Muscle spasms, cold backed symptoms, mineral deficiencies.

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Marley&Me

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Hi all

Following a few months of trying to get to the bottom of my horse's symptoms:

severe cold backed symptoms,

muscle spasms following clipping over back and period of time off work and being brought in over night,

struggle to maintain/build muscle over back and hind quarters, stiff and uneven hind gait (slightly lame on one hind leg)

Inability to lift legs for picking feet

colic/tying up symptoms following accidental mega carb consumption

The issues have not really resolved following chiro, vet, xrays, new saddle though have improved somewhat with consistant work and being turned out over night.


He has always been on a low carb diet (restricted grazing, soaked hay, speedibeet/kwikbeet, linseed, cal mag, pink powder)

Hay has now been analysed and guess what it is deficient in....pretty much everything required for avoiding his symptoms.

selenium, magnesium, lysine, Vit E,

as well as zinc and copper (he has scaley flakey skin and a sun bleached coat in places)

I wonder though given he has soaked hay (12 hours) how much of anything he is really getting in his hay. Given my (googled) research has shown that soaking hay for over 2 hours leaches pretty much everything out of the hay.

Looking then at the hard feed diet, even including the pink powder balancer he is getting perhaps 10% to 20% of the vits and mins he requires even balancing to zero and disregarding the forage.

I have now had some more advice on diet and found a way to give him still the low sugar low carb diet but this time can ENSURE he gets everything he needs.

So do you guys think that making sure he has enough selenium, lysine, vit E, magnesium, will help his symptoms?.....given his diet is currently severely deficient in all of them?
 
Yes definitely! :eek:

I would recommend that you speak to a nutritionalist! Roger Hatch at Trinity consultants is a great person to speak to about putting a bespoke treatment together for your horse to get you through these problems. He's got me through a number of issues!

Good luck!
 
Definitely.

There is a supplement by NAF designed especially for this type of problem think its called selenium, iron and vit E (not 100% - selenium is in the title though lol). It is also worth looking at getting you chap on electrolytes - equestro do a great one with additional vits in too.

Feed wise, look at feeding equi jewel its a bit pricey but you only feed small amounts so last ages. It is rice bran and great for horses with muscle conditions.

Fitness wise build up very slowly, make sure you properly warm up and cool down properly.
It may also be beneficial for you to get a massage pad, this will allow the back muscles to start to warm up before you even put the saddle on.

My mare has a similar thing, although hers is an actual muscle myopathy and I'm already doing the correct diet and work regime so hers isn't curable.

The good news is your boys problems sound diet related so there is a good chance his symptoms will improve.

Best of luck!!
 
I would definatly add micronised linseed to his diet its a good natural source of selenium
And I would seek the help of a independent nutritionalist and your vet and then adjust diet and retest the blood after say three months .
Many years ago I had a horse who turned out to be very short of copper lots of supplementation in the food did not raise his levels so in the end the vet injected him with copper intended for cattle the improvement was almost instant he suffered poor coat lethargy mini tying up incidents so getting things right helped him I hope it sorts your horse.
 
Forgot to say you don't mention a mineral supplement. If you have an analysis you could contact somewhere like here and get a bespoke mix made up. http://www.forageplus.com/ Wont be cheap. :D

Or start him on something like Equimins metabalance. I'd stick with the soaked hay myself. Most of what is soaked out is water soluble stuff. Also look to something like yea-sacc or even succeed for his gut.
 
Hi all,

Thanks for the replies.

He is already on Pink Powder and micronised linseed. But when I work out the amounts he is getting he is still low particularly on selenium and lysine.

I will get a consultation with a nutritionist to check everything out and I am constantly working with my vet too. We have scoping for ulcers as something on the tick list to check out. So I will certainly get that looked at too.

My main thing was wondering if balancing th edeficiencies with the diet would/could have an impact on the muscle probs/ hypersensitivity. Also wondering how long it might take once diet is balanced to see improvements...if of course there is link!?????
 
I think a nutritionist is a great idea. Sorry, I always forget pink powder is a mineral supplement. I'm afraid I don't know how long before you may see improvements. A nutritionist may well have experience of horses with similar symptoms though.

Good luck.
 
Marley&Me said:
Hi all,

Thanks for the replies.

He is already on Pink Powder and micronised linseed. But when I work out the amounts he is getting he is still low particularly on selenium and lysine.

I will get a consultation with a nutritionist to check everything out and I am constantly working with my vet too. We have scoping for ulcers as something on the tick list to check out. So I will certainly get that looked at too.

My main thing was wondering if balancing th edeficiencies with the diet would/could have an impact on the muscle probs/ hypersensitivity. Also wondering how long it might take once diet is balanced to see improvements...if of course there is link!?????
Click to expand...

With my copper deficient horse felt better in three days his energy levels improved .
 
wow 3 days is quick to notice a difference following Copper balancing.

I am most interested in lysine, vit E and selenium as well as magnesium which I have been supplementing all along...and agree, I have noticed a difference in the past within 3 to 5 days of missing it he will become Mr. Grumps and loose some co-ordination....doesnt have much as it is.

I am so hopeful that balancing things and making sure he has what he needs will actually have an impact....as not much else has lately.
 
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