Advice on buying a horse with a bone chip please

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Hello,

I am just seeking some advice about a horse that has been offered to me at a 'bargain' price.

He is a pedigree shire colt, and is an absolutely beautiful young boy. However, his breeder has notified me about an injury he has to his hock (bone chip) which is reflected in his lower price.

He isn't presenting with any lameness or outward discomfort at the moment but regardless of this, I will request a copy of the xray to go over with my own vet.

The breeder has not decided to undergo surgery as he is currently sound, and he was for sale prior to the discovery of the chip. Yet, in order for him to be rideable in the future, surgery will be required.


On a personal note, riding isn't a priority for me in any way. I look after many animals here on the family holding, and am very familiar with larger draft types. (In saying this, I have always wanted a working breed horse with hairy feet😁). But I am purely someone who finds joy in being alongside the animals and doing groundwork and leisure activities.

In other words, he is what I am looking for - but he has an ailment.

If I were to buy him and complete the surgery, he would still cost thousands less than if I were to buy a shire of the same quality without his issue.

I havent experienced any major surgeries with my own, and my lack of knowing is what scares me.

I was wondering if anyone who has been in a similar position, with a yearling or young horse with a bonechip that they were viewing to buy, would have any advice relating to their experiences? Surgical outcomes too?

Thanking you all.
 
Dam1 said:
Why did they x ray if the horse had no symptoms (wasn't lame) ?
If it was a kick/injury the prognosis for recovery is quite good - not so much if its happened because of OCD x
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Hi, and thank you all for all of your responses.

He has a bump on his hock which the breeder said they suspected was a chip leading to the vet investigating further.

Thank you also for the information, I actually find it all to be quite interesting as awful as it sounds!
 
Tiddlypom said:
Have a very thorough discussion with an experienced orthopaedic equine vet.

Presumably the surgery would need a GA and that in itself in a heavy breed would carry a fair risk.
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Definitely will do!

Thank you. GA is something that scares me quite often when it comes to any kind of animal, you hear really good stories and very bad stories and it's hard to determine which one will apply to you.
 
To be honest, the majority of draft breeds are likely to have some form of joint changes. If you are definitely after a shire and he is nice otherwise, I'd consider the risk - after a thorough conversation with an orthopaedic vet who has seen the xrays - there are bone chips where you'd be happy the horse should be fine once they're out, and there are boulders with horrendous secondary changes. It may also be worth considering xraying other 'at risk' joints as if he has bone chips in multiple joints that does change things (not least because surgery time would be increased, which in turn makes your anaesthetic more risky).
 
BronsonNutter said:
To be honest, the majority of draft breeds are likely to have some form of joint changes. If you are definitely after a shire and he is nice otherwise, I'd consider the risk - after a thorough conversation with an orthopaedic vet who has seen the xrays - there are bone chips where you'd be happy the horse should be fine once they're out, and there are boulders with horrendous secondary changes. It may also be worth considering xraying other 'at risk' joints as if he has bone chips in multiple joints that does change things (not least because surgery time would be increased, which in turn makes your anaesthetic more risky).
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Thank you for your message.

I will consult a vet before going forward with anything for certain.

On a hypothetical note, if I were to buy him after consulting with the vet and getting a good idea of a positive prognosis, would it be more advantageous for him to undergo the arthroscopic surgery as soon as possible? As in after he has settled in, a few months maybe?

I was just thinking this as his parents are 18.2 and 19 hands so it is very likely that he will be a larger fellow. And I thought it might be better to have this done before he gets bigger, in case it might cause further stress on the joint. (Will also talk to the vet about this, but I am just throwing around ideas at the minute:)).
 
Is it a traumatic chip or an OCD lesion?
How big is the chip?
Where is it within the joint?
Does the horse flex sound?

All of these factors will influence the level of risk. You need an independent orthopaedic opinion.

There are plenty of horses with sound functional ridden lives who happen to have chips. It’s not a pre-requisite to remove just to ride (if the horse is sound).
 
Of course all chips are different. I had one with a chip in his hock that wasn’t discovered until I sold him, after 4 years, when he was x-rayed for sale. Was always sound. Vet said there was no way it could have happened in the last 4 years and I wouldn’t have known. Of course you won’t be insured and I guess you’ve checked the cost of the surgery.

I suppose the decision comes down to: is the cost of the horse + surgery something you can lose if the worst happened. And also, what other horses are available - you don’t absolutely have to buy this one (although arguably at least you know the problem - many sellers would just sell without disclosing issues).
 
ihatework said:
Is it a traumatic chip or an OCD lesion?
How big is the chip?
Where is it within the joint?
Does the horse flex sound?

All of these factors will influence the level of risk. You need an independent orthopaedic opinion.

There are plenty of horses with sound functional ridden lives who happen to have chips. It’s not a pre-requisite to remove just to ride (if the horse is sound).
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I'm not yet aware of how it was received, and am hoping to hear back about some of these questions soon.

The chip is on the outside of his right hock and has caused the joint to appear slightly rounded.

