Broken leg... hock area. Prognosis??

[PapaFrita]

Poor horse at yard has broken her leg around the hock area. No body has any idea how she could've done it as she can't have been kicked where she was at the time of the accident. I think her leg has broken above the hock judging by the way the leg is 'hanging'. Yep, hanging because she's not been PTS, she's waiting to be loaded onto a trailer to be taken to the Vet School for them to treat- they'll do it for free to give the students practice, but they get to keep her.
Sooooo, aside from the VERY questionable morality of keeping a horse alive when she is in significant pain (she's getting painkillers, but I'm rather worried that the vet only left about 24hrs worth (this happened Friday night) so she might well be in ALOT of pain now) What sort of chance has she got of being field sound?

 

[Weezy]

From what I know I would say slim to none

I am sure others can answer better than me tho

 

[Tia]

No idea but have to say if she was my horse she would have found her final resting place by now......

 

[PapaFrita]

Too bloody right Tia! She had to wait about 6 hours before a vet could get to her (I provided the bute to make her a bit more comfortable until then) but unfortunately it wasn't mine or Fabian's decision to make, even though we could both tell the leg was f*cked!

 

[PapaFrita]

It's so unfortunate that the yard is run by a bunch of *rseholes who need confirmation from vet that horse is buggered. She was such a sweet mare too; very good for the kiddies...

so sad.

 

[The Virgin Dubble]

I will gladly stand corrected, but I understand that the prognosis for an upper limb fracture is pretty bleak.

Of course, it would depend on the severity, and the veterinary expertise available to the horse, but this sounds awfully like the poor animal will be used to practise on...

 

[0]

My horse fractured (not broke) her leg on the hock (the actual joint) and after three months in 'hospital' they said there was nothing more that they could try and she was pts.

So from my experience i'd say the horses chances are slim, especially as the leg is actually broken - From what i picked up on hocks (being at the vets every day for three months) is that they are notoriously difficult to get to heal correctly (the problem with my horses leg was that it was healing but it wouldn't heal correctly and they said the way it kept healing would cause her pain and as she was only six i didn't want to sentance her to a life of painkillers which is why she was eventually pts).

Obviously all situations are slightly different - you say it is above the joint not on it - i would guess that that would be a good thing (in comparison to on the joint).

However, from what you say about the painkiller situation....they should have had the horse pts instantly - i really cannot agree with people kepping their animals alive unless they take on the full enormity of doing so.

Of course give them a chance if there is one (as i did) but only if it is done with the horses intrests paramount - otherwise do it a favour and have it pts

 

[vicijp]

Rodney smashed his leg through just above the hock. I never actually saw it stood up, but id imagine it would have been hanging. I had a good prod before they winched him on the truck - it was like jelly. I think an injury like that would be hard to put right in a human, let alone horse.

 

[star]

i would have my horse pts no question if he did that. prognosis v v slim to none.

 

[beh]

i have been told, but dont take this for certain, that if the flesh has not been cut then there is always a chance something can be done. keep hopeing (sp) and fingers crossed

 

[Happy Horse]

Without an Xray it is impossible to say (unless the leg is obviously distorted) however I would say that immediate Xray and treatment or Euthanasia would be the only humane answer.

 

[Skhosu]

I do hope this poor horse is not going ot be used to practise on, then PTS when they've done all they want to do?
If they think they can save her, fine!
If not, they should be putting her straight to sleep as this is unkind in the extreme to keep her alive to practise. Yes, they need the practise, but come on!
Sad for the horse and owner of course

 

[MagicMelon]

How awful. Think the fact that it took 6 hours for the vet to come is an absolute disgrace! And that he only left limited painkillers is just stupid. Like whats been said - I do hope the vets arent just going to play about on her and then put her to sleep when they know thats the only solution. I mean, why the hell do they want to keep her??? What are they going to do *if* they did fix her leg, run other experiments on her?!

