? about narcolepsy in horses.

[sissycat96101]

does anyone know about narcolepsy in horses.does it get worse with age ,is it a progressive thing ,is it manageable.any input would be helpful.

[watermarkfarm]

Hi Sissycat,

I am not an expert....nor a vet.....but my TB mare was diagnosed with narcolepsy at age 22 after several years of "suspicious" episodes of falling down while sleeping. No testing done --- just observation of the vet and an educated guess. After reading up on it, I am 99% sure that is what she had.

I read up on it and found it is rather common in horses. My mare would sleep-stand the normal way and would doze way too hard, nose quivering and to ground. She would start to buckle at the knees and would often go down onto her knees. She'd right herself but then go right back to sleep, and it would start all over again. A few times I saw her go down completely, but that would wake her up. It took a toll on her knees and hocks. At the worst of it, this happened many times per day.

The narcolepsy was worse on warm days and subsided in winter or on cold days. There would be weeks with hardly an episode, then warm spring days where it happened many times per day.

If you saw my mare starting to go down, even if you called to her or made noise, she could not really hear it.

The sleep episodes didn't happen without warning. When handling/riding Hannah, we made sure she did not get a chance to doze (so she was never tied without being closely watched, etc.). You could spot an episode coming on very easily. She was ridden regularly until the day before she died of a broken pelvis (a fall because of a sleep episode? I'll never know...) at age 25.

I made sure Hannah was in a pen with really soft footing when her sleep episodes were really frequent. I also put bed-sore boots on her to protect front of front fetlocks.

I have since observed other horses doing this. One a Pony Club horse at a show recently. The young rider had to be careful she did not let her mare doze, but otherwise was managing it well. She reported it happening much more often when her mare was really tired.

Google horse narcolepsy and I am sure you will find some articles to read.

I had people who were horrified that I did not put my mare down, but her quality of life was good if I managed her well.

My personal theory is that somehow, head-shaking syndrome and narcolepsy are related! I have had both kinds of horses here and they are quite similar as to their "triggers" (warm fall/spring sun & certain kinds of light)

Katie

[cwinterburn ( RIP) We love YOU]

People do not usually refer to 'sleeping sicknes' as the condition of narcolepsy... it's usually this, from the University of Ill. Vet Med. page on Sleeping Sickness.. and it's very serious. I hope you're just mis-labling it- and you really have narcolepsy...

Equine encephalitis, also called sleeping sickness, is a viral disease which affects parts of a
horse's central nervous system. This virus is attracted to nervous tissue which leads to
inflammation in and damage to the brain.

"This is a disease of the summer and fall primarily because it is carried by mosquitoes,"
states Dr. R.D. Scoggins, equine Extension veterinarian at the University of Illinois College
of Veterinary Medicine at Urbana. "Mosquitoes pick up the disease from birds, principally
pheasants. Mosquitoes can then transmit the virus to horses and humans." He stressed that
while humans can develop viral encephalitis, the disease is transmitted from mosquitos that
have bitten birds, not from mosquitoes that have bitten horses.

There are three main types of equine encephalitis.

1.Western Equine Encephalitis -- most common form in the Midwest and Western
states and the least fatal.
2.Eastern Equine Encephalitis -- seldom seen in the Midwest and much more deadly.
Primarily in the eastern states.
3.Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis -- most lethal and rarest form in the United States.
The southern tier of states is at the greatest risk.

This disease is called sleeping sickness because horses show signs of weakness and
depression. Other symptoms may include fever, walking in circles or into obstacles, refusal
to eat, and standing with its head lowered. This disease incubates in the horse for one to
three weeks before signs are seen and the horse may be sick for up to three to six weeks.

Those horses that recover from encephalitis are often called dummy horses. "Mares will not
be good mothers and they are often not safe to ride or to compete if they have been
through a severe bout of the disease, particularly the Eastern form," says Dr. Scoggins. This
is due to the permanent damage that has occurred to the brain.

