Finally - a diagnosis! (bone spavin)

[TotalMadgeness]

I have had my lovely big stoic 9yo IDx for 4 years now and after lots of false starts (my confidence, his twisted left fore, concussed soles, weight issues, breathing issues, poor school surface, bad weather... etc!) I eventually managed to start seriously schooling him from April 2017. I firstly noticed in addition to not being particularly forward he also wouldn't relax through his jaw and would fight the bit. I tried different bits, a drop noseband, a micklem, more bits, ergonomic bridle (no drop)... nothing really worked. He would curl up and hump his back when asked for canter on the left lead. He would also put his ears back at that point. Various horsey people said that this was him being lazy. Anyway he improved a bit with lots of physio, intensive schooling exercises, different saddles etc but in general I had a horse who wouldn't (couldn't) work over his back, didn't bend particularly well, lacked suppleness, struggled to work in an outline and needed a very long time to warm up. He also appeared to find walking downhill difficult - he basically went downhill in a jerky motion and tended to trip up. The other strange thing I noticed is that on the lunge he on the left rein his hips tilted inwards (if that makes sense) whereas on the right rein his hips appeared level... At no point did this horse present with lameness!

So earlier this year he started to lose muscle on his wither and became girthy. His neck also became noticeably stiff. I got saddler/physio out and there was some improvement but it wasn't as good as I hoped.To cut a long story short I went to a polework & rider assessment clinic where there was a chiropractor doing the rider assessment bit. She said I was fine but expressed a lot of concern at the way he was going so I made an appointment for her to see him. After 2 hours working with him she asked if she could discuss her findings with my vet because she thought there was something physically wrong with him (her thoughts were the neck). She called the vet and the vet promptly asked me to bring him in for a bone scan. The result? Bone spavin in both hocks worse on the left. He has now had injections in both hocks and I cannot believe the difference (its early days though so I'm being cautiously optimistic!).

1. His personality has gone from quiet introvert to 'I love being a horse' extrovert - or as the physio quipped 'he is rather opinionated now'!
2. Vet expressly told me 'light work only' 2 weeks after the injections. So after 2 weeks I put him on the lunge and he proceeded to do some impressive airs above the ground that I've never ever seen him do before.
3. He no longer shuffles awkwardly downhill he either strides down ears pricked or trots/canters down (with me hanging on shouting WOAH).
4. It is going to be VERY interesting riding him...

Anyway guys - I'm obviously delighted we've found the issue (although a wee bit sad that he's been in such discomfort for so long) but has anyone got any advice on how to manage this horse moving forward and what to look out for in the future? Tips on things such as schooling and perhaps supplements to support him (I currently have him on Equinutrive Alpha Gold). I'm assuming too, and may be way off the mark here, but perhaps I'd be best to avoid jumping (which I don't like anyway so that wouldn't be a hardship) & working on hard ground (e.g. trotting on the road) - but what about things like dressage and polework (which I love)? He is turned out everyday for at least 8 - 12 hours and I'm thinking of putting magnetic hock boots on him at night.

Thanks guys!

 

[The Trooper]

My friend had her lad injected for a bone spavin in his hocks. The results a year later are really good. He's now getting back into jumping and she's hoping to move onto competing with him. Made a huge difference.

I wish you all the luck.

 

[Goldenstar]

Well the first thing I have to say i glad you found what wrong .
You are now on a slippery slope which only end one way .
Steroids into the hock joints work really really well at first but you will need to repeat these for as long as it’s possible they tend to last shorter and shorter times so you need to plan financially for self funding this .
There’s a long term price to pay for injecting joints , it’s why it’s not done routinely in humans the intervention has a cost on the joint over time.
You should also using consider a drug called cartofen which I have used with good success on horses with spavin .
The best work for such horses is things that make strong in their muscles without expecting them to sit on their hocks too much .
You must must keep this horse thin in a horse who done very little work being too fat is the most likely trigger for spavin .
This going to need planning in summer when you need the horse out to keep him moving but can’t let him gain wieght .
You will managing this for the rest of the horses life so plan now for next summer use the winter to diet the horse on a low calorie fibre based diet and get his wieght down .
There plenty of evidence that turmeric works to lower inflammation in humans , little except anecdotal in horses I have not seen improvements using it but others have so it’s worth considering .
The diet need to be fibre based I would feed straights avoiding coarse mixes . I would give the horse some high quality protein daily I would give 200 Grammes of micronised linseed daily .
Of course I have not seen your horse if you are going to have to diet him strictly I would consider u’sing the Supplement myoplast to aid his muscle development while he’s on a strict diet .
I have managed older horse with spavin very successfully usually high mileage hunters I always work a reduction in work load into my plan so if the horse is hunting two days a week it will become a one day week horse or it will become a two day short day horse whatever works best .
Your issue may be that this horse has got spavin and from your post it seems it’s never been in hard work and it’s nine .
You might want to explore using a lateral extension on the hind shoes ask the vet and carrier about this I have always worked mine with no hind shoes part of the year this may or way not help but you to be on top of the balance of the foot as they may wear dangerously unlevel .
You are going to have to suck it and see where you get .
You must never let the horse be in discomfort it’s just ethically unacceptable you have be really on top of stuff when you have a damaged horse like this in work .
Much can be done to keep spavin horses working now it’s not the death sentence it was when I was young .

