popped on the fly mask. In walk he was almost normal, occasional flick, but nothing as severe as before. That was a standard fly mask. As soon as I put him into trot he went mad again, throwing his head in the air, really distressed. So I hopped off and put a nose net on. Didn't make a difference, I tried calming him down, and attempted a trot again. Same as before. I then tried going out of the school where it was less dusty, he seemed a bit better, calmed him down and again the flicking was much calmer (but still present), but there was nowhere suitable to try a trot.

The vet seemed to think it may b Head shaking syndrome, but basically told me she doesnt know how to diagnose it or what can be done. A friend of mine suggested UVitis - hes a spotted with rubbish eyes as it is, (tends to go through bouts of conjuctivitis, but I'm now wondering if that was really the case) and I did notice them quite red yesterday and a little bit bloodshot. My biggest issue is keeping a mask on the munchkin (polite word) in the field as hes very clever and thwarted all my attempts to keep it on. Both of these conditions seem rather daunting from some vigorous googling sessions, although manageable.

I'm going to ring the vet tomorrow and get them out again asap, when they came on Friday i was so concerned about his back I didn't really push for anything else, and hopefully one that knows a bit more about eyes, or that may be able to refer him to a vet that does. I just feel so lost and helpless having not found anyone who has gone through similar problems with their horse. So i'm wondering if anyone on here has, and what should I be pushing the vet for, what should I be doing with him - continue riding or just do groundwork? experiment with various things or stick to one thing and see if it improves with time? Other than the headshaking and the rubbish eyes he seems to be happy and healthy - although every now and then recently he seems more withdrawn and grumpy. I'm supposed to be going on holiday on saturday for 2 weeks and it is quite possibly the worst timing - I just want to know I'm doing the right thing by him - so please any opinions are totally welcome (although please be nice i'm a bit delicate at the moment - living the phrase "worried sick")

Thanks
 
I would get a more senior vet as the one that came seemed to miss some obvious checks, eyes, ears and teeth would be the first things to examine properly as this has come on suddenly it is likely that there is an underlying cause and they need to be looked into. I would also not rule out tack being the cause or something in his neck or back, vets are not always that good at checking for pain in these areas, yours sounds less competent than some, so I would get a physio in to rule out those areas.

I have had several headshakers in my yard, 1 was due to teeth, 1 due to a saddle that pinched his withers both were not diagnosed by vets who had examined them numerous times, the one I currently have is a seasonal headshaker that responds well to a nosenet and stops completely in the winter, it takes time and a logical approach to find the cause, do not rule out anything until there is a really good reason to and I would double check as much as you can.
 
I have to say she did do a really good feel of his back, really digging into it, and checking his movement etc. he wasn't fussed by anything. I think when she came out I was so concerned for his back that my brain didn't register that I should ask her to check everything else (although really she should have done). I've dug quite deep into his ears and he hasnt reacted so unless it's right at the root i'm pretty sure its not his ears. Teeth were done a couple of weeks ago and all fine, although maybe I should have asked her to have a quick look.

Think i just need to push for a better examination, and be more prepared next time. I just don't know what to ask for because i've never encountered it before.
 
Noseband too tight/rubbing, bit rubbing at the sides, poll pressure, browband too tight, sweaty bridle area-these all make one of ours headshake-bridle has to be just so.....
Also....it is difficult to see in your signature photos -but is your spotty lad truly spotted or is he a few or no spot appaloosa? We have an appy coloured horse with only one true spot but many hidden ones (ie show when wet or sweaty, but otherwise coat is white) but has the typical pink skinned face (and has to wear a flymask in the sun to prevent sunburn) that has eyesight problems. Bright sunlight, dull weather, areas of extreme shade and light all effect her. So it would definately be a good idea to get an experienced vet to have a look- appaloosas are prone to recurrent uveitis and also to night blindness, both of which effect their eyesight and behaviour in certain weather conditions.
 
Some one posted on here a while ago HEAD SHAKER SORTED the horse had blocked tear ducts,our mare used to do a bit of head shaking my daughter noticed that she had a very long feeler under one eye and it was getting caught in the cheek piece on the bridle,now when it gets long it gets trimmed.
 
