>>> Does she need a diet. Is this due to lack of exercise this past month? Is >>> it the beginning of IR? She is not fat as I can easily feel ribs.
I don't have 28-year-old Thunder's recent blood tests (CBC) in front of me, but they were basically fairly normal. His fecal was negative, and he's been wormed regularly. His teeth look pretty good for a guy his age - he's been floated regularly all his life - and no signs of him dropping food, or quidding. His heart and lungs are pretty good for an old guy. He looks like a bone rack however, and we're feeding him tons of Senior complete feed, plus he has access to good grass all day. He seems to feel pretty good - just not the spring chicken he once was. The most common disease in older horses is Cushing's disease. It occurs in younger horses too, but it seems like most horses get it if they live long enough. There seems to be some connection between Cushing's and IR. I lost my old QH in 2003 to Cushing's - he lived five years after his diagnosis. He was 19 when diagnosed, 24 when he died. We were aggressive in our treatment, but his case was pretty severe in its manifestation. I suspect that's what we're seeing with Thunder, but I'm not sure. There are some risks with the testing, so at his age, I'm not likely to put him through it. The Horse magazine has done a lot of articles on Cushing's, laminitis, IR, etc, and the connections between them over the past 10-15 years. They are online at www.thehorse.com. Search for any of the above - you may have to sign up to get to the archives, but it's free and a great source of info. Go do some reading and see if any light bulbs come on. Karen Thomas, NC