If this was my horse, I would have got the vet out immediately (mine would come out straight away in an emergency anyway - 2 usually come if its a bad accident so there's 2 opinions which is useful). Im sure very strong painkillers would be given and an xray would be taken straight away. Then Id simply ask their opinion. If there was any hope by sending the horse away to a specialist vet (about 3 hours from us) then I would need to find out how high a chance and what the pro's / con's where etc. I would choose the best for the horse, if putting to sleep is best then as heartwrenching as it would be - I would do that. The last thing Id want is my horse in that much pain and discomfort.

 

[debbielinder]

if it was my horse sad to say id have had it put to sleep by now and i think my vet would recomend me to do so if i hadnt come to a desition. would hate to think of her standing in her stable in so much pain

 

[PapaFrita]

[ QUOTE ]
However, from what you say about the painkiller situation....they should have had the horse pts instantly - i really cannot agree with people kepping their animals alive unless they take on the full enormity of doing so.


[/ QUOTE ]
I agree with you. Fabian informed admin as soon as he found the horse and asked for a vet. He said the situation was very, very serious. Nobody came to look at her for themselves, and wouldn't allow action to be taken without the vet having a look. Disgraceful situation, but all too common in Numptyville!

 

[PapaFrita]

Apparently, if they managed to fix her she would be turned away, not used for further experiments... but who's to say that's actually the case.
Agree that the whole situation is disgraceful.

 

[PapaFrita]

Actually, when I said 'practise' I did mean that they were going to try to save her. Sorry I wasn't clearer.

 

[Agent XXX999]

This has happened to 2 horses that I know of – one had 40% of his hock removed, 3 months at Liphook and 6 months off – he is now back doing all rc activities. The other, Stanley, has his hock bolted together – and is sound and currently jumping round 1.30 – he had a year off.

Both the legs were hanging…and Stanley had an infection in his bone and everyone though that he was a gonner…in fact he was booked to be PTS but the insurance covered a really strong lot of antibiotics and thankfully he is still alive and well.

 

[Tierra]

My horse suffered a fracture to his hock (going back many many years, as it was my first horsey). We did have a vet out because he was very very lame, but the vet thought it was bad bruising.

Unfortunatly, after laying down during the night, when he attempted to get up, the fracture "ran" and shattered part of the hock.

There was no question that he was to be PTS and my feeling was that damage to this area tended to have a very poor prognosis.

For what its worth however, I have been told now by two vets that the pain a horse suffers when it breaks a leg isnt as immense as we would think. They're apparently rather good at "blocking" off the area completly and they're thought to suffer considerably more with colic, for example.

Just thought Id mention it, since how long the horse has been left was brought into question. Don't take my word for law however, its just what ive been told!

Poor horsey though

 

[CJ1]

my horse had a compound fracture to the thigh bone last year, was either 6-9 months boxrest (half of this cross-tied) and pretty sh*tty outcome or the kindest thing was injection. I let her go peacefully.

 

[0]

[ QUOTE ]
This has happened to 2 horses that I know of – one had 40% of his hock removed, 3 months at Liphook and 6 months off – he is now back doing all rc activities. The other, Stanley, has his hock bolted together – and is sound and currently jumping round 1.30 – he had a year off.

Both the legs were hanging…and Stanley had an infection in his bone and everyone though that he was a gonner…in fact he was booked to be PTS but the insurance covered a really strong lot of antibiotics and thankfully he is still alive and well.

[/ QUOTE ]

It is nine years since the incident that i mentioned happened to me so science has obviously come a long way. However, this still suprises me. Firstly that they could save them because the main reason mine was pts is that she developed an infection in the bone and i was told that once this happens they can't do ANYTHING and i know what they can do for horses these days is incredible but i am told that for infections IN the bone this is still the case. Secondly i really can't believe that the horse, after getting over this went on to jump 1.30 with a bolted hock?!

 

[Agent XXX999]

Well Jem 1, he most certanly is...and happy doing it!

