Hock injections - when?

[cptrayes]

I have a horse with spavins who has been growing lumps for three years (one of them is huge, half a boiled egg) but has never been unsound. He is now nine and for the first time he was 1/10 lame on the worse one yesterday. I put him on glucosamine immediately and he is sound today, even with a flexion test. He has a sight outward limb flight downhill, and squares off both his hind toes, but that's the only sign today of any problem. I will have him on MSM as well, as soon as it arrives in the post.

I am happy for him to have steroid injections into his hocks, because I know how much they help lots of horses like him. My vet is happy to do them, but I just want to get the timing right. I should say he's a dressage horse, working currently at medium with some advanced stuff like flying changes. He hacks a hilly area, but he does not jump (he's too scared, but that's a long story!).

My question is, if he is sound on the glucosamine/MSM, would you wait until he shows unsoundness again before having him injected?

Or will injecting him now, while he is sound, make it more likely that he will stay sound for longer?

Any ideas gratefully received.


ps I am not kidding myself about his soundness, he has been seen by several trainers and several dressage judges at affiliated level and I have never had a comment about him being unlevel.

 

[minigal]

I would wait....steroids reduce inflammation and pain, no need to expose him to the risks if he's sound?

 

[Birker2020]

I I put him on glucosamine immediately and he is sound today, even with a flexion test.

I can tell you now that the glucosamine you gave him will not have made him sound so quickly, it probably takes about fourteen days to get into the system, so whatever was wrong with him yesterday would still be wrong with him today.The MSM when it arrives will be a brilliant addition to the glucosamine and MSM can be quite effective in horses with mild to moderate spavin.

I would give him the steroid injection and see how he is afterwards. My BS horse went nearly three years following tildren and injections before needing a top up of steroid.

Its approx £75 per hock for just the steroid injection.

 

[clip_clop]

My cob was diagnosed with spavin yesterday he is 5/10 lame on his offside hind, we have gone down the route of 2 danilon for a week then 1 danilon for a week and after that he will be having iv tildren, I would probably go for the steroid injection if you can and see how he is after that

 

[happy_talk]

I would say that if he is sound, and genuinely sound not bilaterally lame, then I would carry on as you are. You are obviously aware of his problem, so once he feels it then start injections. Joint injections do have their risks, plus the costs, I would wait until he needs them/they are of benefit. The steroid injections only last weeks to a few months.

 

[cptrayes]

Thanks for the advice everyone.

I live on some severe hills and hock spavin does tend to show very clearly downhill. Also the horse is an overemotional warmblood of the worst kind and makes his feelings VERY clear. So I think I will be able to judge when he is feeling wrong, even if it is bilateral. Most people here and on my blog are recommending waiting until he is unsound, so I think that I will do that.

His limb flight is more correct again today and I am hoping that on glucosamine and MSM for the rest of his life it will affect him as little as it has so far.

Your choice of Thornton's original to everyone who answered Only all the strawberry and lemon creams are already gone I'm afraid

 

[colouredhat]

Sorry to seem stupid ... what is MSM? And where did you get glucossamine and how much do you give?
My boy has spavins, the vet says tiny ones, and is on 1 bute a day, which seems to be keeping him sound. I've just started working him after 9 weeks off.
Would it be worth giving MSM or/and glucossamine? I will try anything if there is a slight possibility it would help.
X

 

[cptrayes]

I buy human glucosamine from simplysupplements.com and give him five a day.

I buy MSM off eBay, it is an anti-inflammatory, and I give him 10 grammes a day, he's a big horse.

Both of them are allowed within affiliated competition rules, which bute is not. They don't seem to upset the liver or gut, which long term bute does and even short term bute can with a susceptible horse (and he is one!).

I would try both, it can't hurt. Glucosamine is supposed to take a few weeks to work, though it was quicker than that with my own joints. MSM is pretty much immediate.

My horse is perfectly sound since I put him on the two drugs, and I have cancelled the appointment to have his hocks injected.