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Pssm1

Hi, i never dealt with pssm1 before. I have a horse that had a couple épisodes of sudden lameness and tightness so i would like to know people with expérience, which are the symptoms and if there IS lameness or foot soreness associates with this condition. Tia.

I would suggest getting a genetic test done so that you know this is really what it is. Then you can discuss treatment strategies with your vet. Here is information about the genetic test.

https://ceh.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/health-topics/polysaccharide-storage-myopathy-pssm#:~:text=PSSM1%20is%20diagnosed%20through%20the,test%20for%20PSSM2%20or%20MFM.

Horses can be stiff and footsore for many many reasons, and you need to know you are on the right diagnoses or you waste valuable time and money and can even make things worse.

PSSM1 typically shows symptoms that used to be called “tying up” after exercise. Is this what’s happening to your horse? Or is he stiff and sore in the morning before any exercise?

That said it never hurt to take most horses off high sugar or starch feeds, back to a basic hay diet. Then add on a ration balancer or vitamin mineral supplement. Most horses do best when they can move around all day. You can do all this while waiting for a diagnoses.

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My horse three weeks After castration came out of thé stable and was walking fine, hé suddenly did not want to walk, put his feet foreward and could not move nor turn. I thought hé foundered. Hauled him to a vet but when arrived felt better.Hé was lame in his left foot for a few days. After a month hé had two épisodes of what it looked liké mild colics. After that,i treated him for ulcers and seemed better. I only walk him AT thé moment. Hé s super lazy and will not go foreward. When i ride him hé gets loose but thén hé s quickly tired. After riding him if i let him in thé stall and thén décide After an hour or so to take him out hé walks with short strides. I m not in thé usa so i will try to find a genetic lab hère in Europe.

If this came on right after castration and first thing out of the barn I would look first at side effects of castration including adhesions. There is some discussion online about this.

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I have a mini with PSSM1. We found out through the hair follicle test, which was inexpensive and easy. She has only had two episodes and none since we have made lifestyle changes. I will admit, she should be getting more exercise, but diet has helped a lot! It can be a pain, but it’s doable.

ETA: Her symptoms in both episodes honestly looked like a spastic colic episode. She was throwing herself down, kicking towards her belly with her hind legs, and showed typical colic signs, but she was pooping. My vet suggested running fluids and checking her lactate levels, which were elevated. Then we pulled hair to send off.

There’s a lab in Germany, you can order the testing kit and then send the sample back for evaluation. The site is “generatio.de”.