Help - old arthritic mare

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crazyhorse37

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My girl is rising 24 and was diagnosed about 18 months ago with arthritis in her stifles and right fore fetlock joint. She is on Danilon (half sachet daily), devils claw in Hilton herbs movefree and naf superflex. I ride her gently (max 45 mins) in walk on the roads. Unfortunately where we live is rather hilly, so quite demanding terrain. We do no more than 2 days exercise in a row before a day off and she is generally worse without exercise if she gets left for a few days without work. This year she has really been suffering more and more and I have been needing to up her pain relief regularly. Things that have been making her worse are the wind, hard ground, running around the field and living on a hill. She's kept out 24/7 at this time of year and is a hardy type.

Any ideas for what might help would be greatly appreciated, she really is suffering this spring :( she's such an active girl normally this is getting her down a bit now.
 
Take her shoes off
Rubber mat her stable
Massage treatments and stretching exercises
Magnetic boots
Feed turmeric
Look into vet interventions such as having joints medicated, adequan or tildren
Put a sheet on her and never clip if she feels the cold
Lateral work in hand and under saddle
Work on grass as well as roads
 
crazyhorse37 said:
My girl is rising 24 and was diagnosed about 18 months ago with arthritis in her stifles and right fore fetlock joint. She is on Danilon (half sachet daily), devils claw in Hilton herbs movefree and naf superflex. I ride her gently (max 45 mins) in walk on the roads. Unfortunately where we live is rather hilly, so quite demanding terrain. We do no more than 2 days exercise in a row before a day off and she is generally worse without exercise if she gets left for a few days without work. This year she has really been suffering more and more and I have been needing to up her pain relief regularly. Things that have been making her worse are the wind, hard ground, running around the field and living on a hill. She's kept out 24/7 at this time of year and is a hardy type.

Any ideas for what might help would be greatly appreciated, she really is suffering this spring :( she's such an active girl normally this is getting her down a bit now.
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Past help and advice here
http://horse-care-and-advice.weebly.com/a.html




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My old boy gets a sachet of bute am and pm in the cold weather and just one in the warmer weather. I had his hocks injected before the winter last year and it made a huge difference. i know some folks will raise their eyebrows at the bute but he's 25 and i think his comfort is more important than the effects of the bute longterm. He's checked by the vet regularly so I'm happy I'm doing the best for him. I've discussed with farrier taking back shoes off and this is what we are going to do. He's still ridden at walk on the roads with a bit of work in trot in the school, he's certainly better if kept in work. He's fed bluechip dynamic, which i think is brill + quite a lot of oil in his feed. He's out during the day and in at night, which is what he's used to but I do make sure he's warm and dry. He's certainly not ready to be pts and hopefully he'll keep mobile for a few more years. I hope some of this helps.
 
I do the same , stretching exercises ( she'll do anything for food !) walks in-hand,shoes have been off for a number of years now , rubber matting ( all mine on mats) good comfortable spacious bed . Mine is on a bute-less (Devils Claw with yucca etc ) supplement , oil as well . All mine are on Benevit and Pink Powder . But the best thing I did for her( and the rest of my horses ) last year we moved to a warmer climate . What a difference , alot less stiff and mentally alot happier. She's 34 yo and Im so glad we did .
 
Thank you for posting this OP..my mare is 27 & starting to show a few signs..incidentally..how much turmeric are people giving?has anyone had any reactions to it?I use turmeric a lot & found one new bag I'm using 1/6 of the amount to get the same flavour in a curry say 1/6 of a teaspoon of the new one..its so potent I had terrible cramps from it..then noticed on the pack "do not eat raw/uncooked" can anyone explain the difference and why its like this-its just straigh forward turmeric!?Interesting to know there can be such variation between brands so thought best ask you lovely lot who know many things!
 
