advice please - spavin/sharers

noblesteed

noblesteed

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Hi all,

I have a nice 14 yo bombproof allrounder. I keep him at a DIY livery yard with fab hacking but only a grass arena. I have a sharer 4 days a week as I have a young family so limited time. Sharer pays me £20 a week. She is 15 and originally wanted to do PC with my horse, so spent the summer getting to grips with him schooling and jumping (he's her first horse) to be ready for this summer season. However since winter has set in I feel her interest waning - she really needs transport to get to comps but we don't have any so she's a bit stuck in that sense. She lost confidence hacking and I don't think she really enjoys it.
Anyway horse has just been diagnosed with bone spavin. He has just been treated with injections to his hocks. So I feel it's probably wise to give him a quieter life in order to keep him going as long as possible - he's not really very old at 14 and I was hoping for a few more years from him! I love to hack and it's not the end of the world to me to stop jumping/schooling. However it's going to be a problem for sharer. Trouble is she is very attached to him, but he is going to need hacking out to keep him going. It would be very easy for me to find someone else to hack him out a few times a week as he's a fantastic hack and the hacking where we are is superb.
But would it be SO damaging for horse to continue schooling/jumping? I know some do with spavin it's just that my horse is also a big pet so I want to keep him sound as long as possible... and I would worry sharer is putting too much wear on hocks.
The other issue is without the sharer's money I don't think we can afford to keep horse at the livery yard. I will be gutted to leave but it would be so much cheaper to rent a field in our village. And probably better in the long run for his hocks (the fields are closed at the yard atm due to weather)
So any advice would be helpful. Thanks in advance!
 
Ultimately he is your horse, yes you have limited time but you dont want to sell and want a good few more years out of him. If the young sharer is going to want to do heavy work its not really fair on your boy, especially if it will contribute to shortening his working life - you pay a lot of money to own a horse therefore your needs from the horse must come first.

What did the vet say about the spavin and work? There are various degrees of spavin, and various stages of treatment depending on its severity so its hard for us to say whether schooling/jumping would be bad for him or not. The vet is the best to advise here, if it is very severe then jumping and dressage schooling would not be good for him. Alternatively if it is not severe and treatment with bute is working well, then some light schooling might be fine - I still cant say about jumping though, I just dont know enough about spavin to say whether you can carry on jumping or not.

I appreciate she will be attached to him, I'm a sharer and I get very attached to all my share horses. However she will want a horse that is fit for purpose, and if she wants to jump and do pony club she will want a horse that can give her that opportunity. £20 a week is probably a lot for a 15 year old and she will want to make the most of the money she is spending. I've had to leave a share horse because he got arthritis in his hocks, it was heartbreaking but ultimately I want to do dressage and see how far I can go, he wasnt able to do that for me anymore so I had a good cry and found myself another horse.

If you explain to her that because of the spavin he cant jump anymore and he needs a quiet hacking life, but she can still come and see him whenever she wants (that softens the blow - I still go and see my old horse every now and then) - I'm sure she will be fine.
 
What does your vet recommend? When my mare was diagnosed with spavin, the vet advised to continue with schooling on the flat, be aware not to expect too much collection from her, hack as much as possible and knock jumping on the head. He said that way we'd get the longest out of her and keep her comfortable and interested in life.
Have you spoken to your sharer and discussed all the options available to you both? That is where I would start. If your boy is good to hack, you should be able to find another sharer who just wants to do that.
 
Thanks for your help.
The vet said it's 'moderate' spavin ie not mild but not severe. He's got bone spurs on both hocks and reduced cartilage. He had steroid shots this week and if they don't work we will try tildren, they will keep him going for so long then when that stops working we use bute... He said horse could be fine for years or he might not, nobody knows.
Obviously I want horse to 'last' as long as possible - so if that means no jumping then so be it. Vet said the odd fence in the field would be ok but probably not competitions, then again there are always exceptions! I think I will give the girl a ring today to chat about her options.
 
HI, I had a pony with a spavin a good few years ago, did not come sound with 6 months off and was retired. After a year in retirement did some light hacking as was now sound, and after a year more was still sound in light work (the joint had fused) and at the wrong side of 30 years old returned to jumping! We left it up to him how much he did, and only jumped lightly, but I would say that give your horse a light time now, and possibly reap the rewards later with health into old age.
 
Don't sacrifice your horse for a sharer - sharers come and go. It sounds like you would almost be putting yourself in the position of providing a horse for the sharer and staying at a yard for facilities for her that you don't need. If she doesn't/can't hack him then I don't see the point as he really should do less intense work until the spavin fuses or settles down. Renting a field in your village sounds wonderful.
 
It's good to hear other people's stories, makes me feel a bit more hopeful! Thanks.
I think I would have to advertise for someone to hack him out a few times a week, though like I said he's bombproof so shouldn't be too difficult to find someone. I suppose the joint could fuse at any time, it's all very much unknown!
 
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