Hi Mark, We're really not anti-vet -- one of the recurring themes around here is "call the vet" when someone comes in and has a health care question and it appears they have not yet consulted a vet.

I think the alternatives have been suggested in this thread because the original poster mentioned that the horse had been seen by vets, but bloodwork came back normal, no diagnosis has been offered and no treatment suggested.  At least, that's why I understood, from browsing through the posts.

though i have never been to a chiropractor for humans, the information i read here makes me think the chiropractor for equines would be the appropriate next consultation.

i would do that and/or ask the vet(s) if they have an idea of what body parts they would xray and how many xrays they would initially do to get an idea of cost.

also, that possum thing sounds worth following up on.  we don't have possums here, so, i've never run across that disease.

Thanks, Jayne, for the links to the websites describing EPM. That was where I was going.

Your vet can do a series of tests for neurological function on the horse, to check if he is having issues. If the tests display a neurological malfunction (excuse my wording, I am not a vet), one of the causes could be lesions on the spinal chord caused by the protozoa responsible for Equine Protozoal Myeloencephalitis. These lesions occur when the protozoa, which are already present in many horses (thus the high incidence of them showing up in bloodwork, rendering the blood test insufficient), cross the blood-brain barrier and infect the spinal chord, which usually happens as a result of a lowered or depressed immune system due to stress, activity, or illness.

There are treatments available for it, one of which is the brand Marquis (Ponazuril), made by Bayer. My horse had three consecutive months of treatment, along with slow, steady work at the walk and trot, with uphill work to help rebuild his hindquarter muscles. He still has some difficulty with his left lead at the canter and will canter disunited on occasion, but overall his neurological function is good and he is safe to ride.

I'm not saying that this is what your horse has, but the symptoms are eerily familiar to me, and as EPM is degenerative and can cause permanent neurological damage, I would address the possibility with your vet sooner rather than later.

Good luck to you, and hope it's not EPM!

Tammy & Knight

ETA:

The connection with the possums is that they are carriers of the protozoa, and exposure to their ***, either through grain contamination or through the water source, can increase the horse's chance of contracting fullblown EPM.

Here we ago again!  Follwed through on the possum possibility;  while there are possums in this area, they are so few that EPM wasn't really much of a consideration. However, we did have another vet give him a check and he thinks that it may be OCD.  Reno will have x-rays soon and hopefully some good news from those.  Does anyone have any experiences living with and treating horses for this problem?  I really appreciate all the info thats coming our way!