Liver damage - advice / experiences

little_critter

little_critter

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Yesterday my horse tested positive for liver damage. She seems fine in herself and I wouldn't have got the test done if someone hadn't said there seems to be a problem on the yard.
I will be speaking with my vet today to find out where we go from here but I'd appreciate your advice or experiences of liver damage so I have an idea of what's in store.
I'm a bit stunned because other than the test result she is a fit and healthy pony with no outward signs that there's a problem.
 
you want a low protein low oil preff oil free diet
yea-sac is good to feed as high in b vits and also for the hind gut
milk thistle also supports the liver
she was also put on vi-sorbin
do you know what the damage is caused buy my mare under went liver biopsys etc and went from looking normal to loosing weight colics etc and was very poorly but she made a super recovery and at 7 was backed and in work and going super sadly she now we have a sarcoid problem but not related to her liver
 
Thanks - don't know extent of damage yet. The vet that did the test recommended a biopsy, I'm waiting for a call back from my vet to discuss it.
I was told to try Hepaphyte Gold as a de-tox supplement and to rest her.

Good to hear your mare recovered, I wasn't sure if it was a case of once the damage is done you can't repair it.

Must think of questions for the vet.
 
I currently am waiting to find out how bad my horse liver damage is. I had bloods taken from her 3 weeks ago because she had a swelling in her glands that came up one evening and came back when she went out into field. I asked the vet after 3 weeks to take bloods to give us the all clear as I wasnt sure if I was believing things werent right. The test came back to say she was tying up and had liver damage. She has been on rest for 3 weeks and had repeat bloods done earlier this week and just waiting to find out what has happened with the rest to see if it has settled, stayed the same or got worse.
Sorry I have no advice at the moment but will let you know what my vet says once we have a better picture of the problem.
 
Littlecritter, a lot will depend on the cause of the liver damage. As I'm sure you know, livers have dramatic powers of healing and can regenerate their 100% function EXCEPT where the damage has been caused by ragwort poisoning. It sounds as though you are in a relatively strong position since your veterinary investigations were triggered by a general yard concern rather than worrying symptoms in your horse. The danger with liver damage/disease is that symptoms only appear when at least 70% of the liver is damaged. So owners are already one step behind as it were. A liver biopsy should tell you the cause of the liver problems and indeed it's the only definitive way to know if it's ragwort poisoning.

As others have said, you need to start an immediate liver support regime. If the condition can be cured, then you will be able to resume normal diet etc later but if it's due to ragwort poisoning you'll have to keep your horse on it forever:

- feed a very low protein diet so the liver has less work to do
- all animals need some protein but what you do feed should be the highest quality
- add milk thistle to the feed - D&H do a high quality dried one
- add Yea Sac to the feed, it aids hind gut digestion, compromised in liver damaged horses
- feed little and often, again, it gives a damaged liver less work to do
- never feed conditioning mixes or oils as a damaged liver cannot break these down
- in summer sun, you may need to stable the horse, they can get terrible sunburn
- watch for new symptoms - they can be terribly distressing for horse and owner

If the bloods show damage, it would be well worth you contacting Dr Teresa Hollands, head nutritionist at D&H, as they will work out a personalised diet for your horse. She works very closely with Prof Derek Knottenbelt who is a world expert on liver damage in horses. Above all, don't panic!!!! I took on a rescued mare who had the most terrible ragwort poisoning. Local vets said the kindest thing to do would be to pts but I pulled her back from the brink and she is now backed and happy and living an almost normal life! PM me if I can help further and good luck x
 
Thanks for your reply B.O.F - I spoke to my own vet yesterday and will stick with them rather than switch to the yard vet (I'm assured she's thorough to the point of being boring - which I see as a good thing!)
I'm going to call them in a minute to see if the yard vets have sent the test results to her yet - I want to get cracking with whatever I need to do to help my horse.
I will be feeding Hepaphyte Gold from Hilton Herbs which is meant to support the liver and contains milk thistle, I will look into the Yea Sac.
I'm due a visit from Allen & Page anyway so depending on what the vet says I'll discuss a diet with them. Ours is a fairly simple diet of ride & relax, fast fibre and oats (though I'm cutting out the oats as she's not being ridden at the moment)

My vet said that it's not uncommon for a blood test to show signs of damage but when you investigate further (ie biopsy) it shows there is nothing to be particularly concerned about.

I'm glad you say the test can show whether or not the cause was ragwort - that's our main concern as there are several horses on the yard with positive results we really need to identify the source. But I suppose we still won't know if we got a dodgy batch of hay or whether the problem is in our own fields. We do get ragwort but we try to keep on top of it and the grazing is good.
 
One of mine had appeared healthy but then gradually became ill and was diagnosed with liver damage. (as rescued, more than likely ate some ragwort when younger). Anyway, the vet recommended a Milk Thistle supplement, which may've helped a bit although unfortunately she did pass away in the end, as too much damage (& she was around 30yrs old).
 
Hi can you please tell me what is the signs of a damaged liver and Liver fluke? I have a horse that does not want to pick up weight, with a hard coarse coat and he is not homself, though his appetite is good and he gets good quality feed and grazing? He does graze with sheep!?
 
Because the liver has such an important role in the workings of the horse's body, symptoms of liver damage can be very varied. But symptoms include the following:

unexplained weight loss, loss of appetite, loss of interest in life, lethargy, depression, jaundice, acute photosensitivity, bloated abdomen, standing in corners with the head pressed against a wall, blood not clotting, blindness, staggering, strange vocalisations, self harm and harm to the owner/others.

Obviously, you would recognise the end-stage symptoms but the early symptoms can be an indication of many other problems too.
 
My Highland pony filly had liver damage from her previous home,looked like a greyhound.The vet said it was ragwort as a cause. She went onto special diet and therapy and luckily never looked back,we were extremely lucky in my opinion.
She has gone on to be successfully shown and now has a nice red dun filly foal this year.I count my lucky stars for it.
 
Thanks a lot! Looks like there is hope for a damaged liver! I have read that you can give a horse Nilzan Gold or Novartis Facinex for Liver fluke, do you know something about it and how much one can give?
 
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