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  Discussion on Loose teeth in a very old horse.
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Posted on Monday, Jan 22, 2001 - 11:52 am:

Dr. O

A Friend of mine has an Arab gelding that is over 30 years old. Her best rememberance (since she doesn't have his papers), is of riding him 25 years ago in shows, when he was 7 or 8 years old.

Anyway, Lately we have noticed that a couple of his upper incisors have loosened up. I had heard that this can be normal in very old horses. I was wondering if that is true? How likely is it for him to lose his teeth? We have also noticed that his gums seem to be receeding a bit, except between his teeth. The gum extends all the way down between his teeth. Is this normal?

Lately he has stopped eating hay, which led to the examination of his mouth. My friend has switched him over completely to Equine Senior, which is wetted down, so it will soften. He has lost a little weight, mostly muscle mass, but isn't ribby. The other big concern is that he has started drinking massive amounts of water.

I guess the biggest question is, how much longer can he last? I know that no one has the answer to that, but we want to make him as comfortable as possible for as long as possible.

Thanks for any information you can give us.

Posted on Tuesday, Jan 23, 2001 - 7:24 am:

Like you say Heidi, I cannot tell you how much longer he will last. Between the decreased appetite, the teeth, and the increase water consumption you may have soem undiagnosed primary health problems. Read the article on Disease: Endocrine: Cushings in Horses and have your veterinarian out to examine the horse and make concrete suggestions.
DrO

Posted on Tuesday, Jan 23, 2001 - 3:58 pm:

DrO. Thanks for your reply. My friend has contacted her vet for some blood work. However, her vet wants to do a Thyroid screen, not a full Cushings screen. Will Thyroid levels predict Cushing's?

I read through the article on Cushing's, and have one other question. The article says that Cushing's horses may have higher than normal Glucose levels. Is this a test that can be done on a human type glucose monitor? I'm asking because my friend's son has Hypoglycemia, and they have a blood glucose monitor at home. Could they monitor the horse's blood glucose them selves? Would monitoring the glucose level tell us anything?

Thanks,

Heidi

Posted on Wednesday, Jan 24, 2001 - 5:01 am:

Not only will it not predict Cushings, it probably will not diagnose Thyroid disease (see the article on it).

I am not sure if a at home human glucometer will accurately detect equine blood glucose. I think if the sample were collected following the instuctions exactly....but the extra hair, the problem of getting it on the meter,...though they have improved they are very sensitive to not being done JUST right.
DrO
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