Tink_87
Well-Known Member
What are people's experiences of this/symptoms their horses presented with?
Hindlimb psd
- Thread starter Tink_87
- Start date
budatiger
Well-Known Member
Horse was forward hacking on the flat, but struggled downhill. Crabbed and seemed to really struggle. Finally one day suddenly went on strike in arena, kicking out and humping with hind quarters when asked to go forward into trot. Diagnosed with bony changes to hocks & fetlocks too, and has a very sore back. Currently waiting for further diagnostics before deciding on best course of action. It's horrible. Mine is only 5 and done very little. On the initial lameness exam there was little to see, 1/10 lame LH, but once nerve blocked it became obvious.
applecart14
Well-Known Member
I think symptoms are digging holes in stables to point toes into, leaning on things with their hind quarters, fetlocks dropping over a period of time. Straight hocked horses are more prone, and horses with poor hoof confirmation, low heels, long toes.
Box rest, Shockwave, Stem cell, PRP and neurectomy are all recognised treatments although the surgical route is often favoured as box rest alone is usually not sufficient treatment.
Box rest, Shockwave, Stem cell, PRP and neurectomy are all recognised treatments although the surgical route is often favoured as box rest alone is usually not sufficient treatment.
samleigh
Well-Known Member
Mine was no obvious lameness, but wouldn't take any weight behind when schooling very very heavy in your hand, she even went to a pro's for a week for schooling, also when schooling her back right leg would just dip, like a trip, maybe 4/5 times per schooling session & SJ she would run after a fence, practically impossible to jump 2 fences in succession and also land disunited, I would watch her on the lunge & she just wasn't quite right! I'd had her vetted, teeth done, saddle, Mctimoney when I'd bought her 6 mnths previously, I booked Mctimoney & saddle fitter again (Saddle fine) Physio confirmed a very sore back & when I rode her next, 2/3 days after treatment, lameness was much more apparent, I think she'd been holding herself just so, to save herself the pain, booked a lameness check with Vet, who couldn't find any lameness but commented how she moved behind, plaiting and wide and that she again had a very sore back, but if we could video her at home, especially the tripping, which I did, Mare then when back to Vets for investigations..Nerve blocking confirmed Suspensories with SI pain. We started with SWT & Bute, def improvement to begin with, her walk so much straighter, but soon as the Bute stopped the tripping with the hind became more regular, a pain indicator.
So I opted to go straight for the OP (N&F). I worried and worried about the OP but that was the easy bit, she coped well with box rest/pen turn out, better than me, we are now on 6wks of walk work, increasing each week, its dark nights and at the moment I am still walking in hand, luckily we have a very large barn with stables around the insides, hay & straw stored in the middle, think 50mtr circle & lights over the car park..so its around the barn and car park. 25mins a night at the moment, her walking is straight, she's turned back out in a large field, and I've yet to see her trip/dip with her hind leg, fingers crossed! I give her MSM & linseed 200g a day, she is also having regular Physio.
So I opted to go straight for the OP (N&F). I worried and worried about the OP but that was the easy bit, she coped well with box rest/pen turn out, better than me, we are now on 6wks of walk work, increasing each week, its dark nights and at the moment I am still walking in hand, luckily we have a very large barn with stables around the insides, hay & straw stored in the middle, think 50mtr circle & lights over the car park..so its around the barn and car park. 25mins a night at the moment, her walking is straight, she's turned back out in a large field, and I've yet to see her trip/dip with her hind leg, fingers crossed! I give her MSM & linseed 200g a day, she is also having regular Physio.
lori ann
Well-Known Member
There is a very good Facebook discussion group well worth joining so many different experiences.
Our horse had mild psd and was never really lame showed as lack of impulsion behind and some toe dragging. Also sore back which is being treated regularly by a very good physio.
We are on a conservative rehab programme using an arc equine machine. Not really much box rest as it has been proven to be counter productive. Was in a small turnout paddock all Summer walked in hand then under saddle now introducing trot work . It is the road work which encourages the ligaments to line up without scar tissue.
The toe dragging has stopped now he is getting stronger behind. He also did the dip on the right hind on a small circle was usually seen in the stable but have not seen lately.
He had a retained wolf tooth which the final vet feels caused the problems as he was evading the bit and head tilting then could not work properly .I had on numerous occasions asked about the broken wolf tooth from when he was 2 but vets and dentists all said nothing there until one actually felt it and have the tooth as proof !
