Help me save my horse!

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Nags07

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I saved Ted from a racing yard about two years ago as he had a flexion tendon injury it was come to me or be shot!!!

Now i'm having problems getting him sound again as I want to jump him, I'm mega keen to treat him witih natural products as not too keen on bute as he suffered from gastric ulcers when he was racing!!!

I've tried vetrofen, devils claw and bute x but still cant seem to get him right any suggestions????

he has had a hard time so i would never sell him but really want to ride him.... Please help!!!
 
Please don't be upset or offended when I say this but if he won't come sound then you may have to accept that he *can't* be ridden, or at least that he won't be suitable for the sort of ridden work you want to do.

Natural products only work, IMHO, up to a certain point. What does your vet say? I would suggest you look into pharmaceuticals instead.
 
I would speak to your vet. Not saying that there isn't something that can be done, but some times no matter what we want to happen, the horse just isn't up to it. One of the sadder sides of horse ownership I'm afraid. I would have a good talk with your vet - perhaps with alot of rest to allow it to heal, then careful building up of work you might be able to ride him again. It's also worth chatting to your farrier as supporting the heel is really important to an injury like this otherwise the ligament is always under stress.
Tbh, with the best will in the world, I think it is unlikely that you would be able to jump him, given his past injury. It would put enormous stress on the weakened area.
Def talk to your vet, they are the best person to advise you on what you can do to help your horse.
 
i agree with chestnut cob ,and you most likely are going to have to face not being able to ride him again , or if so only a happy hack , if the last words were was either go to you or get shot then there is your answer really why would they consider putting a horse to sleep if that injury sustained wasnt that bad , it must of been bad for them to even consider having the horse put to sleep , and considering he hasnt come right after 2 yr then really im very doughtful he will ever come right again .
i think you need to do some serious thinking to keep him and having the thought of not being able to ride let along jump or sell him as a companion or have him put to sleep .i wish you all the best .
 
Thanks for the feedback.

The vet has said that I need to get him on pain relief untill the area strengthens and the adhesion have broken down and that should be a way forward and then to review him every month for the next 6 months so there is hope!

I'm really not keen on pharmacuticals products as they either have cox 1 and 2 inhibitors or just cox 2. cox one causes damage to the gastric ulcers and cox two has proven to create heart problems in humans.

Asked a specialist about natural products and they said the main reason to use them was that they contain tranduction protein that ulter the nocieptipe stimuli and ulter the nervous system. Aparently pharmacuticals don't do this they just mask the pain....

As you can see I have done alot of research on this!!!
 
if he is still having to be on pain relief after 2 years and your vet has only just suggested this then unfortunately i do not think he will come right, after two years, you would expect some improvement, also after that type of injury most horses arent suitable for jumping, just happy hackers, due to the strain jumping puts on their tendons
 
If the vet has suggested pain killers then I really think you should take that route - why should your horse feel pain because you have a prob with using drugs? Bute isn't the only option, given that he might need pain relief longer term and with his ulcer history, then chat it through with your vet and I'm sure he can suggest different things that would suit him and give your horse freedom from the pain he is experiencing.
 
sorry for misleading you please forgive i am blonde!! :)

I rescued him two years ago but he hasnt been lame all that time, and I have done some jumping with him in that time.....

I just need to get him right again, so going to give the vets advice ago but really want some ideas on which is the best natural supplement to use ......
 
Give him the correct supportive pain relief as recommended by your vet. Danillon is a lot better on their systems than Bute. And providing he's not cribbing or windsucking, and has plenty of forrage there's no reason to suppose a re-occurance of the ulcers. You could cover all the bases by supplimenting him with Gastrogaurd.
 
glosgirl said:
If the vet has suggested pain killers then I really think you should take that route - why should your horse feel pain because you have a prob with using drugs? Bute isn't the only option, given that he might need pain relief longer term and with his ulcer history, then chat it through with your vet and I'm sure he can suggest different things that would suit him and give your horse freedom from the pain he is experiencing.
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Umm the vet said to put him on pain relief but there are natural ones i have explained why i dont want to use drugs because of other side effects. Trust me I love this horse to peices so i'm not just stopping him hacing drugs because i have a problem with them
 
I don't want to upset you, but in all my experience, and I have had horses for nearly 30 years. If a horse has had previous tendon injuries it wont jump again and have a long life expectancy.

You will be able to get him back to full soundness by roadwalking, and you will be able to compete at showing and dressage, and do some lovely hacking, but in all honesty even if he's brought back into full fitness I've not known any horse to jump or hunt for more than 1 season without a far more severe breakdown soon after.


Sorry x
 
Well firstly that's a wonderful you've done, rescue a horse so badly injured he would otherwise be shot and kudos to you for that.
My question is why have you been jumping with him and where did you get the expectation that you could hope to get him sound enough to continue with anything but happy hacking, especially with such severe injuries and no use of drugs?
 
I really want to give him a chance seeing as this is the first time he has gone lame in two years!!!

I posted a thread not long ago about supplements as I've been reading a lot about it and one called sportmax came up a few times - basically wanted to know if anyone had heard about it/ used it.....