While you are all obviously doing your best for your horses, unfortunately, some perhaps due to a strenuous previous hard life or just wear and tear, really are just worn out and can't cope with what you are asking.
Whatever age arthritis sets in it is the beginning of a slippery slope and you will have to face up to the fact that many can't do half as much if anything without pain relief and that pain relief can bring with it unpleasant side effects for them.
If you ask a person with arthritis, particularly in the legs, they will tell you that whatever they use does not take all the pain away, they just have to cope as best they can but they have the choice of what to do and what to take for it, horses don't. Is it really fair to ask a horse to just cope with the pain so you can continue riding or playing with them? It's never about quantity of life for animals, it has to be quality and sometimes we have to face up to that, unpalatable as that might be.
 
Maesfen said:
While you are all obviously doing your best for your horses, unfortunately, some perhaps due to a strenuous previous hard life or just wear and tear, really are just worn out and can't cope with what you are asking.
Whatever age arthritis sets in it is the beginning of a slippery slope and you will have to face up to the fact that many can't do half as much if anything without pain relief and that pain relief can bring with it unpleasant side effects for them.
If you ask a person with arthritis, particularly in the legs, they will tell you that whatever they use does not take all the pain away, they just have to cope as best they can but they have the choice of what to do and what to take for it, horses don't. Is it really fair to ask a horse to just cope with the pain so you can continue riding or playing with them? It's never about quantity of life for animals, it has to be quality and sometimes we have to face up to that, unpalatable as that might be.
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Wow, a bit harsh! I'm quite old and got arthritis but I'm not ready to be pts yet. My physio's advice for me is to keep moving, take painkillers when needed and keep affected joints warm. I think that's what folk on this thread are doing for their horses. I'd like to think that with the excellent advice of my vet I'll know when the time has come to put old boy to sleep and we are not there yet.
 
oldie48 said:
Wow, a bit harsh! I'm quite old and got arthritis but I'm not ready to be pts yet. My physio's advice for me is to keep moving, take painkillers when needed and keep affected joints warm. I think that's what folk on this thread are doing for their horses. I'd like to think that with the excellent advice of my vet I'll know when the time has come to put old boy to sleep and we are not there yet.
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Nicely said..sorry!:D Due to an accident, I too have a condition which affects nerves, joints as well as soft/connective tissue so like Oldie48 its simply a case of good management..not hanging on. The second I thought my mare had had enough, after 20 years of owning her I'm very sure I will know..as will Oldie & the Op..My lovely girl spends her life near completely at the canter when she's not eating!(her choice & I do not mean ridden although she is & it helps her mobility wonderfully as does swimming her-both she loves)She has a zest for life & I'd hate to be missing something out that I should be doing:)
 
Maesfen said:
While you are all obviously doing your best for your horses, unfortunately, some perhaps due to a strenuous previous hard life or just wear and tear, really are just worn out and can't cope with what you are asking.
Whatever age arthritis sets in it is the beginning of a slippery slope and you will have to face up to the fact that many can't do half as much if anything without pain relief and that pain relief can bring with it unpleasant side effects for them.
If you ask a person with arthritis, particularly in the legs, they will tell you that whatever they use does not take all the pain away, they just have to cope as best they can but they have the choice of what to do and what to take for it, horses don't. Is it really fair to ask a horse to just cope with the pain so you can continue riding or playing with them? It's never about quantity of life for animals, it has to be quality and sometimes we have to face up to that, unpalatable as that might be.
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Yes a bit harsh.


My late mare went so stiff that the vets said bute for the rest of her life. I spoke to Equimins who said


if you have lubrication you don't have pain
no pain = no pain killer

I put her on flexi joint and the transformation was a turn around. " months later we did a sponsored ride and she
was like a 5 year old.


I do my best to save previous poster reaction to certain products, on the web site but it does get over looked till i post it.

OP it has previous posters comments saved like a library for quick find.
 
Leviathan said:
Yes a bit harsh.


My late mare went so stiff that the vets said bute for the rest of her life. I spoke to Equimins who said


if you have lubrication you don't have pain
no pain = no pain killer

I put her on flexi joint and the transformation was a turn around. " months later we did a sponsored ride and she
was like a 5 year old.


