Time for a Cushings test?

Meowy Catkin

Meowy Catkin

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So CM is now in her 20's and although she looks in great nick, she is suffering from her third abscess this spring/summer. This is not normal for her. I know it could be bad luck, but I just have a bad feeling that something is wrong.

Should I arrange a Cushings test for her? I'm thinking I should.
What are the chances of false negatives?
Anything that I should know?
 
i would , we are coming up to the autumn which is laminitis time for cushings horses. if she is tested and positive you can start with the treatment and avoid laminitis....they dont all show signs that they have cushings. mine was diagnosed when she was 20 but , in hindsight, i am sure she had it the previous year, as she was very quiet and well behaved which was not normal and she was slow to lose her winter coat, if you go on to the laminitis sight there is lots of advice on there and you may be able to get a voucher for a free test, you still have to pay your vet though.
 
I’d do it, it’s only money and your mind will be put at rest if nothing else . If you are in the UK you can download a free voucher so you only pay for the vets time. https://www.talkaboutlaminitis.co.uk/

I had my mini tested this year. He’s only 13 but came down with laminitis for the first time. The result came back at the high end of normal so I will watch him carefully. As you probably know it’s just a simple draw of blood which then gets sent off.
 
I had my 15 year old tested again no signs but he was lame on one leg and before we x rayed we had to assume it was laminitis, it wasn't he just had bruised feet but always best to I think.
 
Yes, even if it just rules it out that would be good. I am a terrible worrier, so it's best to know and then take action based on what is found. I guess if she's negative I'll need to look at her diet again.
 
So the Vet did two different tests with the blood that was taken (I did have the voucher for one - thank you for the link for that) and she's not got cushings. :D
 
if she keeps getting foot problems would it be worth painting her soles with something like keratex to harden them and hopefully stop any penetrating injuries....good news she hasnt got cushings but i would still be alert to any signs that are not normal for her....
 
I’m paranoid so I do mine about once yearly since he got to 20yrs and had some mud fever that kept coming back. Last autumn he had a borderline ACTH but as he has no physical symptoms apart from being a good doer. I left it until this spring and then had the more definitive TRH test done which was negative. A friend had hers done which was also borderline but with some symptoms but on vets advice left it and then he came down with lami and his levels had gone from around 59 to a massively high 900 plus in about 10 months.
 
I will retest now at regular intervals just to keep an eye on how she is doing. It seems sensible to try to catch it early if she does develop it.

I'm re-assessing all the feed and supplements to try to get things as hoof friendly as possible. I have struggled with the horses having thrush this summer more than ever before. Everytime it seems to have gone, we have more wet, dry, wet, dry weather and then it's back. We did have (borrowed) sheep on the field this spring and one was very lame. They are gone now and the lame one was treated, but I can't help but wonder about lame sheep + thrush + the weather + diet not perfect = abscess... maybe? I could be clutching at straws but it's always nicer to have an explanation that you can do something about compared to 'bad luck'.
 
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