I just went through the treatment with our SPCA
rescue. He is 4 years old and either a thoroughbred or appendix. When I picked
him up he pulled a little before getting into the trailer and fell right on his
butt. Then I turned him in a tight circle and he fell on his hip. I knew there
was a problem.
The vet came and did the tail pull test, and the
horse was falling over. Then he put a cloth over his eyes and the horse lifted
his feet like he didn't know where to put them down. He tried to rear a few
times only to fall to one side or the other. We tested for WNV and it was
negative. Since we are in the south, there was a good chance he had EPM, so we
treated it. We did not do a spinal. I gave him Marquis for almost 5
weeks and that cost $950. It is suppose to be given for 28 days but the dose was
for a 1200 lb. horse and Zeus only weighed about 800 lbs. I believe the Western
blot test can give a false positive but a spinal tap is a sure thing. It is also
very invasive. If you can rule everything else out, you can do a tap or just
treat the horse and see what happens.
Marquis is the current medication of choice. It is
in a tube like wormer and one tube is a week's worth of treatment. There are 4
tubes in a box.
We must have caught it early enough. The company
who makes Marquis said a horse recovering at least 1 degree is considered a
success. On a scale of 1-5, Zeus is at a 4, so we are considering him cured. He
still needs some muscle building and isn't considered safe to ride yet. He could
relapse I guess, but the way I understand it is that most horses in the south
have been exposed to EPM. The healthier horses don't ever show any signs and can
fight those little boogers off. The horses that are compromised, such as ill, or
older horses are the ones that succumb to it. Zeus is so much better and
healthier now, than 4 months ago. I think he is going to be o'tay.
Contact your local SPCA or Humane Society.
They should be able to help you get the medication at cost or reduced cost.
That is what they are there for.