I do my best to save previous poster reaction to certain products, on the web site but it does get over looked till i post it.

OP it has previous posters comments saved like a library for quick find.
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I don't think it was harsh actually, but words can seem a bit blunt compared to real speech. I had my old girl PTS last October because I knew another winter wouldn't have done her any favours at all and there was certainly nothing to be gained by keeping her going. She was increasingly showing signs of discomfort despite larger doses of Metacam and caring for her feet was becoming an ordeal for both of us (I trimmed her myself) simply because of her arthritis. I jumped before I was pushed and I know I did the right thing for her even if all the pain then transferred to me. She was still eating well and quite bright and cheerful, but the good days didn't outweigh the bad ones any more.
 
I d not believe in giving bute/danilon to horses just so they can be worked. However, I do think it's fine to give it to keep them comfortable. It all depends on the horse. Some can be quite happy with life even though they have some pain. Others are miserable. Just like people. You have to do what is right for the individual.
 
I have arthritis in my hands, which sometimes makes handling youngsters and stallions difficult but not always.

I had an old horse with arthritis, my vet recommended magnetic boots, which worked a treat for two years, then he had two years on BUTE, did gentle hacks in hilly Scotland almost to the end at 27 years of age.
 
Thank you Fatpiggy and Amy for understanding what I was trying to say in my usual ham fisted way. Remember for those that jumped on me, I did write earlier "While you are all obviously doing your best for your horses", I wasn't criticising that aspect at all.

I know you'll all jump on me but here's some food for thought.

With the exploding old horse population, many of which are on permanent medication of some form or other that many people, myself included, actually find unethical; just because you can prolong a life, many times to be in discomfort doesn't mean to say you actually should. But have any of you ever thought that perhaps rather than medicate one that is always in some degree of pain, you could instead give a home to one of the very many healthy unlucky horses that are falling out of every tree nowadays? There are so many nice healthy horses that are looking for new homes through no fault of their own, it seems a great shame that the medicated ageing population is sometimes stopping them from finding those homes.
 
I've heard great things about GWF Nutrition's Joint Aid Plus for horses and actually got a pot yesterday for my horse from Vio Vet. It's £37 ish pound for 3 months supply. Worth a go I think.

I actually use their equivalent for dogs and it's brought my dog back from being a cripple who can hardly get up to bouncing around and being his old self again so I'm hoping for the same results for my horse! (dog was on rimadyl before that and no longer needs it!)
 
I think using bute to disguise the pain in arthritic horses (without using other methods like joint supplement etc in conjunction), is like driving your car without oil. You can't see the damage but its going on under your nose.
 
Leviathan said:
I think using bute to disguise the pain in arthritic horses (without using other methods like joint supplement etc in conjunction), is like driving your car without oil. You can't see the damage but its going on under your nose.
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You have to be careful though, Levi, most joint supplements are made from dead animals and therefore not ideal for herbivores.
 
Dear Crazyhorse, there's lots of info on the thread from those of us who are managing older horses with arthritis but I've just read your opening again and perhaps you feel your horse is further on than some of ours and you feel it may be time to pts. Hopefully you've got a good vet to talk things through, if you have, talk to them, if not, find another vet. Best wishes, I'm sure you know your horse better than anyone else and if you think the time has come, then it will be.
 
Many thanks for those with helpful suggestions. I am a physio myself and know what I would advise my patients to do with arthritis - pain relief and exercise as someone with arthritis has helpfully pointed out. Those that think it is for my benefit that I have my horse on pain relief and ride need to think again and a bit more laterally this time. If I was doing it for myself I wouldn't choose to plod about in walk! Like many I don't want my horse suffering, but I'm absolutely certain that she's happy. One thing I think we are all forgetting is that they are horses, not humans. They are wild horses, designed to keep up with their herd. If they can do that then the world is okay for them. My girl still has no problem having a good old gallop round with her friends and can sure put them in their place as required!!

How much turmeric should be fed? That's something I've not heard of before.
 
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