Oroquin 10 - Day 5

I can't begin to say how much stronger and more balanced Blue is day over day. He nickered to us as we walked up to his stall this afternoon, and I put him in the arena and left him to see what he would do on his own.
With just a little urging, he picked up a trot and kept it up for more than a minute! Just happily trotting around the arena.

As I prepared his food and medicine, I left my 10-year-old daughter in the arena with Blue. This is the first time in a month that I have felt confident enough for her to be so close to him.

Even 2-year-old Clark got in on the fun by helping mix Blue's feed and adding treats on top:

No pic from behind tonight - Blue wasn't being overly cooperative about it and I had to keep an eye on Clark, who has not figured out that horses are bigger than he is.

I still don't know for sure if the Oroquin is the cause of this major turnaround, if the effects will last for Blue, or if he has any permanent central nervous system damage. But I do know that today was wonderful. It was absolutely wonderful to have my horse back - to play with and share him with my children.
This was the "Day 5" I dreamed of having.

Here are our Day 5 Horse Selfies:

Oroquin 10 - Day 4

AM: Happy Memorial Day! Blue decided to lead me on quite an adventure this morning. I'm exhausted just thinking about it.
First, I was super happy to see that he is FILTHY on one side - must have slept well!

Today Blue looks stronger and more certain of his feet. As you can see, he still stands with his right hind "kicked out," but that left hind is able to compensate for the most part.

Here his is walking. So far, he has had four doses of Oroquin 10.

Remember, though, that he also got a shot of Dex last night. On one hand, I am grateful for the Dex because if there is inflammation from the parasites dying, he isn't feeling it much. However, it makes you wonder - what is helping, the Oroquin or the Dex?

Because he was so excited about the three blades of grass he found growing in the indoor arena, I took him outside for some hand grazing. Blue has figured out that I absolutely hate to tug on his head. So I let him lead me this way and that way, and I try not to direct him too sharply for fear of unbalancing him.

HOWEVER, my horse is nobody's fool, and he figured out that if he puts his head down and turns a circle, I won't pull on his face. This often puts me in an awkward position. Today was no exception. He did this right up against the equipment barn, leaving me behind him and unable to reach around.

So I dropped the rope and went to move around AND BLUE RAN OFF!

That's right. Trotted right off without a look behind him, dragging his leadrope with him. I figured he would just go to the grass, but no. He trotted down the grassy lane and then BACK and finally let me catch him by the manure pile.

I didn't get a picture en chase, but here is a photo after I captured him.

He doesn't look sorry.

I thought I was having a heart attack. What a morning.

And he had the nerve to be mad at me when I caught him and stuck him back in his stall - here's a shot of him ignoring my offer of a cookie.

Worry not. His adventurous spirit is greater than his pride - it didn't take long for him to eat his cookie.

A list of EPM symptoms, and some advice from me to you

I had noticed something odd about Blue for awhile now, but never put two and two together until last night.
Very often when I walk up to Blue's stall, he has dropped from his sheath. I noticed several months ago that he was doing this more often, but if I couldn't find any information about sidewinders in horses, I certainly wasn't going to find anything about sidewinders in horses with the symptom of dropping out of his sheath.
I've always been pretty good about cleaning his sheath, but I haven't done it in awhile, mostly because of the mandate that no one be too "under" Blue for fear of him falling on us.
Yesterday when I walked up to his stall in the morning, he had dropped. I always leave him be when I see this, because when you gotta go, you gotta go.
Last night when I went to check on his hay, I noticed he had dropped again. And something clicked in my head. Could this be yet another neurological symptom?
I can't find much on it, but I think it's worth mentioning here, because this is something I noticed before he came in from the field crab walking last year. If it is a sign of neurological issues, I wish I had known about it then.
Here is my list of Blue's EPM/Sidewinders symptoms:
Crab walking
Turning circles
Non-directional, unable to move in the intended direction
ataxia/weakness in the hind end
depression/lethargy
misshapen hooves from unusual wear patterns
dropping from his sheath
tilted hind end
uneven muscle deterioration in the hind end
kicking out his right hind leg when resting
uncommonly bothered by flies
leaning on the hay feeder and his stall wall

Blue never lost his appetite, always drank his water, seemed mostly happy most of the time, and when not stressed, would even canter and trot with his buddies in the field.

I would say that if you even suspect EPM or a neurological issue in your horse, call your vet and ask for the ELISA test and Oroquin prescription. For under $300 you can definitively know BEFORE your horse suffers permanent damage to its Central Nervous System. Had I been educated on any of this in Nov. 2015, I could have prevented so much of Blue's suffering and sidestepped some of the bigger hurdles I think we might encounter in his rehabilitation.
Oroquin 10 is affordable, accessible, has no side effects, and easy to feed if your horse isn't Blue :(
If I could take the time machine back to Nov. 2015, I would have done all of these things immediately and saved us both a lot of heartache.
As I write this, I still don't know if Oroquin 10 will save my horse, but I am hopeful. I am grateful to Dr. Ellison and my vet for giving me this last-ditch option for him. I read blog posts and articles about "returning a horse to work" after EPM, and "getting your whole horse back in 10 days." But the truth of the matter is that so many people are like me - with an elderly heart horse who means the world, a horse that will never be ridden again, will never show. A horse that holds their world right-side-up just by being healthy and happy in the pasture. I know there are people like me who happily write the monthly board check for a horse who is the cornerstone of their lives - no saddles needed.
How amazing that this drug is available for the performance horses and the heart horses alike.
If you are reading this because you suspect your horse is having a neurological issue, stop reading and call your vet. You have so much to gain and so little to lose.

Oroquin 10 - Day 3

AM: Blue spooked a little as I walked up to his stall this morning. His hair showed a sweat pattern at his chest and flanks - even though he had a cool bath in the evening, it had cooled down significantly due to thunderstorms rolling through the area, and his box fan was on all night.

He was done eating breakfast, so I slid on his halter and took him out to the field to graze a little. He was head-in-the-air interested in getting out there and even jigged a little. At first he was more interested in moving around and looking at everything, but eventually decided the clover should be his priority.

Again the flies were relentless. Blue was more bothered by them than usual, even though he was well sprayed down before we went out.

I decided to stick him in the arena to walk a little, just because he seemed so on edge. He immediately trotted over to the open door, and had a little trot and then rolled. He got down right away to roll, and then looked like he was going to roll on the other side, went down to his knees and decided against it. This is something I have NEVER seen him do in the 20 years we have been together.

There is a feeling deep inside me that says this is go time. I think something is starting to happen inside my horse. I'm grateful that we put him on the Dex (get gets another shot tonight) to help control the inflammation as the parasites die and his body works to expel them.

Here is an AM video. As you can see, lots more energy and while his gait is pretty wild, he has no problem moving forward. The "tilt" is better and he seems a lot less crooked.

PM: Blue was much calmer this afternoon. I spent about 45 minutes brushing him with a soft brush and feeding him treats. He was almost hyper-focused on me. The rest of the barn was quiet. He whiffled in my hair and turned his neck to watch everything I was doing. He nuzzled my pockets for treats and licked my hands. I decided not to take him out of his stall after that. He seemed content and calm, and I didn't want to disturb that.

Also a note: I think he laid down to rest today. He had several stains on his side and rump that suggest that he slept in his stall in the late morning or early afternoon. This is significant because my vet believes Blue was suffering from sleep deprivation from not being able to get down. Little victories.

Oroquin 10 - Day 2

AM: Major change in mood today for Bluehorse. He nickered at me as soon as I came into the barn and wanted his treats. I slipped his halter on and took him out to hand graze.

Shock of my life - he trotted past me to get to the clover. He was moving around quite a bit on his own out there, and he looked... Happy.

The flies and gnats are out in full force at 9 am here, and while I of course remembered to spritz him, the bugs were eating me alive, so we came back in.

I have holiday weekend plans this afternoon, but I intend to come out this evening to give Blue a nice bath and some more hand grazing after the sun goes down.

No video this morning - I was just trying to keep up!

PM: Blue was full of himself tonight, dragging me around and being contrary. But he was alert and happy, and I gave him a bath that I don't think he fully appreciates :)
I notice that he still stands very tilted in the hind, but he no longer looks quite as precarious. He walks with purpose and he can get where he wants to go.
The flies here are horrible already, and I am using an incredible amount of flyspray. I'm going to put the spot fly treatment on tomorrow. (hence the bath)
Blue does seem to get tired quickly. He was filthy dirty, and by the time I had sufficiently sudsed him up and rinsed him off, he was showing signs of exhaustion. He returned to his stall and box fan happily.

OH - and note on the Oroquin today. Tonight was Dose 3. I still had the maple syrup covered feed that he had objected to on Dose 1, and I wanted to see if I could convince him of its deliciousness. Today, without coercion or violence, he happily ate every single grain of it.

Because clearly Bluehorse runs the show around here :)

Not much of a video today. Blue was more interested in following me around than walking out like a good boy. But I think this shows the increased balance I'm noticing:

Oroquin 10 - Day 1

AM: We gave Blue his dose on Thursday night, and I went to the barn Friday morning (today) to lay eyes on him. I know in my heart and in my head that we won't see any improvement until Day 5. But I peeped in on him and he perked up to see me.

I grabbed a brush and dusted him off. I did not try to pick his hooves because he is so very, very off balance. I brushed his long mane and tail (when we were showing, that mane was so short! I love it long in his retirement, though). I sprayed him with more flyspray, and fed him his favorite peppermints. He nuzzled at me, and though his movements weren't any better or any more stable, he was super interested in what I was doing and seemed happier and perkier.

I'm betting it was the Dex that helped most.

PM: He was an even happier horse this evening. He is walking no better, but he isn't doing circles and he actually got down and rolled and had only a little trouble getting back up. I credit the Dex. He also drank two buckets of water today.

Here is a photo of his "tilted" stance:

 Here is a video of him walking crooked :

And here he is rolling and getting up. As tilted and weak as he is in his hind end, I'm stunned that he could do it:

The Oroquin has arrived

One look at these huge pills and I knew Blue was going to, as we say in the horse world, Have None Of It.

20 years with a horse will give you this kind of insight and foreshadowing.

We crushed up the pills and stuck it in some feed. I poured some syrup over it and mixed it well, letting it soak up the powder. And I fed it to Blue.

And he sniffed it, and looked at it, and stepped in it. He flipped over the feed tub. I put treats in it, so he picked all those out and flipped the tub again.

Thanks, Blue.

Eventually we gave up on the camouflaged powder in the feed trick and dissolved another two pills in some water (ground up first, not water soluble) and put it in a dose syringe. And Brad the Barn Owner (or Cowboy Brad, as my kids call him) did the deed.

I scooped up the refused feed and I hope to put it in his regular feed little by little so he gets the dose. If he still refuses, I'll ask my vet about the possibility of getting just one dose.

Nothing about EPM is easy! Ugh!

This is the face of an old, spoiled horse who refuses to eat his life-saving medicine: