Arthritis flare up

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Tamski

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Hi All,

Sorry this is a bit long!

My 18 yo mare has got rubbish front leg confo and as a result has got arthritis. She went 4/10th lame 9 days ago after being shod and deciding to go for a hooley round the field, then pulling up sharply and v lame.

She's been on box rest since and the vet has been out to x-ray and has confirmed the arthritis. Nothing else going on in the foot but haven't pinned down which joint is causing the current problem.

Now she's being fed a joint supplement (Joint Right Supreme) and is currently on two bute a day. I'm also putting her Bioflow boots on for a couple of hours with the aim of building this up to twelve hours. She's still lame in walk even with the bute so is still sore.

She's very woolly but I've been popping her lightweight (no fill) rug on to keep the chill off but am wondering whether she's warm enough as the nights are getting colder and she's not able to move around too much and should be resting. So do you think I should put a slightly thicker rug on or would I be better off with leg wraps to get more circulation to the feet, or both? Don't want her to cook but want to maximise healing.

Any other suggestions to get her sound asap? Vet is back in a fortnight to have another look and hopefully get her turned out again but any suggestions welcome.

Thanks
 
It could be a change in foot balance that has aggravated the arthritis. If it is it wont improve with box rest as the horse needs to move to get used to the new balance. It may take a while to get better.

Constant gentle movement is also better for arthrits so i am confused as to why your vet has suggested box rest? Or is there a soft tissue injury as well?

Boswellia is a herb that may help. It isnt cheap but has shown some good results with arthritis and is safer to use long term than devils claw.
 
mine has arthritis in hocks and navicular in front feet, vet has always said to leave her out - she had to have 4 days box rest when she tweaked a ligament and had a puffy leg but he said as soon as poss get her in small paddock to keep her moving as will help - i also use bioflows - they on fronts at night and backs during day.
I have also tried things like rhus tox (homeopathic) nettles (good for increased circulation)
 
The vet didn't want her out as she's so lame, evn with the bute and wants her to be more comfortable before she moves around more. So two more weeks of box rest to get through.

I'll have a look at the herbal supplements- thanks
 
I have got an arthritic horse with terrible leg conformation (bowed left knee) and he went very lame a couple of weeks ago.

I was convinced it was either a chip fracture in his knee or that he had overdone things and his arthritis had flared up (friend saw him cantering a small circle in the field earlier that afternoon).

Always fearing the worst and being a natural pessimist I booked the vet to come out with X ray equipment.

He was still very lame on firstly 4 Danilon per day for a couple of days, then 2 a day. Anyway, it turned out that he had pus in the foot (still on box rest!)

I think he was cantering in the field due to the pain of the pus brewing and once it reached a certain point he became very lame.

This is a very long winded way of saying are you absolutely sure she hasn't got pus in the foot? Especially if she had recently been shod?
 
The farrier came out and had a poke around and couldn't find anything. no reaction at all to hoof testers but she has got very hard feet.

She's sweated up again this morning with no rug on and it's not warm here. She's not distressed at all so not sure what's going on.

Have spoken to the vet and she's not sure either. Am going to take her temp to see if theres an underlying virus and will get some bloods done tomorrow if she's still the same
 
That's a shame. I'm sure you would have been delighted (as I was) to see that pus. Good luck and I hope she gets better soon.
 
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