"Because it is a viral disease, we do not have any anti-viral drugs that are effective in
treating it," states Dr. Scoggins. "Treatment is all symptomatic, making sure horses get the
nutrition they need and using anti-inflammatory drugs to control fever."

"Horse owners need to be aware that the vaccines are highly effective. If there is a problem
with the vaccines it is that they are not long lasting," remarks Dr. Scoggins. "Horses that are
vaccinated prior to the May 1 in a summer with an excessive amount of mosquitoes need to
think about revaccination in August or September." It is important to use at least a bi-valent
vaccine (one with protection against Western and Eastern forms) that will protect against
both Western and Eastern encephalitis. Horses traveling to places where Venezuelan
encephalitis has occurred, should use a tri-valent vaccine (protection against all three
forms). The vaccines are safe to use on all horses at all ages. Foals should be vaccinated at
three to four months of age.

[paintedmom]

Hi
We also have a mare that does this , on nice warm days she just takes a little rest and before you know it her nose is almost touching the ground and she falls to her knees, Although she has gotten some pretty good scrapes on her knees nothing more serious has happened..

[sissycat96101]

thanks guys for the info,i did miss label as i thought they were the same thing it is narcolepsy i meant,i was considering tradeing my horse for another more suitable but the other horse has narcolepsy,not badly but has it just the same and was trying to get some info on it before i made a choice.

[watermarkfarm]

I would just think seriously about damage to the knees. If nothing else, have her knees xrayed before you go further.

You do have to be vigilant. Like if you are sitting on your horse's back taking a break during a trail ride, you can't let the horse doze too hard. But like I said, it is easy to spot when they are getting ready to fall down!

And yes, Sleeping Sickness is a whole different thing!!

Katie

[beckybee]

I'm wondering if somethimes this isn't really "narcolepsy"and just some horses have a joint structure that doesn't allow the joints to lock while sleeping? Kinda the opposite of "upward patellar fixation" where their stifles are too easy to lock and hard to unlock, so the horse's leg gets stuck straight.

[mickeyfan3]

Katja has experience w/ this too...one of her adopted boys has it.

[jtjedi]

Both Jedi and Champ do this. Jedi started doing it at about 15 years. He will go down to his knees just like described above.

He will usually do it at the end of a strenuous clinic/show or if he has been stressed about something, like separation anxiety.

I caught Champ doing it the other day, as well. I was thinking is was just "old retired show horse" disease, as both boys have had a competitive show life and have worked hard.

It might be more indicative of what Beckybee describes as a no lock mechanical problem.

[cutiepiepmu]

I have my first experience with a Narc horse in Malibu(shireX). She would doze then before you know it she woud be sitting backwards on her hocks, or just plain start to weave and tip over. The first time anyone we saw this happen it scared the life out of me - I thought she had a mild seizure. But after watching her some I realized that she was narcoleptic. As she has gotten a little older and I have kept her schedule more regular where she sleeps in her stall for a predictable amount of time each day - the spells of this have stopped. But this girl does sleep ALOT - generally 8-10 hours a day laying down snoring in deep sleep in her stall. Sne snores and makes this little moaning sound that is super high pitched - too cute. I have had her checked from head to tail and this just seems to be normal for her - but if I mess with her routine or something causes her to get less rest - she will start to have the spells again.

So - you might try putting your kid into a situation that is quiet and give her a very routine schedule when she is sleeping and when she is up. This helped boo alot. I also blanket her in her stall no matter what time of year it is - in the summer she gets a sheet, so if she does tip, it helps protect her from getting scrapped up.


Sara in Wa

[jenm]

Sara,

It's great to see you posting again. You are an amazing resource in a number of topics. I look forward to *seeing more* of you!!

~jen

[cutiepiepmu]

Thanks Jen! You are sweet to say that! Long story - but left my job to persue passions, which also meant leaving my high speed internet connection(no high speed at my home!!) so - getting online can be a real bugger!!

Glad to be back,
Sara

[kidznhorses]

Yes! What Jen said! Glad you're back, Sara!