I thought i had bought a head shaker a few years back checked her teeth-ok checked her tack-ok couldnt find any problems with her back or anything else. I tried all the usual things nose masks etc didnt make any difference. So i put the mildest bit in i could find started her on magnesium oxide and put bonjella on her bit. Now i am not saying any of these things made any difference or it may be that i started to ignore the head shaking and just got on with it but she does not head shake any more unless flies go up her nose and she shakes like hell for a few seconds. Sometimes head shaking is seasonal and you just have to stop riding them for that period of time something to do with certain pollens or certain sunlights you just have to work through every possible cause, heard a story that someone put a bell on the tack that jingled and that took the horse mind off it.
 
He's going in tomorrow for full work over by the vet. I rode him early this morning with him pretty much blind (created a mask for him) and the improvement was huge. I could walk and trot with just the occasional flick, soon as the mask was off he went straight back to how he was before, throwing his head around, really distressed. So we are thinking there is something going on with his eyes, photosensitive or something along those lines. Being a spotty and prone to eye issues like UVeitis, tearing and all that pallava I just want to know what the cause is, and if it's fixable we can fix it. I'd rather spend the money and find out it's something minor than save it and him end up getting worse, or even end up blind. The vet was a lot better this morning after I sent her the video of him doing it.

He's doing it in the field and in just a headcollar, he's in an eggbutt french link snaffle (he hates stadard snaffles), which is much milder than his previous bit (loose ring waterford). This sort of headshaking you cant ignore - when i say headshaking I mean throwing his head up and down, so vigorously constantly to the point he is losing his balance, and it's dangerous to ride him like that. When he first came off loan he did it a bit - but i put it down to the fact that he hadnt been worked in 6 months - now i'm wondering if it wasn't a precursor to this. That calmed down after a few weeks of regular work and was never this bad. This time around it's 10 times worse, you can't do anything with him, even on a lunge line. He loses his balance, then he loses his concentration and he can't focus, he's all over the place and just utterly miserable with it. This pony LOVES to work, very forward going, voice activated, and adores trotting, I couldn't even get him into a trot last week, he just turned to look at me, with his head hung low looking miserable. We will just see what the vet says after tomorrow - this is why we have insurance!
 
serenityjane said:
Noseband too tight/rubbing, bit rubbing at the sides, poll pressure, browband too tight, sweaty bridle area-these all make one of ours headshake-bridle has to be just so.....
Also....it is difficult to see in your signature photos -but is your spotty lad truly spotted or is he a few or no spot appaloosa? We have an appy coloured horse with only one true spot but many hidden ones (ie show when wet or sweaty, but otherwise coat is white) but has the typical pink skinned face (and has to wear a flymask in the sun to prevent sunburn) that has eyesight problems. Bright sunlight, dull weather, areas of extreme shade and light all effect her. So it would definately be a good idea to get an experienced vet to have a look- appaloosas are prone to recurrent uveitis and also to night blindness, both of which effect their eyesight and behaviour in certain weather conditions.
Click to expand...

He will do it in the field - he didn't have tack on for 5 days and was still headshaking, so i'm pretty sure it isnt a tack issue. He's a few spot - no idea what his breeding is but he probably has some appaloosa in him (bought him as a feral yearling from a total idiot who shouldn't have owned horses - who originally got him from a dealer), so yes he does have the pink skin, the white sclera and the pink skin around the eyes. Thats why i'm so worried about his eyes, UVeitis can cause blindness if not dealt with quickly enough, and we would like to avoid that if possible...
 
Few spot appaloosa's can suffer from a genetic night blindness-which was why I asked the spotty question. It is very simple to test for and just requires tail hair to be sent off for DNA testing to animal genetics (google the name and it comes straight up) and costs about £20-£30. This is perhaps something else as well as uveitis that you can discuss with your vet. Night blindness cannot really be tested for by the vet and it is the result of poor communication between the eye and the brain, so there is nothing physical to see when the eyes are examined. The vet will look at the eyes in a dark area (eg stable with the doors shut) but to get a good result horse needs to be in the dark for 20 mins or more. A simple home test for you to do is to shine a torch in your horses eyes (from a distance, and obviously let them know you are there so they don't startle etc) on a dark night and several hours after it has got dark, horses with good vision will immediately blink, often repeatedly until you move the light, a night blind horse will not react for some time.
 