Thank you for responding to the post :). It was his breeder who mentioned surgery before he would be able to be ridden. I understood that to have been due to the increased weight and strain put on the joints when in ridden work but I dont know for certain.


At the moment I think I'm contemplating worse case scenarios before committing to a decision...choosing to overthink instead of under.
 
If the affected hock is enlarged compared to the other one then I suspect that there’s quite a lot going on internally, more than just a single bone chip. Defo good x rays and interpretation needed.

I had a 4yo section D who went lame, and whilst the hocks seemed normal to the outside apart from one lump which had appeared, it turned out he had catastrophic malformation of the hock bones which must have been sustained after an untreated joint ill as a foal, long before I had him.

No humane option apart from PTS.
 
My horse (now 17.3hh as he won't stop growing and 705kg) had an OCD bone chip removed from his stifle this year with surgery, it would have cost £4k if I didn't have insurance that covered £3k of it - full GA, 2 day stay in hosp and a visit after to assess soundness/stitches out. Recovery has been pretty linear thankfully and he is now back in full work (or will be, I am still being careful with him) with a good prognosis of returning to the same work any other horse would do.

The only caveat is what soft tissue/cartilage damage there has been, if any. One of the biggest things that would have affected his prognosis is the state of the cartilage in the joint, thankfully there is no parts where it has worn down and there is full cartilage cover for the whole joint, however he does have a crack in it that will need monitoring and may affect the longevity of the joint eventually, or it may be a red herring and never cause him issue at all, that's the risk. If there were any areas of bone on bone and/or any arthritic remodeling, his prognosis would be guarded re: return to any sort of work.

Because of that I would say that you need more than an x-ray, as it's hock perhaps some sort of scan would be a better option if you are seriously considering it. Just remember, this isn't a sub £1000 animal, it's a £5000 animal once you have had the surgery done as it won't be covered on insurance.
 
What do you plan to do? Working horse in harness or break to ride?

Surgery won't be covered by insurance so absolutely get a good vet to start by looking at the existing x rays before you spend anything. I'd get some videos in trot too so you can see if he's sound.

There's going to be a lot of adult weight onto that joint so I'd want to know whether post surgery the risks of arthritis are higher - if so the lifespan of a heavy can be sadly limited.
 
As has already been mentioned, the fact that the joint is already enlarged is a worry. I am guessing that the breeder does not know for sure that it was an accident that caused the chip and it could be congenital.

Plenty of horses have chips that have gone undiagnosed and at least you know that there is an issue.

I have a chunky warmblood who had chips removed from his front fetlocks as a 4 year old. He went on to get to PSG dressage but was retired at 19 with arthritis in his hocks and knees.
 
(In saying this, I have always wanted a working breed horse with hairy feet😁).
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Just noticed this line, make sure you check him for any early signs of CPL then, if he has it then those lovely hairy feet will need to be shaved unfortunately!
 
SEL said:
What do you plan to do? Working horse in harness or break to ride?

Surgery won't be covered by insurance so absolutely get a good vet to start by looking at the existing x rays before you spend anything. I'd get some videos in trot too so you can see if he's sound.

There's going to be a lot of adult weight onto that joint so I'd want to know whether post surgery the risks of arthritis are higher - if so the lifespan of a heavy can be sadly limited.
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Hi and thank you for your response.

My plans aren't to work in harness, I just enjoy hacking and groundwork.

Will definitely consider everything mentioned, I am just awaiting response and hopefully further information from the breeder.
 
Nasicus said:
Just noticed this line, make sure you check him for any early signs of CPL then, if he has it then those lovely hairy feet will need to be shaved unfortunately!
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I was researching about this too and have included on my list for inspection.

Do you possibly have any tips? I've read about crusting, thickening skin and of course the swelling but am wondering if there's any way to tell if the condition is present without symptoms.
 
I rather suspect that as they are letting him go so cheaply that there could be rather more to it as otherwise it would make sense for them to sort the chip out themselves before selling. As a general rule I would go with the 'don't buy trouble' but until you have a full vet report you don't really know what you are dealing with.
 
This is a hard one. My first-ever pony had to be PTS because of a chip on his hock caused by a fall - back in those days it was something they couldn't/wouldn't operate on. He was lame, and there was obvious deformity of the limb, and there was only one choice, sadly.

Appreciate that this horse currently is not presenting as lame, neither by all accounts is there any deformity of the limb, or swelling. But my feeling is that unless you are prepared to possibly have a giant-sized field ornament for say the next 20 years or so, then personally I'd counsel you to walk away.

You would also need to have a very generous credit card allowance I would suggest, as if this were to suddenly worsen you would be looking at some very expensive vets bills - OR you would be looking at making a tough decision - probably the latter as operating on a horse of this size & weight would be hugely problematic (and would cost you a mint, with no guarantee of a good result - even if you could find a vet prepared to operate).

IF and I say "if" you are thinking about it, then as others have said I would have a good vet who's speciality is orthopaedics take a look, and give you an honest assessment.

But basically the question I would ask is why buy someone else's vet's bill.
 
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