9months to a year box rest - what would you do?

Gingerwitch

Gingerwitch

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If when you started treating your horse you were told it would involve 9 to 12 months "proper" box rest would it change your opinion on what you did?

By proper box rest i mean no turn out at all, and then walking out in hand after month 10 or 11
 
Depends on the horse and what the ultimate end result would be. Does that lead to 100% recovery and back to full work, or be ok to live unworked in a field?
 
Same scenario for my horse about 2 years ago. Told he would never be able to compete at the high level he had been at so decided it wasn't fair on him to "imprison" him for such a long time which he would have hated with only a fairish chance he would come sound.
He's happily retired. He was only 9 when I had to decide but have no regrets that I didn't put him through a very long period of box rest and who's to say that with such a long confinement it wouldn't have adversely affected his very nice nature. Whether it was the right or wrong decision who knows but felt I was doing the right thing for the horse and not putting my desires 1st.
 
A lady I know had to box rest her horse for 9mths due to stress induced lami. A long journey for her but horse is back to himself now and in full work.
 
Its only that if i had not lost big lad when i did, we were looking at this amount of time for his hoof to re grow, very smiliiar to this weeks rolf harris animal clinic. My big lad was in his 20's and would have had to be box rested till the hoof re-grew.

Now if we had not lost him that day, would i have been regretting what we had done? and how could i then have turned round and said enough is enough when we were par way through the treatment?

Until he had been sedated and the veinograme done, they did not know how much hoof needed to be cut away or what the chances were of a recovery.

It was only when they cut the hoof - they could then say it would take this amount of time, and bare in mind he had already been in for 3 months, although he was able to be excercised for the first two months

I just wonder if big lad knew and took the decision out of my hands?
 
Depends on age of horse and future for him. My old mare needed a long box rest but hated being stabled so in conference with my vets we decided to just turn her away. IMO can often give the same results, although may take longer, it must be better for their heads.

The old companion horse I have here now for my youngster (both on box rest at mo as 2 year old has just had an op) had 2 years box rest in his youth and it didn't make him sound anyway. So, with hindsight - a great thing - it was a waste of time and misery. That was before I had him.
 
i had this problem for a tendon injury - although only 8 months and could be walked in hand for increasing periods of time, then some ridden work...but after 5 months horse couldnt take it any longer - who could???? 23 hours and 30mins looking at the same wall must be rather boring and she would rear and buck every stride either in hand or under saddle.....so chucked her out in a small pen and stopped rideing it for 2 months........much happer and much safer!!!
 
Gingerwitch said:
Its only that if i had not lost big lad when i did, we were looking at this amount of time for his hoof to re grow, very smiliiar to this weeks rolf harris animal clinic. My big lad was in his 20's and would have had to be box rested till the hoof re-grew.

Now if we had not lost him that day, would i have been regretting what we had done? and how could i then have turned round and said enough is enough when we were par way through the treatment?

Until he had been sedated and the veinograme done, they did not know how much hoof needed to be cut away or what the chances were of a recovery.

It was only when they cut the hoof - they could then say it would take this amount of time, and bare in mind he had already been in for 3 months, although he was able to be excercised for the first two months

I just wonder if big lad knew and took the decision out of my hands?
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Sorry, cross posted. I doubt he took the decision for you but thank goodness for him really. I wouldn't put a horse that old through it tbh.
 
I had my horse on 8 months solid box rest - bar a 3/4hour mad gallop round the field jumping fences at 5months. He was used to box rest and wasnt at all bothered. We had been through hell and high water during his racing career and like begger was he getting away with going for a mere tendon.

The decision was easy for me because I knew he could cope with it not a bother.
 
I think that if you had put a horse in his 20s on box rest then I would have been very concerned for his muscle wastage and also how stiff he would have become. At his age I really don't think that it would have been fair whereas a younger horse would probably have had a much better chance of coping and physical recovery.
 
I think if the prognosis was good I would give it a go but would probably not beable to last that long with my TB who cribs for england and colics when he is stabled for more than a few days...it would be my idea of a nightmare for a vet to use the words longterm box rest. The other two who are happier in a stable may manage it but would be very bolshy I think.
 
If i had been told day 1 that big lad would have had 15 months box rest in his 20's i certainly would have had to consider the options, and in my heart i know i would not have chosen to let him go through this.

