My gelding is over 25, grade so not sure, I have owned him since 1999. He has just been tested for Cushings, IR and thyroid levels. So far test has come back showing a high ACTH and a normal thyroid level. Vet is still waiting on IR test results and if test shows IR, will call me with diet recommendations. Since this horse has always been well filled out on hay and/or pasture, no grain feed, I kinda think results will show IR. Currently, this winter has caused him to loose a lot of weight as he no longer eats much of his hay, mostly spits it out. I have begun to feed him Triple Crown Senior and alfalfa/Timothy soaked cubes and this is helping him to gain a little back. At this point in his life, he has never had laminitis. Actually, in all my ownership since 1999, this horse has never had any reason to see a vet other than his vacs/teeth.
My reason for posting a question here is that I read supplements are suggested for the issues of Cushings/IR. What I read is so confusing, I would like to know if any of you have found ONE supplement that works (I am talking for both Cushings and IR). Or can you tell me what all the different supplements you do use for these 2 issues? At this point, I am going to assume, since he has always been ‘almost’ too fat, that test will show IR. I just want to have supplements that I know to ask the vet about.
Please don’t refer me to the Yahoo Cushings Group. I already checked that out, was overwhelmed at this point and am not technical enough to get everything loaded on their site even with thier help. I am needing to keep everything as simple as I can.
The ECIR group is really your best bet… there are folks who can help you get the stuff loaded up.
As the site says, Cushings is a disease that will need medication (which your vet will determine) and IR is managed by diet and exercise.
Since you say he is not eating much anymore has he had a recent dental to check for issues?
He did and the vet said he didn’t have many teeth left, what he did have, vet didn’t see anything with sharp points. The vet also said he would not want to sedate him for a teeth float because he had a very low heart rate with an arthymia.
following! I am in the same boat with Pracend being overnight-ed and the IR test waiting on results. We ran blood work now to be prepared for spring grass looking at hair coat and growing beer belly figure:ambivalence:.
Sadly (but fortunately) all the hay I am feeding is tested and appropriate for an IR horse due to an attempt to save the horse I lost last fall to founder. The 20 something gelding hasn’t needed grain, just the pro add ultimate supplement which is a ration balancer “light” since retiring due to injury years ago so the vet is happy as is no matter what the tests show. I am a full blown Smartpak addict so I am struggling to resist all the different options they provide.
my friend’s horse was Cushings and IR. she had him on Pergolide, then Prascend once it came on the market. Prascend is for Cushings NOT IR.
she had him on a grain free diet, which included soaked hay cubes and alfalfa cubes. I’m not sure which low starch feeds she tried for the IR but there were a few.
I am not one to run for the blanket every time it rains but, when a horse is struggling to hold weight, they don’t need to burn more calories trying to stay warm. Depending how cold you get, Buy a waterproof blanket that is lightweight or medium weight — or one of each:)
It is common for vets to not tranq elder horses with health issues to work on their teeth. Mine will all stand quietly for a manual float but, if the far back teeth are pointy, the vet can’t always get to them easily without tranq’uilizing. It’s better your horse doesn’t need any filing.
to address the IR side ( if his numbers are high), would involve testing hay if he is still eating hay and putting him on a feed that is low NSC value (non-structural carbohydrate) yet will still have a healthy fat value to help,him hold his weight.
you commented your vet will help with a diet. That is the route to take as long as your vet is up-to-speed on current diets for metabolic horses/). My IR horse is an easy keeper, so the way I feed him likely would not work for your fella:)
best of luck — this is a hair puller of a health issue to deal with — once you’re done pulling half your hair out, you will find the remainder has turned gray:)
Certainly will need Prascend if Cushing’s. Your vet will recommend the correct dosage. My Connemara is Cushing’s and IR, and did founder on his hinds almost 2 years ago. He is 27 yrs old now and doing incredibly well. (sound in pasture barefoot if footing is softer, and sound for harder footing and light riding in trail boots.) He is dry lotted most of the year, except now when grass is dead - he gets 3 hours of turnout in the afternoons before dinner.
The only feed he gets is Alam (by McCauley’s) - about 1/3 coffee can each meal - it’s very low NSC and has to be soaked. It’s a pellet that turns into mush which may work well for your horse. It’s a great feed. I also feed all of my horses including this one Legends CarbCare Ration Balancer. It gives him the protein he needs without the high carbs and volume. He gets half of a small coffee can 2x per day and has done fantastic on it. For the IR, he also gets these supplements: Heiro and Metaboral - highly recommend one or both of them. Both combined with feed changes lowered his sugar levels considerably. They are not cheap but the Metaboral was recommended by my vet, and the Heiro has good trials and science behind it. I saw a remarkable drop in his IR levels after adding the Heiro. He still gets 1 small scoop of Thyro-L also.
With diligence, maintaining horses like this can be done and done successfully. Since mine foundered I am over-cautious and sadly come spring, he’ll be dry lotted again but it’s better than founder and he won’t keep a muzzle on (smart pony!!) I am thrilled he is out right now in winter 3 hours a day. He canters and gallops with his buddies soundly and happily and is clearly comfortable!
If he has points that need floating, ask your vet to do a manual floating, no power tools and he won’t need tranquilizing then.
Our Cushing’s horse gets Prascend and a thyroid supplement.
He only gets enough senior feed to mix his thyroid powder in once a day.
He gets alfalfa and a bit of grass hay, has now for 4 years.
He is 20 and doing great, according to our vets.
Agree with the majority - my Cushings pony is on Prascend. I’m not sure what the point of supplements would be, and certainly wouldn’t give them instead of medication.
Weight loss could be caused by the Cushings - it’s a serious disease that effects the whole body. Untreated, it can even be fatal. So the first issue is to medicate if necessary…are you planning to medicate since you know the ACTH is high?
I’ll also agree that i quit the ECIR group. It was overwhelming. Maybe if they change to a different platform rather than Yahoo it could be more manageable. I’m sure there is tons of great information there but it was too much, too often for me.
Prascend is the only medication approved to treat PPID (Cushing’s Disease) in horses. While there are some horse owners who report success with chastetree berry supplements, I would not recommend them in place of medication.
I am also not a fan of the ECIR group, for reasons I won’t get into here.
If he is IR, there are no medications or supplements that have been shown to “help”. You will want to make sure he is on a low (<10%) NSC (Non-structural Carbohydrate) diet and monitor his body condition.
It does sound like he needs his teeth done. Even with a manual float, your vet will still need to use a speculum to do a thorough job; very few horses, even the super quiet ones, will stand still long enough under those conditions to get the job done well, but your vet might be willing to give it a try with your guy (maybe with very light sedation?).
I talked with my vet again this morning. We had been waiting on the IR results. So now I know, my horse has both Cushings and IR. My horse had lost a ton of weight before I started him on the Triole Crown Senior and Alfalfa/Timothy cubes. Currently he is looking great, well aside from the long shaggy coat. He is also eating very well. And of corse, he is going to be starting Prascend @ 1 mg daily. Vet said let’s try leaving him on the TC Senior and Alf/Tim cubes since he is gaining back that badly needed weight. Since the Prascend tends to put them off feed, vet didn’t want to be changing his diet at the same time as starting the meds. Vet also said with the TC Sr/cubes, he didn’t need supplements. And then use a grazing muzzle when the grass greens up (I’m in Texas w/early spring).
As far as teeth, I will talk to the vet again when I go back for follow up testing to see how the meds are doing. This horse has always been extremely easy to manage so I would think a manual float with no trans might be possible.
Thank you all very much for your responses.