PS thank you so much for the advice so far it has got me thinking!
 
Rotchana said:
Well firstly that's a wonderful you've done, rescue a horse so badly injured he would otherwise be shot and kudos to you for that.
My question is why have you been jumping with him and where did you get the expectation that you could hope to get him sound enough to continue with anything but happy hacking, especially with such severe injuries and no use of drugs?
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Thank you, i'm sure you would do the same!

It sounds worse than it is.... in the racing world as soon as a horse isnt racing its an excuse to shot him. so there was always a chance to get him right and i did. He has done really well so far.... so dont want to give up on him too quickly.
 
Nags07 said:
Umm the vet said to put him on pain relief but there are natural ones i have explained why i dont want to use drugs because of other side effects. Trust me I love this horse to peices so i'm not just stopping him hacing drugs because i have a problem with them
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I do see that you don't want to use the drugs - though I must say that I don't agree with it. Your horse needs pain relief first off, then he needs to be allowed the time to heal - with whatever medical support needed, if necessary. Please (at least until you find another option) follow your vets advice and allow your horse the pain relief. I totally understand that you only want the best for your horse, this is all your vet wants too so the vet won't be suggesting anything that he knows would do your horse any harm.
 
Misinterpreted said:
I don't want to upset you, but in all my experience, and I have had horses for nearly 30 years. If a horse has had previous tendon injuries it wont jump again and have a long life expectancy.

You will be able to get him back to full soundness by roadwalking, and you will be able to compete at showing and dressage, and do some lovely hacking, but in all honesty even if he's brought back into full fitness I've not known any horse to jump or hunt for more than 1 season without a far more severe breakdown soon after.


Sorry x
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I have two examples of horses with tendon injuries, one of which being incredilbly bad wherby they have both come back to full work and that includes competing and jumping. There is hope. There are times when thats all you live for :)
 
Unfortunately, natural products will only help up to a point and from what you have said, and your vet's advice, it seems that your horse does need a prescription-only painkiller. My own horse has been on Danilon (gentler than bute) for a number of years as pain relief for arthritis, with no obvious side effects at all. I have tried various alternatives in the past, but he was still in pain whereas the Danilon enables him to live a pain-free life. Many racers suffer from gastric ulcers. Feedmark do a product especially for gastric ulcers - they have a free helpline and it may be worth giving them a ring for a chat.
 
How severe was the injury? The aim of good tendon healing is to minimise scar tissue-if you have had the horse 2 years and he is still lame then im sorry but it is very doubtful that you will ever be able to jump him again. he may not have been lame for the whole 2 years but the bottom line is he is still intermittently lame after a long period of time. The scar tissue will have formed long ago and that is inelastic, so can easily tear again. It cannot be broken down once formed.

You need to use drugs as recomended by the vet if your horse is to have any chance of comfort, even for the field. The risk of side effects is far outweighed by the benefits.
 
I think it is very unfair to expect this horse to be able to do any more than hacking if he comes sound. He'll come right, jump, land badly, and you're back to the same, or even worse. If the horse is in pain, and you don't follow vet's advice, you could end up trouble if you get reported. Natural remedies are COMPLEMENTARY therapies, not an alternative to vet drugs if they are needed.

Sorry to sound harsh, I don't want to, but you have to do what is right for the horse, which you knew had problems when you took it on.
 
I think you have to be kind to the horse and not consider jumping which will put more of a strain on the old injuries. If she isnt sound now you need to put together a long term plan with a vet and forget any ideas of doing more than rehabilitation - light hacking perhaps once she is sound (all with the advice and guidance of your vet). Any more than that and you are risking her long term health and perhaps yours if she lands badly on jumping, blows a tendon then dumps you.....! Sorry to be harsh but as the other person said you did know what you were buying.
 
Hi
I noticed you mentioned ahesions,I had a mare with tendon damage that had adhesions I am afraid outcome wasn't good.Would start riding slowly in walk etc under vets instructions ,she would be lame within a week.Vet said the adhesions present were causing friction and causing further adhesions.Could put her on bute which would provide pain relief and stop further adhesions occurring and allow her to ba a hack only but original adhesions would always be there and impede movement.Mare was field retired but did get worse over next yr or so esp in winter she felt it.In end I pts -she was only 6.
But each is individual and hopefully your horse will have a totally different outcome
I would follow vets advice.If nothing else helping what you got to lose using danilon under vets instruction
 
If he was mine I would not be jumping him.
All old tendon injuries have a very high risk off going again and they will be worst 2nd time round. Jumping puts a huge strain on horses legs and I think if you want to keep him sound and live a long life, stay away from jumping
 
shysmum said:
I think it is very unfair to expect this horse to be able to do any more than hacking if he comes sound. He'll come right, jump, land badly, and you're back to the same, or even worse. If the horse is in pain, and you don't follow vet's advice, you could end up trouble if you get reported. Natural remedies are COMPLEMENTARY therapies, not an alternative to vet drugs if they are needed.

Sorry to sound harsh, I don't want to, but you have to do what is right for the horse, which you knew had problems when you took it on.
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Totally agree 100%
 
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