 

[PapaFrita]

[ QUOTE ]
from what you describe, if the leg is "dangling" then she will have broken both her tibia and fibula...not good i'm afraid...

if i recall, One Man suffered the same injury at Aintree, and was humanely destroyed....

[/ QUOTE ]

Unfortunately this mare is STILL here waiting to be picked up by Vet College peeps.

 

[Agent XXX999]

Thats wrong! The poor mare!

 

[Doublethyme]

[ QUOTE ]
For what its worth however, I have been told now by two vets that the pain a horse suffers when it breaks a leg isnt as immense as we would think. They're apparently rather good at "blocking" off the area completly and they're thought to suffer considerably more with colic, for example.

[/ QUOTE ]

I don't agree with this, I think the horse goes into shock and shuts down a bit, but is that anymore acceptable than them being in pain? Can't say that my mare "blocked off" the pain when she shattered her knee cap - she was dosed up to her eyeballs with painkillers and "out of it", but was still in pain - it was awful. She was immediately taken a short distance to the vet clinic as the vet wasn't certainly of the exact injury, but once x-rays taken and the real damage seen, she was PTS immediately. It was the worst journey I have ever done with a horse and I regret that I had to put her through the travelling to this day. Although obviously if the result had been different, I would probably not feel that way.

I think if you can get the horse immediate medical attention and be given adequate pain killers then it is acceptable to see if the bone can be fixed, however, in this scenario it is totally and utterly morally wrong to leave a horse that long with a broken leg and inadequate pain relief! It is unbelievable, poor poor animal.

 

[Theresa_F]

Breeze had a star fracture on the front of her hock joint. She had to have some turnout as at 29 she would have died if left in the stable. She was a tough old bird, and I decided to give her a chance.

She did seem to be improving, to the point I stopped bute and after seeing her trotting around, was calling out the farrier the next day to cut back her hooves so she was sore and not wanting to do more than a slow walk - cruel but she was not the sort to take life slowly and I had to do this when she cracked her fetlock joint 5 years earlier.

Unfortuantely she either rolled or slipped in the field, but had been down on the damaged side and when getting up put too much pressure on the crack causing the hock to break.

She too had a hanging leg. She was not in pain, ate out of her bucket of final mix and sugar beet - all the things she has limited access to in life.

There was no question but to have the hunt out and they were there within the hour. She went as a good old hunter should, with her ears forward and a mouth full of grub.

 

[Tierra]

Im not saying its right to leave a horse in pain. Mine was destroyed there and then. I am saying that sometimes its unavoidable and was purely remarking on something mentioned to me in the past by vets.

The fact the horse is still stood there waiting to be collected is rather horrific but I never meant to imply that I would advocate a horse being left in such a condition

 

[hollibobs]

I would agree with Doublethyme on this. About 6 weeks ago I found my friends mare dead in her stable with an obvious broken hind leg above the hock joint. The bone was protruding through the broken skin, it was a mess as you can imagine.

Her body was sent away for post mortem as at first it looked like she might have suffered a massive colic attack and all the thrashing around caused her to break her leg. However, post mortem revealed she was in perfect health, the only conclusion drawn from this is she must have got down to roll in her stable and somehow broke her leg. She tried to get up and buy trying to stand on her hind leg this caued it to protrude throught the skin and this in turn caused her to go into shock which resulted in her death.

Terrible thing to happen, I just hope she went quickly once the shock set in!

 

[BethH]

I would do anything possible to save my horses life, however slim the chance, I would want to give it a go if he was able to live painfree afterwards, but 1 thing I would never allow is for him to be used as target practice. If anything ever happens to me, he will be kept in livery with a kind loaner who understands his issues and if that is not possible he would be PTS rather than sent to an inappropriate home - I can't think of anywhere more inappropriate that a veterinary hospital for student practice - no way!.

 

[PapaFrita]

Yep. Oddly though she seems quite happy in herself; she's loose so she hops around and is eating like normal... horses are full of surprises!