Raised liver enzymes

[Walrus]

My pony has recently shown raised liver enzymes on a blood test. We had a scary day with him about 5 weeks ago when he appeared lame in all 4 legs and very depressed and reluctant to move ( of course I was away with work at the time!). Vet suspected either laminitis or maybe that he tied up (he wasn't classic lammi, no rocking back or digital pulses)and blood tested. The test showed raised liver enzymes and raised white blood cells.

He was off bute and totally sound by 3 days later and has seemed fine ever since. We treated him as a laminitic with 2 weeks box rest, soaked hay and have gradually reintroduced grass.

He was also put on a vitamin e supplement for his liver.

4 weeks later we re-blood tested, white blood cells were down and normal but liver enzymes still high. Vet is confused as he looks fab, appetite is fine etc., so we are upping his work to normal levels (he's been on easy street) and continuing the vit e and retesting in 4 weeks.

I have absolutely no experience of anything liver related and am confused as he looks fine, is acting normally, coat shiny etc.

Anyone have any experience of this and have any hints and tips for what I should be looking for and what questions I should be asking the vet etc?

 

[Peregrine Falcon]

Lymes disease maybe worth investigating. My friend's pony was diagnosed with this once and had an unexplained illness last year. We eventually put it down to another attack but it is difficult to diagnose.

 

[BBP]

i'd be wanting to know exactly which enzymes are high - GGT/GLDH/AST/CK etc etc etc and what the reference ranges are so you know what they mean by high. One vets high is another vets normal (for example, my friends pony was said to have raised AST i think from her vet, but in my vets sheets that came out as normal). is it off the charts of just a bit elevated. Are the bile markers normal? if bile is normal then my understanding is that liver function is normal even if the enzymes show it is fighting off some sort of assault. i am no vet though!

My horse had 2-3 years of high liver enzymes (GGT at 800, AST close to 1000 but that is a muscle disease marker as well) but normal bile, he was fat shiny and happy (apart from last year, but that was allergies and ulcers not liver). Like you I backed off the work for a bit but he was so full of himself that didn't last long, he then returned to his usual workload of schooling and hacking. if on any day he felt not up for it, we just wouldn't do it, but that wasn't often and probably not even liver related. I tested him every few months and is would vary up and down with no change from me. I fed milk thistle for the first two years and he is vitamin e deficient so I feed that too now. Kept the iron, fat and protein levels low in his diet.

I think it was due to mycotoxins in the soil during the wet year of 2012 that triggered mine, as all 5 horses on 2 neighbouring yards had high levels. Sadly we only found out as the old companion pony died suddenly with acute liver failure (literally within 2 hours went from seemingly ok although very very itchy to dead) so we got the rest tested. The others are all absolutely fine, my friend did biopsies and antibiotics and all sorts with hers, i did nothing with mine, but hers had high bile levels.