Check ligament injury. Am I expecting too much too soon?

J

jenni999

Well-Known Member
Joined
11 December 2009
Messages
569
Visit site
So, we had a hole in the inferior check ligament and are 6 weeks into box rest and started in-hand yesterday. 5 minutes twice daily building up over 6 weeks to 30 minutes twice daily and then re-scan. He had PRP treatment 3 weeks into the box rest. He is still obviously sore on that leg and is walking lame. Is it too soon to be expecting him to be sound? Anyone had a horse with this injury and can tell me how soon they were sound?
 
i to think you need to ask your vet, my horse was never lame with his in spite or a tear, although it took 12 months to recover too a reasonable point. The scans showed very slow improvement and think they were 8 weeks apart, it took about 9 months for the scan to look good. Ligaments are very slow healing.
 
I have contacted my vet and am waiting for her to call me back but thought I might get some useful info by posting here.....
 
hope your vet has got back to you, I do think it is early days in terms of a ligament issue though. think you need to do the walking though to help the fibres repair nice and in alignment.
 
Nothing wrong with optimism I suppose, but judging from my experience with a horse doing his hind check, it will take a long time before the horse is healed. There is little blood supply to ligaments and they heal slowly.

I think if you rush things you may get flare ups and set yourself back again.
 
Be very cautious and follow vets advice to the letter, not doing so can be catastrophic. If a human does something like this it can easily be 6 months before you feel "safe" on the affected limb and a year before you really get strong again.
 
Mine wasn't ridden for 7-8 months and it was a full year before he was back to the work he was in before the injury - however he was never really lame, his leg just seemed to give way underneath him. He did it about 3 years ago and is now 21 and has a lovely summer of fun rides this year, despite my vet's doom and gloom prognosis ;)
 
Vet says to keep exercise to a few minutes a day and see how he goes. I'm not expecting it to heal properly for a long time which is fine. It can take as long as it takes.
 
Pony hasn't helped himself by escaping while on inhand grazing at the weekend, galloping flat out down a tarmac drive and jumping a metal five bar gate to be with his frields.... :-(
 
I have a WB who did his check ligament in the field as a 4 year old. He was HOPPING lame at the start but scan showed a moderately severe injury. But he looked fairly sound in walk 4 weeks later, was almost incontrollable during in-hand exercise from 6 weeks when scan showed consderable improvement. We started riding after 4 months (as quietly as possible!!) and has been sound ever since (he's 12 now.)

The escape won't have helped - but I'd want it scanned again to see if more damage had been done and I'd expect to resume box rest for at least a couple of weeks.
 
I have a mare that has done both her front Check ligaments. She was only very slightly lame with the second one. She does not do Box rest so was turned out (I bandaged both front legs)with a quiet pony.

She went on to have a successful endurance career.

Just take it easy and slowly with the rehab. I also used the Hilton Leg aid twice a day.
 
He's sound in walk but still on box rest and will be until mid-Jan when he is due to be re-scanned. I can't risk turnout as he will be a lunatic. There isn't a fence that he can't jump so I can't put him out in a small paddock. Poor lad just can't understand why he's confined to barracks :-(
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top