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Discussion on Old mare with facial paralysis
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New Member:
Jkiviat
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Posted on Friday, Apr 28, 2006 - 6:56 am:
My 27 yo TB mare has had Cushings for over a year and was doing well on Pergolide until about a month ago, when she developed right sided facial paralysis. Now she is wasting away despite eating constantly because she DrOps most of her Equine Sr and can't chew hay or grass effectively. My vet is pessimistic about her chances and feels we should put her down before she starves to death. Is there anything I can do for her?
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Friday, Apr 28, 2006 - 8:56 am:
Hello Joy,
It depends on the cause of the paralysis and the degree to which you can mange it. This is not a symptom of Cushings do you know why this is occurring? Does she sleep lying down flat? Most common is trauma to the facial nerve and sometimes this responds to time, upwards to 6 months. In the meantime switching her over to hay cubes out of which you make a mash with her regular feed and feeding her over a trough that will collect the DrOppings so she can re-eat them might help.
DrO
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New Member:
Jkiviat
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Posted on Friday, Apr 28, 2006 - 9:35 am:
Actually she doesn't lie down at all. I think she would not have the strength to get back up. I wondered if the pituitary tumor could be growing and possibly pressing on cranial nerves. She is uncoordinated when walking and stumbles frequently. She also has stopped sweating and overheated badly last week when it was hot out - her temperature reached 105 F in spite of sponging and hosing her before she finally began to cool off after dark.
I already put a trough under her bucket - found about half her food there after she finished. She didn't seem to notice the food down there. I will try the hay cubes. Thank you.
Joy
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Member:
Mrose
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Posted on Friday, Apr 28, 2006 - 11:07 am:
You might try feeding her out of a feed bag that attaches to her halter. When the feed DrOps, it will just DrOp into the rest of her feed right in front of her nose.
We had an older mare that developed partial paralysis after being kicked in the face. It took about a year for her to recover, and even then her lower lip always DrOoped. She learned to eat mostly on her left side. She was also a little weird in the way she walked for a long time, esp. if we tried to make her turn sharply to the side of her injury.
I would be concerned about her lack of sweating, as I'm sure you are. Can you put her in where there's a fan blowing on her?
I think the most difficult part of being an animal owner is trying to decide when is the time to put an animal down. I feel like as long as they haven't given up, I shouldn't either. But, often the "right time" isn't obvious. I think if she's going to improve, you will see some progress soon. If not, well....you don't want to keep her alive just for your sake.
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Member:
Hwood
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Posted on Friday, Apr 28, 2006 - 11:47 pm:
Great advice, Sara. A canvas feedbag (I got some at a reasonable price from Valley Vet Supply) is wonderful as long as there is supervision for the mare. With a feed bag the mare can take all day to "graze" . . . Yes . . . hay cubes (soaked . . . and, boy, do they grow) and complete pellets (soaked) with a little corn oil will help give her some of the calories she's losing trying to eat her other rations.
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New Member:
Pidgeon
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Posted on Friday, Apr 28, 2006 - 11:50 pm:
Joy,
We had an older mare that had similar symptoms of facial paralysis and staggering. She was diagnosed with EPM and was responding well until the people leasing her quit giving her the medication for EPM.
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New Member:
Jkiviat
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Posted on Saturday, Apr 29, 2006 - 6:28 am:
Del, Sara, & Holly,
Thanks for your ideas.
I was thinking maybe it's EPM and brought it up with the vet. He agreed the symptoms are consistent but questions whether it makes sense to do the lumbar puncture and take on the expense of treatment given her very poor condition and other serious health problems. If we'd diagnosed her sooner before she became emaciated, we might have a chance to reverse the decline, now I don't know. She has lost about 100 pounds in the last month despite 3 meals a day of Equine Senior with corn oil. I'll try the hay cubes & feedbag, see if she can eat that way.
Thank you!
Joy
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Saturday, Apr 29, 2006 - 10:19 am:
Great idea Sara with the feedbag.
I see we have a problem far more complicated than just paralysis of the facial nerve, this alone would not account for the lack of appetite and subsequent weight loss. I also agree with your vet the spinal tap at this point is not indicated. If the vet feels EPM is a possibility a course of TMP/SMZ and pyrilamine is not that expensive. All said consider the other part of Sara's post. Most old horses that get to this point have multiple systems failing and euthanasia far kinder than allowing a horse to suffer. Look carefully into your horse's eyes and tell us what you see.
DrO
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Member:
Jkiviat
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Posted on Monday, May 1, 2006 - 1:08 am:
Well, I had the vet out again to reevaluate my mare, Belle, and he thought she looked better! Despite her extreme thinness, she was alert and interested, and she was working very hard at eating hay. Her facial paralysis is slightly better but she still DrOps most of the Sr. feed. I was reading about Bell's Palsy in my nursing class and she fits that description perfectly. My vet didn't like the feedbag idea because the Sr. gets so mushy and her sensation is impaired, she might get her nostrils in the mush and inhale it.
I looked in Belle's eyes and she said she's still willing to try, so I am too. The goal now is to find something she can/will swallow,(maybe she just doesn't LIKE Equine Sr!) and keep her cool when the weather warms up.
Thanks for all your suggestions!
Joy
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Moderator:
DrO
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Posted on Monday, May 1, 2006 - 6:47 am:
The problem with diagnosing the facial nerve paralysis joy is that no matter what the cause of the paralysis: it would look exactly the same. You cannot diagnose the cause from the appearance. I have found a small percentage of horses that do not like Purina Equine Senior, so by all means experiment.
DrO
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Member:
Mrose
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Posted on Monday, May 1, 2006 - 10:03 am:
Good luck to both of you! Do you have chopped alfalfa/molasses mix in your area? While in California I had an old horse that did really well on it.
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