Honeypots
Well-Known Member
..does anyone have any experience please? What are the symptoms and is it easily treatable? Can't seem to find much info
Thyroid problems in horses............
- Thread starter Honeypots
- Start date
arwenplusone
Well-Known Member
No experience of horses but I have thyroid problems myself!
As I understand for horses/humans the theory is similar
Is it Hyperactive (overactive) or hypoactive (the opposite)or don't you know?
Symptoms of hyperactive would be weightloss despite eating - fidgeting, sleeplessness, irritability (prob like lots of horses this time of year lol)
Hypoactive would be tiredness, lazy, gaining weight, enlarged thyroid gland (Goitre), general malaise, depression.
Don't know if that helps or not!
As I understand for horses/humans the theory is similar
Is it Hyperactive (overactive) or hypoactive (the opposite)or don't you know?
Symptoms of hyperactive would be weightloss despite eating - fidgeting, sleeplessness, irritability (prob like lots of horses this time of year lol)
Hypoactive would be tiredness, lazy, gaining weight, enlarged thyroid gland (Goitre), general malaise, depression.
Don't know if that helps or not!
Honeypots
Well-Known Member
I'm thinking hypo if anything...horse is overweight, swellings around jaw and underneath..like 3 hard boiled eggs, not painful at all. Horse lethargic but eating/drinking as normal as far as I can tell (horse lives out). Coat seems a bit dull. Horse being chased off by pony usually further down the pecking order...no temp, snot, coughing etc..Vet is coming next week so will be interesting to see what he says.
Thanks..
Thanks..
arwenplusone
Well-Known Member
I would say that this is more likely to be a virus? Three swellings would suggest to me that it is glands that have come up due to a 'challenge' to the horse's immune system, rather than thyroid which I understand to be a long slow developing condition.
But since you have called the vet they are the best person to advise you!
Honeypots
Well-Known Member
Thankyou..
suestowford
Well-Known Member
My old horse had an enlarged thyroid, it was a lump that appeared on the underneath of his neck, where it joined the head. It was a hard lump but it didn't cause him any pain to touch, and certainly didn't stop him eating! In fact, it didn't seem to affect him at all, it bothered me more. I asked the vet about it and after giving him a thorough check up, they said that as long as he was acting normally, which he was, and eating well, then it was better left well alone. Treatment for thyroid problems is (according to them) difficult as getting the medicine dose right can be very tricky. It could involve a lot of experimenting and cause more discomfort for the horse than leaving it all alone.
He lived to his late 20s and it wasn't thyroid that finished him but arthritis.
He lived to his late 20s and it wasn't thyroid that finished him but arthritis.
0ldmare
Well-Known Member
My old mare, who died a few years ago, was diagnosed with an underactive thyroid. My vet tested her because she went down with Laminitus in January when she had only been turned out in the menage for a week due to terrible flooding around here and was not being over fed (she always had a weight problem bless her). After a lot of trial and error she ended up on 27 dog thyroid pills a day and never had Laminitus again. But she did die quite young (22) of kidney failure which could have been caused by the pills (never established). On the other hand without them she would have died at 17 as her Laminitus was so bad that I had agreed with the vet to put her down if no improvement. When she went onto the Thyroid pills she was substantially better the next day and within a week was bucking up and down the school (literally!)
Sympton wise there wasnt much other than the Laminitus. She looked really well but could live on 1/2 the food you would expect a horse of her type and size.
Sympton wise there wasnt much other than the Laminitus. She looked really well but could live on 1/2 the food you would expect a horse of her type and size.
Honeypots
Well-Known Member
[ QUOTE ]
My old horse had an enlarged thyroid, it was a lump that appeared on the underneath of his neck, where it joined the head. It was a hard lump but it didn't cause him any pain to touch, and certainly didn't stop him eating! In fact, it didn't seem to affect him at all, it bothered me more. I asked the vet about it and after giving him a thorough check up, they said that as long as he was acting normally, which he was, and eating well, then it was better left well alone. Treatment for thyroid problems is (according to them) difficult as getting the medicine dose right can be very tricky. It could involve a lot of experimenting and cause more discomfort for the horse than leaving it all alone.
He lived to his late 20s and it wasn't thyroid that finished him but arthritis.
