Experience with Splints?

timbobs

timbobs

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Looking for people's experiences with splints :)

Mr Ed has got a splint and went very lame (5-6/10ths) overnight before the splint came up. It is only a very small swelling, but he is obviously uncomfortable with it!

Vets have been out and x-rayed because he was so lame and no breaks which is great!

Any ideas on how long it will take to heal? From what I have read, some horses never go lame and others take forever! Any advice on how to help it heal please do share :)

Ed is currently on pen rest with some compagel to put on 3x per day (he can't have bute at the moment as he is having treatment for ulcers).
 
Ice it - if you can get ice vibes boots even better. I managed to get them on insurance as prescribed by vet for splint, rest and compagel is best.

They are funny old things - some go almost unnoticed and others are a pain. I wait until horse is completely sound; splint is completely cold and I can press it (hard) without horse flinching until I bring back into work. Can take 6 weeks. Old ones can suddenly flare up if they get knocked or horse works on hard ground - similar to our shin splints. Better to take more time than you need to ensure it's fully healed.

Some people will tell you to rub a lemon on it and other strange things but I prefer to follow what my vet advises - that's what I pay him for!
 
Nicnac said:
Ice it - if you can get ice vibes boots even better. I managed to get them on insurance as prescribed by vet for splint, rest and compagel is best.
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You got Ice Vibe boots through insurance??? Blimey that's a new one on me, who are you insured with?? Wish I had tried that now :)
 
My horse has got a huge golf ball :( I hate it as he has such fine legs. He's had it about 1 1/2 years now, he went lame about a week before it came up and I don't remember it ever being particularly bad but it's flared again recently and has dragged on for over 2 months, only ever 2-3/10ths lame and only ever shown lameness in trot but incredibly frustrating!
 
Thanks for everyone's replies :)

The frustrating thing is that there is barely anything to see but he's obviously not comfortable on it!

He's being treated for Ulcers at the moment so having the time off isn't a problem, was just wondering how long he might need.

He's on tiny pen rest at the moment, and he's not impressed! Hoping he'll come sound over the weekend so he can go back out with his friends.

https://instagram.com/p/BX5Ue3Mn6Mu/

He's clearly missing his friends!
 
Had a yearling Arab many years ago that had a huge one come up a week before a national show, never lame and completely disappeared when 4 yr old . Have an 8 yr old that has recently got one , again not lame not sure if it will go down or not . I always use schooling or brushing boots when ridden with it .
 
My mare threw a big one on her left fore at the beginning of last summer and then a 3 lumped whopper on her left hind. She never went lame with either. I had a panic about the one on her hind because it was so huge, but the vet was not at all concerned and told me to carry on riding (albeit steady).

I used DMSO on both splints and it got them down quickly. You can feel them now if you run your hands down her legs, but they aren't visible unless you're really looking for them.
 
Looking for further thoughts/advice if possible!

Ed is still lame with his splint :( Vet came back out last week and said 3 weeks pen rest and re-assess. I'm wondering if I should just get them to x-ray to see if there are any breaks now rather than in 2 weeks if he's still lame?

I've made a claim on the insurance for the first set of x-rays so financially it isn't a problem. I'm concerned that it's been almost 2 months and he's still lame.

He was on a week's pen rest when he first did it, and then went back out as normal so not sure if I just didn't give him enough time and the 3 weeks pen rest will sort it. Splints are so frustrating!
 
Is the splint tender or hot? Could the lameness be from somewhere else, foot or shoulder maybe, and the splint be a red herring?

I'd totally refuse to follow vet instructions to put a horse in a tiny pen for 3 weeks for a splint (particularly as he's recently been treated for ulcers). What's the thinking behind it? Box/pen rest is stressful and stops the horse being able to move around and heal itself naturally. Stress and immobility isn't conducive to healing in horses, and 3 weeks seems very excessive to be standing around in isolation.

Just for interest, my lad threw a huge one 18 months ago but remained totally sound. A few weeks later he threw a smaller one on the other leg - same story re soundness. They are both slightly smaller now but the bigger one is still pretty whopping - but he's never been lame or off work, and there was never any heat or issue apart from cosmetic!
 
Landcruiser said:
Is the splint tender or hot? Could the lameness be from somewhere else, foot or shoulder maybe, and the splint be a red herring?

I'd totally refuse to follow vet instructions to put a horse in a tiny pen for 3 weeks for a splint (particularly as he's recently been treated for ulcers). What's the thinking behind it? Box/pen rest is stressful and stops the horse being able to move around and heal itself naturally. Stress and immobility isn't conducive to healing in horses, and 3 weeks seems very excessive to be standing around in isolation.

Just for interest, my lad threw a huge one 18 months ago but remained totally sound. A few weeks later he threw a smaller one on the other leg - same story re soundness. They are both slightly smaller now but the bigger one is still pretty whopping - but he's never been lame or off work, and there was never any heat or issue apart from cosmetic!
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I ended up getting him x-rayed again and it turns out he has broken his splint bone so putting him on pen rest was the right decision. He's almost sound now so pretty sure the lameness was coming from the splint.

He's in a pen on the edge of his usual field and seems totally unphased. He can still groom his friend over the fence and has Ad-lib hay so is never without food.

He's been packing on the weight in the last few weeks so I don't think it's been harming his ulcers thankfully!

He'll be back out on full turnout shortly and can enjoy the winter off letting it heal :)
 
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