Does anyone use any tech to figure out if their horse is lame?

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honoriabrown

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How do people monitor whether their horse is lame or not, or if they are recovering? I know that there are a few technologies like the Lameness Locator for vets to use, but do you have anything similar, or wish you did?
 
Cortez said:
Yes, I use my eyes. Then, I call a vet if my eyes have told me that the horse is lame.
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The research shows that your eyes almost certainly arent accurate. I went to a talk by one of the developers of the lameness locator. It can be done using an iphone and they think that within the very near future they will be able to roll it out to people for use at home. So while no one is now, I imagine they soon will be.

I have a seaver girth sleeve which measures the elevation of strides and the regularity of foot falls. If it flagged up anything outside the norm, the next step would be the vet for me.
 
i would normally know immediately when riding and would trot up in hand or lunge on a level surface to check if the lameness was very slight. the researchers want to sell their products, i am pretty confident i know what i am feeling and seeing after over 60 years of dealing with horses of all kinds
 
splashgirl45 said:
i would normally know immediately when riding and would trot up in hand or lunge on a level surface to check if the lameness was very slight. the researchers want to sell their products, i am pretty confident i know what i am feeling and seeing after over 60 years of dealing with horses of all kinds
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You can be confident, but you'd still be wrong. Thats why vets are using the lameness locator more and more. It picks up what human eyes cant see.

Theres more info on one brand here for anyone interested

https://equinosis.com/about/
 
Leo Walker said:
You can be confident, but you'd still be wrong. Thats why vets are using the lameness locator more and more. It picks up what human eyes cant see.

Theres more info on one brand here for anyone interested

https://equinosis.com/about/
Click to expand...
I don't see why I would be 'wrong' in determining visually (even with my one working eye) that one of mine was lame, which leg and usually (by feel) what it could possibly be. Its something I've done over the past 40+ years as an adult.

Why would I be wrong in seeing a lameness? ?
 
I think the value of those lameness locators is not where a horse has an obvious lameness but for those not-quite-right ones where it's either super subtle or multiple legs involved making it hard to pinpoint by yourself.

I'd definitely be interested in something you could use at home but we have nowhere suitable other than the road and presumanly you'd need a helper, which I struggle with.
 
milliepops said:
I think the value of those lameness locators is not where a horse has an obvious lameness but for those not-quite-right ones where it's either super subtle or multiple legs involved making it hard to pinpoint by yourself.
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For the hard to determine, requiring the likes of the current use of nerve blocks, xrays or scans and such, then I would be interested to see what it could do, but I got the gist that this was to be for lay people to see what leg(s) and why?
Perhaps I've read this wrong?
 
The highest my tech goes is a watch with a second hand for counting down flexion tests, and sticking white markers on the horse and studying the video of it moving.

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I mean its hardly high tech but I video and sometimes do a slow-motion video! I'm often on my own and she can be a twit to ride somedays. Its not always that obvious if shes tense and just not moving well or actually lame!

I actually think shes lame at the moment and have been watching videos or her to try and figure out why! and if it looks the same as last time. Cheeky request but if anyone wants a look feel free to message....!
 
Leo Walker said:
The research shows that your eyes almost certainly arent accurate. I went to a talk by one of the developers of the lameness locator. It can be done using an iphone and they think that within the very near future they will be able to roll it out to people for use at home. So while no one is now, I imagine they soon will be.

I have a seaver girth sleeve which measures the elevation of strides and the regularity of foot falls. If it flagged up anything outside the norm, the next step would be the vet for me.
Click to expand...

All this techy stuff is a great aid but what I find happens is that people then proceed to rely on their wonderful apps and forget how to do things. Such as read maps (SatNavs), take notes, remember stuff, (taking pictures of everything - iphones), etc. The kind of micro analysis that diagnostics are able to detect is great, but the vast majority of horses (and people) are not 100% sound, nor do they need to be to perform perfectly adequately, and there will be yet more people obsessing about things that need not be worried about. I am extremely happy to rely on doing it by eye, feel, knowing the horse and knowing when to call the vet.
 
How often would anyone use the tech? If it were to confirm what you already thought was a lameness, then maybe fair to use, otherwise it wounds like a way of increasing vet bills!
 
I think it depends on your horse.

I took a horse for a check up this time last year just because she was performing at a high level and I wanted to make sure there were no little niggles appearing as she is mid teens. I'm paranoid and I am happier knowing that I'm doing my best by her. I know it seems silly, and my OH told me if you take a horse to the vet, they will find something wrong with it - but actually she came away with a clean bill of health and I was happy to crack on.
Vets understood where I was coming from and I'll do the same each year I think. I would be interested in the tech for that reason. To give me early warning of something I may not be able to feel otherwise.

My other current ridden horse is not quite straight and not properly supple yet as he's still developing and learning how to not be a broken racehorse. it would be pretty useless for him, he's not *lame* he's just not straight. the welsh is super straight and super supple, therefore I think we have a good benchmark to assess against if that makes sense.
 
YorksG said:
How often would anyone use the tech? If it were to confirm what you already thought was a lameness, then maybe fair to use, otherwise it sounds like a way of increasing vet bills!
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I agree.

And I've seen a lame horse given the all clear by it. Owner was reassured, went jumping and had a nasty accident when it ran out.

.
 
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