EPM Treatment - I need motivation

[AskMyAccountant.17]

I am at a loss, stunned, I looked at my vet yesterday like he was a crazy person, but here we are.

My horse, he just competed a 3*** horse trial last weekend, the past two months he’s been incredible. Now, he’s always been a push ride, he’s not naturally so quick being a big irish horse. I noticed in my last gallop, he didn’t have a ton of push. But, it was a hotter than normal day, humid, and he cooled down well.

Then, this weekend the show was moved from two to one-day, warm. Towards the end of cross-country I ran out of gas, and I nursed him home. He wasnt 100% that day. Aside from his living through a hurricane, running 3-phases in one day, my own exhaustion, I found that tracked. I probably hadn’t done enough conditioning to run a one-day in these conditions, and it was the most stressful 48-hours for both of us.

Then, he’s slightly off behind Monday, so I got him to my vet tuesday.

The vet is noticing a severe muscle atrophy on his right hip, and general less muscle along his topline. in addition to a bit of lethargy. He said it was all too fishy. He also wasn’t reacting/sore in his joints.

So I left with a bottle of Diclazuril, and here we are.

In my mind, I thought horses would act clumsy or trip. He just ran the hardest event of our life 3 days ago. I’m trying to stay positive and only read positive situations right now. But, I am stunned.

[Alex_and_Bodie_s_Mom]

One of mine was diagnosed with EPM about 3 years ago. The first symptoms I noticed were the wasting hindquarters and loss of topline, just like your boy. The only neuro symptoms he showed were a slight wobble in the right hind when he turned, and an unwillingness to back up when asked (from the ground).

I also knew a mare (many years ago) who was absolutely fine, showed no symptoms at all, until one day she fell with her rider trying to do a 15-meter circle at the canter. We didn’t even notice the muscle wasting. She was diagnosed via the spinal tap (mine wasn’t; the symptoms were enough to start him on the Marquis).

EPM presents differently in different horses, so don’t feel guilty or think you missed something. You got him to the vet as quickly as you could after noticing the symptoms, and he should be on the road to recovery now.

[SpicyPRE]

Its actually great news that you are starting treatment early. I would get titers pulled so that you have an idea of the impact the disease is having on your horse.

[Bonnie2]

I had a very good Intermediate horse that we treated repeatedly for EPM. An upper level horse that is fit and rides in a frame and is accustomed to carefully regulating each footfall is the hardest to diagnose. Each time we treated J he would improve so much we would say how did we not notice. Then 12 or 16 months later we would think huh NQR. You may both be happily surprised how well he comes out of this! But keep your antenna up for relapse. Good luck!

[greywithchrome]

A client of mine recently treated her horse for EPM - his symptoms were subtle but she’s had him for like 16 years so she noticed things like he was struggling to hold his back legs up for his hooves to be picked. They did the 30 days EPM treatment figuring well worse case it just does nothing, and he is doing much better!

[jherold]

You might also want to check for Lyme and Anaplasmosis and any other tick born diseases. My mare was treated for EPM a couple years ago and got better but this year when she got bitchy about grooming and saddling ww tested her and she came back positive for both Lyme and Anaplasmosis. Similar symptoms to her epm. Hypersensitivity to touch.

[pompeiii]

I treated my gelding this spring and the on call vet said he looked great (talked to me he thought EPM and then changed his mind once he looked at my boy). His only symptoms were spookiness and he couldn’t really bend his neck (he would if you forced it but it hurt). Pulled titers? EPM AND lyme. You really never know. Not everything is classic in presentation.

The good thing? Most start feeling better pretty fast and then the guilt goes away.

[awaywego]

Just got titers back on both of my horses today. The horse I suspected with EPM titer is 1:500. The horse I suspected had EPM last fall but multiple vets assured me, no, this is not EPM: his is 1:2000. It’s been a rough day

[SpicyPRE]

That really sucks - sorry!

[lorilu]

A friend is battling EPM. She treats, he improves, then after a few weeks presents symptoms again. She is now treating with a second drug that addresses a different phase of the protozoan’s life cycle.
Sorry I have no other info-this was just a casual conversation last month.

[paintedpennypony]

I pulled EPM on my mare and it came back 1:450. We moved from an area with little to no EPM to the south. The vet said if she had been from this state he probably wouldn’t even treat, but since she’s not been exposed to EPM before this summer and her titers indicate some degree of immune response, he suggested we treat. What is your vet recommending for your 1:500 horse? She is in great shape and no neurological symptoms, but I was noticing that she was spookier than normal and tripping slightly more often in the front during rides.

[awaywego]

We are treating both of my horses. The main symptom for the one with the titer of 1:500 was increased spookiness/reactivity and stopping at jumps. Since there was no other clear physical reason for this change in behavior, my vet was game to treat. If you search EPM on here, you’ll find a number of people who say spookiness was the primary symptom for their horse.

Now that we are about 6 weeks into treatment I realize that my mare was tripping because now she isn’t. I think it was a frog-in-boiling water effect for me that had just gotten kind of used to the feeling that she put her foot in a hole periodically. Now I’ve noticed she’s not doing that. If you ride 2 horses with EPM, then how do you even know what normal is?