What is the outlook for my rescued Shettie?

Hi, just wanted to say well done to you for giving this pony a chance.

I'm in West Yorkshire too - I was thinking maybe you could try ringing round some different vets re the cost of X Rays. There are a few in West Yorkshire. There's one in North Yorkshire (Ripon) called Bishopston that's way cheaper than the one I use in Keighley. Maybe you could see if anyone could transport you there to make it cheaper?
 
Clevelandbay... We use Keighley too, and Peter Scholefield for any lameness.
OP, I have a 36" shetland who is 25yrs. He had an extended period of Bute for 6 months with no ill effects (under vets guidance) for shoulder lameness that comes and goes - shoulder arthritis is more prevalent in shetties. The key thing about bute is to maintain a dose as it builds up over time - it's not advisable to keep stopping and starting.
My pony also has Cushings now, and that has made him footy... However he's on Prascend which has made a huge difference. however he may have EMS which is a low sugar diet and a different medication.
As another poster has said, he'd be better and more comfortable on a thick shavings bed for support, and probably kept fairly immobile for a good month on Bute to see if that improves the situation... I know how hard that can be to do that, but it will help.
Big pat on the back to you for rescuing him, hope he starts to get better soon.
 
Well done you, holding thumbs that all is well at the end of the day, dont worry about the cost just pay it off, as long as you keep paying it off regularly there wont be a problem.
 
Thanks again for the replies :)

Bobby - I had to tell hubby about the cost - and to make up for it i'll be listing a lot of stuff on ebay tomorrow!

Thanks for the suggestions re.vets; I'm close to south yorkshire (near barnsley / pontefract / wakefield ) so they're a little far for me. Plus, I don't really want him to travel because that seemed to really stress him out when I got him. It looks like i'm just gonna have to stand it.

Millimoo - Wow you've had it all with your little shettie. I really hope he's ok too.

I'm really hoping that he doesn't have cushings. His coat seems to look ok, but I have noticed he does drink quite a lot. I'm going to ask the vet when they come out to xray.

They were meant to call me back this morning, but didn't call until 12 and by then I was at the paddock and had missed their call :( when I tried to call back they were closed :( So i'm just gonna have to wait until monday morning and call then.

I spent a long time today just fussing him. There's not much you can do with a pony that can't walk or be turned out, but I think he appreciated coming out of his stable and just being tied up having a good brush and lots of attention, with lots of feet hosing to help with the pain. He's gone off hard feed again now (his speedibeet), but is still nibbling his soaked hay. I'm not too worried mind, as he seems to be filling out now that i've wormed him etc and I really don't want him getting fatter!

I'm just looking on ebay for a stable toy he can have, as he must get pretty bored. He won't entertain his salt lick, and won't eat fibre cubes so a treat ball would be no good. Maybe one of those jolly balls? But then again I don't want it to encourage him to walk. Any suggestions?
 
Well done for all you are doing for this poor little chap. Would the PDSA help you financially as your pony is a rescue? I don't actually know if they help with horses or just dogs and cats but worth a look.
 
Thanks! I'll have a look in pets at home.

I'm not sure if any charity will help me out as I took him on off my own back. Might look into it, but i'm pretty certain that they'll say i'm on my own.

Well, I've got the vet coming out tomorrow to do xrays and blood tests for Cushings. Does anyone know what tests they will be?
 
Millikins said:
Well done for all you are doing for this poor little chap. Would the PDSA help you financially as your pony is a rescue? I don't actually know if they help with horses or just dogs and cats but worth a look.
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The PDSA will not help! They help people who are in recipet of housing or council tax benifit with dogs, cats ,rabbits etc. I would sincerely hope that the op has not taken on this pony and is on benefits!
 
spottybotty said:
The PDSA will not help! They help people who are in recipet of housing or council tax benifit with dogs, cats ,rabbits etc. I would sincerely hope that the op has not taken on this pony and is on benefits!
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I'm not, no. Doesn't mean I have a spare £300 though - I'm selling my favourite designer handbag on Ebay if anyone is interested.. along with basically everything in my house that's not tied down!
 
