Back injury - horse

[Sunshine]

We recently took on a loan pony that seemed to fit all the criteria for daughter - fab temperament,right size,age,breeding,stamp, etc

Having been with us for two weeks we noticed a few concerns, quite nervous when approaching with tack and tried to rush off when using stirrup to mount but otherwise a wonderfully genuine pony. On first ride we felt that she was very tense and seemed unbalanced but put it down to having to be ridden for first time in six months. Then tried to lunge (just in bridle - no roller) and she panicked as soon as I stepped back, and tried to gallop away. I stopped her and she was shaking with fear, so we gave up on that and walked out in hand. Yesterday we had instructor and DC come to see and they both agreed she isn't right behind - not just unbalanced from tension but that there was an underlying back problem.

Anyway - spoken to owner and it turns out that the girl who loaned her as a 3/4yr old was a short-tempered lump whom she had had to take the pony back from immediately because she heard of some mistreatment. It turns out this idiot had put her in extremely tight side reins and chased her with lungewhip even though in a panic and the pony had gone up. So as a 'punishment' this unspeakable person had pulled her over backwards. She had back treatment afterwards and annual check last summer to release muscle spasm.

I still want to give this pony a chance but until I can get the back lady out, I am unsure how long/hard of a battle it will be to get this pony right, and if she will ever come right. I know she isnt technically my problem, but daughter is already very attached and wants to make her right "as she didn't deserve that" - even to the extent of sacrificing her own aims and progress for her. We have had a pony which had gone through a fence sideways and worked through it to compete novice dressage and WH and nobody ever guessed there had been a problem, so I know we can persevere.

Has anyone any experience of these type of injuries, treatments and the long-term prognosis?

 

[YasandCrystal]

tbh only a vet can tell you the prognosis. As with most back injuries there can be different degrees of injury. I have loss of use on my WB with chronic sacro illiac dysfunction - where he has torn ligaments around his sacrum from going over. Your horse could have a similar type injury - much lesser or worse. It seems strange they loaned him oiut clearly not being completely right.
My horse didn't look quite right behind and showed tightness accross his back and shoulder. A vet should be able to assess and a physio could take some proper muscle measurements to show wastage in any affected muscles that will require treatment. Good luck.

 

[flintfootfilly]

If it was my own horse, I'd pursue proper veterinary diagnosis and prognosis with an expert vet like Sue Dyson at AHT, and deal with the outcome, whatever that may be, and I'd take on board that it might cost £2-3,000 to have a proper investigation done (if bone scans etc are needed). I'd also be aware that even if surgery is possible, it'll cost yet more, and then there would probably be extended rehab time with no guarantees of a sound rideable pony at the end of it all.

However, this is a pony you have on loan. The owner may or may not have been fully honest with you in the first place. If the pony hadn't been ridden for 6 months when you took it on loan, then I would say that at best is irresponsible on the part of the owner. Surely any caring owner would check that the animal can work comfortably before even considering allowing anyone else to ride it?

The owner may or may not be telling you the truth about the "short tempered lump" who had the pony before you. Even if there's a grain of truth in what the owner is saying in this respect, you need to ask yourself why the STL would have felt any need to do anything forcefully - could it have been that the pony was already showing some serious problem with being ridden?

It sounds as though the owner is probably being honest about the pony having fallen over backwards for whatever reason. If you really feel that you need to burden the responsibility to this pony, then definitely make sure you ask for (and ensure you get) access to the full veterinary reports on what happened to the pony, treatment and prognosis......... or just walk away. Ask the owner for permission to discuss it with their local vet, or whatever referral vet if any that the pony went to. You need to have the full picture to make an informed decision.

But mostly, I guess I really think that you should really strongly think about just sending the pony back to the owner She is their responsibility, after all.

And besides which, you took on the pony so that your daughter could have fun with her, could join in other pony activities with her friends, and could learn and make progress and learn about the ups and downs of caring for an animal. Whilst I'll do everything I can for my own ponies, I'm just not sure that it's right to burden a child with such a millstone. What if the pony can't be ridden for 6 months, for a year, ever? Will you both come to despise the pony because you'll still have to look after her, but will have none of the joy of being able to ride her and have fun on her? How old is she? How many years could she potentially live? And if she did live those years as a non-ridden pony, denying you both the possibility of another pony who COULD be ridden, would it have been worth it? I'm sure your daughter would learn something from having to look after a companion pony whilst her friends were getting on with riding, socialising and having fun, but would it be what you wanted her to learn?

I'm not trying to judge you on this, because whatever decision you make has to sit right with you, and you alone. But it's a huge burden to bear if you do take responsibility for this mare long term.

Hopefully the owner will have already considered what they will do if the pony can't be ridden again, and whether she is suitable to become a companion or not.

I'm sure it'll be tough on you both whatever you decide, but I wish you well with working your way through the options.

Sarah

 

[GoodyGoody]

I don't think there is much to add to FFF's excellent advice. There are SO many ponies out there who need a good home and who are in much better shape. It sounds to me like the poor pony has long-standing muscular issues which have then also had a psychological impact. Properly sorting these problems out is time-consuming, costly and requires a professional who knows what s/he is doing. Get a good sound pony for your daughter and make sure the owners of this one are aware of the state it is in.