 

[The Trooper]

My friend had her lad injected for a bone spavin in his hocks. The results a year later are really good. He's now getting back into jumping and she's hoping to move onto competing with him. Made a huge difference.

I wish you all the luck.

I will add, the treatment he had done last year was having his hocks injected so as to fuse them, not sterioid injections.

He may have had these in the past though but I am not sure.

 

[TotalMadgeness]

Thank you all!
Goldenstar
Thank you very much for your advice it is VERY much appreciated...
I was surprised he was diagnosed with bone spavin at his age because of the relatively small amount of work too! And also type of work i.e. mainly flatwork on a school surface... I wonder if some breeds are more vulnerable to this condition perhaps?
He has been injected with steroids and the vet has assured me there were other treatments available... Fingers crossed. Years ago a previous horse of mine had bone spavin in both hocks (an Arab) and with his new owner he went on to do low key XC and showjumping to a very old age! He did need time and painkillers to allow the hocks to fuse. No injections were given...
My lovely IDx is on a strict fibre based diet due to previous issues caused by being overweight in 2016 - and I include micronised linseed in this as well. So far his weight has been kept down and maintained very successfully. (oat straw is his friend - along with daily exercise)
In the summer he goes out overnight into a long strip on a hill which gives him plenty of scope for movement.
I will ask the farrier about his hind shoes when I next see him. Luckily this farrier works closely with my vet!
I will never allow this horse to be in discomfort again - I am absolutely kicking myself for not being able to get to the bottom of this sooner. Needless to say I will be watching him like a hawk now.

 

[SEL]

My mare was diagnosed via x-ray when she was just 6 after only a year in light work. Possibly due to her draft horse body on skinny Appy legs, maybe tight muscles or a genetic weakness. Vets wouldn't inject then because they said she was too young (done now) and I wish I'd fought harder on her behalf because she is soooooo much more comfortable now.

She's got other issues as well sadly but I keep her on a boswellia based supplement, daily exercise and as much turnout as possible. Plus danilon for creaky days.

Some people get away with just injecting once so see how you go and enjoy him while he's sound!

 

[Hormonal Filly]

Totalmadness, your post kind of scares me a little. He sounds SO much like my 6 year old welsh. I've had him 4 years soon and since a 4 year old hes always been a introvert and very similar to your gelding. He goes lovely on the flat in walk and trot, beautiful natural outline and flows from behind. Someone said in my lesson Sunday 'wow whats it like riding a gorgeous powerful horse, i'd buy him if you sold him' which was a shock as backed him myself, but as soon as we done canter work he struggled like hell and struggles with cantering circles. Straight lines hes fine, but circles is near on impossible. Did yours work in a outline before diagnose?

Did you ever try a bute trial? I mentioned my concerns to my vet and he seemed to think a strong bute trial would show a huge difference, and it made no difference to my gelding at all. He struggles down hill, stops a lot, canter is difficult but never looks grumpy etc.

 

[Tiddlypom]

It's not necessarily true that joint injections will last for shorter periods of time and need doing more often as the spavins progress. I had assumed this to be true, but according to an experienced former Leahurst vet it's also common that subsequent injections last for longer. My 12yo mare has recently had hers jabbed for the second time 12 months after the first, fingers crossed she looks good. She also has PSSM, and it's possible that moving wonkily because of this set up the spavins. The PSSM is under control now which helps hugely.

My own vet had a top jumping pony with spavins. She used to warm him up for 10 minutes in an easy canter then crack on. She sold him on after 3 years to another jumping home and he was performing better than ever.

Good luck.

