Accident with a wheebarrow.....

[Twigben]

I am totally ashamed to admit this but it may just help any of you that do the same from a horrible accident...i was cleaning the field yesterday using a wheelbarrow, bucket and pair of gloves. I was filling the bucket and taking it to the wheelbarrow. To cut the story short my boy went to investigate the wheelbarrow and pawed it as he did he got his leg caught through the "legs" of it, i was there in seconds but it was too late and he panicked and tried to run from it. It has taken a flap of skin from the inside of his front leg (under the knee) and was bleeding heavily as it cut through an arteriole (thankfully not an artery). A few hours and one vet later he has been sewn up.

I am totally devestated, this needn't have happened and was TOTALLY preventable, i am such a bad mum.

To make matters worse he is going in for a bone scan on Monday (21st) and was meant to be worked (on the lunge) for the three days prior to get him as lame as possible (horrible i know but vets orders) and now because of the sitches this may not be able to happen - i am gutted on two counts, i am desparate to get to the bottom of the hind limb lameness, muscle wastage and toe dragging but now it looks bleak!

I am also in a pickle about how to treat him, he is a freak in the stable, rearing, kicking out and throwing himself against the walls (which are timber and bow). He does this even with company and is used to living out. He is happy out in the field and is quite quiete but it is raining and so i am not sure if the vet wrap and bundles of bandgaes will withstand the rain?

Whats worse a horse that freaks (even on ACP) or a wet bandage? I know the vets want him in but the constant fear that he will do more harm in the stable is awful - i will post a video of him doing it when i get it uploaded!

x x x

 

[rema]

Oh god poor you.If it's any consolation my horse done a similar thing with a wheelbarrow.I was mucking him out with the wheelbarrow in the door when he decided he wanted to go out straight away.so he tries to jump the barrow knocks it over,gets his leg through the U shape and tanks off up the yard bucking with the barrow still attached.Bearing in mind that my boy is kept on a working factory and the car park is up past my stables to where my lad is heading with the barrow.He doers an almighty buck and the barrow goes very airbourne and all i can think is Sh*t this is going to cost me in car damage.And he will have a broken leg aswell.The barrow lands between two cars with an inch either side of the barrow.Luckily my boy dident have so much as a scratch or cut.But i will never do that again unless he is tied up in his stable.Now he is scared of barrows.I hope your horse is okay.Dont feel bad accidents happen!!.

 

[kcgibson]

firstly, your not a bad mum! accident could have happened to anyone, and thats what it was, an accident. you didnt mean for it to happen, you've just got an inquisitive horse!
if the bandage gets wet it will constrict (and obviously cause probs with circulation which could have disastrous effects) and if the bandage gets wet, the wound will get wet and that definitely cannot be allowed to happen as the wound wont heal properly and take ages to heal. it really does need to stay dry. im a vet nurse and in constant battle with people to keep their animal's dressing clean and dry, it is really important. on the other hand, i know how you feel about your horse going mad in the stable cos mine behaves in exactly the same way. i would worry about him injuring himself further. its a bit of a difficult one! you cant wrap anything water proof around the leg (such as a plastic bag of some sorts) as it will cause the skin to sweat and again it causes problems with healing and skin conditions etc. is there any sort of water proof breathable thing you can apply? maybe someone else can help with that?

 

[Twigben]

Hi guys

thanks you have made me feel better.

Kat_g the vet is coming back to change the dressing Tuesday - do you think if i got her back tomorow and if i am allowed to change it myself that, that would help? The weather forcast is awful for the next few days. I am happy to pay for the vets to come if it keeps his sanity!?

How waterproof is vet wrap? The top and bottom of the bandage have elastoplast on as well?

 

[kcgibson]

vetrap isnt water proof, we just apply it as a protecting layer for the dressing underneath, it helps to prevent the dressing becoming dirty too. yeah would be best to get the vet back tomorrow. is the dressing wet now? to be honest, it might be best to leave the wound undressed (ask your vet obviously). vets dont usually stitch anything below the knee on a horse due to risk of infection (the wound is best left open to allow rubbish to come out of the wound and therefore help prevent infection building). i presume your horse is on antibiotics and if so, maybe the dressing can be left off? just prevents any complications associated with a wet dressing. i dont know what your field is like but maybe he could just be put out if the dressing is off. its not ideal that its raining nd you wouldnt want a muddy wound, but in all honesty, when my horse has had cuts in the past he has been left outside and put on antibiotics. he recently had a kick to his leg (between stifle and hock). my vet put staples in but he was playing up hell in the stable and moving around more being in, so i turned him out. he tried to trot and canter, soon realised he couldnt do it very well, so stuck to walking (most of the time!). His wound healed really well!

