Lame horse,please help!!

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Lydiarose

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Hi, I'm 16 and own 2 ponies. One of them is a 13.3hh fell pony. I've always had a problem with him being lame on and off, however it only used to be for a few days and then he was fine. Since Christmas he hasn't been right and has been lame for months, however I leave him out in the field now it is summer as he gets worse when he stays in. He isn't really badly lame, he is just really short and there is no heat or swelling. I have had 2 vets out and non of them have been useful and I have had him on bute and box rest but he is still no better. Before
I got him he roamed the mountains of rivington for a few years, so maybe it could be a result of that? I am going to get a physio for him and get a different vet but I need some ideas on what it could be as I'm getting really fed up of seeing him lame and he's also fed up as he loves being ridden :( please no nasty comments as I'm trying my very best for him, thanks Lydia x
 
What have the vets suggested it might be / done so far? Have they done any investigations? Is the lameness getting better or worse or has it stayed the same, except when he was on box rest?
 
I think you are doing the right thing getting out a different vet, it sounds like he needs some investigations done. Just wondering if your farrier is able to pick up any abnormalities. It could really be anything. Keep us updated as to what the new vet says.
 
If it were my horse he would be going to vet hospital for a full workup that could take 4 days if a reason was not immediately found.

It can be hard for vets to decipher what is best for both owner and horse. I don't know if you are insured for investigations, and it may be that the vets have thought you are happy with a field ornament, if, as you say, he is not lame, just short, and he is not expected to work.

If the vets think you don't want to fund investigations of that nature and the horse is not "suffering" then they will likely do little.

I have found transporting to a hospital is much more efficient at getting to the root of a problem.
 
When I had the first vet out they said if he was still lame after a week of box rest and Bute then he would go in for a lameness clinic, I rung them up to tell them he was still lame but they just recommended physio. I didn't use them again as I wasn't impressed as they didn't know what was wrong with him so how could they suggest physio? Hopefully this new vet will arrange some kind of work up but the last 2 vets never got back to me,
 
silv said:
I think you are doing the right thing getting out a different vet, it sounds like he needs some investigations done. Just wondering if your farrier is able to pick up any abnormalities. It could really be anything. Keep us updated as to what the new vet says.
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The farrier noticed a burst abscess that had healed but it was quite recent? However there was no indication of one when I was looking before and the vet didn't pick up on it either, after that he was sound so I put it down to the abscess but now he's lame again? Apart from that the farrier hasn't found anything abnormal.
 
Lydiarose said:
When I had the first vet out they said if he was still lame after a week of box rest and Bute then he would go in for a lameness clinic, I rung them up to tell them he was still lame but they just recommended physio. I didn't use them again as I wasn't impressed as they didn't know what was wrong with him so how could they suggest physio? Hopefully this new vet will arrange some kind of work up but the last 2 vets never got back to me,
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Are your bills being paid promptly? I've never known one vet act like that, never mind three. I assume your parents are paying them, so maybe they are a bit slow or something?

You may need to get an adult to request the work up, so that the vet can legally chase them for payment.
 
Red-1 said:
If it were my horse he would be going to vet hospital for a full workup that could take 4 days if a reason was not immediately found.

It can be hard for vets to decipher what is best for both owner and horse. I don't know if you are insured for investigations, and it may be that the vets have thought you are happy with a field ornament, if, as you say, he is not lame, just short, and he is not expected to work.

If the vets think you don't want to fund investigations of that nature and the horse is not "suffering" then they will likely do little.

I have found transporting to a hospital is much more efficient at getting to the root of a problem.
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My grandad is going to ring the insurance today to see if they will cover but he thinks they won't as it has been an ongoing problem. I have told the vets I am happy for him to go in for a full work up but they have not advanced any further on this,which is why I'm going to try a different vet.
 
ycbm said:
Are your bills being paid promptly? I've never known one vet act like that, never mind three. I assume your parents are paying them, so maybe they are a bit slow or something?

You may need to get an adult to request the work up, so that the vet can legally chase them for payment.
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Yeah my parents give me the money every time the vets come, if it is more than I have on me then the vets will invoice my parents and it is always paid straight away.
Yeah I think when my grandad has rung the insurance he will request a work up, we just need to see with the insurance I think.
 
The vets just come out once, one of them said that he wasn't lame today and walked off, which I thought was quite rude as I had told him he is lame sometimes so he could of given me some advice, the other vets didn't know what was wrong so just told me to get physio. He is only slightly lame if he has been out but is really lame when he stays in. The lameness just always seems to stay the same.
 
Do you have an adult fellow livery who can perhaps be with you when the vet comes out they can maybe help tell them what you want to happen and if anything be some moral support, or maybe one of the other liveries can recommend there own vet to have a look at the pony as the previous ones don't seem that great.
 
Pinkvboots said:
Do you have an adult fellow livery who can perhaps be with you when the vet comes out they can maybe help tell them what you want to happen and if anything be some moral support, or maybe one of the other liveries can recommend there own vet to have a look at the pony as the previous ones don't seem that great.
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Yeah, there is a lot of people at the yard so I will ask them to be with me, I am using the yard vet who seems to be really good and has been known to deal with situations like this really well
 
Nugget La Poneh said:
What do you feed? Do you up the feed when he's in to make up for not being out? It could be something very simple to sort.
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No I feed him happy hoof, around 2 small handfuls and a scoop of garlic. He has the same amount wether he's been in or out, however I don't usually give it him if he is going out to control his weight
 
What strange behaviour from the vets. Sounds rather odd. Has anyone put hoof testers on him? As a native, and having had at least 1 abscess I would suspect low grade laminitis. Is he shod or unshod? That or possibly some arthritis somewhere since he's worse stabled, but I would have thought the vets would jump at the chance for a workup.
 
Nudibranch said:
What strange behaviour from the vets. Sounds rather odd. Has anyone put hoof testers on him? As a native, and having had at least 1 abscess I would suspect low grade laminitis. Is he shod or unshod? That or possibly some arthritis somewhere since he's worse stabled, but I would have thought the vets would jump at the chance for a workup.
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He has two front shoes and just shod on his hind. The abscess was only small and was at the bottom of his hoof, when the vet come he had hoof testers but he didn't respond to them.
 
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