The worst possible news - Lady is worse

[Reignmaker Miniatures]

I just got off the phone to the vet and Lady's liver enzymes have gone even higher. She is talking about weaning poor little 10 day old Dyna so there is less demand for calories. She hopes that might help Lady stop using her fat stores and let the liver recover. Provided of course that she can get her to start eating again. What I need now (besides prayers) is any input from those of you who's mares have suffered this and won the battle. What treatment did your vet use?

 

[keely2682]

I just got off the phone to the vet and Lady's liver enzymes have gone even higher. She is talking about weaning poor little 10 day old Dyna so there is less demand for calories. She hopes that might help Lady stop using her fat stores and let the liver recover. Provided of course that she can get her to start eating again. What I need now (besides prayers) is any input from those of you who's mares have suffered this and won the battle. What treatment did your vet use?

a friend had a mare recover

she will graciously offer whatever info she has

email her

[email protected]

 

[garyo]

Our beautiful Tinkerbell did not make it but the vets did have the hyperlipidemia under control (the massive bacterial infection just overcame her). The treatment they gave her is detailed in my post from last week but they gave her intravenous nutrition including glucose and eventually insulin. Please ask your vet to contact Dr. Dana Zimmel at UF at 352-392-2229 if they would like to consult. Tinker could have not gotten any better care.

Weaning your baby may save your Mare and since she is past the first few days she has the colostrum. We will be thinking of you and your girls.

 

[Miniequine]

I am sending my best hope for your mare.

~Sandy

 

[Basketmiss]

(((HUGS))) and Prayers are coming your way...

I hope she gets better if they wean the foal...

Good Luck and keep us posted..

Missy

 

[kaykay]

Weaning the foal immediately will help a lot!! Also please ask them to hand walk her on grass sometimes this is the only way you can get these mares eating again! My friends mare recovered after they weaned the foal and walked her on grass but they did advise she should never be bred again as it could reoccur. Sending best wishes

 

[Reignmaker Miniatures]

You people are the BEST! Your kind hearts have brought the tears I thought I was to tough to shed. Kaykay we really don't have the option of hand walking her on grass. There is still a foot of snow here since we had record snow falls this year. We had one storm that left us with nearly 3 feet and more came after that. Where snow has been cleared all winter and up against the side of buildings we are just getting tiny green shoots which I offered her at home and she ate but no where near enough to do her any good. I did wonder about the rebreeding but it really isn't my first concern. If she never has another foal she can join the other 2 mares that live a life of luxury, their only job is to keep other mares weanlings in line and teach them to be polite herd members. I am thinking we might be better off to wean the foal sooner rather than later. If it is inevitable perhaps starting to supplement her first before removing her entirely from her mother would make the transition easier on baby's digestive system.

Just thinking out loud sort of.

Garyo I did follow your thread at the time but since I hadn't actually had to deal with it ;most of the details didn't stick with me. Lady does have the advantage of being very healthy otherwise and has never been sick in the 4+ years I've owned her.

I can't say how much your kind thoughts and wishes mean. I suppose any who have been on the receiving end of this already know exactly what I mean tho.

 

[kaykay]

OSU also gave my friends mare wet down equine sr. She seemed to also like that. Dang I wish you could get grass!! Im not trying to scare you but weaning the foal asap is in the best interest of that mare. I would do it immediately. sometimes you will see these mares turn around within hours of the foal being weaned. The foal is putting her in a negative energy balance. OSU (ohio state university) put a gate up between the mare and foal so they could see each other but the foal could not nurse. They gave the foal milk in a bowl and foal lac pellets

feel free to call or email anytime if you just need a shoulder

 

[Kendra]

I'm afraid I can't help ... we lost our mare with hyperlipemia, however in my research there is a number of treatment options, and there are horses who have recovered.

I'm thinking of you and your mare!!

 

[dreaminmini]

Good luck with your mare. Hope she recovers quickly.

 

[Mona]

Sending prayers for your mare's recovery. Nancy at Galloping G had a mare with this that came though, so give her a call.

 

[Miniv]

I would agree that weaning her foal off her would be less stress and drain on her........... Scott Creek Farm has a very good article on their health page(s) about hyperlipemia that would be worth checking out. Unfortunately the info wasn't available when our mare developed it. Do please read it.

 

[lvponies]

My thoughts and prayers are with you and your mare!!!

 

[Jill]

Keeping you and your girl in my thoughts and prayers!

 

[WLS]

My good friend in Texas had a seriously ill mare with this and she did recover and the foal remained with her.

The mare was admitted to a Animal Hospital, put on IV with glucose and insulin. It took two weeks to recover, but the mare is fine. I will send you a private email with more info if you wish to contact my friend for all the detailed info.

I wish you all the best. Wendy

 

[RobinRTrueJoy]

Will she eat ANYTHING at all?

ANYTHING you can get into her system would be a help.

Chopped carrots, applesauce, horse cookies, anything at all. I think the trick is to convince her body that it isn't starving to stop the release of lipids(fats) into her blood stream which clogs everything important there is. It clogs all the tiny blood vessels to the kidneys and all the other important organs.

I have never had a horse with it yet( God willing never!) But Nancy G. from Galloping G knows A LOT about it having treated a pregnant mare and they both made it.

In the mean time do you have another non pregnant good mama mare? Can you start her on Domeridone to bring in her milk? I would start one right away, it can take a week for the milk to come in. If you don't know where to get it, pm me and I wiill let you know. It is a prescriotion from your vet and is specially made.

I wish you all the best!

Robin

 

[sfmini]

We have had two recover. Both stayed at Ohio State University on IV and were fed a liquid diet via NG tubes. The one mare was given a large cart with two gorgeous bales of hay on it in front of her door, one timothy, one alfalfa. When she ate her way through, they discharged her. They just loved her, it was during a school break so they gave her the 'run' of the clinic. You could tell where she was by the snorting horses. She had this cow that she loved to visit.

With intensive vet care, a thousand or two or three dollars, they can recover.

 

[Windhaven]

I had a mare that had this also. She developed it a week before she foaled. She was taken to my vets and kept on IV's for about five days. We had access to grass at that time so that is what they did with her to get her to start eating. She was also on Ulcer meds. After five days she was sent home and foaled that night. She had leaked all her colostrum out so then her and her filly were taking to MSU for another 4 days. She was put back on IV's for two of those days and they also hand walked her to let her eat grass.

All I can say is you need to find something that she will eat. Have you tried soaked beet pulp or soaked alfalfa cubes? Maybe some mashes would work also. She needs to keep food in her as much as possible to help over turn this. My mare did pull through this.

I pray your mare makes a speedy recovery.

 

[Carolyn R]

sending prayers your way

Carolyn

 

[Mini Brook Farm]

Several years ago I had a young stallion recover from this. You have gotten some excellent suggestions.

I'd wean the foal and tempt the mare with anything edible. If grass is out of the question try different types of hay, treats, apples, carrots, etc., etc. see if you can spark her interest into eating anything at all.

Your welcome to email me at [email protected] and I would be glad to share the details concerning my experiece with this awful disease.

Wishing you the best of luck and keeping you in my thoughts and prayers.

Carol