Help with Tough decision . . .

[happy appy]

When do you know enough is enough?

I have an older mini mare that was just rescued Aug 21. She has foundered and was under weight and has COPD. We have been managing her COPD very well with puffers and wet hay and enviromentchanges. I have been giving her only 1 cup of high fibre/hig fat/low starch feed to help with weight gain, any more and she gets sore. I keep a blanket on her over night because it's getting a little chilly but she has all the hay that she can eat in front of her. I have been taping on stryfoam pads onto her feet to help with comfort but they only stay on for a day or so at a time. I have her on Omega Antiflam and a hoof supplement to help her.

Now the problem. It seems that with the changing temps, her pain also increases. When it drops down into the 40's over night she is very sore in the mornings. I have the vet booked for Friday AM to come and take x-rays to see what is going on inside the hoof. To top it off she could be in foal. She was penned with a stallion and he bred her while I was there. The vet did a blood test but it came back inconculsive. The vet suggested that we wait another month and try again.

 

[chandab]

You might have to change her diet again. Have you tried soaked beet pulp? It can be an acquired taste for some, so might take her a little while to decide its edible. [i believe beet pulp can be upto 40% of the total diet). And, since you are in Ontario (at least I think that's what your avatar area said), you should be able to get Ontario Dehy Timothy Balance cubes, they were developed by Dr Kellow for Cushings and IR horses, so very low sugar/starch and balanced (just need to add Flax and Vit E, I think - I've heard the are fairly soft so readily crumble dry and soak pretty quickly).

 

[happy appy]

She wont touch the hay cubes or beet pulp, those are what I tried in the beginning because of her COPD. I have been researching "boots" in her size and the closest is the Boa boot in 00. They are still big but might be worth a try. It might take a few weeks to get here because they will need to be ordered. My tack store deosn't care any that small.

 

[chandab]

She wont touch the hay cubes or beet pulp, those are what I tried in the beginning because of her COPD. I have been researching "boots" in her size and the closest is the Boa boot in 00. They are still big but might be worth a try. It might take a few weeks to get here because they will need to be ordered. My tack store deosn't care any that small.

MiniTack.com carries mini sized "Sabre Sneakers", Easy Boots and the Davis Barrier boot. If they ship to Canada, you might be able to get one of these in the right size for her.

I'd try the soaked beet pulp again, start with a very small amount, like less than a cup soaked and mix in something she likes (perhaps the feed she is already getting). [i order in beet pulp pellets, and they smell nutty when soaking (really good smell). Last time I got to TSC they had beet pulp shreds, which were fine dry, but soaked they stunk (at least to me they did, although the horses still ate them right up). I'm sticking with the pellets.] Its easier to do these taste tests if you have other horses that already eat the feeds you are testing, as they can eat the left-overs. Have you tried plain grass hay pellets? I can get Orchard grass hay pellets and timothy pellets; two different suppliers (both are a fair drive from here, so I stock up when I do get them). [i'm pretty sure Ontario Dehy also has a timothy pellet.]

Wish I could be more help.

 

[Kim~Crayonboxminiatures]

I would highly recommend Soft-Ride Boots, my vet recommended them to me and they made a tremendous difference in my pony mare. After wearing them the first 24 hrs her digital pulse was back to normal. This last episode she was sore and had a strong digital pulse from the hard ground (we need rain!). I found the boots very easy to put on and she is wearing them 24/7 with no rub marks or anything. I wish I would have invested in them in the spring when she had her first laminitis episode instead of struggling thru the whole duct taping styrofoam, it's just not worth it!

I got a discount by ordering them thru my vet: www.soft-ride.com

 

[HGFarm]

Perhaps it's not all just the laminitis. If she is older, she could also be getting arthritis and the colder it gets, the worse it gets. If there is nothing that can be done to relieve her pain.... I would say it is time to make a decision. Seeing an animal that is in pain all the time kills me worse than putting them down. Maybe something to talk over with your vet?

 

[Sue_C.]

If her feet are small enough, a cheap and quick solution could be a pair/set of the build a bear boots that I use on my horses. I find the canvas "hi-tops" are the easiest to put on and off. Even if you had to cut them a bit to get them on, it is worth a try...at only $8-$10 a pair.

If that won't work, try wrapping her feet with fibreglass cast tape, or Equicast

I too would try her on the beetpulp again, mixed with her feed; or something else she might like.

