So I have a 20 year old mare, diagnosed last October based on physical symptoms and test. She had fat deposits, was cresty and big in the barrel. No weird coat Started on a slowly increased dosage of Prascend in mid October. She has been eating fine the whole time and reached a full pill per day in late November. Fast forward to the last week or so: She has dropped weight, in spite of added hay and grain, which she is eating. She is very listless. Most recently she is walking in a very weird manner - reluctant, short steps in front; no heat or pulse but not happy to move. Though every horse in Fla. is shedding, she has gone from a light winter coat to much longer hair with the “cushings look” to it. She has hind end suspensory branch issues, some fetlock drop and support shoes, so part of me wonders if she cant shift weight back if front uncomfortable.
QUESTIONS are: Does this sound like beginnings of laminitis? I read somewhere that Prascend only helps 65-85% of horses; could she be one where it isn’t helping? She looks like crap…VET IS coming Thursday but in the interim, I’m thinking too much.
I found that when our Cushings pony started showing symptoms, her dosage needed to be increased. The vet confirmed that was the case.
I hope that’s all that’s needed with your horse. If anything has gotten worse, especially the lameness that looks like laminitis, update your vet to see if they want to come out sooner.
If you’re concerned about laminitis better safe than sorry, start icing, extra bedding in stall, nsaids (check with vet for protocol for your horse).
Mine went through something like this with the sore feet / not wanting to move and I was convinced it was laminitis from Cushing’s but turned out to be another insidious Lyme presentation. Ugh. I x rayed her feet for peace of mind once she was better and they actually looked great for her age.
Keep us posted, and I hope she feels better soon!
I am sorry to hear your girl isn’t feeling well. I am with others, it’s time for that vet visit – so glad you have the vet coming out shortly.
I can’t say for sure what it is. What I can say is that being listless and just all around “MEH” is symptom #1 for my Cushings horse that his dose needs to be adjusted. I would be concerned, like you, about why her condition has deteriorated so quickly especially if she is eating all available food in front of her.
Fingers crossed for some good news at the vet appointment.
For those of you who have adjusted the dose….what does that look like? One of mine just had an ACTH value of 44.4 while on 2 Prascend. I’m concerned about it, but my vet is not. (OP, I apologize for interrupting.). I use two different vets and will see the one who is a little more sophisticated at the end of the month.
OP, can you feel a bounding pulse in your mare’s front feet?
You aren’t interrupting, no problem. As of this afternoon, no heat or pulse. But the vet seems mildly concerned based on our email exchange, and I seem to remember reading somewhere that this could be early sign of laminitis. I dont think we are in any urgent situation right now but I dont like the trend line and the mare has a checkered history of diverse health issues…
Do you know anything about her insulin levels? I understand your concern…and I hope your vet can get there sooner than later.
I just re-read your post. I’m sorry I asked about a pulse.
When my pony gets that yucky foot soreness, we always end up having to adjust meds. I also pull everything he eats except for soaked hay in a net and bed deep. Once meds get adjusted, I add back his normal stuff. We have increased meds 2x and had to reduce once so far.
It’s super important to pull blood work and have a baseline to work against.
One thing I just thought of… if it is winter laminitis brought on by colder temperatures, icing may not be a good idea. I wouldn’t think k it’s cold enough where you are to bring that on, but I have no experience w winter laminitis.
Unfortunately, I am an expert on laminitis. What you’re describing doesn’t sound like laminitis to me. Laminitic horses generally want to keep pressure off the “toes” of their front feet and they will walk with the heel of their front feet hitting the ground first. Or it sometimes looks like they are flicking their feet forward as the walk. When they are standing still, they may be slightly rocked back onto the heels of their front feet, or rocked onto their back feet.
I also have Cushings horses and this sound like a horse that needs it’s dosage increased. The symptoms that you are seeing also sound very similar to those my gelding displayed when he had Lymes disease. The treatment for Lymes disease is fairly straightforward so if you have tick-borne diseases in your area, it may be worth getting him tested.
thanks for this description. I dont “think” she was walking quite like that but then I wasn’t specifically looking. She does have dropped fetlocks and resulting postlike back legs, so I’m not sure how much comfort she could get rocking onto hind legs. I’m guessing it is more likely a dosing change needed than Lyme; we dont see it much around here. Vet coming tomorrow am so will see what she thinks.
Good luck this morning!
Where we are:
- Vet agrees she has dropped weight over the last couple months, (since the Prascend was started) Not horrible but a bit thinner that would prefer. Stable manager had just recently begun feeding more grain (maybe about a week…) She has hay not quite free choice, but a lot. She is, and has been eating…
- Hoof testers and other poking/prodding at front feet got ZERO reaction, no heat or pulse so now laminitis is completely off the table.
- I had been instructed by vet to give her equioxx for the couple days between my visit and vet appt. Walking noticeable more comfortable and the vet is of the thought that perhaps she was actually uncomfortable in hind end, given her dropped fetlocks and suspensory branch issues. She will stay on the equioxx for now.
- Basic blood work is all normal, no insulin issues. Going to do another Cushings test in a couple weeks then decide how to tinker with her meds.
- I am going to have to get her clipped - for the first time in her life…
My horse’s first symptom of Cushing’s was, unbeknownst to me, stiffness in the hamstrings. He seemed equally short behind one day when coming in from the pasture. He was 34 at the time and retired. I thought he might have pulled something. He was very rambunctious in the pasture his whole life so was always doing something to himself.
When I went to touch his upper hind legs to groom, he flinched really badly and almost kicked me. I gingerly began a gentle massage with some Thermaflex and found them very stiff. This happened in Nov. I continued to massage every day, and the problem slowly got better and disappeared.
Jump to the following fall. Same thing happened in the Nov timeframe. I restarted the massage/Thermaflex and had successful results like the year before. He was exhibiting no other symptoms of anything, so idiot me, thought it was the colder weather in the fall making him stiffer and more likely to pull something, and never mentioned anything to my vet.
Third fall, same thing, resolved with daily massage. Still no other symptoms until Jan. He started to lose his winter coat really well, then suddenly stopped. That was the first time my brain said “Cushings.” Had vet out immediately. ACTH 47 and started on Prascend.
It was only after the diagnosis that I read everything I could on Cushings and found out pain in those hind leg muscles is very common with the condition. With all my decades of horse ownership, I had never heard that.
Point of above overly long story: Could your mare, like your vet said, have discomfort in the hind end? Maybe try gently massaging the hamstring group (the big muscle group on the back of the legs on either side of the tail). If you google semitendinosus muscle in horse, you should find a diagram of the area to massage.
Sending jingles to you and your girl. 
This is quite interesting re the big hind end muscles. I will check the next time I see her (the mare is at a retirement barn, not-so-convenient for me) As I mentioned earlier she has possible DLSD - bi lateral suspensory branch desmitis - and her fetlocks have dropped quite a bit. THIS is what we were thinking was the most likely source of her discomfort, perhaps some arthritis in those joints.
How is she feeling now? Prascend can have some side effects (not necessarily the gait). I have had (TOO) many horses with Cushing’s and finally found better results without the medication.
You’re the one that is posting on all the threads about a miracle drug free cushings cure. OP beware.
Whoooaaa… my mare gets stiff in the hamstrings every November-December. I would describe her movement as if she has a stick up her butt, doesnt want to activate the hind legs. I chalked it up to an old injury flaring up due to it getting colder at that time. She has serious weight management issues though so I always figured Cushings was in her future but maybe its in her present /:
