some thoughts on tying up...

["Susan Garlinghouse" <suendavid@worldnet.att.net>]

Hi, just thought I'd pop in for a minute and make a few comments on the
current discussion on tying up (excuse me if the comments are general and
not specific).

Without going into an entire diatribe as to the causes of tying up, I think
it's important to realize that there are *many* potential causes of tying
up---nutritional deficiencies/imbalances, metabolic disturbances,
electrolyte depletion, hormonal/age/breed factors, muscle damage,
overriding, general disease, etc.  Trying to pinpoint one or two 'causes' of
tying up is kinda like saying there are only one or two causes of colic.

Before trying out new (costly) supplements such as the Untie being sold on
the VitaRoyal website, I think it is critical that you first determine
whether a nutritional deficit even exists.  Adding in supplements
willy-nilly in hopes of fixing a problem is more likely to cause problems
rather than solve them.  This is especially true given that the supplement
in question contains several nutrients that, in excess, can cause some
pretty serious problems.  Just a quick comment on the Vita-Royal website in
general---although I'm sure the product(s) are just fine, there are some
pretty significant 'mistakes' in the statements made in the information, and
alot of claims that are unsupported (or absolutely contradicted) by current
peer-reviewed research.  Just a thought that before anybody goes spending
alot of money on 'miracle cures', make sure all your ducks are in a row with
the simple solutions first.  Since some of the most brilliant equine
researchers on earth are investigating the causes of tying up, and are still
scratching their heads about it....well, I guess I have some doubts that
*one* person has managed to corner the market on solving it all in one fell
swoop.

Someone suggested getting a chem panel done and I agree, that's a worthwhile
thing to do.  However, it's alot more likely to give you information about
the current status of the disease and its severity, but relatively little
about its cause.  It might be helpful to try and have blood pulled *during*
a tying up event, as sometimes you can pinpoint a few things, like sodium or
potassium depletion.  Don't count on calcium values telling you much of
anything related to tying up---plasma levels are *not* indicative of
whole-body levels.  If you're seeing significant changes in calcium, there
are other metabolic problems brewing beyond tying up (like liver disease).

You also need to look at the big picture in evaluating muscle enzyme levels.
Yes, if your horse hasn't had a saddle on all week, tied up anyway and has
CK and AST levels into four figures, you probably have something going on.
If your horse just did 100 miles yesterday and is clinically normal, then
the CKs could well be into five or even six figures and not be indicative of
muscle damage.

Well, enough babbling.  I have an article on my website that has a few of
the more excruciating details of tying up for anyone interested at
http://www.shady-acres.com/susan/

Good luck!
Susan G