‘It felt like my horse had been taken away’: rider raises awareness on genetic condition

A rider who is well on the way to “getting my horse of a lifetime back” after dark months of lameness and confusion is hoping to raise awareness of PSSM.

Horses with polysaccharide storage myopathy (PSSM) have abnormal accumulation of glycogen, the form of sugar stored in muscle. This can cause muscle stiffness and pain.

Georgia Howell told H&H her Irish mare Lemon’s condition baffled vets, and that she has realised she must have been unknowingly managing the condition for years.

“If you think there’s something wrong with your horse, always trust your gut,” she said. “Lemon is happy now, and that’s the main thing.”

Georgia bought Lemon, who is now 14, about five years ago, and “from the moment I set eyes on her, I knew she was the one for me”.

The pair hacked and did pleasure rides, and competed in dressage and eventing, until, in September 2021, “everything changed”.

“I’d decided to give her a week off in the field after an event and I think that was a trigger,” Georgia said. “She was used to a day or two off but not that long. One day, I got her in and she was stiff all over and absolutely dog-lame.

“The vets initially thought it was laminitis, but the farrier didn’t agree; he said she was sore all over her body. No one could reach a conclusion as to why this perfectly healthy horse was now in severe discomfort, all over her body. She was lame in all her limbs and had severe muscle wastage.”

Lameness investigations found no answers, and although Lemon’s condition improved, she then deteriorated again. A friend of Georgia’s suggested PSSM but a blood test was normal.

The vets suggested Georgia put Lemon in foal, which she did, last spring.

“I trusted the professionals,” she said. “I had wanted another horse for a while, and thought what better horse to breed than my own wonderful mare. I thought I had been the responsible owner, doing my research into stallions, also looking at AI.”

Lemon was sounder and more comfortable, last year, but some months after she conceived, she started showing signs that something was not right. Georgia called her physio, who recommended sending Lemon’s hair to be tested for PSSM.

“In September it came back that she had it, type two,” Georgia said. “Luckily, in most cases PSSM can be managed through diet and exercise and Lemon is doing well after her diagnosis. It turns out I’d been managing it for years without knowing; she always had low-sugar food as I’d noticed if she had carrots or apples, it affected her, and exercise is important.”

Lemon is now on a low-sugar, low-starch diet, and “much happier”. Her foal is due in spring.

“I’m confident I will be able to get her back afterwards,” Georgia said. “I will test the foal straight away to give it the best possible chance, but I managed her successfully before, without knowing it; we had so much fun together and I think we can get back to that; I’m hopeful for Lemon and the foal.

“I want to raise awareness as so many people have never even heard of PSSM and it can look like laminitis or colic and it’s soul-destroying. I was in quite a dark place for months, not knowing what was wrong as this horse means everything to me. It was as if my horse of a lifetime had been taken away.

“Now I think we’re taking the right steps and going in the right direction.”

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