Morning guys,

Well, the results of last night were both good and bad. The pedal bone had rotated almost vertically, but had been in that state for so long that it had bent at the bottom with the pressure of walking on it; making it look like a ski jump. I hate to think how long he's been in pain for, because the vet said that would happen over the course of years.

The good news is that it hasn't sunk, or gone further down the toe bit. There's a fair bit of sole beneath it too, so the vet said it was worth a go at tring to get him right. Now that we have the xrays, the farrier can take a fair bit of toe off in one go, and trim the heel a fair bit so that the weight of him then goes along the length of the bone and not just the tip like it is now.

I've been told to keep him on 1/2 sachet of bute indefinitely for the time being - apparently he could live on that given his feet. He's also had blood taken for the cushings and insulin tests.

While she was here, she checked his teeth, and one is pretty overgrown - an explanation for not liking the hard feed! Calling the dentist now to get an appointment.

Next steps is to email the farrier my xrays, call the dentist and wait for the blood results.

I've popped a few more pics on photobucket from the weekend, but i'll be putting a pic of the xray on when I get it through.
 
It may be safer to make changes more slowly if he has been in this position for years. His ligaments and tendons will need time to adjust.
At least you know what you're dealing with now. Best of luck. x
 
Have just read all this thread, wow! Just wanted to say how wonderful of you to try to help him, I really hope things work out for him. Will go and have a nosey on ebay now....:)
 
Well done for taking the pony on and trying to get him right.
My mare was diagnosed Cushings autumn 2010, they will test the ACTH levels to determine if he has cushings or not, they will probably also test for insulin for EMS (although my mare is always starved for 12hrs prior to the blood tests so that they get a proper reading on the insulin).
Mines was a bit of a pain when she was diagnosed in that she was diagnosed in September and this is the worst time to look at ACTH levels as even in healthy horses they are elevated, which meant blood tests every 8 weeks to determine if she was and if her medication was at the correct level, it took 10 months to get her medication correct but she hasn't looked back since her initial 3mnth box rest becaus eof the laminitus and the vet was worried about the bone rotating (she will be 24 in 6 weeks and has started competing again for the first time in 16 years and gained a Scottish Farmer Qualifier on her 3 event and has been placed at every show).
She had laminitus which is what sparked the blood tests as she wasn't showing any other signs of cushings.
I'm lucky in that because it was 2 years ago I could get pergolide on a private script and can be grandfathered in to continue on this.
Prascend is expensive but if you go online you can get it cheaper and the prescription from the vet shouldn't be that expensive (mines is £10).
Good luck with him
 
I heard an interesting talk by Andy Durham of Liphook Equine Hospital, and he was saying basically that as long as the reference range for "normal" is changed according to what time of year the ACTH has been sampled, then there is a good distinction between "normal" and Cushing's horses whatever time of year they are tested.

I think some vets used to try and use the same reference range all year round, which then wouldn't be tailored to the natural variations in ACTH through the year in both normal and Cushing's horses.

For a better explanation, here's a link to details on testing for Cushing's through bloods sent to Liphook. Scroll down the first page, and there's a graph which shows clearly how all horses have higher ACTH levels in the autumn, but that if anything there is a bigger difference between the levels at that time of year.

http://www.liphookequinehosp.co.uk/documents/PituitaryParsIntermediaDysfunction.pdf

Sarah
 
dont waste your money on a jolly ball it is really just yearlings that play with them, i have one and neither of my horses have shown any interest in it, what you could do is put a few parsnips in his box (he will nibble on them even if his teeth are not quite right) and it will keep him busy/entertained for a while and also just put some carrots in the box for him to chew on with the green stalks, that would be enough, honestly from the life he has had i am sure he is used to being bored - pardon the pun. the attention you give him is more than treats themselves. hugs.
 
Back again - ive been off line for a few days.
Glad to hear he's hanging in there poor chap.

Just wanted to say what a wonderful thing you're doing for him.
As for entertainment, get a horse proof Mirror (ie that won't shatter) and a cheap battery radio - that will keep him busy.

Regards the frequent weeing - my shettie can be very wet at times, and a lot of that is him saving it for when he comes in.
However he has had the odd dodgy liver results in the past, and once had a hepatitis infection which required powers for weeks.
He was tested last year when he started with Prascend and they came back not quite right again. However tested again 6 months later and they were back in the normal range again - not sure if his immune systems is slightly dodgy, but the vet has assured me they go off their food if the liver is playing up.

