Bog Spavins?

[sugarpuff]

My sister's horse has been diagnosed with bog spavins and the vet has prescribed a month of danilon(sp?) and said to keep riding, perhaps to do a bit more hacking than schooling so more straight lines than turning and that he shouldn't need to see her again unless we are concerned.

The horse wasn't very fit when she bought her a while ago and she has been increasing her workload slowly to try and get her fitter. We also suspect that she has never really been asked to use her back end much as she finds it very hard to use her back correctly and bring her legs under her. She also has capped hocks (prior to her being bought by my sister), but she had a 5 stage vetting and the vet said that they shouldnt give her any problems. My sister only wants her as a hack and doesnt jump and doesnt show, so she considered it not a problem. She is 10 years old, 16.1, heavier built friesian.

The horse wasn't lame as such when we called the vet out, she just seemed a bit stiff and wasn't tracking up as much as she had been over the previous schooling sessions the week before, and even after a good 45 mins of gentle work she still seemed a bit achy.

I've never come across bog spavins before and was wondering if anyone had any advice/ experience they could share, good or bad!! Is it something that will always be there/ come back/ treatable/ minor prob/ major prob/ what sets it off/ etc. The vet said there were other methods of treatment which involved injections over a course of weeks, but that they were expensive and he recommended danilon.

Thanks in advance!!!!

 

[Cheiro1]

well spavins are excess bony growth in the hock joint so they wont go away/come back they will be constantly there. they are better with regular work to keep the joints supple, some horses require a bit of bute to keep them sound and in work, others are fine without after the intial soreness. if the vet thinks the injections are not really useful then they are probably later stage spavins in which case its a case of gentle riding and hoping that all the bone will be laid down and the joints will "fuse" as this eliminates the pain from friction. horse with spavins normally need more warming up to help stiffness and turnout is best for them

 

[cptrayes]

Bog spavins are not bony growths, they are fluid filling of the hock joint and almost always of cosmetic significance only.

The previous poster is confusing bog spavin with bone spavin, easy done.

 

[ofcourseyoucan]

i would suggest gentle work on some sort of fitness programme! just gently work her on and ask her for more hind quarter engagement working from behind!! the capped hocks are probably unrelated and there shouldnt be any reason for the horse not to enjoy a happy hacking working life with management. your vet is your best advisory as he has seen and assessed her.

 

[hairymolly]

[ QUOTE ]
Bog spavins are not bony growths, they are fluid filling of the hock joint and almost always of cosmetic significance only.

The previous poster is confusing bog spavin with bone spavin, easy done.

[/ QUOTE ]

I might be wrong but I thought that bog spavins were worse than bone spavins and generally bog spavins came after bone spavins.

 

[cptrayes]

You are wrong, sorry. The two conditions are not related except by an unfortunate simliarity in naming.

Bog spavins are generally cosmetic only. It is fliud inside the hock joint capsule and you can push it from one side of the hock to the other. It doesn't usually cause lameness and it is usually of no concern, which is why the vet in this case says he does not need to come again.

Bone spavins are a type of arthritic change with bone growth in the lower hock joints, and are a big problem in many horses which have it until the joint fuses (if it ever does).

 

[hairymolly]

Interesting. I only thought this as my friend has a horse that has had spavins(fused and sound on them) for years and he recently went lame on one of them and she was told that the bone spavin had developed into a bog spavin. Maybe we should change vets as I just googled both and everything that came up agreed with what you said. Sorry but this is something im interested in due to my friends horse having them. Has anyone else ever been told this and what is the difference between a bog spavin and a capped hock?

 

[cptrayes]

Capped hock is fluid on the end of the hock joint which is self-contained - a bursa (a permanent blister, if you like), just a little sac of fluid. It results from knocking or rubbing the end of the hock, to protect it from further damage.

Bog spavin is too much fluid inside the big sac that the hock joints sit in. It goes right through from one side of the hock to the other. You can see it bulge on the outside, between the point of the hock and the big hock bone, and if you push it there it will squidge through (technical term that )) to the other side and you can see it move. I've seen some absolutely HUGE ones on horses that are perfectly sound and never bothered by them. I have no idea why they happen, but I've seen a few and not one horse has been at all bothered by them.

I suspect that your friend's horse didn't have a bog spavin at all, but that he had strained his hock and had filling around the hock in general. Is he sound again now?

 

[miss_c]

Genie has bog spavin. Never been a problem and didn't stop her passing a 5-stage vetting. We show at local level very successfully, and do all riding club activities etc. They're definately not boney growth and don't affect her in any way at all.

 

[hairymolly]

Yeah he semms to be staying sound hopefully it will last, but he is a very delicate accident prone TB after all.

 

[CBFan]

BOG Spavins CAN be the result of changes in the joint (caused by OCD or Atrthritis) or trauma / injury to the joint as the body will produce the fluid to protect the joint and thus cause the swelling, however lameness will usually be present in this instance.

Otherwise, Bog spavins are considered a cosmetic blemish only and shouldn't cause any problems.

You might find that your sisters mare benefits from being on a glucosamine supplement - there are some relatively good and cheap ones out there and maybe wearing some neoprene hock boots in the stable to help keep her hocks warm..

 

[sugarpuff]

Thanks all for your replies!! Really appreciated!