Amy_08
Well-Known Member
My mare has been back and forth to the vets since November with her LH. Between Nov and Jan she was on box rest for a hairline fracture of the cannon bone.
After this she still wasn't right with intermittent swelling around the fetlock and heat down the back of the leg. She was sound trotting up and on the lunge but was 2/10ths lame on flexion at the beginning of Jan then sound on flexion at the end of Jan. Vet scanned and found low grade tendonitis of the SFT. She's been on walking work since and a couple of hours turnout a day, not restricted. Went back today for rescan and tendonitis looking much better. Vet saw her on the lunge again today and trotting up and she was sound. He did flexion and she was crippled. Her leg was shaking when he was holding it up and when he let go she could barely weight bear. It was horrible to watch and we all stood there with our mouthes open as not what we were expecting.
Vet nerve blocked the fetlock joint, coffin and pastern. No change with the fetlock and coffin joints but 80% better when he did the pastern. He xrayed from the fetlock down and the foot, nothing. He said he could scan the collateral ligaments although he wouldn't be able to see much or down into the foot and for this she would need an MRI, but I wanted some idea of what we were dealing with so he did it. He said there was definately damage to the ligaments and that it didn't look good, but that he couldn't see the DDFT or into the foot so he couldn't see how far down it went and if it got worse. So now I am panicking. Everything I have read about collateral ligament damage doesn't look positive.
Vet has told me to keep walking her out as I have been riding her for the past 5 weeks, but to not turn her out. Now everything I have read has said box rest, so am in two minds as to what to do. I will be looking to get an MRI scan done asap anyway so I will have some idea what is wrong.
Any experiences/advice?
After this she still wasn't right with intermittent swelling around the fetlock and heat down the back of the leg. She was sound trotting up and on the lunge but was 2/10ths lame on flexion at the beginning of Jan then sound on flexion at the end of Jan. Vet scanned and found low grade tendonitis of the SFT. She's been on walking work since and a couple of hours turnout a day, not restricted. Went back today for rescan and tendonitis looking much better. Vet saw her on the lunge again today and trotting up and she was sound. He did flexion and she was crippled. Her leg was shaking when he was holding it up and when he let go she could barely weight bear. It was horrible to watch and we all stood there with our mouthes open as not what we were expecting.
Vet nerve blocked the fetlock joint, coffin and pastern. No change with the fetlock and coffin joints but 80% better when he did the pastern. He xrayed from the fetlock down and the foot, nothing. He said he could scan the collateral ligaments although he wouldn't be able to see much or down into the foot and for this she would need an MRI, but I wanted some idea of what we were dealing with so he did it. He said there was definately damage to the ligaments and that it didn't look good, but that he couldn't see the DDFT or into the foot so he couldn't see how far down it went and if it got worse. So now I am panicking. Everything I have read about collateral ligament damage doesn't look positive.
Vet has told me to keep walking her out as I have been riding her for the past 5 weeks, but to not turn her out. Now everything I have read has said box rest, so am in two minds as to what to do. I will be looking to get an MRI scan done asap anyway so I will have some idea what is wrong.
Any experiences/advice?