bone spavin

[Tufty]

can anyone tell me what this looks like and what are the consequences

 

[miller]

Bone spavin is arthritis of the hock joints so you wouldn't really see anything without Xrays.

Eventually the joint would fuse and become less flexible. Horse would have a reduced stride length.

Only really diagnosable (is that a word?) by a vet

 

[Tufty]

thanks for that. My friend has just sold her horse and within a few days it has gone lame and the person who bought it thinks it is bone spavin. The horse was sound when she tried it and was sound all the time my friend had him (4 years) so would she or should she have noticed when she tried him

 

[Spot1]

Hi Jella. There is a chance you may be able to see or feel a bone spavin. They are usually found at the top of the metatarsal bone ( the bone between the fetlock and the hock) on the inside, where it meets the hock joint. Compare the two hind legs for any bony differences in this area. But as said by Miller, to be certain, x-ray is the way.
Have you tried a flexion test?
Is your horse lame or dragging his toe?

 

[Tufty]

its not my horse, it is my friends and she has just sold it so i cant check but will tell her to ask the people who bought him to check. He has only just gone lame and it is the lady who bought him that has suggested it might be bone spavin. my friend is concerned because she and no one else on the yard has ever noticed this and he has not been lame whilst she has owned him. will keep you updated

 

[collie]

The only 100% way to diagnoze spavin is with xrays. A few years ago i had a heavy cob with hock spavin. The prognosis for hock spavin very much depends on where it is. If it is in the little bones below the main joint the prognosis is usually very good, the joints will eventually fuse and the horse will come sound but will have a little stiffness in her way of going but she will be able to do most activities except some dressage exercises. However if it is in the upper or main hock joint the prognosis is not so good as that is where all the movement is. It is improtant to identify where the spavin is for her future management. There are supplements that can aid this problem as spavin is really just another name for arthritis. MSM, CORTAFLEX are usually pretty good. It can take up to a year or 18mnths for the joints to fuse properly but once this happens the horse is pretty much sound. In America when spavin in the lower joints is diagnosed they tend to work the horse in straight lines to hasten the process of fusion but this can be quite sore on the horse.