[/ QUOTE ]
Thanks for that... tis really interesting
My old horse had an enlarged thyroid, it was a lump that appeared on the underneath of his neck, where it joined the head. It was a hard lump but it didn't cause him any pain to touch, and certainly didn't stop him eating! In fact, it didn't seem to affect him at all, it bothered me more. I asked the vet about it and after giving him a thorough check up, they said that as long as he was acting normally, which he was, and eating well, then it was better left well alone. Treatment for thyroid problems is (according to them) difficult as getting the medicine dose right can be very tricky. It could involve a lot of experimenting and cause more discomfort for the horse than leaving it all alone.
He lived to his late 20s and it wasn't thyroid that finished him but arthritis.
[/ QUOTE ]
Thanks for that... tis really interesting
Honeypots
Well-Known Member
[ QUOTE ]
My old mare, who died a few years ago, was diagnosed with an underactive thyroid. My vet tested her because she went down with Laminitus in January when she had only been turned out in the menage for a week due to terrible flooding around here and was not being over fed (she always had a weight problem bless her). After a lot of trial and error she ended up on 27 dog thyroid pills a day and never had Laminitus again. But she did die quite young (22) of kidney failure which could have been caused by the pills (never established). On the other hand without them she would have died at 17 as her Laminitus was so bad that I had agreed with the vet to put her down if no improvement. When she went onto the Thyroid pills she was substantially better the next day and within a week was bucking up and down the school (literally!)
Sympton wise there wasnt much other than the Laminitus. She looked really well but could live on 1/2 the food you would expect a horse of her type and size.
[/ QUOTE ]
Thanks for your story.
.thankfully there are no signs of lami
My old mare, who died a few years ago, was diagnosed with an underactive thyroid. My vet tested her because she went down with Laminitus in January when she had only been turned out in the menage for a week due to terrible flooding around here and was not being over fed (she always had a weight problem bless her). After a lot of trial and error she ended up on 27 dog thyroid pills a day and never had Laminitus again. But she did die quite young (22) of kidney failure which could have been caused by the pills (never established). On the other hand without them she would have died at 17 as her Laminitus was so bad that I had agreed with the vet to put her down if no improvement. When she went onto the Thyroid pills she was substantially better the next day and within a week was bucking up and down the school (literally!)
Sympton wise there wasnt much other than the Laminitus. She looked really well but could live on 1/2 the food you would expect a horse of her type and size.
[/ QUOTE ]
Thanks for your story.
GreedyGuts
Well-Known Member
Horses don't tend to get thyroid problems, however if they are ill/stressed and you test their thyroid hormone level it may be low but this is secondary(e.g. in horses with laminitis it may appear low, but this is a result of the laminitis not the cause of it). Removal of the thyroid has not been shown to cause laminitis or obesity when performed experimentally. Supplementation of thyroxin in horses is not recommended and can do more harm than good.
Horses do get benign changes to their thyroid. When this happens the thyroid gland becomes a plum sized mass at the front of the neck about a hand's width from the throat. This change does not affect the horse - they don't produce more thyroid hormone as a result.
If your horse has two lumps under his chin it's more likely to be its glands as suggested above. Sounds like he's feeling a bit under the weather but unlikely to be due to anything thyroid-related.
Horses do get benign changes to their thyroid. When this happens the thyroid gland becomes a plum sized mass at the front of the neck about a hand's width from the throat. This change does not affect the horse - they don't produce more thyroid hormone as a result.
If your horse has two lumps under his chin it's more likely to be its glands as suggested above. Sounds like he's feeling a bit under the weather but unlikely to be due to anything thyroid-related.
Honeypots
Well-Known Member
Thanks..she has a hand sized lump behind her cheek (where jaw meets neck) and 2 under her jaw. The one behind her cheek was the size of a grapefruit but has gone down a bit. The two under her jaw are solid. None are painful although the one near her cheek was for a couple of days. She seems flat but not particularly ill and not off her food. She is also being bullied by a small pony which is most unlike her! She is with 5 others and none have any swollen glands or signs of being flat or unwell.
Hopefully then we're just talking a virus...hate to see her down. In 10 yrs, none of mine have had so much as a sniffle!!
Hopefully then we're just talking a virus...hate to see her down. In 10 yrs, none of mine have had so much as a sniffle!!