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  Discussion on Excessive Drinking in Mother/Daugter Mares
Author Message
New Member:
krpetats

Posted on Tuesday, Feb 26, 2013 - 9:49 am:

Dr. O,

I will be having the vet run bloodwork and a urinalysis on the 12 year old (mother) mare this Wednesday. These are two TB mares. I acquired them when the mother was ~6 and the youngster was 3 months old. About 2 years ago they lost a significant amount of weight while out of my sight for a few months (though I paid for extra feed). Over the past year, I have had them on my property and allowed them free choice grass hay and about 2.5lbs of alfalfa pellets and 1.5 lbs oats 2x daily...also amino acids and minerals. My 12 year old recently went to stay at our barefoot trimmer's barn for work related to laminitis that appears to have happened in that same time frame. She has been in a stall and has been drinking "a muck bucket full" of water daily. I had noticed that the youngster (6years old) drinks about 4 5 gallon buckets full of water when stalled. The 12 year old drank closer to 3 such buckets. The consumption does not seem to be related to temperature. The trimmer, who has owned TBs for many years and feels she knows a lot about nutrition, noticed that my 12 year old stocks up in the stall but not when the alfalfa and minerals are removed from the equation. This is why she alerted me to the possible need to call the vet. Do you think they could have renal failure from their few months in questionable circumstances? Could it be genetic? The 12 year old does have a fish-hook look to her winter hair coat. I will have to specifically look for that on the 6 year old. I have not yet.

Any help is much appreciated.

Kay.
Member:
lynnland

Posted on Wednesday, Feb 27, 2013 - 9:40 am:

Hi,

I board a barn where we each take turns mucking and feeding. The thoroughbred gelding (~ 11 yrs) drinks at least 4x 5 gallon buckets of water in the summer and only marginally less in the winter. My horse is a 9 year old Hanoverian and usually consumes slightly less. The other two warmbloods drink far less. So...as long as the water consumption is consistent (based on weather or course), I wouldn't worry.
New Member:
krpetats

Posted on Wednesday, Feb 27, 2013 - 11:04 am:

Thank you so much, Lynn. I really appreciate it. Still seems odd that she stocks up though.
Member:
lynnland

Posted on Wednesday, Feb 27, 2013 - 1:41 pm:

If the horse is stall-bound when she normally isn't, the stocking up is not unusual. However, if there is some odd pattern to it then I would chat with my vet. Let's see what Dr. O has to say. Good luck.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Wednesday, Feb 27, 2013 - 5:06 pm:

Welcome Kay,
It is possible any horse may have renal disease but I an not certain any of the above indicates this is a problem with your horses including the history. As others have indicated stocking up is a common thing in stalled horses and not always a sign of serious disease. If renal disease is your concern, have a BUN and Cr run. While not diagnostic, it is a inexpensive way to get a handle on whether this is going on. Also check out our article on stocking up at HorseAdvice.com » Diseases of Horses » Lameness » Diseases of the Lower Limb » Stocking Up: Cool Swellings of the Lower Legs.
DrO
New Member:
krpetats

Posted on Thursday, Feb 28, 2013 - 11:56 am:

Thank you for the welcome. I have enjoyed this site for some time. I had found the following online:

DETOX THE KIDNEYS. HORSES THAT STOCK UP WILL STOP ONCE THE KIDNEYS HAVE BEEN DETOXED.

Is there a process for "detoxing" the kidneys. I have been including minerals in her feed. I wonder if I should provide them free choice instead. Also I have heard protein is related to stocking up.

The vet's son is ill, but she plans to be out soon to pull blood and urine. She will test for Specific Gravity and I will ask about BUN and Cr as well.
New Member:
krpetats

Posted on Thursday, Feb 28, 2013 - 2:18 pm:

Dr. O,

Now the trimmer has said that her feet look great because she is growing hoof faster because her food (alfalfa/oats/minerals) has been cut way back. She says this would make sense if there were kidney trouble. I can't follow that. I also am beginning to feel very frustrated. CRF is irreversible and proceeds in less than a year, correct? If she doesn't show signs on the blood/urine, then she still could have it because >70% function has to be lost in order for the work-up to reflect CRF. This is not making a lot of sense to me. It seems there is no way to know what is going on.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Thursday, Feb 28, 2013 - 6:23 pm:

Kay, I do not follow your trimmers comments either, you do not diagnose kidney disease looking at the hoof quality. If this continues to concern you have the kidneys checked out before considering any specific therapy.

The only way to detox equine kidneys in failure would be large volume IV fluid therapy.
DrO
New Member:
krpetats

Posted on Friday, Mar 1, 2013 - 3:28 pm:

What tests do you recommend?
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Saturday, Mar 2, 2013 - 6:21 pm:

Kate, without examining your horse I am not recommending any specific tests for your horse. However if you are concerned about kidney disease I suggest you study the article HorseAdvice.com » Diseases of Horses » Urinary System » Kidney Disease and Failure in the Horse. It describes symptoms and testing for this problem.
DrO
Member:
lynnland

Posted on Tuesday, Mar 5, 2013 - 8:59 am:

Hi Kay,

I'm going to simply come out and say it...I don't see anything in your posts that would give me reason to be worried about kidney disease. Your vet should be able to help you out if you are worried and want to pursue it, but I wouldn't let it keep me awake at night wondering.

If the mare needs weight on then check out the nutrition articles (for keeping weight and reducing laminitis reoccurrence) and get her moving as soon as the laminitis allows, to reduce the leg swelling.

Good luck.
Member:
krpetats

Posted on Tuesday, Mar 5, 2013 - 11:08 am:

Thank you so much. I really appreciate it. These are the first horses I have owned, so I may be too open to suggestion.
Member:
lynnland

Posted on Tuesday, Mar 5, 2013 - 12:25 pm:

Don't sweat it Kay - we all work pretty hard to make sure our beasties are healthy and happy! This site should be a big help when it come to wading through all the questionable information out there. Don't be afraid to chat with your vet if you are worried about something.
Cheers
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