Any advice on a reactive horse?

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kezza123

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Hi All,

I have had my mare for just about over a year now and have been noting her getting increasingly reactive under saddle and with the farrier. It has gotten to the point now that she is only shod in the front as she keeps kicking out and won't lift her back legs up. She has also become reluctant to letting me on her. She also won't walk down hills and rolls her both of her hind feet. When I bought her she was very nappy so first put it down to that however I can feel in my gut that she isn't happy with something now. Everyone is telling me is just telling me she is is being difficult or 'taking the mick' out of me expect my fairrer who is convinced she has something wrong in her stifles as she does have a pervious leg injury seen as a scar on her back leg but don't know how or what from (I got her from Ireland!).

I got the vet out who only did a flexion test as she isn't lame and found her extremely stiff on both back legs stretching forwards and said it was most likely arthritis. The vet recommended being on Bute but only for the farrier. This mare is only 8 so I am quite upset from this outcome and don't know whether I should just continue to do light hacks or completely retire her. She has always been a very highly strung horse who won't relax anywhere no matter what I do which I am now starting to believe is possibly pain related? I can just about afford a prescription of Bute let alone scans and injections!

She is currently just on new market joint supplement which had eased her discomfort for a couple of weeks but seems to of worn off now.

What are people's experiences with arthritis in the stifle, especially in juvenile horses? Are there any supplements you would recommend?

Any advice is much appreciated!

TIA
 
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I’d be pushing for a full lameness investigation. Something is definitely not right with the behaviour you describe especially as it seems to be getting worse. She is definitely not ‘trying it on’ so well done for not listening to the people at your yard. My boy has has arthritis in his hocks since he was 13. He hunted properly until he was 19 and retired from jumping for another issue. He still hunted steadily up until he was 23. He is now rising 26 and still loves his hacking. I have managed him very, very carefully though.

I’d be getting the back looked at as well, although back soreness can be a secondary condition to soreness in the hind legs.
 
A horse which has got worse with hind leg shoeing is one with a problem.
I had one who pulled a muscle (we didn’t know that at the time) in her quarters and first sign was she became incredibly difficult to shoe behind and then became weird when trying to roll. I immediately got the vet. Even after significant time off and no further issues medically we had to dope a couple of times reducing the amount until she decided it wasn’t going to hurt anymore.
 
I have to say, I was once told by a specialist equine behaviourist vet that around 80% of nappy horses have some kind of pain - and every horse I’ve thought was nappy for other reasons did turn out to be sore. I’d do full lameness work up and investigate.

Worsening behaviour like that doesn’t happen for no reason.
 
Sorry to say this but this horse is screaming that something somewhere is wrong. I am sorry that your vet isn’t being proactive in helping support you in getting to the bottom of this.

I’d ask for a full lameness / poor performance workup. If insured I’d go to a hospital (whoever locally has a good rep) for this so they can do imaging etc on the spot. If not then I’d seek a second opinion either from another vet at current practice or from a different first opinion practice.

Depending on what gets thrown up a good osteo eg Tom Beech may be worth a shot (eg if some of pain is back related or if your investigations don’t flag anything but if it’s suspected to be lower limb probably not and if money tight again probably not.)

If you haven’t already get a good physio on board. If you’re down South Yasmin Stuart has an excellent rep. If you’re in Yorkshire area I could give you the name of someone else who is very good.

Accept this will be a long road with no quick answers or fixes and that some issues have many layers and won’t resolve until you’ve addressed as many as possible (& that you may end up back at square one many multiples of times if there’s multiple issues)
 
If it were me, I would get your vet to explain better what your options actually are as it sounds like your vet hasn’t really given you too much info other than a broad “it’s prob arthritis”? You need to know the full costs of treatment and which is best? But you need to treat her as she is clearly in pain which is being resulting in the nappy behaviour so it’s good you have acknowledged this, so many don’t and keep pushing their horses. Being funny about shoeing/trimming is always a huge red flag.

I would discuss with your vet what is the most economical way to treat her. And keep exercising her, gently in hand if needs be. Stopping moving is the worst thing for arthritis. 24/7 turn out, keep warm and don’t let her get overweight. Supplements won’t cure this, management/physio and potentially medicating the joint will support the joint and help her. Bute to shoe is a good idea, as is sedalin if she gets worked up. Also discuss types of hind shoes, or if barefoot would help (that’s really dependant on the horse - we have one with arthritis who is better unshod, and another who can’t be barefoot). Do what works for your mare. A bit of physio would also help if you could run to that.

Please don’t take this the wrong way but horses are expensive and have a horrible habit of costing a lot to treat just when you don’t need it. By writing down what you need to do and maybe look at how you can pay, it might feel a bit less daunting. Start putting a bit by each month if you can’t afford vet insurance. And possibly look at any vet schemes where you can get discounts for treatment. They can save you a lot!
 
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First, find a way to get some money to pay for this. Horses like to hurt themselves so this will likely not be your one and only vet bill ever. Can you offer poo picking services locally, or help others on the yard with their horses? Can you find a cheaper yard or share a field with a friend?

Once you have some cash, you can get nerve blocks done and imaging of whichever joint(s) come up as an issue. My vets would be able to do this at the yard, and it wouldn’t be cheap but not thousands of pounds either. If you know what the problem is, you can treat it.
 
If you cannot afford it right now, then I would turn the horse away.

Save up plenty of money until you can afford it.

Better still, take out a credit card to pay for it.

It's unfair to ride this horse at present.
 
Jenko109 said:
If you cannot afford it right now, then I would turn the horse away.

Save up plenty of money until you can afford it.

Better still, take out a credit card to pay for it.

It's unfair to ride this horse at present.
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Agree with turning the horse away and saving up for investigations. Horse will likely be more than happy once doing nothing at grass. The only two supplements I would recommend spending on are both endorsed by vets I know - Ron Fields for ulcers, which the horse probably has from pain, and CBD for reducing inflammation and pain.

Save all other money for the vet. And definitely stop riding.
 
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