I also second the fact that it could be arthritis, and perhaps add some ground flax to her meals...I have yet to see a horse that doesn't like it, and it will help mask the beetpulp flavour.

 

[Gizzmoe]

For the founder issue, it can take a little while before she gets sound. I have heard of people buying cheap baby diapers and some foam stuff to put inside the diaper and duct taping them onto the feet to help. I have a mare that has some respiatory problems from chronic choke and has a severe underbite. She now gets just her grain and hay pellets. After a couple of days she got use to them and didn't gobble them down but rather grazed her bucket. As for the hay cubes, I have had a horse that wouldn't eat hay cubes, after some experimenting I found that after they soaked, if I broke them up and drained any of the excess water off he would eat it, so that is just a suggestion. Another thing is there is a supplement called BL Pellets Link Here that I have used in the past that are good for arthritis and such.

 

[chandab]

Another thing is there is a supplement called BL Pellets Link Here that I have used in the past that are good for arthritis and such.

While I like and use B-L pellets; if your mare is pregnant, they can not be used while she is pregnant nor lactating.

 

[happy appy]

I tried the beet pulp mixed with her feed and she still wouldn't touch it. I even shredded carrots and apples and no luck. Same with the hay cubes, wet, not wet, mushy, just softened, made no difference.

When the vet is out on Friday to take xrays, I think that depending on how much rotation she has we might have to make the decision to make her pain free. It just kills me to see her walk around. Some days she looks so sore, I want to cry.

 

[~Lisa~]

Sometimes that is all you can do. My only advice to you is if your gut is telling you it is time then odds are even if your head is telling you different it is time.

The worst part about owning animals is when we have to make that decision but sometimes it is the best one. I hope with your vets advice you will be able to come to the best decision whatever it may be.

 

[Marty]

It just kills me to see her walk around. Some days she looks so sore, I want to cry.

Sometimes in life no matter how hard you try, you cannot fix everything and make bad things go away. It doesn't sound like she has a good quality of life at this point but at least you are loving her and making these days as good as possible for her. I feel it is time to have a good talk with your vet and weigh all your possiblites carefully and go from there.

 

[chandab]

I know its not often recommended for minis, as they are so sensitive to it, but have you tried bute? It might take bute to get her over the "hump", so that she can start the road to recovery.

I know when my mare foundered, I tried banamine and everything else recommended, before trying bute; bute was the only thing that helped her pain, she was on bute for one week (along with ulcer meds), then I was able to switch her over to B-L pellets (she wasn't pregnant), she was on those for 6 months before I decided to try to take her off of them. Now, she just gets the B-L pellets occassionally when she is sore. I have a new farrier, and more progress is being made with her hooves.

 

[ljc]

I rescued a mid-20s pony a couple of years ago - he had been badly, badly abused and was in terrible shape. I felt I owed it to him to try and give him a good end of life. He had foundered at some point before I got him and I was always so careful but sometimes you can't avoid bad stuff. He had eye surgery and developed a severe infection and the only thing that gave him relief was dex, a steroid, which caused him to founder again. I was devastated and spent the longest and worst six weeks of my life trying EVERYTHING to keep him comfortable and to "fix" him. Finally -- on my 53rd birthday, in fact -- I looked closely into his eyes and saw how very tired he was. It was time to stop fighting ... because at some point, the fight wasn't so much to help him but to prove to myself that I could win the battle. The vet came out that day. I think letting him go was the best gift I could have given to both Jasper the pony and to myself.

It sounds like you have done an amazing job so far and bless you for that. Trust your heart - you will know what to do.

 

[kaykay]

I agree with the above that I always try not to give bute but in the case of founder its the only thing that really gives them relief. Just try the lowest dose possible and watch for ulcers. This would also help arthritis pain.

Be careful giving apples as the natural sugar can set off a foundered horse.

I would for sure do a vet consult and see what he/she thinks her quality of life could be.

Thanks for taking her in and caring for her

 

[Carolyn R]

I also agree that sometimes we need to admit it is time when they no longer have that glisten in their eyes. Head hung low, no whinnies, they don't even care that they are in your presence.

As far as bute goes, I also am very cautious about giving it, but it is excellant for inflamation. After the last gelding procedure, my vet encouraged me to try giving the flavored bute powder instead of banamine (it was rec. to only give 1/8 of a tsp no more than 2x's a day for his size), it really did keep the swelling down much better.

Good luck in whatever you choose, no one would fault you if her fight is too much for her to handle.