Exercise for mild arthritis?

[cadno1]

Hi,
My pony was diagnosed - purely on trot up / flexion tests - a year ago with mild spavin, esp. in near side hock. Since then, he's been rechecked a few times, and no dramatic deterioration has yet been spotted (touch wood!). Vet's advice is to 'not go berserk', but that it's OK for him to continue to work. We do very little, only hacking out and very occasional schooling, at a totally basic level (walk and trot) when boggy grass paddock permits. I have prob hacking out in winter due to lack of riding companion, and fact that the pony won't leave his field mates (I have tried - believe me!). Vet has not so far prescribed bute, or other pain killers, only supplements, and I think she regards him as a very mild case, at least so far. Does anyone have a suggestion for gentle exercise routine, in paddock, which will help the arthritis? Also - given that vet said don't go berserk -how long should I warm him up for, can I do more than walk and trot, i.e. would slow cantering count as berserk? Pony is 15 and out on 10 acres of sloping hill pasture, 24/7, all year round, so I think he must be exercising himself quite a bit, and so far with no ill effects! Any advice would be very welcome as I want to start some sort of proper exercise routine, but the arthritis is making me very wary of how to approach it sensibly. Thanks for reading.
Karcad

 

[chestnut cob]

If it helps... my horse has spavins in both hocks. They were diagnosed and treated in June this year. He had very little time off, maybe 2 weeks in total, I built him back up into full work quite slowly with lots of hacking. He is now worked 6 days a week which usually includes: 2 x schooling sessions (or 1 schooling, 1 lesson, all will include walk, trot and canter, lateral work, poles), 1 x jumping session (or may be jumping lesson), 1 x long reining or in hand (in poles) session), 2 x hacks (up to 2 hours, I get bored any longer) or possibly 1 x hack and then a competition or out hunting. He is happily hunting on good ground for about 3 hours with no ill effects.

If there hasn't been a change in his condition then I'd say he could be in full work. My vet just said the more work I do, the quicker the horse will wear out. Also said that he'll never get to Olympia but will be fine to dressage to Novice, bit of hunting, and general RC stuff. I school mine the same now as I did before but I just make sure I keep an eye out for any stiffness - just be aware that they may take longer to warm up and cool down, and be prepared for the occasional stiff day.

Maybe spend some time working him on the ground so that you have more luck getting him away from his field mates.

 

[cadno1]

Thank you so much for your encouraging reply! What a lovely horse you have. Mine is also bay with a star. I feel much better now as - having had too little time to do much with my pony in the last couple of years - I thought the arthritis might mean I'd missed the boat. However, your horse obviously leads a full and active life so your post has cheered me up a lot. I am working on the herd separation thing but my pony is seriously strong willed !!
Thanks again

 

[hellybelly6]

Regular gentle exercise on soft ground, avoid very hard ground, trotting on roads and tight circles.

Allow extra time to warm up (esp in the winter) and to cool down again.

Bascially, be sensible and sensitive to your horse.

Once the bones have fused, the horse will be pain free, if a little stiff.

Swimming is good for horses with arthritis.

My horse has BS has had it since he was 9, he is now 16 and its his side bone which causes the trouble!

As chestnut cob said, the harder the work, the quicker the joints will wear out. For this reason, I stopped jumping my horse esp as he is a big lad, but he is able to do everything else.

Suggest feeding cortaflex and boswellia to help preserve cartilage and reduce inflammation and pain. Cod liver oil is also good as is cider vinegar.

I remember feeling that it was the end of the world, but really it isnt and its not as bad as it seems.

 

[chestnut cob]

Thank you

It really isn't the end of the world, you just have to listen to your horse. If he's been out of work, or in very little work, for a while then bring him back into it and back up to full fitness slowly. I took a long time with mine because I preferred to look at it as a second chance to do things my way, rather than get depressed about it.

The other poster (sorry, I can't remember who it was without losing this reply by going back!) is correct about trotting on roads etc. I do some trotting on the roads but if we're hunting, try to keep on the verges where possible. The best thing you can do is encourage him to use himself properly and carry himself. He might be a bit sore through his back as they compensate for hock spavins by holding themselves tightly further up, so he might need (as mine did) to re-learn how to work properly and learn that it doesn't hurt anymore.

Have fun

 

[kezimac]

my horse was diagonosed with bone spavins 2 yrs ago and i can also remember feeling like it was the end of the world, but we did some slow work for a couple weeks and built it up - the vet said i could jump her but not every weekend, we did funrides, odd jumping dressage loads hacking til earlier this yr when was diagnosed with navicular! so now not much roadwork, and not on unlevel ground so mainly in an arena - we dont jump so just do flatwork and dressage. She copes very well with it - lives out 247 which helps, she has bioflow boots on fronts at night and hinds at night, has magnetic rug at night and we warm up slowly, we do lower level dressage. so not end of world at all.

 

[cadno1]

Thank you so much for all your replies. It's great to know people have found ways of coping with this condition, and are still able to give their horses happy and fulfilled working lives. I am intigued by the fusion thing - maybe this has already occurred? I've heard of people working horses, quite hard, on bute, to encourage fusion, and my vet hasn't suggested this, but maybe fusion can just occur naturally, e.g. if the horse is active in the field, as mine certainly is? This might account for him not being lame as such, just a touch stiff? Incidentally, mine also had sidebone diagnosed a few years back, in both fore feet, but these apparently did fuse and he never suffered any lameness at all, just evidence of sidebone upon feeling his pasterns, so maybe he's a natural 'fuser'? Anyway, thanks again for all the replies - I will bear in mind all of the advice.
All best