An X-ray for your viewing pleasure - thoughts welcome

[Shilasdair]

 

[Shilasdair]

 

[Merrymoles]

Sidebone? My horse broke one about eight years ago and needed box rest and remedial shoeing but came completely sound (and still is apart fine with that but has fractured his hock instead).

 

[Tiddlypom]

There are many more experienced assessors of X rays here, but I'm seeing pronounced medio lateral imbalance on both, and the big bone spur on the left plate.

 

[Cowpony]

Yes I noticed the imbalance before I saw the big bone spur!

 

[ycbm]

Why wasn't the foot stood on something level? It's very difficult to interpret lateral balance when the foot isn't on level ground to start with.

Ring bone in both? Broken sidebone(s) in the left?

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[misst]

I'm no good at horse xrays specificially but there are a lot of changes and joint space loss on there I think. In people xrays can look terrible and the person has minimal pain but someone else with minor changes can experience a lot of pain. I think it depends on the soft tissue damage that goes along with these things.

 

[Tiddlypom]

What were the horses' feet resting on when the images were taken? The foot must be on a level surface. My vets use a smooth square of 1" thick wood , it's ancient but it does the job. It has to be on a flat and level surface, though.

Tbh I would be asking for fresh images FOC.

 

[Cragrat]

As above.
What on earth was the horse stood on????

Apart from the sidebone, which must have been obvious without x-rays, these can't tell you much accurately!

 

[Shilasdair]

Would you like to see side views?

 

[ycbm]

Of course, is the quality as "special" as those? .

 

[SOS]

Im no good with equine xrays but there’s no way you could tell a true imbalance from those xrays... the positioning is awful! Who was having a bad day... the vet or the horse?

 

[Shilasdair]

 

[ycbm]

Are you looking for advice, Shils, or just sharing out of interest?
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[Shilasdair]

Are you looking for advice, Shils, or just sharing out of interest?
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Sharing to hear everyone's thoughts about the X-rays - so thoughts/advice/opinions welcomed.

* I should say it was my fault that the horse in question was VERY overdue a trim.

 

[Tiddlypom]

I should say it was my fault that the horse in question was VERY overdue a trim.

Err, yes . That won't have helped anything.

Is there soft tissue damage as well?

 

[Shilasdair]

Err, yes . That won't have helped anything.

Is there soft tissue damage as well?

I'm not sure what you mean by soft tissue damage? In relation to which issue?

 

[Michen]

Amazing that people can judge the imbalance from those x rays ?‍

 

[Tiddlypom]

An excessively long toe can put excess strain on the soft tissue structures in the lower limb.

I do not know if that is anything to do with the apparent issues showing from the front views.

You do need new images.

 

[quizzie]

If they took the laterals first, I doubt they were particularly worried about the medio-lateral balance/flat surface on the APs.....they were simply looking to see how extensive the periostitis was.
Those look like initial scanning X-rays to assess the problem for further definition as required.

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

Even for quick x rays to see what is going in before investigating further I would not be happy at having the foot half off the block for starters!

 

[Roasted Chestnuts]

I hope you didn’t pay for those?

 

[quizzie]

Even for quick x rays to see what is going in before investigating further I would not be happy at having the foot half off the block for starters!

..but we don't know the circumstances....was the horse uncooperative...was the horse sedated....could it be sedated...did the owner not consent to sedation...was it in a place where there was any even surface to start with...could it not be travelled to a more suitable site....there are a lot of potential reasons for poor positioning ( including poor practice!)
I suspect they knew exactly what they were expecting to find, and the positioning is pretty irrelevant to the diagnosis and likely prognosis in this case.

 

[Tiddlypom]

No, we don't know the circumstances under which the images were taken, but presumably the OP does.

She's shared the images and has asked for opinions. A quick heads up to explain why they were not/could not be taken on a level surface would stop us going down that rabbit hole. Maybe they were the best images that could be obtained from a horse which was, for whatever reason, reluctant or unable to cooperate for the x rays on the day. That would put the wonkiness in another light.

 

[Frumpoon]

Is the bone spur caused by the slight pedal bone rotation?

 

[ycbm]

Shils I don't think the length of those toes can be explained by a short delay in trimming.

Can you please tell us what you are asking for, or is this thread just supposed to be for amusement? Are you unhappy with the interpretation your vet has given you? Can you please tell us what it is?
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[twofatladies88]

I see pedal bone rotation in both with the left worse than the right and pockets of gas in both feet. Has laminitis been diagnosed? From the other images, it does seem like the feet are not correctly balanced. I would certainly want my farrier to work with the x rays and trim accordingly.

 

[Shilasdair]

I just posted them because I thought they were interesting - so much going on.
I didn't really want advice - I usually ask directly if I need specific information or advice - but I can always learn from other people's views.
To give you all closure - I requested X-rays because the horse had multiple issues going on - and we needed to see what was really happening to inform treatment (well, management as none of this is curable).
Issues include the spectacular arthritis (worse than we thought), the laminitis (not as bad as we thought).
You don't really need X-rays to spot that this horse has poor front leg conformation either but perhaps a photo of the front legs would have helped you all to stop obsessing about the blocks.
Horse has had a rather dramatic trim informed by the X-rays, will be on bute forever probably, and is feeling pretty comfortable/happy now.

(I was so tempted to write 'Open to Offers' on my first post as a joke but thought you'd all take it seriously ).

 

[Tiddlypom]

Horse has had a rather dramatic trim informed by the X-rays, will be on bute forever probably, and is feeling pretty comfortable/happy now.

Just do be careful about trimming too drastically from the off to correct an excessively long toe, tempting though it might be. It's better to correct the foot balance in smaller but more frequent increments. I've been down that path twice, once after a cr@p farrier and again after a cr@p barefoot trimmer .

This is my senior Cushing's mare. It was about 5 months between the grotesque long toe presentation (as allowed by the barefoot trimmer) and the more correct foot balance, with the farrier coming out every 4 weeks. She stayed comfortable throughout, despite not being blessed with the best feet.

 

[Shilasdair]

Thanks, Tiddly.

My horse has particularly good quality dense horn, and her feet grow quickly - but in that picture her feet had grown much more than normal (perhaps as a result of the inflammation stimulating blood flow) and she was overdue a trim.

She looks/feels much better already.