Horse rehab/pregnancy conundrum

[ponyparty]

Looking for advice/ideas/sanity check from you lovely people - another of my long rambling posts, sorry!

Bruce had the vet out today for a reassessment of his back and hocks (mild kissing spines and hock arthritis).

He hasn't had any medical interventions - all I've done is have him shod all round, and been exercising him as per vet instructions - lunging 2-3 times per week in Equi Ami, groundwork, poles occasionally and walking out in hand.

However, this has tailed off in the last few weeks. I'm now 32 weeks pregnant and hopelessly crippled with SPD and a load of other horrible conditions. My sister has been lunging for me, but she's going to live abroad next week.

Vet came out today and was really happy with Bruce's back and said he needs ridden work re-introducing - straight lines, hacking once or twice per week - whilst still continuing with lunging in Equi Ami and groundwork.

I can't physically do any of this at the moment. It is 95% certain that I'll be having a planned C section - this will be late October; 6 weeks recovery time takes me up to mid December. And obviously I'll have a baby to look after... eek. The sensible thing to do, I hear you say, would be to turn him away.

Well yes - but the insurance claim runs up in January. If I don't do anything with him now, and then bring him back into work early next year, and these problems turn out to need further veterinary intervention, I will be totally screwed. My thinking is, get him going now and if the problems are not as sorted as we thought, and he ends up needing injections/other vet treatment, then at least I can put it through the insurance.

So - my plan is as follows:

1. Get the yard groom to lunge him for me twice per week as per vet instructions in Equi Ami.
2. Get a rehab/groundwork person to give me and yard groom a lesson in groundwork so this can continue as well.
2. Get a saddle fitted. But how do I do this if I can't ride? (I definitely can't - not only am I crippled, Bruce can be a bit sharp and I wouldn't feel safe with my massive bump, having not ridden him since January!)
3. Find a lightweight, competent rider who will get him working correctly and be reliable. No idea where I find this person though.

Also, re: saddle:
- What sort of saddle to go for? Do I get a cheap Thorowgood or similar for now, then get proper saddle when I'm back on board?
- What sort of saddle, long term, would be best for his back? I'm wondering about trying a treeless - maybe a Solution saddle? Not getting this fitted until I'm back in the saddle properly though!

 

[Leo Walker]

All this is isnt going to be cheap! Weigh it up very carefully against what the possible future treatment might cost. Injections were only £300 I think when the last person I knew had them done. And be realistic about his long term prognosis. Kissing spines and arthritis combined with a pregnant/new mum owner, how much work is he realistically going to be capable of and would he be capable of that as he stands?

Its very hard to see the wood from the trees when its your own horse, but in your shoes I'd rough him off and turn him away and then look to bring him back when I was ready with the attitude that what will be, will be.

 

[Pearlsasinger]

All this is isnt going to be cheap! Weigh it up very carefully against what the possible future treatment might cost. Injections were only £300 I think when the last person I knew had them done. And be realistic about his long term prognosis. Kissing spines and arthritis combined with a pregnant/new mum owner, how much work is he realistically going to be capable of and would he be capable of that as he stands?

Its very hard to see the wood from the trees when its your own horse, but in your shoes I'd rough him off and turn him away and then look to bring him back when I was ready with the attitude that what will be, will be.

I agree wholeheartedly with this, look after yourself first, baby second and horse after that.

 

[pippixox]

as others have said, and take it from me, you need to be realistic... I just just had baby 2 (4 weeks old now) and have a just turned 2 year old. I also have 3 horses, who are meant to be low maintenance! (but during my pregnancy one developed sweet itch and sadly my pony has liver failure, and the 3rd is just old and arthritic and hated the heat wave more than me)
they have been more than happy turned away for the summer. I had the best intentions to at least keep up ground work with them while pregnant, but I was exhausted, also doing a diploma, part time work and looking after my toddler. so instead I made a track to keep them moving and slimmer and they are all temporarily 'retired!'

I understand your conundrum with insurance, but if so far doing the work has caused improvement, you are not going to suddenly want to inject for no reason (plus results not guaranteed anyway), so even if he was kept in work (at great expense when you add it up- as I guess even paying someone to lunge twice a week adds up) you would be unlikely to do any further treatment before January anyway. plus realistically if you found in February he did not respond well to ridden work, after lots of ground rehab, it is unlikely any vet treatment would change that.

turn him away, it won't change the long term outcome I don't think. plus it will give you a much needed rest and time to focus on your baby.

p.s. it will be worth it, but the pain you must be in right now must suck I'm sure.

 

[Goldenstar]

Alternatively find retirement type turnout in a huge hilly undulating field until the bump is a baby and you are back on form .