We are hoping next spring to start jumping again but will be doing lots of hacking through the Winter. He is only 5 and had done very little.
Our horse had mild psd and was never really lame showed as lack of impulsion behind and some toe dragging. Also sore back which is being treated regularly by a very good physio.
We are on a conservative rehab programme using an arc equine machine. Not really much box rest as it has been proven to be counter productive. Was in a small turnout paddock all Summer walked in hand then under saddle now introducing trot work . It is the road work which encourages the ligaments to line up without scar tissue.
The toe dragging has stopped now he is getting stronger behind. He also did the dip on the right hind on a small circle was usually seen in the stable but have not seen lately.
He had a retained wolf tooth which the final vet feels caused the problems as he was evading the bit and head tilting then could not work properly .I had on numerous occasions asked about the broken wolf tooth from when he was 2 but vets and dentists all said nothing there until one actually felt it and have the tooth as proof !
We are hoping next spring to start jumping again but will be doing lots of hacking through the Winter. He is only 5 and had done very little.
HelenS
Well-Known Member
An advanced dressage horse aged 17 who had been with me since a foal. She was a 17hh KWPN who had produced a foal two years earlier. He was a very large foal (now 17.3), and she had her conformational faults, predominately a long back and fairly straight through the hind legs.
She started finding left hand 15m circles difficult, and began leaning in. Once, when my trainer was riding her, she 'lost' a back leg and stumbled sideways. She was fine in walk and canter, the problem only showed in trot. We had her nerve blocked, x-rayed and scanned and she showed psd in the left hind. Due to her age (and lack of insurance cover) she was rested for 6 months on the vet's advice. She came back sound enough to hack after the period of rest so we slowly resumed light work. After 6 months of riding she one day spontaneously wanted a brisk canter in the field whilst I was hacking her out. She was raring to go and loved every minute of it. The next day she went into the school and really seemed to want to work, almost as if there had never been anything wrong with her. The following day, when doing a quick lunge (as she had been in most of the day) it became obvious she was unsound. The vet had warned that this might happen.
One particular characteristic of her condition was almost continual changing of weight and resting alternative hind legs; marked filling of the hind legs, and extended thoroughpins on both hinds. She also became very 'coon' footed with her hind pastern dropping to the ground. She also appeared to lose her nice topline. The vet suspected that it was the degenerative type of psd. Sadly we lost her two weeks later when 4 sachets of 'bute a day wasn't even knocking of the edge of her pain.
However, had she been a younger horse, and without the conformational faults we would have probably had shockwave or stem cell treatment, but the odds were against her. There seems to be quite good results in younger horses with modern treatments and rest.
As bizarre as it sounds I feel that she was having one last fling at life, and she most definitely told us when it was time to go.
She started finding left hand 15m circles difficult, and began leaning in. Once, when my trainer was riding her, she 'lost' a back leg and stumbled sideways. She was fine in walk and canter, the problem only showed in trot. We had her nerve blocked, x-rayed and scanned and she showed psd in the left hind. Due to her age (and lack of insurance cover) she was rested for 6 months on the vet's advice. She came back sound enough to hack after the period of rest so we slowly resumed light work. After 6 months of riding she one day spontaneously wanted a brisk canter in the field whilst I was hacking her out. She was raring to go and loved every minute of it. The next day she went into the school and really seemed to want to work, almost as if there had never been anything wrong with her. The following day, when doing a quick lunge (as she had been in most of the day) it became obvious she was unsound. The vet had warned that this might happen.
One particular characteristic of her condition was almost continual changing of weight and resting alternative hind legs; marked filling of the hind legs, and extended thoroughpins on both hinds. She also became very 'coon' footed with her hind pastern dropping to the ground. She also appeared to lose her nice topline. The vet suspected that it was the degenerative type of psd. Sadly we lost her two weeks later when 4 sachets of 'bute a day wasn't even knocking of the edge of her pain.
However, had she been a younger horse, and without the conformational faults we would have probably had shockwave or stem cell treatment, but the odds were against her. There seems to be quite good results in younger horses with modern treatments and rest.
As bizarre as it sounds I feel that she was having one last fling at life, and she most definitely told us when it was time to go.