Hope the results of the bloods are clear, or at worst just borderline - my vet says there are loads of horses out there who have cushings, but because they are not displaying outward signs, it goes undetected (ie more common that you think)
 
Thanks again for all of the input guys..

I'm going to look into the mirror, I think he'd quite like that and it's something I never thought of :)

That story is just amazing! I can't believe how bad he was - poor pony :(

Just a quick one really to say that Timmy's xrays are now in my photobucket album if any of you would like to take a look :)
 
Hey guys,

His blood tests came back positive for Cushing's, and with slightly raised levels of insulin too. We're thinking that's because of the cushings, so we're just treating for that at the moment. Off to the vets tonight to pick up some peraglide (sp?). He's starting on 250mg a day.

Farrier tonight too for his next trim.
 
Do you mean 250 mcg? Best of luck.

Just an added ramble. There's some research showing raised insulin level in itself causes lamina disruption as well as the gut upset from excess sugars. Laminitis is such a complex condition but keeping sugars low does seem to be the most crucial element along with treating conditions such as Cushings. Lower sugars means lower insulin levels to deal with them.
 
Yeah 250 mcg.. sorry! I'm going to get the more detailed results of the tests when I finish work.

I'm lowering sugar intake by soaking hay etc.. he's on the emergency diet suggested earlier in this thread. Hopefully i'll see an improvement once the peroglide kicks in :)
 
Opticalillusion said:
Yeah 250 mcg.. sorry! I'm going to get the more detailed results of the tests when I finish work.

I'm lowering sugar intake by soaking hay etc.. he's on the emergency diet suggested earlier in this thread. Hopefully i'll see an improvement once the peroglide kicks in :)
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did you make enough money on ebay to dent your vets bills? x
 
Hi :)

I made a fair bit, enough to get the hubby off my case lol.

His blood tests came back - his hormone level that is meant to be less than 29 was 68.5!!!!! His insulin was slightly raised too, but not enough to treat.

He's since had his third trim, and his hooves look great :) Pics here:

http://s1147.photobucket.com/albums...ction=view&current=IMG00896-20120320-1723.jpg

We'll be testing his blood again soon to check he doesn't need a higher dose of pergolide as he's starting on the lowest.

Dentist next Thursday!

On an unrelated note, I feel like the worst horsey owner in the world ever! Put his muzzle on for a while for him to get used to it, and it's rubbed the skin off under his chin!!!! It's a stubbs plastic one, so i'm going to invest in a nylon one from dinky and sew in extra sheepskin once he's healed :( Put purple spray on it, and sudocrem - I didn't have any dusting powder left. No wonder he was trying to get it off. Didn't stop him trying to eat though.

Oh, and he's starting to shed his winter coat, but his under coat (that's not coming out) is still really thick. Looks like i'm gonna have to borrow my friend's clippers once the spring kicks in properley. Only problem then is having to buy him a wardrobe full of rugs!
 
Hello again.... I've used the Dinky Rugs muzzle on my shettie for years during the summer (even got my mums warmblood in the XL - my shettie takes medium), both have never had any rubs - something you'll see with the rubber ones.
Regards clipping, last year was the first year my shettie was clipped. His coat was awful and like pig hair. It's taken a while but he's really shiny, so not sure whether I'll have to clip this year... If he's not shedding by end of April, it's coming off. And a word of caution ... I have amassed a large wardrobe for my shettie to cover every eventuality :D
I've also changed makes to suit his shape - Kingshead, Masta, Rhino, Cuddley Ponies, and finally settled on Amigo lite pony, and a heavy weight Rambo for really wet, windy winters.
Hope he continues to improve x
 
He he, he's getting a full medical/physical makeover. :D Good on you. I'm sure you'll see improvements once he's stabilized on the pergolide.

He is such a lucky fella to have fallen on his feet (lol) with you. x

Try not to feel bad about the muzzle, hope the new system is comfy for him. It is a bit trial and error with them.

ps. Don't forget really short grass is no good for muzzling, it needs to be long enough to stick up through the hole otherwise he wont be able to eat any.
 
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