|
|
Discussion on Low potassium levels in horses
|
| Author |
Message |
|
Posted on Friday, Dec 8, 2000 - 12:06 pm:
My horse was just determined to have low potassium levels and is the cause of his weight loss and "lazy" attitude. By weight loss, it is
really, loss of muscle mass. i have him on a daily dose of electrolytes to boost his levels and will check his blood again in a month. i expect his levels to be normal, but he will not undergo the same excercise now that he did in the summer. i live in michigan and do not have an indoor arena. i feel it will not be until the spring that i will be able to see how his levels will be with regular exercise, and the muscles calling on his potassium for work. he is a dressage horse, working at second level. do you have any thoughts on this for me, or suggestions.
i am looking into his feed to see if there was enough there to being with, or was he demanding more than was available. how do i begin building him back with limited riding availability, or do i not fret over it and let him rest until spring?
suggestions on a rebuilding program would be appreciated.
|
|
Posted on Saturday, Dec 9, 2000 - 6:49 am:
Hello Susan,
We really do not have a primary diagnosis available of: low potassium levels or what we call hypokalemia.
Also serum potassium levels (a standard blood test) are not a reliable indicator of total body potassium because the vast majority is intracellular and lots of factos can cause shifts. Hypokalemia is a common finding secondary to other problems like: alkaline blood (are you using lots of bicarb?), decreased appetite or food intake, excess sweating, and increased loss through excessive urination (kidney disease).
These are very general findings and suggest you should continue to look for the cause of your horses recent poor doing. We have an article that I think might help get you started: Equine Diseases: Colic and GI Diseases: Weight Loss in Horses: Diagnosing Chronic Weight Loss. Let us know what happens.
DrO
|
|
|