 

[ponyparty]

Yup you’re all making sense... He’s got other issues too though, I mean I can’t turn him away in the sense of chuck him out in a big field for starters - he’s got EMS and I have to be really careful about his grass intake to avoid laminitis. That’s another reason for wanting to keep him in some sort of exercise. He’s a complex case, old Brucey Baby!

Perhaps as a compromise, I can just keep him in some sort of groundwork then, even just being lunged a couple of times per week? I feel like if I just give up with him now, what on earth have I been slaving away all summer for?

Thank you for your kind words re: the bay, life is feeling pretty torturous right now - I’m sure it will all be worth it once he’s here though (but also, NEVER AGAIN. Strict one child policy in this household!).

 

[Leo Walker]

Yup you’re all making sense... He’s got other issues too though, I mean I can’t turn him away in the sense of chuck him out in a big field for starters - he’s got EMS and I have to be really careful about his grass intake to avoid laminitis. That’s another reason for wanting to keep him in some sort of exercise. He’s a complex case, old Brucey Baby!

Perhaps as a compromise, I can just keep him in some sort of groundwork then, even just being lunged a couple of times per week? I feel like if I just give up with him now, what on earth have I been slaving away all summer for?

Thank you for your kind words re: the bay, life is feeling pretty torturous right now - I’m sure it will all be worth it once he’s here though (but also, NEVER AGAIN. Strict one child policy in this household!).

Could you send him off on track livery? That would probably be better for him than groundwork a couple of times a week. Someone on here has theres at one and was recommending it the other day, so they are out there.

 

[ponyparty]

Could you send him off on track livery? That would probably be better for him than groundwork a couple of times a week. Someone on here has theres at one and was recommending it the other day, so they are out there.

Thanks LW... I had sort of considered that - there isn’t one anywhere near to me though, and I’d be reluctant to send him somewhere far away. He doesn’t mix particularly well with other horses, I have to be very careful about what he goes out with; and he is such a sick note - I mean just in the last few weeks he’s had several things wrong with him - I think I’d be fretting all the time about whether he’s ok or being looked after. If it were miles away I wouldn’t be able to just pop and check on him, give him a scratch and a groom. I love this yard and he’s really happy and settled there. I know it would be better for him to be on a track system but until that is available locally, it’s just not going to happen.

Why is my horse so high maintenance?! Thank goodness for this forum or I would be despairing, thinking it’s just me this stuff happens to! It does put things into perspective when I read some of the threads on here.

I am def going to knock thoughts of getting a rider on him on the head for now. Will just have to be patient and see how things are after the baby arrives I guess!

If he ends up needing injections, if they’re only a few hundred quid that makes me feel a bit better. That’s doable; it’s just the more expensive treatments Ive been trawling the internet about (I know, I shouldn’t), that i would struggle to afford/justify without insurance. So hopefully it won’t come to that.

 

[Goldenstar]

Can you keep him out all if not most of the time ?

 

[Tiddlypom]

I agree wholeheartedly with this, look after yourself first, baby second and horse after that.

This. It's all well and good for an idealistic vet to say do this or that with your horse, but he's just going to have to fit in with the rest of your life for a while.

Says TP, who trotted a lame horse up for the vet at 40 weeks . My lovely vet, a local family man, said for me not to worry about what was wrong, just to take care of myself and my bump and he'd sort the horse!

 

[ponyparty]

Can you keep him out all if not most of the time ?

Not really unfortunately. He can’t go on grass for long due to EMS; I tried keeping him out on mixture of grass and hard standing turnout and he ended up falling over due to lack of sleep, cutting his hocks in the process :-l he won’t lie down and sleep properly if there are people around i.e. in the daytime *rolls eyes* such a precious little flower..!

 

[ponyparty]

This. It's all well and good for an idealistic vet to say do this or that with your horse, but he's just going to have to fit in with the rest of your life for a while.

Says TP, who trotted a lame horse up for the vet at 40 weeks . My lovely vet, a local family man, said for me not to worry about what was wrong, just to take care of myself and my bump and he'd sort the horse!

Haha see, when you’re in that situation you justdo what needs to be done!
I do think I’m being unrealistic though with getting him a rider.

He’s on part livery so I don’t have to do him Monday-Friday, I do go up every night still though unless I have other commitments. Like antenatal class or pregnancy Pilates.

I’m doing him myself at the weekend still but I can see that soon I will have to put him on full livery. OH is very good and helps a lot so hoping to hold out a bit longer!

I guess whatever I do it’s not going to be ideal just got to hope when I am able to get back into the swing of things my horse is up to it...