HIRSUTISM

• Hirsutism is a condition in which the horse has an excessive growth of hair,resulting in a long wavy haircoat.
• The hair is often 4-5 inches in length, and may remain long throughout the year.
• The horse may fail to shed in the spring,or it may shed its coat normally and then have an abnormally abundant regrowth of hair.
• The presence of an abnormally long hair coat in an older horse is very strong evidence of Pituitary Pars Intermedia Dysfunction (PPID)
• The skin may be dry and scaly,or slightly greasy.
• The horse occasionnaly drenched in sweat
• It is caused by tumor of the pituitary gland.
• The condition is due to over-activity of one part of the pituitary gland the excessive release of certain metabolically active proteins and hormones