Ataxia and random lameness

[lizness]

Hello,

23rd August I took my mare x-country schooling at Richmond after the BE she flew jumping 90,100 and even some of the open. Finished on a great note. After I took her home but as my friend tied her in the trailer and i didn't check the breast bar was not put across. Horse seemed to travel fine a bit of movement etc. Brought her home was fine. I only mention this as it is the only significant event!

Had a few days off then schooled her seemed a bit worse than normal but not significantly. Felt she wasn't quite right and thought her back might be sore so gave her a bit of time off before the physio came. Physio came and noticed she was slightly lame behind back was slightly sore bt put this down to bad fitting saddle, now rectified. Hoof was poulticed as there was a slight crack but nothing and got vet to have a look as he was coming to yard. Noticed she was slightly lame in behind more one than the other and maybe/intermittantly in one front with an odd stamping movement when coming from trot to walk. Thought that his first thought was bone spavins.

Horse went for a lameness work up at the vets. Noticed lameness in same three feet and ataxia x-rayed hocks and neck. Did some neuro test, tight circles, blindfolding, walking on off curb. Noticed mild arthritus in lower neck, hocks were clear.

Left for three weeks with bute to see if lameness got worse with work so they could do nerve blocks, horse seemed sometimes better on bute however could have been coincidence. Stopped it a week and a half early as she developed some rather nasty mouth ulcers that i thought may be due to bute. Went back to vets and they took blood mainly to identify if she had equine herpes. Tests came back clear. Thought that she was no longer lame behind, possibly slightly in front.

She seemed ok, bombing down roads in trot, cantering. School work seemed not as good finding difficult to circle on left rein in canter.

Horse reffered for a bone scan, nothing majorly significant slightly hot sacrollic joint and slight change but nothing very hot in neck. Said sacro. wass often hot in bone scans. However they also found she was excessivly ataxic under mild sedation

The vets want to steroid her neck where we first found the arthritus as they think that this may be causing the ataxia and see if this hel;ps but I am not sure if this is the problem as she had been so good fairly recently and bone scan suggests that there is not significant new bone growth there. Am a bit worried about the risks with this?

I can see that she is not right if I look really critically but I can't tell she is ataxic or different in day to day life.

Anyone any ideas? All we seem to have looked at is bone, could anything muscular do anything like this?

 

[Birker2020]

My horse had ataxia due to a bad fall on his neck in the field. Basically from what I understand calcification took place which hindered the spinal cord and nerves associated with the spinal cord. The spinal column ended up having a smaller gap for the cord and nerves to pass through due to the calcium deposits and new bone growth. This in turn caused the ataxia. My horse was Level 3 touching on 4 at times graded Wobbler although he was classed as a true CVM case (same difference really).

He was pts as there was very little they could do for him. He was ten.


Got to say this though as a point of interest, my vets at the time (since changed vets as disgusted with service and treatment of horse) came out and xrayed neck with portable machine. Said there was no change to the neck bones. When he got to Liverpool the damage was so obvious and he was pts within two hours of our arrival after he was graded, assessed and diagnosed. The trouble with portable xray machines is that they can fail to penetrate the massive muscle mass on the neck to reach the vetebrae to get a clear enough picture.

So please don't entirely rule out CVM due to your vets xray results. I'm not a vet by the way. Here's an interesting link to CVM/Wobbers http://www.meadowherbs.com/Info Center PDFs/Wooblers_EPM.pdf

Do you think it would be possible that by the time your horses bone scan was carried out the hotspots would no longer show as it was some time since the injury??? Is this possible? What do other forum users think?? Not well up bone scans.

 

[tantallon]

I also had a three year old that started showing ataxic signs - the minute my vet saw him he said that it wasn't muscular but neurological - he was swinging his back legs ever so slightly out before placing them on the ground. Was very, very slight. Had his neck checked scanned etc and he had bone growth touching the spinal column. Like the other poster I had to have him pts eventually although he enjoyed a year pottering around the field before movement got too bad. He was grade 4 wobbler with no chance of recovery. He had been pushed down a ramp as a foal (not by me) and landed badly on his neck, the vet thought that this had eventually caused the arthritic changes. Like the injury that some race horses get when they go over their necks at speed when they fall. I would defo have the neck checked as they suggest. Don't mean to be doom and gloom and not saying that's what's wrong with yours but would want to have it checked so knew what was going on in there. Good luck with your horse.

 

[lizness]

Thanks for the replies. Tried to ring the vet today with more questions but she was off. I have booked a physio to come thurs in case he can shed any light
Applecart:
The vets said when initially when they x-rayed that they don't think that the neck changes were due to a break/injury. They also reckoned that the neck spine canal was of a normal width. It is interesting that they missed it with you applecart she was done in the vets, don't know if this was a portable one? They mentioned some drawback of the injection if there was a spur on the cord due to increase in pressre with the injection, but was said quickly! I have only noticed her being not right since August, if the bone is pressing on the neck and if there is not bone changes will there be a difference? I don't know how else we could check the neck? Ultrasound? The bone scan has kind of thrown this?
Tantallon:
It is interesting that there was four years from foal to wobblers getting really bad.

I have been looking at the sacroilliac and wondered if this could cause mild ataxia? It does tie in with the slightly odd movement and not looking quite right behind

 

[A Beary Merry Christmas]

Hi Lizness,

I wouldnt rule out her back yet, Has it been X-rayed? Just belting round the X/country could cause a spinal injury. For such big, powerful animals they have some terrible design flaws and are incredibly fragile in many areas. eg. digestive system, Heavy body on some incredibly fine bones, multiple issues with feet ect. not to mention a brain with a distinct lack of self preservation.

I swear some of them could kill themselves on a cotton ball, Silly buggers One of mine was grazing peacefully, spooked at a magpie, and brained himself on a low branch. He was ataxic for a few days. Fortunately, it was localised swelling pressing on the C-spine. Swelling went down (bute) and he recovered but it could have killed the big twit if he'd whacked his poll.

This website was good, very informative the vet is an authority on this stuff. He has a guide to do your own neuro obs. I did it and called vet, was able to point out the affected area to him.

http://www.equinewobblers.com/Wobbler_Syndrome/Fractures.htm

If you google 'ataxia in horses and equine wobbler syndrome or wobbler horses' there is a plethora of info. there. Hope everything goes well for you and your girl.