Re: RC: Biltmore syn

[Rides 2 Far <rides2far@juno.com>]

>I had a tie-up at VC 1
>  We did have a 13+ hour trailer ride, no off-loading.  Horse doesn't
>take care of himself in transit

Why no off-loading?  It's 5 hours for me, but I got him out and walked
him 15 min. after 3 hours on the road.  He didn't drink (seldom does
during transit) but he ate some grass & *clover* >g< He snorts a LOT when
he's out walking, and usually pees.

The "Biltmore Syndrome" as I understood it wasn't so much a case of tying
up as it was a massive muscle cramp.  The most classic case I saw was a
horse at about the 80 mile mark year before last.  He was ahead of me,
had just vetted through and walked up the steep hill behind the arena to
get in some shade.  Horse looked fine one minute, then just went to the
ground.  As I understood it (could be all wrong) it wasn't a tie up, they
just hit them with fluids (wonder if it was the Potassium depletion
thing?) and the next thing you knew they looked as good as new.  The vets
felt that the hike up the long hill to the arena, then the STEEP climb up
to the shade where everyone crewed contributed.  This year when they
moved the vet check down to the flat they still had some tie ups, but
they were true tying up episodes, not the Biltmore Syndrome.  Hopefully
they'll let us leave the vet check down in the field and they'll start
referring to that phenomenon as the "Biltmore Indoor Arena Vet Check
Syndrome"
  
I've known 2 horses that got something that sounded like this Alsike
Clove Poisoning they're talking about.  They were on a huge farm, and
suddenly had incredibly high liver enzymes and all their pink skin looked
like you'd thrown acid on them.  They were both blanket Appaloosas and
the entire white area of the blanket cracked up like the desert floor and
big squares of skin with hair on it peeled off.  If these horses at
Biltmore supposedly had trouble from the clover, would they possibly at
least exhibit some sunburn type peeling?

When your horse tied up at Biltmore, did you ride the day before the
race?  I've never tied Kaboot up, but I think I did another horse
once...he just kind of stiffened up in one hip after his Friday before
the ride exercise and we didn't start him the next day.  Later he had a
couple of full blown tie-ups with the owner riding him. (By the way, the
same horse came in 3rd in the 50 at Biltmore)  When I messed that horse
up I had fed him full grain, then hauled him 5 1/2 hours to War Eagle
without unloading. I did walk him 15 min. before trotting that Friday
before the ride, but then we went straight into FAST trotting.  

Now I cut grain when I haul, unload after 3 hours or so, and on the
Friday ride I walk 15 min. then mix up slow trotting/ walking/ some fast
trotting, more walking.  I've just got this ultra-paranoid vision of lots
of sediment in his bloodstream that I have to carefully jar loose and
flush away gradually.  I've had no more problems since doing this, but
it's been mostly Kaboot that I've done it with and he just may not be
prone.  I know it's the pits.  Sorry it happened to ya.

Angie

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