BUT - when your par way through treatment and it starts to add up, or they have done some treatment, how would you then turn round and say no ? his would have been an open wound (a quarter of his hoof missing) so i could not have done the turn out against vet advice, as he would have been open to infection
 
I did 8 months proper box rest, my horse coped fine. The riding out rehab scared me as he became highly sensitive. By sticking to it rigidly I got an extra 10 months of a happy hacker and 3 on top of that before we pts as his tendon finally went. Would I do it again? Probably, I like to give them everything before calling quits.
 
Gingerwitch said:
Its only that if i had not lost big lad when i did, we were looking at this amount of time for his hoof to re grow, very smiliiar to this weeks rolf harris animal clinic. My big lad was in his 20's and would have had to be box rested till the hoof re-grew.

Now if we had not lost him that day, would i have been regretting what we had done? and how could i then have turned round and said enough is enough when we were par way through the treatment?

Until he had been sedated and the veinograme done, they did not know how much hoof needed to be cut away or what the chances were of a recovery.

It was only when they cut the hoof - they could then say it would take this amount of time, and bare in mind he had already been in for 3 months, although he was able to be excercised for the first two months

I just wonder if big lad knew and took the decision out of my hands?
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My mare had a terrible abscess when she was ten years old which resulted in the whole of the front of her hoof being cut away and nine months off work. But she was only actually on full box rest for 3 months of this time, the rest was walking in hand and then limited turnout. Once the whole of the infection was gone from the hoof, they were able to replace the missing section with a plastic resin and shod her with imprint shoes. So I was never actially told how much box rest she would have needed as we took it a day at a time (very much like now).

However, knowingly box resting a horse for nine months is no existence for a horse. If they coped well with it and the prognosis was excellent, then perhaps it would be worth it, but if there was a guarded prognisis, then probably it would be far kinder to let them go.

The problem is, it is often those horses we love the most that end up suffering the longest because it is so much harder to let them go. I think your big lad must have been in a lot of pain, and would have had a lot of excrutiating pain to go, without a guarantee that he would recover. I sort of hope, with my girl, when the time comes, the decision is taken out of my hands. I am so sorry for what happened with big lad. I think that you did everything you could, and I would have done exactly the same. It was not your fault that the sedation went wrong. You must stop blaming yourself.
 
I don't know what happened with your big lad GW but hindsight is a wonderful thing.

If I was told at the beginning of treatment my horse was facing 12 months locked in a stable then no I wouldn't put him through it.

But if you start treatment and vet advises 1 month box rest, ok thats do-able and I'd go along with it. Then if something else happens and its another few weeks, then something else and 'we'll try this' and its another month. I would probably go along with that and can see how I could let it creep up.

All you can do is the best for you and your horse with the information you have at the time.

When half way through I would have to question how well my horse and I were coping.
 
I would hesitate to do it.

I did 9 months of box rest for stiffle OCD, first 5 months complete box rest, then gradual return to work but he didn't go into a small paddock until 9 months and a proper field until 12 months. For that horse it was a complete nightmare, he was very wound up, difficult to the point of dangerous even in the stable, extremely unsettled returning to work and it affected his character overall. For this horse I would say it was torture so I would think long and hard before going down that route again. I have seen other horses cope fairly well with box rest though so it does depend on the character of the animal.

Don't beat yourself up though, you can't second guess this decision. After all this box rest and rehab my lad was still lame and had to be retired, but I still think I did what I thought was best for him with the information I had at the time (i.e. young horse, good prognosis).
 
I am only musing after i saw the repeat of rolf animal hozzie today, when a horse had a tumor removed from his hoof. They went through so much and then, just as he got home it cuts to the bit where they say 9 to 12 months for box rest - and you think - flame me - if they had said that at the start what would i have done.

It was going to be pretty much that time for the big lad, and i know when they told me that i felt as if the stuffing had been knocked out of me - the rest is history.

But i suppose i need to get things in prospective to move on
 
My mare did 12mnths, but could be walked in hand from day one, basically it was making sure she didn't do anything more strenuous than walk. So she got out loads, could handgraze, go in a tiny paddock. Got to groom her friend over stable door etc. And she was a very easy horse in general. And yet its affected her. It took her another couple of months to adjust to being a horse again, being in a field, socializing etc. And since then she's hated being stabled. She'll come in with company for an hour or two, & overnight in the worst of winter. But otherwise stresses herself into a state, & she is just not a stressy horse. So with her at 23, I wouldn't do more than 6wks box rest again. Daughters pony at 5 though I might consider it with a good prognosis, & if (being 11.1) she could go in a huge stable & alternate two companions in with her 24/7. But she spent from 3mnths to 1 isolated, so the solitude would concern me more than the stabling. Although fine now it wouldn't be difficult to send her unhinged again.
With any older horse in your position gw, I wouldn't. Regardless of how they cope, I reckon the lack of movement would hasten arthritis.
 
