Equine Cushings

Hope is only gone when you choose to abandon it .
~Eleanor Kellon~

Equine Cushings and Insulin Resistance

This page is dedicated to Misty - my miracle mare, my first horse who passed suddenly on Sept. 27, 2006 due to colic.  You are deeply missed!  Misty had Cushings for at least three years prior to her passing, and I suspect IR for 2 years prior to that... had I known then...

Thanks to Kathleen Gustafson, Ph.D. in MO for putting this information together and eternal gratitude to Dr. Eleanor Kellon in PA for your research, your knowledge but most of all for helping our wonderful horses and seeing us through the rough times.

Please visit the official website of the Equine Cushings and Insulin Resistance Horses group at:  http://www.ecirhorse.com/

Is your horse or pony Insulin Resistant?

  
          Before (Nov. 2005)                                  After (June 2006)  

Obesity, easy weight gain, “easy keepers”
Abnormal, lumpy, patchy fat, a cresty neck, fat at the base of the tail and above the eyes
History of laminitis or grass founder, stretched white line, seedy toe, tender feet, low energy, unwilling to go 

What is Equine Insulin Resistance (IR)?
IR is a metabolic disorder, not a disease and is controlled with diet and exercise. Horses originally survived in the wild on poor forage and roamed for miles in search of food. Natural selection allowed those that could get by on very little food to survive. Now, we provide lush pastures more suited for cattle, feed grains and processed foods high in non-structural carbohydrates (NSC = sugar and starch) and limit their movement to stalls or small pastures with occasional exercise on the weekends. Unmanaged IR often leads to laminitis or founder (rotation and/or sinking of the coffin bone in the hoof, a painful and potentially fatal condition) and is often referred to as “grass founder,” commonly seen in the Spring and Fall. Symptoms such as those listed above can suggest IR but a veterinarian should diagnose it with a non-fasting blood test for glucose and insulin and then calculate the glucose to insulin ratio. Ratios of less than 4.5 confirm IR.

Managing IR:
The most important step in managing IR is to limit the amount of NSC in the diet. Depending on the severity of the condition, grazing should either be completely eliminated, limited to an hour at sunrise or controlled with a grazing muzzle. High NSC foods including grain, corn or wheat based pelleted feeds, “senior” feeds, molasses, apples and carrots should not be fed. Grass hay or an acceptable low NSC feed (<10% NSC) should make up the bulk of the diet at 1.5-2.0% of the horses ideal body weight. Beet pulp (molasses free or rinsed clean of molasses) is an excellent source of fiber and provides the same calories as oats without an increase in blood glucose. Exercise, even as little as 30 minutes a day of hand walking, will increase the muscle demand for glucose and will reduce IR symptoms. (Note: Exercise only if the horse can tolerate it – never during an acute laminitis episode.)

Mineral deficiencies and IR:
IR has been linked with some dietary deficiencies and mineral imbalances; for example, high iron and low magnesium have been associated with IR. Hay grown in this region tends to be high in iron and manganese and low in magnesium. The most practical and economical approach is to have the hay analyzed and provide only the vitamins and minerals that are needed.

Where to get more information:
For information on the current research and prevention of grass founder in horses, go to: http://safergrass.org/ To learn more about IR and/or Equine Cushing’s disease from leaders in the field, go to: http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/EquineCushings/

Where to find low NSC foods for the IR horse:
A complete food source for the IR horse is Ontario Dehy Balanced Timothy Cubes. This product is assured to be low NSC and balanced in minerals so that additional mineral supplementation is not needed. The cubes can make up 100% of the diet or can be supplemented with a source of low NSC hay and/or Ontario Dehy Beet Pulp Pellets, which are never processed with molasses.

These products are available at:
HH Goode & Son’s, Uxbridge, ON  905-852-3355

If you think your equine companion is IR and would like more information or, if you would like to speak with someone with personal experience managing horses with IR including: laminitis recovery, providing safe, grass limited pastures and dry lots with freedom of movement, hay analysis and mineral/diet balancing, feel free to contact: 

Erica Dale ~ erica@harleywood.ca ~ 905-852-7491

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This site was last updated 12/07/09