If he was mine, i'd ask the vet if the dressing can stay off. if he can stay outside and say that i would bathe the wound 2-3 times daily to keep it clean.

 

[kcgibson]

elastoplast is there to help hold the dressing in place. if the vet insists the bandage stays on, ask her for advice on the best thing to do with your horse due to him going mental in the stable. if she says you can dress yourself, maybe do it tomorrow and get her to watch. its very important when dressing that it isnt put on too tight (due to circulation problems). if in any doubt, do the dressing a little on what you think is loose. at worst the dressing will come off and you'll need to do another (and you'll know you can do it a bit tighter than the last one!

 

[catembi]

Don't blame yourself - these things happen with horses. I was pulling up ragwort in our previous field & my 4 yo tipped my barrow over & was playing with the wheel, spinning it round. I let him get on with it, hoping he'd get bored & go away, but he pawed at it & got his leg stuck in the u bit round the wheel & reared up with the barrow attached to his leg. I thought we'd be looking at a broken leg, but when he reared up again, he got free, thank goodness.

Sounds like a few of us have done something similar. Hope your horse gets better soon.

 

[Dougie]

dont blame yourself, horses are so nosey!! they will hurt themselves on anything...remember poo picking one who was sniffing the rake thing for poo picking whn he stuck it up his nose, crapped himself and reared. just one of those things

 

[pagancluf]

Poor you, you are not a bad mum! I have had a similar prob with my tb, he had a cut to fetlock area and taking ages to heal so asked for ideas - one of my friends sed use lintex, vet wrap to keep in place and then cut up part of an old rug (waterproof bit) and tape around leg (silver tape is good) then the area can breathe and also be kept clean (how long it stays on for not sure, especially with rolling!

My boy also likes to sniff the contents of the wheel barrow and then knock it over when full!!

but thanks will keep an eye on him now.

 

[carthorse]

We used vetrap and brushing boot but our wound was covered by that.It is important to keep it really clean so ask the vet

 

[JessPickle]

A horse at my yard has currently got his leg bandaged, they tried to keep him in but he kept bashing the door with his bad leg and making it worse, he is now turned out but the bandage is covered in gaffa tape, it keeps it fine, and it gets re done daily

 

[horsemad00]

YOUR NOT A BAD MUM! I have a similar problem with my mare. Shes on box rest at mo, (post will she be able to be riden again) she box walks, kicks and tries to jump over the stable door, not what you wan't when she's got an open, gaping wound and you have been told to keep her as still as pos! It's a no win situation if you leave him out the dressing will get wet, but if you put him in he will end up injuring himself. I would discuss it with your vet tomorow and see what they say. xx

 

[BethH]

Hi Twigben just to say my youngster is an absolute pain in the backside with this as well. He even tries to stand in the barrow when I push it around the field so it makes no difference whether I am with the barrow or not.

These things happen, you know you are a good mum and doing everything in your power to help your horse. This is a small setback but wounds heal and it may just mean another week or so before you can get the investigation done but you will get to the bottom of it all. You could put your ned in a small pen in the field, maybe do an electric fence the size of a large stable, that's what we did with mine after surgery as he hated being in his stable, it stopped him running around but he was still able to go out and the dressing was less likely to slip. The bit of old waterproof rug sounds a fab idea as it is breathable, may be you have a saddler or rug repairer near by who could let you have the material and stick it over the dressed wound with gaffer tape?

Let us know how you get on with the bone scan, am sure everything will turn out just fine.

 

[Shilasdair]

Just a thought...but have you tried cling film or similar over the bandage (not too tight though)?
S

 

[kcgibson]

wouldn't cling film make the skin underneath sweat though? definitely dont want sweating skin. ive never used clingfilm but i would be worried about sweating?

 

[Twigben]

Hi Guys

Thanks all for your encouragement. I had the vet back out today who changed the dressing, it is healing well so far although she was not impressed that he is out during the day and said the wound may breakdown! Even through all the rain the dressing was dry underneath so thats one good thing! I am now able to change it myself so at least if it gets mucky etc then i am able to do something about it!

I will wait and see how it looks on Thursday but the vets have said because it is not directly over the joint i may still be able to work him for the bone scan so fingers crossed i can still do that this w/e!!

I will keep you all posted x

 

[BethH]

Make sure you do - have everything crossed for you