A little over five years ago, my heart horse Moose was diagnosed with Cushing’s disease and we began our journey with the medication Prascend. At first it was a miracle medicine that had him putting on weight and rideable again in a relatively short period of time. You can read all about our journey in detail from our Magic of Prascend posts here and here. One cold December morning, my trusty steed came up incredibly stiff leaving his stall so the vet was called out. Moose was then fully retired shortly after our return to riding due to x-rays that showed some pretty bad arthritis in his hind legs and a stifle injury, likely from playing out in the pasture.
Since then, I moved him to a retirement farm where he could be outside almost all of the time, which is his favorite thing in the world besides food (and mom!). Moose ended up having some issues back in April that required veterinary attention. He wasn’t eating well, he was having some minor choking episodes, and he wasn’t keeping weight on, which is strange for an older horse in warmer weather, particularly one who normally has the appetite of a monster. We floated his teeth and took care of some pretty rough old man mouth as well as an ulcer that had developed. On top of this, in concert with his vet and the person who takes care of Moose so wonderfully, I decided to take him off of the Prascend. Unfortunately, with some horses it can occasionally cause a decrease in appetite after extended use. Instead of the medication we started him on a combination of supplements, put together by the SmartPak Supplement Wizard. I will say that the supplements are cheaper than the Prascend.
Moose has recently been started on a new grain that is high in fat and is being given chopped alfalfa to supplement the round bale he shares with his pasture buddies and give him some extra calories. The chopped alfalfa, which is purchased at Tractor Supply, is soaked to make it even easier for him to eat.
One downside is that, as you can see from the video below, he makes a mess when he eats!
Since I’ve recovered from having my daughter in September, I’ve finally been able to see Moose more frequently (just about once a week because of the drive), I’ve noticed that his weight has dropped a little bit which is not ideal in these temperatures. Again talking to the person who takes care of him, I decided to put him back on Prascend since we had some left from when we pulled him off of it in the spring. My thought was that his low appetite coincided with the ulcer in his mouth which would naturally make it very uncomfortable for him to eat, so it may not have been the fault of the medication after all. It’s worth a try!
In spite of his weight loss he’s a very happy horse. Still, I do hope that the medication will work for him again. It’s hard to watch your heart horse get old. We’ve spent more than a decade together and I want him to be as happy and as comfortable as possible. My biggest hope is that he’ll be around long enough to be there for my daughter in some of the ways he has been there for me. This may not be entirely realistic due to his age-he’s approaching 25-but I would at least like her to remember him. The day they met and the times they’ve visited each other since have been some of the best memories of my life.
Note: This is entirely on a case-by-case basis and should always be discussed with your veterinarian before making any changes. What works for Moose may not work for your horse.
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