Dreaded Diagnosis

My palomino mare didn't shed out like she usually does this spring.  She's always had a thick coat in the winter, but she just didn't seem normal this year.

I tried not to worry about it, but deep in my heart I knew she wasn't her usual self. 

Today I got the call that confirmed my fears.  She has Cushings Disease, a  tumor of the pituitary gland.  (A small gland at the base of the brain which regulates the rest of the horse’s endocrine {glands & hormones} systems.)


Per Equisearch, "As the tumor grows, it puts pressure on the nearby hypothalamus, which is what regulates the body temperature. This is believed to be the primary cause of the distinctive coarse, wavy hair coat."


As cells in the pituitary gland become overactive, they excess quantities of a peptide called pro-opiolipomelanocortin (POLMC, for short) causing the entire endocrine system to go out of balance."


I am waiting for a call back from my vet to find out what we do next. It looks like there are treatments available if things haven't progressed too far.  (She seems fine at the moment, except for the hair growth.)  Hopefully the medications can bring her back into good health for a few more years. In fact although it's common in older horses, some get Cushings when they're as young as 7! (My mare just turned 27 this April.)


But according to Equisearch, eventually the tumor will compromise my horse’s life and when she starts having seizures, euthanasia becomes the kindest option.  I'm really hoping this will be a LONG way down the road, and it breaks my heart that she truly has it.

The Horse Channel site had some more promising information on the disease and what I can do to make her life better. I am hoping that with medicine she will remain happy and healthy a bit longer, as although I can treat the symptoms, the medicines will not reduce the growth of the tumor, and this breaks my heart as I spoke for Jewel when she was a day old, and she has stuck by my side through thick and thin, and ALWAYS gives me a kiss when I see her.

I know nothing lasts forever, but all I want to do right now is rush to her side, hug her gorgeous gold neck, and bury my face in her mane and cry.

Lover Boy

My childhood pony died today. (The taller one in the photo.) He spent his last days on my Parent's farm, and although his eyesight was poor, he still whinnied when my nephew's brought him carrots or apples, and would hurry to the gate to greet them.

We used to trail ride all the time, and although he was a POA (and just a few inches from horse status) he never acted like it, and always wanted to be at the front of the pack.

A Guide Horse?!?

Too cool! http://www.guidehorse.com

In Memory

December 28, 1913-November 18, 2005

In Memory of Ed my "adopted" grandfather, who I pestered relentlessly with questions while growing up. (Or so I gather from the name he gave me of "the Pest".)

Photo is of Ed and his palomino stallion Tuffy. (The father of my horse, Jewel.)

Ed taught me how to ride a horse at age 4-5, and I was hooked! Almost every day in the summer I could be found at Ed (and Milly's), where I would end up tagging along on trail rides, helping feed chickens, picking things from their garden, or getting ready to go to a horse show or to ride in a parade.

In fact he met his wife Milly while square dancing with his horse! I believe at the time he was riding a tall black and white paint named Chief. Milly had a beautiful appaloosa stallion named King. (He was the father of my POA.) Their farm had over 40 horses on it most of the time, and all were gorgeous!

Photo is of Ed and my POA Luv, taken in May of 1979.

Happy trails Ed... we'll miss you.

All work and no play...

A recent stay with my 94 years young Grandmother in Iowa; and viewing the nice sized homes, large lawns and green acreages; has me re-thinking what we're doing renting a house in California! I think we are both getting burnt out from too much work and not enough play. Almost anywhere else in the country, people have houses with a yard large enough for a horse (OK two), and time to spend at home with their friends and family. Here it seems everything is expensive! (Like the fact the 1,009 sq ft 1940’s house we rent would sell for over 1/2 a million dollars here! Even with the faulty wiring, old sewer lines, and cracking walls!) My working at a place that designs lovely grand estates with 12,000 plus square feet probably hasn’t helped my desire for a larger place! The other day Tim asked what size of house I thought was normal, and I said, “oh, about 6,000 sq feet, right?” And he said something about being doomed. Whatever that means. All I know is that ours is definitely TOO small, and if we had a two story with a basement, that sounded about right. Plus we need a 6-car garage/pole barn (or both) for Tim, so you have to figure that in, right?

Quite a few of our friends with the same visions and have moved out of the area, now that the market has dried up. The only thing that seems to be making money is the housing market! Some of our friends have even moved overseas to work for their US companies in Europe! They make it sound QUITE romantic and adventurous!

Being days away from my 36th birthday, also has me thinking... as according to most doctors, biological clocks, and fertility books, I am getting OLD! (Although, I just got carded the other day, so at least I don’t look that old to everyone!) For some reason Mother Nature does not seem to be doing her job in my case, I may look young, but my body thinks it’s ancient. Over the past few years we have gone through about every test you can think of, so the next step will involve fertility shots, if we decide to go that route. (SCARY!) I keep putting this step off thinking something will change, and I think it is because I worry too much about things and if I just stopped worrying... But then I start worrying about not worrying, and Tim says that doesn’t do any good at all! At least living in California puts us near one of the best fertility clinics in the nation, so that’s definitely a plus, since it looks like that will end up being our next step. One of our friends said that we should start a pay pal account to fund this expensive endeavor. Since we’re not getting rid of our toys! :-)

We did make a few improvements to the 40's storage and 70's design issues of our kitchen this year, and invested in a new refrigerator with icemaker around Labor Day, which instigated the painting of our Kitchen a Martha Stewart color of "yellow rose"-it looks GREAT! It is so much brighter than our previous tan wood paneled kitchen. After watching tons of programs on HGTV, I figured it would be a day project MAX, but it took MUCH longer than I thought it would! We barley had it done by Tim’s birthday on the 11th! Needless to say, the bathroom did NOT get painted “a drop of green” that day as I had planned. Maybe we should just buy one of Martha’s new homes in Cary, North Carolina, and save us the trouble of trying to paint our rental, HA! If they let you have horses, I might consider it. But Tim says the only way that would happen is if the area had lightening and a pasture with a large tree. I wonder what he meant by that!!!

Well, until next time…