What would you do next?

[wingnut]

Thanks Kimberle!!

Did your horse finally stop sulking and eat/drink when you stalled her? I'm really concerned about her not eating AND not drinking when I stall her for an extended time (like overnight..8-12 hours).

The B-12 shot is something else I've heard of before but forgot about. I'll add it to the list of things to talk with the vet about tomorrow.

I am keeping my fingers crossed that our outcome is like yours

A shell of herself is an excellent description of what I'm seeing.

 

[Allure Ranch]

It was almost immediate..... The B-12 injection and the Ranitidine In conjunction with the Gastrogard together made the difference. I orginally had her on the Gastrogard for almost 6 months without any improvement.

She did better with a companion next to her. That's why I placed her friend Ambition in the barn also. If I turned them out it was after I made sure that Fawn ate ALL the grain.

I literally told my vet that I wanted him to give her the injection. At that point I was looking for anything that would help. She had lost so much weight I thought that we were going to lose her. You can get the Ranitidine 150 mg at Walgreens. I gave her the Gastrogard in the morning with (2) Ranitidine tablets and (2) more tablets in the evening.

 

[sundancer]

I would test for both Thyroid and Cushings. More the cushings test first. Sounds like a saddlebred we once had that had the same type issues. It was Cushings.

Good luck

Julie

Victory PAss Stable

Maine

 

[Riverrose28]

HEY! Wingnut are you in Maryland, if so where, I'm in Maryland too, maybe we can get together. Terry

EDT. If you are on the Eastern Shore, I don't drive over the bridge!

 

[wingnut]

LOL Theresa...yes, I'm in northern Harford County. I come to the Eastern Shore via Delaware. I don't mind the bridge but I hate the drive down to the bridge and over.

Kimberle: I'm pretty much going to ask for the b-12 shot, figuring it can only help and I'm paying the bill.

Julie: Definitely doing the bloodwork for Cushings, despite her minimal symptoms that point that way. And it was our equine dentist who swore by having the thyroid test. He said he's seen too many horses where that's what it turned out to be, despite the vet thinking it was likely not. Again, I'm paying for it so that's what I'm requesting. My vet is a great lady and just as interested in finding an answer. Like most of us, she's used to roly poly minis who gain weight on air.

 

[Riverrose28]

I'd love to meet up sometime, I have to have hubby drive over the bridge, it causes me to have a panic attack, we also show in Harrington, havn't been in a couple of years because of the recession. Lets hope your mare gets the help she needs.

 

[wingnut]

btt'ing for the update

 

[StarRidgeAcres]

Stopping by to see if there is an update after seeing the vet today. I don't have any advice for you but am keeping her in my prayers.

 

[tagalong]

An abdominal ultrasound might be in order. Our thin, picky eater had an operation in 2009 that removed 4 feet of small intestine with thickened walls due to a complicated immune system/unusual allergy issue - and all was well until this spring, She went back to her old ways of fussy eating and started melting away. Her 3 month old filly was weaned and she still did not pick up - but kept getting worse. No food or supplement interested her more than a day or two. And even then, only sparingly. Sadly, her entire small intestine is now affected...

 

[wildoak]

IJust wrote a lengthy reply and accidently deleted it LOL, so here's the abbreviated version. I had a mare last spring who also had a major weight loss. Separated her from the herd to give her a chance to eat, but nothing worked and she refused most food but would graze (only place we had grass last summer was around the house, so I turned her out there daily). Blood work on her was fairly normal except for a depressed protein level, result of not eating. Vet was at a loss to say what was going on - we tried various feeds, supplements, etc. She's a wiley mare anyway and I had to catch & dose her twice a day, was a chore. This started, or I noticed her first, in about April. Mid summer, I ordered some Body Builder for show horses and put her on it as an afterthought. Within a week, her appetite began to pick up and subsequently her weight. I'm convinced it's what saved her, and I'll be watching her closely this year.

Excerpt from product description -

" Improve overall body condition; Calm the agitated or sour horse. In most horses, 20 days of supplementation was required before clear-cut signs of improvement were apparent to everyone. In horses that were suffering from severe loss of body condition, Body Builder displayed dramatic reversals in as little as a week's time"

And I'll vouch for that! She was on it for a couple of months, and continued to gain weight and condition. She was in foal too, and delivered a big, healthy colt about 6 weeks ago with no complications, and has so far held her appetite. I'll probably order some more before I wean her colt, just to be safe.

One other thing I will recommend, Karbo Combo by Gomers. Look at their website, www.gomersinc.com , call them or email. Great folks, small company very willing to help. I put all my pregnant mares on it about 6 weeks prior to due dates, through about 6-8 weeks after delivery. Healthiest crop of babies ever. Tried giving it to the mare last year but it's a small pellet, and she wasn't having any part of it. The Body Builder is a thick, sweet liquid that can be syringed into their mouths.

Jan

 

[wingnut]

tagalong: If her blood work *doesn't* show Cushings or IR, having some kind of ultrasound or other like testing would probably be next. This why we're both sort of hoping for a Cushings result because there's a clear cut treatment path that is known to be successful in most horses.

More reading last night and I'm seeing that while big horses often develop Cushings (PPID) at around 20, miniatures often start sooner. This fits our situation because I would say her symptoms started at age 12. It was ignored because of the idea that its an "old age" condition and she was far from old.

wildoak: more great input! Thanks!!

 

[wingnut]

P.S. I put an update in the original post for those looking for one post-vet visit.

 

[Cricket8]

With our full sized horses we use about 20cc's of Guinness a day. Yes you heard right! Not only does it make a coat shine it also makes them eat and helps with weight. Someone told me to try this a while back and it actually works. :/ I don't know. It's worth a try.