I swear Max or the Universe are just taking the .... now!

[Ambers Echo]

Time-line of my pesky pony:
First viewing - loved him, agreed to buy - pulled out after viewer said she had a knee injury

Second viewing - loved him. Arranged to vet. Foot sore on left hind during hard surface lunging, vet vet thought it was probably just coz he had his backs removed not long before. But buyer walked away.

Jenny was arriving from sales livery so I did a swap and sent him to where she had come from. I had him re-vetted 2 weeks later prior to putting him back up for sale and vet said he was fine but he had zero viewing in 8 weeks.

Then sent him down on sales livery to someone who specialises in competition ponies. She said she thought there was a problem with his left hind and I picked him up again. Got the vet out with Lameness Locator. Vet and technology declared him sound. So I sent him back. She said she was convinced there was a problem and so I got vet out again. Yup lame. Picked him up to bring him home. 3 hour round trip each time! 6 trips!!

Vet blocked and xrayed. Nothing to be found but this time has has stayed lame on that left hind. Recommended scintigraphy as we are now suspicious that the original vetting did pick something real up several months ago which was initially only intermittent but is now constant .

Drove him up this morning (5 hour round trip). He injured himself in the lorry and can't be scanned. Totally trivial injury but would mess up the scan. He had NEVER had a problem travelling before. When am I supposed to find another 5 spare hours in a working week to get him? And then take him back and then get him again.... How do people 'do' non work life when they work????

And I just want answers too. I just want to know what is wrong so I can plan his future. Arggh! Sorry - random venting post. And breathe.....

 

[DabDab]

Oh AE, I have absolutely no useful advice whatsoever....but, well, hugs (( ))

 

[milliepops]

OMG AE, what appallingly bad luck!

 

[SEL]

Oh no! I regularly rearrange my whole life around horses only for them to ruin plans

 

[Ambers Echo]

Thanks! Just ignore me. It's not really a problem in the great scheme of things! I think I am frustrated most of all because I really am not sure bone scanning him is even necessary. I may be proved wrong of course, but I believe the original failed vetting was a red herring and he has a recent knock that some time off would be enough to sort out. While on sales livery (after the failed vetting) he was taken out dressage competing scoring 69% in front of a list 1 judge - there can't have been too much wrong with his movement! But the insurance clock is ticking down plus he was for sale and I need to be sure he is 100% (or not) to sell (or not). If he hadn't been for sale I'd have just turned him away for a few weeks and taken it from there. But we are where we are.

 

[Alibear]

Drat, you just can't catch a break at the moment can you. You must all be due some seriously good times ahead soon. Hope you can organise transport and the little injury heals well.

 

[Ambers Echo]

I've not picked him up yet as have not had time - and he so much better already that they may be able to scan him on Friday. So he is booked in provisionally for then. Fingers crossed. Then he'll be radioactive for a bit so I won't be getting him for another week or so which gives me time to free up some time in my diary to collect him. Hopefully with some good news from the vets too. Or at the very least some clarity.

 

[Fiona]

Bum

Good luck that he is OK by Friday.....

x x


FIona

 

[Alibear]

Fingers crossed he can stay now he's there and they can get on scan him soon.

 

[ester]

I was going to say can you not pay livery to keep him up there instead, fingers crossed he is good to go at the end of the week!

 

[Ambers Echo]

They managed to do it today and have identified a hotspot in his left SI joint that fits his lameness pattern. They said it was treatable/fixable with steroid injections and rehab. So that's great. I don't know much (anything!) about SI joint injuries. He is in radioactive isolation for now but then they will image him on Monday and treat as appropriate. At last as answer and a plan! Incidentally is that likely to have caused apparent LH foot soreness in a vetting in June when trotted a tight circle on hard ground? But not on soft ground. Just curious as to whether that vetting picked this up or that was totally unrelated.

 

[Alibear]

SI can be primary but is often secondary so it might be that they want to take a close look at the back end, perhaps suspensories? Hopefully they can get to the bottom of it for you.

 

[Ambers Echo]

Hope so. They have not been able to do anything with him yet as he was radioactive. So they are blocking/scanning today and then we need a plan!

 

[Alibear]

Fingers crossed its something easily sorted.

 

[Fiona]

Good luck today x

Fiona

 

[Ambers Echo]

Well the imaging showed nothing and the nerve blocks yielded no improvement so they have sent him home with a shrug.... A week later my vet injected the joint with cortico-steroids and 2 other things he has faith in but I don't know what they do. He did explain but it was a bit beyond me. He said normally he would just do the steroid but the fact that the blocks did not improve the lameness and the pattern of lameness itself makes him suspect there may be more going on so he is adding more stuff into the mix to cover more bases. Now 6 -8 weeks turned away then re-assess. We know it's the SI joint but we don't know that the pathology actually is.

I have found a good place for him to go: my friend has several acres that are flat, well drained, with good shelter with a river running through and plenty of scrubby grass left. She has 2 ridden horses and a companion who keeps the horse not being ridden company as one of her horses get very stressed when left alone for any time at all. But BOTH her horses are now on lengthy box rest for totally random accidents and so the companion needs a companion.... Enter Max. He can stay there as long as he likes. So I dropped him off today and just hope that a nice long holiday will do him good and he comes back to full fitness in due course.

 

[Fiona]

Sounds like he has fallen on his feet AE, and hopefully he doesn't cost too much to keep while you wait for him to come right.

My TB with an injured SI was off for 8 weeks after her steroid jab, and then I brought her back into work.

Fiona

 

[SEL]

Ah...horses....😕

Let's hope time heals

 

[Ambers Echo]

Sounds like he has fallen on his feet AE, and hopefully he doesn't cost too much to keep while you wait for him to come right.

No cost! Well apart from hay. I offered to pay, especially as it's too far away for me to go down every day so she will be field checking him and doing the hay every day but she would not hear of it. So ideas for a nice pressie please.....

I did look after her horse for 6 weeks a few years ago when she was injured so that makes me feel less cheeky!

My TB with an injured SI was off for 8 weeks after her steroid jab, and then I brought her back into work.

Fiona

Thanks that's reassuring x

 

[Ambers Echo]

Ah...horses....😕

Let's hope time heals

Yes hope so.

 

[Fiona]

No cost! Well apart from hay. I offered to pay, especially as it's too far away for me to go down every day so she will be field checking him and doing the hay every day but she would not hear of it. So ideas for a nice pressie please.....

I did look after her horse for 6 weeks a few years ago when she was injured so that makes me feel less cheeky!



Thanks that's reassuring x

The best presents are something luxurious, that one wouldn't buy for oneself...

Fiona