Every horse is different.
I would only box rest if the outcome was good. I dont think i would if it was 50/50.

I box rested mine for 6 months for lami, luckily no rotation but alot of pain, he was in his 20s at the time. He came back into work better than ever, i had another lovely year with him before i sadly lost him in september after colic.

Please dont blame yourself or question what happened. He died with an owner who loved him and did the right thing. No one elses personal opinion really counts.
 
As per question, 9 months not turnout/walking... PTS. No question.

Incidentally, went to a horsepital near me not so long ago and there was a horse there with a broken leg who was cross-tied and not allowed to lie down for 6 weeks. Judging on purely what I saw... if that were me, PTS. Better a bullet than a living hell.

I could NOT do that to a horse, not even if it were worth £25k.
 
I wouldn't put a horse through it if I knew at the start it was going to last 9-12 months, and if they've got to stay in for that length of time the prognosis certainly isn't going to be great in any case.

I'd turn away for a year if it was remotely feasible, or otherwise PTS.
 
It would depend on the eventual prognosis, and whether the horse would likely return to full work.

But tbh I doubt I would put a horse through it. More likely to turn away and let Dr Green work his magic, or pts. If the horse would likely only come sound enough to be a field ornament then it would be PTS no question.
 
No I wouldnt put a horse through that.

I did nearly 6 with my mare with her tendon injury and it was a nightmare :( even on relaquin she tried to come over the stable door and I found her hanging from her back legs on it :rolleyes: :(

So no I wouldnt at all :(
 
tallyho! said:
As per question, 9 months not turnout/walking... PTS. No question.

Incidentally, went to a horsepital near me not so long ago and there was a horse there with a broken leg who was cross-tied and not allowed to lie down for 6 weeks. Judging on purely what I saw... if that were me, PTS. Better a bullet than a living hell.

I could NOT do that to a horse, not even if it were worth £25k.
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My little tb hunter had a star fracture of his tibia and we were offered cross tying etc to treat him, he was 14, had won 3 races and owed nobody anything. I put him to sleep there and then. I couldn't have put him through it.

All horses are different and so it would depend entirely on them and the circumstances.

I think your lad did the best thing for himself in the end, he is pain free and galloping with the others.
 
did 8 months with taz then restricted turn out for 2 hours a day for 3 months working up to longer turn out... he came back into full work afterwards and hes fine... but i wouldnt do it again... with him anyway.. he was on 24 acp twice a day to keep him in the stable, he became unhandleable and nasty and even now 5 years on he still stresses in the stable, box walks and climbs the door... depends on the horse - Rio yes i would. he has lived the last 8 years in a stable with no turnout so hes use to it and totally fine but anything else probably not. there came a point when it was a possibility that ta was going to be pts 5 months in because he was having to be sudated to have his bandages changed (twice daily) you couldnt go in the stable as he would corner you and try to kick you to death and he was for ever climbing the doors :( i hated it, he hated it and there was no chance of having him in a mini paddock as they didnt allow electric fencing at the yard... tbh if you could section off a small bit in the field i think it would be fine but other wise not really but depends on the horse :) hope everything is okay!
 
A few years ago now, I had a 6 yr old Shire mare pts. The vet had been messing about for almost 3 months not diagnosing the cause of anumber of abscesses and skin lesions. Eventually the farrier came, blew his top because the mare was out grazing (on vet's advice) and had foundered - we never did find out the real cause behind all the problems.
The vet said that it might be possible to operate but she would need 12 months box rest. He also said there was only a small chance of success as she was so big (17.1hh). Sis and I looked at each other and said 'no way'. How could we sentence an animal that size to a stable for 12 months? As it happens she could have had companionship 24/7, if we had rotated the others in shifts and she was a very placid girl, so she might have coped better than some, especially as our boxes are a good size. Vet agreed (only sensible thing he said in 3 months).

I know what you mean though about getting locked into a treatment programme and not feeling able to call it a day part way through. We have done exactly the same, usually with cats, in the past. I would argue against the vet these days though.
 
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