I have an update on my 11yr old Dutch Wb mare Schimpie who I posted about not too long ago about her exercise intolerance…we finally had our appointment a few weeks ago at New Bolten Center with Dr Kara Brown…she evaluated Schimpie and did a thorough lameness exam, and medicine exam …after careful evaluation starting with a physical exam, watching her in hand, on the lunge and under saddle …a cardio evaluation…it was recommended to do a BAL, scoping and muscle biopsy…got the results back and the BAL revealed mild asthma. Muscle Biopsy revealed Schimpie has evidence of Polysaccharide Storage Myopathy Type 2 (PSSM2, a myopathy that results in abnormal accumulation of a stored sugar in muscle), Vitamin E associated myopathy (VEM, indicative of current or previously low Vitamin E levels which helps protect cells from free radical damage), and Myofibrillar Myopathy (MFM, a myopathy that results in abnormal alignment of the contractile proteins in muscle). All of these are treated with certain diet changes/exercise changes and supplementation
Wow sounds like a lot but it’s good to have answers and know what you’re dealing with! I hope you find a diet that works.
Dr. Brown treated my TB at New Bolton as well. She was outstanding - I really can’t say enough good things.
Jingles for your mare! Hopefully you two are on the right track now.
Yes I was a bit overwhelmed at first but apparently it’s mild for both the respiratory and muscle abnormalities…we also did Pro Stride & Shockwave on her LH fetlock after a mild lameness was detected and blocked out …X-rays & ultrasound revealed mild arthritis and some scar tissue from her stall accident a few years prior…as well as slight lameness RF …X-rays revealed mild but stable laminitic changes which corresponded to her acute laminitis episode also a few years prior…so slight tweaking to her shoeing was recommended.
She is amazing! I’m so happy I have connected with her and she’s close by!
What were the recommended diet/supplements/exercise changes?
Ditto this question.
Thank you!
Another great resource is dietitian Katie Young, she helped me with a diet overhaul for my mare who is suspected PSSM 2.
I wish you the best of luck. My pssm 2 mare has gotten progressively worse with age and increasingly exercise intolerant. She’s on grass hay and a ration balancer. I time her exercise (less then 30 minutes at a time). More than that causes issues. Trying to see if daily exercise will improve her condition. Unfortunately I’m not always motivated enough to ride daily but I’m hoping this week I can really put some time into getting her going again. I’m not very optimistic that this will work. I used to see a quicker response - 5 days of riding and she usually improved by day 6. Now she struggles with 30 minutes of flatwork, mostly at a walk.
This is very comprehensive and helpful! Thank you so much for sharing 
Thank you …I’m hoping with some dietary changes and the addition of the recommended supplements- KER’s Nano CoQ10 and KER’s MFM pellets along with switching to the liquid vitamin e at 5000iu will help
Based on my recent experience, I’d add these supplements one at a time. I think the Q10 made my horse v. hot. I’m not 100% sure that was it but the timing is suspect. I took her off of it and may try re-adding it a little later to see if that was the cause or not.
I feed all three of these with great results
