Lame in both right legs

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Sandylou

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A fellow livery has asked me to start a thread to ask you knowledgeable lot what you would do in her situation.....what treatment, ideas on cause, etc, etc.
Her mare (a 16.2hh 17yo ISH Mare - she has shivers also which may be relevant?) came in lame on her off-side hind a couple of months ago. The vet was called after no improvement was seen after a week and she was found to have a torn suspensory ligament.
Then on Sunday the mare was extremely lame on her front right leg (so lame that she wouldn't even walk to the gate in the field). The owner has cold hosed the leg for a couple of days but stopped as there was no obvious swelling. There's no heat and the owner says there is nothing in the foot. For now she has been put in a small paddock to minimise movement.
Sooooo what are your thoughts and suggestions please?

Thanks :)
 
I've suggested vet but the owner is reluctant to call them.
She seems to think it's a waste of time because she thinks the vet will only tell her what's wrong and not fix it. Obviously that's what happened when the vet was called re the suspensory ligament.....vet told her what it was but couldn't do anything about it other than give advice.
 
'Came in on Sunday, so lame that she wouldn't even walk to the gate in the field'

I would have had the vet out first thing on Mon morning or there & then if it wasn't weight bearing. Call vet without delay, it could be anything.

Hope it isn't too serious & not been made any worse with turning out.

Good luck.
 
To be blunt, owner sounds a fool, or too tight fisted to call the vet. How does she think we can diagnose & advise via a forum better than a vet?
 
Sandylou said:
I've suggested vet but the owner is reluctant to call them.
She seems to think it's a waste of time because she thinks the vet will only tell her what's wrong and not fix it.
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Fair point, lol. TBF sometimes vets fix horses, they seem to have fixed mine. :D

Honestly it sounds like it might be an abscess in front but equally it might be loads of other stuff and it sounds like the horse is in pain. Their isn't really a better option than the vet.
 
Sandylou said:
I've suggested vet but the owner is reluctant to call them.
She seems to think it's a waste of time because she thinks the vet will only tell her what's wrong and not fix it. Obviously that's what happened when the vet was called re the suspensory ligament.....vet told her what it was but couldn't do anything about it other than give advice.
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Yes... finding out what is wrong is usually considered a good idea. A vet can tell her. So she needs a vet.

Is your friend all there??
 
Thanks everyone. I will sugeest the vet again and I agree with you all that she needs to be seen quickly - I just have to convince the owner now.
Littlelegs - I'm not sure what goes through the owners mind tbh but it's certainly a million miles away from what I'd be thinking!
 
I think vet too.

When my horses did her suspensory, there was no heat or swelling and minimal lameness.
 
Sandylou said:
I've suggested vet but the owner is reluctant to call them.
She seems to think it's a waste of time because she thinks the vet will only tell her what's wrong and not fix it. Obviously that's what happened when the vet was called re the suspensory ligament.....vet told her what it was but couldn't do anything about it other than give advice.
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The advice is what she is paying for, not for a couple of aspirins, sorry, but did she ask vet if it was OK to put horse out in a field?
If a vet is not called you can ask WHW to visit her!!!!
 
amymay said:
You also need to inform the YO that the horse is receiving no veterinary attention.
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I will mention it to the YO later. She is aware that it's lame but not how bad it is.

TwoStroke said:
Yes... finding out what is wrong is usually considered a good idea. A vet can tell her. So she needs a vet.

Is your friend all there??
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I really like this livery and wouldn't want to be mean BUT read what you will from the info that's here! :eek:

Flame_ said:
Fair point, lol. TBF sometimes vets fix horses, they seem to have fixed mine. :D

Honestly it sounds like it might be an abscess in front but equally it might be loads of other stuff and it sounds like the horse is in pain. Their isn't really a better option than the vet.
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An abscess was the first thing that came to mind from the way she was standing but owner assures me that her feet are fine?
She is very obviously in pain! :(
 
Miss L Toe said:
The advice is what she is paying for, not for a couple of aspirins, sorry, but did she ask vet if it was OK to put horse out in a field?
If a vet is not called you can ask WHW to visit her!!!!
Click to expand...

She hasn't spoken to the vet at all.
I wouldn't call any authorities until I've tried til I'm blue in the face. The horse is otherwise very well looked after and it will break the owners heart when she realises that she's not doing the right thing.
 
Sandylou said:
I wouldn't call any authorities until I've tried til I'm blue in the face. The horse is otherwise very well looked after and it will break the owners heart when she realises that she's not doing the right thing.
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You don't need to call the authorities.

You simply need to speak to the YO of your concerns, they should then deal with the issue.

This will either be done by them informing the owner that a vet must be called, and they will present when they attend (YO that is). Or YO will call the vet at their own expense, and bill the owner accordingly.
 
amymay said:
You don't need to call the authorities.

You simply need to speak to the YO of your concerns, they should then deal with the issue.

This will either be done by them informing the owner that a vet must be called, and they will present when they attend (YO that is). Or YO will call the vet at their own expense, and bill the owner accordingly.
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Thanks Amymay. Authorities are not required and that's why I wrote that post.
YO will be made aware how bad it is and then I'll stay out of it until owner asks my opinion again at which point I will tell her that she needs a vet.
I agreed to starting this thread becuase I know what you would all say and so that the owner can see that calling the vet is what everyone else would do in her situation. For some reason, the fact that I would call a vet is not enough for her to realise it's the right thing to do.
 
Echo everyone else, vet asap.

I turned my mare out, see her hopping lame, in my layman's eyes i could not see anything wrong with the leg/foot, no heat/swelling etc, phoned vet who came within the hour, vet said, looks like a fractured pedal bone.

Took her in for x-rays that afternoon, guess what, a fractured pedal bone.
 
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Just a quick update on the lame mare....
The owner scrubbed the mares foot out and sparyed with teramycin on Wednesday night and last night she was loads better.
YO is now aware and is keeping an eye on the situation.
Thanks for your help everyone.
 
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