Narcolepic Gelding

[Fiona9]

This is prob an old subject, but new to me. We think my piebald geld may be narcoleptic.

He fell over a couple of weeks ago but it was warm and sunny and he was having his tail washed. I shouldn't laugh but the exp on his face was hilarious. He just got up, gave himself a shake & stood there as if to say "I dint just do that"

Then the Sun after (nother warm and sunny day) he did it again, fully tacked up though. Also one of the girls on the yard has said she's seen him do it in the field.

Outside his stable is a sun trap and he often "goes off" when I am grooming him but I can generally feel his head drooping so wake him up.

I've put Narcolepsy in google but didn't really get anywhere - can anyone help with a website or experiences or shall I just talk to my vet. Needless to say I have recyled my Dec 2006 h&h that had a feature in it.

Any advise, ideas gratefully recd.

 

[spaniel]

Ive known two horses with narcolepsy, one a cob who would keel over if he stood still whilst under saddle and the other who would go down in the stable.

Both went front end first and both had a barrage of tests done on them to rule out things like anaemia or ischemic attacks.

The cob was fine when not being ridden so he became a field companion but sadly the other one was pts as her constant falling on her knees and the front of her fetlocks, dispite padding everything and booting her, meant she had continous open and often infected wounds and each episode left her very stressed.

You need to speak to your vet about the symptoms your horse is showing as narcolepsy is rare and this may be something else which can be more easily treated or managed.

 

[Fiona9]

Thanks spaniel. Will chat to the vet and also keep a diary with weather conditions as I'm sure it's just summer when he does this.

 

[Nic]

I went to PC with a girl whose Mare had this. She did PC camp quite happily with us & suffered no ill effects as long as she wasn't allowed to drift off while being ridden (i.e no standing around in the sunshine)

 

[Nudibranch]

I had a narcoleptic and was surprised to find out its not as rare as you think, in fact my vet went so far as to say it's quite common. Unfotunately mine did it under saddle so had to be retired, and tbh I don't see how you can ever be sure they won't do it when ridden so it is potentially quite dangerous. I knew another horse who had to live out as he would go down in the stable and hurt himself. But definitely speak to the vet. There are other things, as Spaniel mentioned, which are similar but yours sounds fairly classic. The bad news is, there isn't any treatment, but if he is only doing it in quiet sitations you will probably be able to manage it.

 

[Fiona9]

Thanks for the advise guys happy to report hes not done it since. Hes probably lulling me into a false sense of security coz hes a cheeky baggage.

 

[Tangaroo]

My boy has narcolepsy and he competes at pre novice eventing and elementary dressage. His main problem is that he never lies down, hence the reason for falling down. Its not a physical problem cos he can get down and roll easily.
I do find he gets sores on the fronts of his fetlocks and a graze on his knee sometimes but i boot him up well and he has the deepest bed imaginable!
At this time of year i would love to keep him out all the time but with the ground being hard if he falls over he will damage himself more.
The only time he has ever done it when i was riding him was when i had been at a show all day and was waiting in the sun for the championship at the end of the day. As soon as i felt him wobble i kicked him and he woke up and was fine.
I do worry that eventually he will get arthritis in his front legs from all the falling on them, but there isnt any more that i can do for him than i am already doing, so we will cross that bridge when we come to it.
It really doesnt have to be a problem if it is managed properly. Just can be expensive on bedding and a bit worrying.
It doesnt seem to bother the horse though!