Nickles1973
Well-Known Member
This could take a while to explain but I'm keen to hear from anyone that might have had similar experiences would be good so please bare with me.
Early in June my ex-racer George had a freak accident in the field where his field friend was found with his front leg caught in the crossed leg strap of George's t/o rug. We don't know how long they'd been like it but luckily my Yo was there to disconnect them from each other. Appart from a slight rub on the inside of G's hind thigh they appeared to both have escaped unhurt.
The next day I had a lesson booked and I told my instructor what had happened and she said to still start the lesson and see how he was. He began the lesson absolutley fine and we decided to jump a couple of small jumps. (Something we do rarely but something George loves to do) He had a great time jumping but on one occaision on landing on the right rein he went disunited in his canter. My instructor dismissed this as something horses do when they are not used to jumping and don't quite sort their landing out. (Seemed reasonable at the time) I called in a Bowen therapist as a the time I thought George might have just been a little stiff from his accident in the field and she said he was very sore over his right side and recommended a course of three treatments.
Over the next 3 weeks or so though I kept noticing G being a little more reluctant to canter on the right rein (in spite of his Bowen treatments) and this culminated in him not even being happy to canter when hacking. (Very unusual)
So I called in the vet.
He had a lamness work up which indicated he was lame on the left hind and although the vet accepted he was very sore over his S/I area she felt this was secondary to the hind leg lameness. She started with a nerve block to the fetlock which proved to have a positive effect and x-rays showed athritic changes to the pastern and fetlock.
So the vet recommended he should have his fetlock's medicated with Steriod and HA and I should get a Chiropractor to treat his back.
The fetlocks were medicated and the Chiro gave him three treatments over a month and I was told to bring him back into work over the month and hopefully all would be sorted.
Except that by week 3 I wasn't convinced he was fixed. I talked to the vet last Tuesday and she was happy that he was progressing as she would have expected. But the day after that phonecall he started resisting canter transition on the right rein again and going disunited in corners.
I had the Chiro coming on Monday so decided I would see what she thought and then call the vet again. (In between times he was seen acting the fool in the field, he reared 3 times and then fell down on his ar$e)
The Chiro said he was at least as lame as the first time she'd come (if not a little worse) and he was sore in his back again.
The Chiro accepted that the back soreness could have been caused by the fall in the field but the lameness in his leg was now looking higher up
Vet (practice head vet) came yesterday flexion tested and lunged and agreed that the chiro was right and he thought the hock was now the most likely suspect. He x-rayed the hock and top of the suspensory.
Today he phoned and told me that the x-rays are clear??? He has shown them to Sue Dyson. (AHT) and she says that if it looks like the hock it probably is the hock and that x-rays are not infalable, so they both recommend medicating the lower hock joint working him for 3 weeks and see what happens.
I feel quite uneasy about this. I can't stop thinking about the fact that this all seemed to stem from his accident in the field. I tried to express this to the vet but he is convinced that this is the right course to follow. He says the lameness G displays (no lift to his hind leg) is evidence of hock lamness and that an injury to his S/I is unlikely. He will x-ray the stifle to rule it out if I want but again his gait doesn't suggest stifle. (I do agree with him there having seen a friends horse which had a cyst in his stifle)
I queried the suspensory but he said he has pretty much ruled that out for the same reasons as above.
Does anyone have any similar experiences they could share with me that might give me faith that my vet is right. Or are there any other questions I should be asking? I really don't know what to do and I just have this real sinking feeling that I am going to work through all of my insurance money before I get anywhere near finding out what is wrong.
Wagon wheels and red wine if you got this far. (That sums up my state of mind at the mo)
Early in June my ex-racer George had a freak accident in the field where his field friend was found with his front leg caught in the crossed leg strap of George's t/o rug. We don't know how long they'd been like it but luckily my Yo was there to disconnect them from each other. Appart from a slight rub on the inside of G's hind thigh they appeared to both have escaped unhurt.
The next day I had a lesson booked and I told my instructor what had happened and she said to still start the lesson and see how he was. He began the lesson absolutley fine and we decided to jump a couple of small jumps. (Something we do rarely but something George loves to do) He had a great time jumping but on one occaision on landing on the right rein he went disunited in his canter. My instructor dismissed this as something horses do when they are not used to jumping and don't quite sort their landing out. (Seemed reasonable at the time) I called in a Bowen therapist as a the time I thought George might have just been a little stiff from his accident in the field and she said he was very sore over his right side and recommended a course of three treatments.
Over the next 3 weeks or so though I kept noticing G being a little more reluctant to canter on the right rein (in spite of his Bowen treatments) and this culminated in him not even being happy to canter when hacking. (Very unusual)
So I called in the vet.
He had a lamness work up which indicated he was lame on the left hind and although the vet accepted he was very sore over his S/I area she felt this was secondary to the hind leg lameness. She started with a nerve block to the fetlock which proved to have a positive effect and x-rays showed athritic changes to the pastern and fetlock.
So the vet recommended he should have his fetlock's medicated with Steriod and HA and I should get a Chiropractor to treat his back.
The fetlocks were medicated and the Chiro gave him three treatments over a month and I was told to bring him back into work over the month and hopefully all would be sorted.
Except that by week 3 I wasn't convinced he was fixed. I talked to the vet last Tuesday and she was happy that he was progressing as she would have expected. But the day after that phonecall he started resisting canter transition on the right rein again and going disunited in corners.
I had the Chiro coming on Monday so decided I would see what she thought and then call the vet again. (In between times he was seen acting the fool in the field, he reared 3 times and then fell down on his ar$e)
The Chiro said he was at least as lame as the first time she'd come (if not a little worse) and he was sore in his back again.
The Chiro accepted that the back soreness could have been caused by the fall in the field but the lameness in his leg was now looking higher up
Vet (practice head vet) came yesterday flexion tested and lunged and agreed that the chiro was right and he thought the hock was now the most likely suspect. He x-rayed the hock and top of the suspensory.
Today he phoned and told me that the x-rays are clear??? He has shown them to Sue Dyson. (AHT) and she says that if it looks like the hock it probably is the hock and that x-rays are not infalable, so they both recommend medicating the lower hock joint working him for 3 weeks and see what happens.
I feel quite uneasy about this. I can't stop thinking about the fact that this all seemed to stem from his accident in the field. I tried to express this to the vet but he is convinced that this is the right course to follow. He says the lameness G displays (no lift to his hind leg) is evidence of hock lamness and that an injury to his S/I is unlikely. He will x-ray the stifle to rule it out if I want but again his gait doesn't suggest stifle. (I do agree with him there having seen a friends horse which had a cyst in his stifle)
I queried the suspensory but he said he has pretty much ruled that out for the same reasons as above.
Does anyone have any similar experiences they could share with me that might give me faith that my vet is right. Or are there any other questions I should be asking? I really don't know what to do and I just have this real sinking feeling that I am going to work through all of my insurance money before I get anywhere near finding out what is wrong.
Wagon wheels and red wine if you got this far. (That sums up my state of mind at the mo)