 

[Pc2003]

My horse was similar to yours. Was never actually lame. Ever. Just a few odd symptoms that you described.
When he was eventually diagnosed after about a year of investigations (by RVC) he had the injections. Whilst they helped a bit, they did not make much of a difference. I tired several other things, maxed out my vet fees etc but sadly for mine it was career ending. However on the brighter side he is still happily hacking 7 years later at 15 and doesn’t seem to bother him too much. He can’t jump, ride on uneven surfaces like a school or rutty ground but he is still hacked by me 4-6 times a week. He is also barefoot and pretty much self trims. I cannot keep him rideable in shoes at all.
Wish you the best of luck x

 

[TotalMadgeness]

My mare was diagnosed via x-ray when she was just 6 after only a year in light work. Possibly due to her draft horse body on skinny Appy legs, maybe tight muscles or a genetic weakness. Vets wouldn't inject then because they said she was too young (done now) and I wish I'd fought harder on her behalf because she is soooooo much more comfortable now.

She's got other issues as well sadly but I keep her on a boswellia based supplement, daily exercise and as much turnout as possible. Plus danilon for creaky days.

Some people get away with just injecting once so see how you go and enjoy him while he's sound!

Interesting about the skinny legs! My horse has slim legs and tiny feet out of proportion to his tank like body. I'm thinking that body shape in line with his weight problems initially has kicked off the spavins...

 

[TotalMadgeness]

Totalmadness, your post kind of scares me a little. He sounds SO much like my 6 year old welsh. I've had him 4 years soon and since a 4 year old hes always been a introvert and very similar to your gelding. He goes lovely on the flat in walk and trot, beautiful natural outline and flows from behind. Someone said in my lesson Sunday 'wow whats it like riding a gorgeous powerful horse, i'd buy him if you sold him' which was a shock as backed him myself, but as soon as we done canter work he struggled like hell and struggles with cantering circles. Straight lines hes fine, but circles is near on impossible. Did yours work in a outline before diagnose?

Did you ever try a bute trial? I mentioned my concerns to my vet and he seemed to think a strong bute trial would show a huge difference, and it made no difference to my gelding at all. He struggles down hill, stops a lot, canter is difficult but never looks grumpy etc.

Hi Aimeetess

No I never tried a bute trial but my horses problems were apparent in all gaits not just cantering plus he was grumpy / depressed when saddled up. He never 'flowed from behind' bless him and he always struggled to work in an outline - you'd maybe get a few seconds then it would be head up or on his forehand. Worst issue was the avoiding a contact / leaning on the bit (I have light hands btw!) and the curling up/humping/reluctance when being asked for canter on the left lead (turns out the left hock has worse spavin than right). On right lead when asked for canter he'd go into it OK but twist his quarters in on the long side and would tend to disunite on the corners/short side of school unless very carefully ridden.

Your horse sounds great on the straights and in his trot work but does he canter fine on the lunge?

 

[Hormonal Filly]

Interesting about the skinny legs! My horse has slim legs and tiny feet out of proportion to his tank like body. I'm thinking that body shape in line with his weight problems initially has kicked off the spavins...

Pmed you TotalMadgeness. Regarding big body skinny legs, mine is the same. He has a huge muscly welsh body and skinny legs.. physio actually said this and apparently it puts a huge strain on the joints specially hock joints.

 

[SEL]

Pmed you TotalMadgeness. Regarding big body skinny legs, mine is the same. He has a huge muscly welsh body and skinny legs.. physio actually said this and apparently it puts a huge strain on the joints specially hock joints.

I have to try and keep my mare on the thin side (which is a challenge - puts on weight looking at grass) and if she's out of work for lameness then she just expands despite a restricted diet. She's 618kg (15.1h) when she's looking good and you can see her ribs. Sadly her legs could probably do with a body 100kg lighter. She inherited her draft horse dad's body but not his chunky legs. When she came to me as a 4yo she was hugely obese and I wonder if the damage to her hocks was already done then.

 

[Hormonal Filly]

I have to try and keep my mare on the thin side (which is a challenge - puts on weight looking at grass) and if she's out of work for lameness then she just expands despite a restricted diet. She's 618kg (15.1h) when she's looking good and you can see her ribs. Sadly her legs could probably do with a body 100kg lighter. She inherited her draft horse dad's body but not his chunky legs. When she came to me as a 4yo she was hugely obese and I wonder if the damage to her hocks was already done then.

Its not easy is it, mind my welsh is quite fit and slim for a welsh. The physio was shocked when I took his rug off and when she had a look, I try and keep him slimmer as do worry about his narrow little legs. Funny you say that as that is possible, mind my d's previous owner kept him restricted so hes never been over weight even as a baby.