Please Help, 19 yr old horse, loss of cond, hair loss, itchy,?

Hi guys, my 19 yr old horse has lost big patches of hair, and cond, despite getting a lot of food, stabled at night, it is not rain rot, or ring worm or lice, had vet look already, am waiting for him to come back to do blood works on her, she is quite itchy but is not putting on weight despite tonics food etc, am quite worried, has anyone else gone through this experience... she was quite bad with worms when I bought her 10 yrs ago, is there anything to be done if it is liver/kidney damage????

Please Help, 19 yr old horse, loss of cond, hair loss, itchy,?

here are some possible answers:

Biting Gnats

Biting Gnats feed on the belly, inner thighs, poll, mane, withers, and tailhead. The irritation will cause the horse to scratch on anything around it. This can cause them to actually "rub" the hair out.

Onchocerca

Another condition called "Onchocerca" infestation is another very irritating condition in horses, but this is not so common an ailment since ivermectin has all but eliminated it.

Horn Fly

Horn Fly bites will also cause horses to rub to the point of hair loss.

Pediculosis

Lice or Pediculosis will not immediately cause hair loss but will eventually irritate the animal enough to rub the hair out and cause skin irritation. You can take a magnifying glass and put it up to your horses hair and you will be able to see lice if they are present.

Mange

Mange is identified by examining skin scrapings under a microscope. This is a very itchy condition and can be treated with topical chemicals which you should contact your veterinarian about.

Please Help, 19 yr old horse, loss of cond, hair loss, itchy,?

It could be any number of things....allergies if something new in stall, bedding, food. You need the results of the blood work to rule out Thyroid and other medical conditions. Sorry wish you the best.

Please Help, 19 yr old horse, loss of cond, hair loss, itchy,?

Trust your vet. The blood work will tell you if it is liver or kidney damage and there are some medications for those issues. I have seen horses with those symptoms just have a thyroid problem and at 19 that is very very common. The blood work should tell you what is wrong.

Please Help, 19 yr old horse, loss of cond, hair loss, itchy,?

Be sure and ask your vet, if he isn't already going to do it, to test her thyroid function...those are classic symptoms, and there are remedies. I am assuming that this condition came on gradually, right? When I read your question, that was the very first thing that came to mind. Good luck, am looking forward to your future posts to see what you found out.

Please Help, 19 yr old horse, loss of cond, hair loss, itchy,?

All good answers. Wait till the vets comes back with the tests, they know more about horse health then us. Thats why they spent years in colledge just for that!

Please Help, 19 yr old horse, loss of cond, hair loss, itchy,?

I have no idea why all of a sudden everyone keeps talking about thyroid problems in horses but they just don't exist!! Horses can have enlarged thyroid glands but it never results in hyperthyroidism. Horses can have a pseudohypothyroidism as in most chronic illnesses the thyroid function decreases, however this is nothing to do with the thyroid itself, it is merely a metabolic response to illness.

I would tentatively suggest Cushings as a possibility; the hair loss can happen sedondarily following infection of the skin, and loss of condition would also fit (plus she is the right age). They actually usually don't have a curly coat; it is often long but not curly except on the legs. My other suggestions are liver disease (with a kind of psychosomatic skin itchiness) or an allergy of some kind.

Have faith in your vet - if the first set of tests don't show anything then they will test for something else. Unfortunately sometimes lab results just take a while to come back.

Please Help, 19 yr old horse, loss of cond, hair loss, itchy,?

Sounds like a bad dose of lice to me. I've seen this before and my friend dismissed the thought by saying sure all horses have lice! Turned out she had a very bad dose of them. You say your vet has checked for these little bugg**s already?

What ever the problem is I do hope it gets sorted out soon for you