Back pain - suggestions?

[anniedoherty]

My new horse has been "cold-backed" from the time I got him but it is getting worse. He seems very tense when I get on, puts his back up and sometimes bucks. He is fine on the lunge and shows no lameness.

My vet recommended a physio who came out today and she has advised me to get the vet (who hasn't seen my horse yet) to have a look at him because she thinks that he may have a major problem with his back.

Does anyone have any experience of a horse like this i.e. seems sound on the lunge but is unhappy under saddle and seems very tense when you dismount as well? He isn't, apparently, exhibiting any great muscle tension along his spine but he sort of stretches out his neck, bends it round and his legs go wobbly when his back is touched in certain spots.

Grateful for any opinions. My vet is away until Monday but will examine horse then. I feel really worried in case it is a serious problem.

 

[piebaldsparkle]

My friend horse presented similar symptons and was sent to an equine hospital, where x-rays shown spavins. He was sound on the lunge on sand, but presented 1/10 lame (tapped his toe) when lunged on a hard surface. He had made his back really sore guarding his hock. Try not to worry and wait till the vet has investigated further........My friend & vet were convinced her horse had kissing spine, as he was so sore.

 

[ann-jen]

My horse used to be just like this - she would even start to canter off as I started to mount and I had to fling myself on to pull her up. She used to be tense and anxious when ridden and buck when jumping. Her behaviour became seriously bad!
I had her checked by the "back man" and although she would improve temporarily she would be just the same a few weeks later.
It took a lot to sort her out in terms of veterinary treatment, saddlery and schooling. I had her back x-rayed to see if she had kissing spines - she didn't - the spines were very close on the x-rays but not actually touching. She had some steroids injected into the spaces between the spines and some time off and then when I rode her there was a massive improvement..... for a few months. It confirmed there was a problem with her back but obviously there was still something else.
Now - I probably sound really stupid but I never suspected my saddle because I had had it professionally fitted by a qualified fitter..... but that was the root cause. Partly because it wasn't a great fit for her(!!!) but also as it was an inappropriate design and bad fit for me. I was put in touch with another saddle fitter by my new instructor and she fitted my current saddle - a WOW. That was the turning point.
She has never tried to canter off when I get on since I got the WOW (3 years ago) and the bucking stopped immediately. Although she still bucks occassionally when jumping it used to be a constant thing (7 times on a 20 metre circle once!) The great thing about the WOW was that it could be adjusted to fit her as her back muscles built up. She went from having virtually no muscle on her topline to now being huge! She has had to have the panel replaced to accommodate this and has gone from being a narrow fitting to an extra wide!
The main way my instructor and I got her back muscles strengthened was through corrective schooling. Concentrating on getting her go long and low initially and encouraging her to carry and balance herself. I would say initially the build up in her frame was quite quick but the emotional problems she carried have not been quick to fix. It is only now that I am really jumping her again (3 years on) because she is now so strong mentally and physically. Our dressage has improved no end - we managed 69.5% recently (prior to this we used to get in the 40's!) and we are now jumping unaffiliated again and I hope we might affiliate BSJA again next year. I never thought this would be possible. It has taken a lot of work to get there and its been very hard at times but its been worth it in the end - I don't know how bad your horse is - maybe/hopefully not as bad as Jen - but there usually a number of factors involved and it takes patience to unravel it all. I would definitely start with saddle fit/vet/physio. Oh and I also managed to lose 5 stone in weight! I decided to try to get as fit as possible to help her to carry me. I am very proud of myself for that although its taken some doing.
Hope this of some help - drop me a line if you want to know anything else - and Good Luck getting it sorted

 

[vicijp]

I have ahd a few like this.
I find that NAF magic helps them no end, helps relax the muscles and they usually come off it within a couple of weeks.
An idea would be to try a course of bute. If he is instantly better on it, and gets worse once it is out of his system you know you need to investigate further.

 

[Bossanova]

Obvious question but have you had opinions from a couple of saddlers? Soooo many problems stem from saddle issues.

 

[anniedoherty]

Thanks everyone. I have only had one saddler out so far. He said that my horse's current saddle was a good fit and he has sold me another one so I have two to choose from but, at the moment, it doesn't make any difference which one I use because the problem is just as bad with both. My horse is very short coupled (which makes me worry about kissing spine, obviously) and so my saddles can't be too long or they sit behind where his rib cage ends. Fortunately, I haven't got too big a backside so I can get away with fairly small saddles.

I haven't tried NAF Magic but I was thinking of using a calmer anyway because he can be quite spooky. I will get some NAF Magic tonight when I go to the tack shop. Good idea about the bute too. I will ask vet when I see him on Monday.

 

[Tempi]

my friends horse had similar symptoms to this - fine and happy on the lunge but as soon as ridden work was done it was very unhappy indeed. She turned out to have kissing spine, underwent an operation and is back in full work and eventing and Novice level this season - this is 2.5yrs after the operation.

 

[anniedoherty]

Thanks P_G. I am hoping that is it nothing as serious as kissing spine but, if it is, at least there may be a good outcome.

 

[Caritas]

My horse has never had any of the symptoms you describe and he has had kissing spines but now had the op!!

 

[anniedoherty]

Thank you Caritas. I am really glad that your horse is on the road to recovery now. Tbh i have no idea what is wrong with Darcy's back and am just speculating because of what the physio told me. She mentioned kissing spines and also wobblers. Basically, we won't know until the vet has been and presumably started doing tests. I am still hoping that the problem will just go away but, in my heart, I feel that there must be something wrong becasue of how he is behaving.

 

[debradley]

Hi there, similar symptoms with my horse. Turned out to be kissing spines; don't panic it's not the end of the world. My girl has just had her surgery, is still on box rest, but even now the improvement in her is amazing. I'll keep my fingers crossed that your vet finds something and that it can be easily remedied. Keep us informed, there's plenty of people on here that have been through a similar thing so you've got great back up. Good luck.

 

[debradley]

I also notice that you had a 5* vetting when you bought him. Did you have the bloods run to see if there was anything masking the condition whilst you were in the process of buying him? You say the previous owners knew he had behavioural problems!! surely that should have flagged something up with the vet doing the vetting to eliminate any possible underlying condition that might explain the behaviour? I'd also go back to the vet who did the vetting and see if there is any recourse for you that way, they value their reputation and am sure they would want to help.

 

[anniedoherty]

Thanks debradley. I only had a two stage vetting I'm afraid. I was probably a bit naive when I bought him because my last two horses were fine and I only had one of those vetted properly. I won't make the same mistake next time and will always go for a five stage. I will post again as soon as I know anything.