Link about CNSB (night blindness) in Appaloosa's. http://appaloosaproject.info/index.php?module=pagemaster&PAGE_user_op=view_page&PAGE_id=31
Easy way to test for this is to put your horse in a stable, wait till its been dark a few hours then turn an overhead light on. If they don't immediately start blinking repeatedly then they are night blind. They cannot adjust there eyes to poor light/darkness, I think as soon as you turn the light on they can see you clearly. As they are born like this it is normal to them and most people don't even realise the horse is night blind. I've had quite a few. None of them have had other eye sight problems.

Uveitis in Appaloosa's http://www.appaloosaproject.co/articles/free-articles/8-equine-recurrent-uveitis.html
 
Silverfire, you say you have had quite a few night blind horses, have they followed any particular pattern as regards colouring? I have read the above and other articles and it is supposed to be linked to the LP gene and homozygous LP horses are night blind. We had our mare DNA tested and she was LP: lp so heterozygous and negative for night blindness, but I know that she is definately night blind as I have done the above test-well, I actually did the torch version as per my post above, in addition to this she also has eyesight problems in the day (although this varies in severitywith the weather from day to day) eg. can't see a black water bucket in a shaded area, shys from dark areas on the road, has to spin, raise head and squint at things in the distance, spooks at ridiculous things, is very over-reactive to sounds, but is a complete donkey on her own territory with a trusted companion. It would be interesting to hear your thoughts.
 
I had a horse that did this. It turned out to be his poll and after the chiro treated him he was fine. But it kept returning. I have two head shakers at the yard which both have it under control. The first one has a dust and pollen allergy. After being put on 10 cetirizine hydrochloride tablets once a day he is completely cured. The other only shakes his head in sunny hot weather. Found out it was the midge flies in his ears and a fly mask with ears keeps him from head shaking.
 
Just an update - sorry it's been a bit mad.

After talking to the vet on Monday when she had viewed the video she told me to bring him in. So On Tuesday he had the full MOT. He had cell carcinomas on both of his third eyelids, caused by UV light. One was worse than the other - so he has had to have both cut off. It was a shock when I went to pick him up as the anaesthetic hadn't worn off so blood pouring out of every orifice and he looked so miserable.

Wouldn't load unless I led him on, wouldnt get in his stable until I was there to lead him in. Was told he had to spend 3 days in, he's on painkillers and anti-biotics, has eye ointment twice a day and has to wear a UV protective mask pretty much forever now. Well about 3pm yesterday I got a phone call saying he had jumped out of stable and was trying it on every stable so someone hat to shut him in with top door shut. I arrived to find him soaked in sweat as he ws stressed out, and he had scraped his back legs - luckily only surface wounds (think he's trying to give me a nervous breakdown). Phone call to the vet who okayed him to go out. Mask on, turned him out. As soon I said off you go then - he flew to the other end of the field, screaming at his friends to say hello and that was that.

Now we just have to find a way to keep the mask on his head, without resorting to superglue, or he might have to have special contact lenses in *sigh*

Remind me why we have horses again?
 
And of course its perfectly timed with me going away for 2 weeks on Saturday.

So he has 2 weeks off to mooch around the field and we will see if this is the root of the headshaking on my return, or if more investigating needs doing. I really have my fingers crossed that we wont need more investigating because I'm not sure I will ever get him on the box again lol!
 
Silverfire said:
Link about CNSB (night blindness) in Appaloosa's. http://appaloosaproject.info/index.php?module=pagemaster&PAGE_user_op=view_page&PAGE_id=31
Easy way to test for this is to put your horse in a stable, wait till its been dark a few hours then turn an overhead light on. If they don't immediately start blinking repeatedly then they are night blind. They cannot adjust there eyes to poor light/darkness, I think as soon as you turn the light on they can see you clearly. As they are born like this it is normal to them and most people don't even realise the horse is night blind. I've had quite a few. None of them have had other eye sight problems.
Uveitis in Appaloosa's http://www.appaloosaproject.co/articles/free-articles/8-equine-recurrent-uveitis.html
Click to expand...

Thanks for this - but considering he is worse in bright light and better in dim light, I assume that would rule out night blindness?
 
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