Shetland dilemma
- Thread starter harribea
- Start date
Lucky Snowball
Well-Known Member
My pony was diagnosed with cushings at 12 when she had a sudden onset of very bad laminitis totally out of the blue. After 9 months box rest and special care she returned to full work and never looked back. No further episodes of laminitis and super coat condition. Was still in work at 25.
Gloi
Too little time, too much to read.
Is there a local farmer that will lend you some sheep to keep the grass down? So long as they don't chase sheep.
harribea
Member
She does as much as she can (last night she was with them for 2 hours) and will happily run around with them, lie down with them and whatever they feel like doing. But she’s starting her GCSEs now, she usually has a lot of schoolwork to fit in alongside her own riding and I do like her to have at least some rest time before bed.
harribea
Member
Thank you - this is really reassuring and I appreciate your kind comments at the end. Sounds like EMS and Cushings are a bit similar so I’ll talk to the vet about both possibilities. I hope you find a lovely little playmate for your shettie; I’m sure he’ll love it.Don't lose heart just yet. We have a mini shetland who was diagnosed with EMS after a bad bout of laminitis but with regular trims and a strict diet he is managing really well. He lives out 24/7 with a shelter but his paddock is small and with poor grazing - his main forage source is soaked hay in small holed nets and then he a balancer (good to make sure he has everything he needs for maximum good health and good hooves). All our grazing is pretty rubbish and I think it's a blessing, so I would be inclined to let your shetties trash the grass in yours as much as possible by leaving them out when it's wet, provided they have somewhere dry to stand too, if you can't put in a track system.
We don't have a jockey for him and no easy access to bridleways (and no school) so the only exercise he gets is moving around in the field, but the regular trims and getting the diet right makes all the difference. His management isn't overly costly or stressful and I believe he leads a good life. He is currently separate to our others, but just a fence between them, but will soon be gaining a friend with similar needs to improve his quality of life. Something you already have covered of course!
Good luck with it and I am sure you will work it out. If it comes down to it and the most sensible choice seems to be putting him to sleep in the end then there is also no shame in that as others have said. Sometimes it is simply in everyone's best interests.
Edited to say: I agree 100% with the Cushing's test and meant to say that at the start! I just meant that Cushing's/EMS can be managed easily in some cases.
harribea
Member
Yes, our land is surrounded by a farm and the farmer has young kids of her own who love to come and see the ponies. She’s put sheep on the land before and that wouldn’t be a problem if we need to get rid of some grass. It works really well; they’re like little woolly hoovers!
harribea
Member
He has his merits ?
harribea
Member
So.... two vets came out on Tuesday (because they know he’s needle-shy) and I’ve been trying to get my head around what they said.
They couldn’t take a blood test, even though there were two of them, because every time they got the needle in he went wild, they couldn’t attach the syringe and we kept losing needles in the stable (found them all afterwards, though - phew). When they stopped he was sweet as pie but very stressed. They said sedation would mess up the results and the stocks on the surgery are too big for him. So we abandoned the idea of a blood test for now.
Nevertheless, they didn’t think we actually needed the test because the primary problem as they see it is that he has chronic laminitis.
They’d measured his heart rate (before the drama when it was all just cuddles and scratches and he was enjoying the attention) and said it was very high (60+ rather than the 30-40 it should be). Hooves were hot etc.
He’s on Bute and is to stay in 24/7 on his own (as his mate tends to dominate in the stable) with a deep bed, soaked hay and a low-cal balancer. They’re coming back next week to see how he is and the next step would be x-rays.
They said it’s pretty bad and given that he’s been on and off, and was in for 3 months then flared up again as soon as he went out, he’s not easy to contain in his paddock (broke the fence countless times and started jumping over it) etc, they said I might have some weighing up to do. They said he might never be able to go out again. There were lots of ifs and buts and maybes but overall they didn’t sound too optimistic about his future.
I don’t want him to spend the rest of his life either in pain or stuck inside. I love him very much and he’s adorable, but I’d let him go rather than see him live a life that doesn’t feel natural to me.
I’m going to see how he does over the next week, listen to what they say when he is re-examined, probs get the x- done and then make a decision.
I would appreciate any thoughts form this group as you’ve all been so helpful. I should stress that although I probably sound quite clinical it’s my way of dealing with something that I find very upsetting, for me and for my daughter (who is being very mature about it and is determined to put what’s right for him first). ?
They couldn’t take a blood test, even though there were two of them, because every time they got the needle in he went wild, they couldn’t attach the syringe and we kept losing needles in the stable (found them all afterwards, though - phew). When they stopped he was sweet as pie but very stressed. They said sedation would mess up the results and the stocks on the surgery are too big for him. So we abandoned the idea of a blood test for now.
Nevertheless, they didn’t think we actually needed the test because the primary problem as they see it is that he has chronic laminitis.
They’d measured his heart rate (before the drama when it was all just cuddles and scratches and he was enjoying the attention) and said it was very high (60+ rather than the 30-40 it should be). Hooves were hot etc.
He’s on Bute and is to stay in 24/7 on his own (as his mate tends to dominate in the stable) with a deep bed, soaked hay and a low-cal balancer. They’re coming back next week to see how he is and the next step would be x-rays.
They said it’s pretty bad and given that he’s been on and off, and was in for 3 months then flared up again as soon as he went out, he’s not easy to contain in his paddock (broke the fence countless times and started jumping over it) etc, they said I might have some weighing up to do. They said he might never be able to go out again. There were lots of ifs and buts and maybes but overall they didn’t sound too optimistic about his future.
I don’t want him to spend the rest of his life either in pain or stuck inside. I love him very much and he’s adorable, but I’d let him go rather than see him live a life that doesn’t feel natural to me.
I’m going to see how he does over the next week, listen to what they say when he is re-examined, probs get the x- done and then make a decision.
I would appreciate any thoughts form this group as you’ve all been so helpful. I should stress that although I probably sound quite clinical it’s my way of dealing with something that I find very upsetting, for me and for my daughter (who is being very mature about it and is determined to put what’s right for him first). ?
Meowy Catkin
Meow!
Ask them if you can do a Prascend trial. Basically start treating for cushings even though you couldn't do the blood test and see if he improves.
harribea
Member
I didn’t know you could do that - thank you.
Gloi
Too little time, too much to read.
Can you use the time he is in the stable to make a grass free turnout area or track for him for once he can come out of the stable. The cause of the laminitis is usually EMS or Cushing's or both, have a look at the laminitis site webpage. I hope you can do a Prascend trial.