Lame? Me? Neigh!.....and a Danilon question

[Oberon]

Obi has been coming out of the stable, on and off lame for around two weeks.

When it was frosty, he was dog lame on a couple of occasions .

So the vet came today (yard's clinic day) to check his ACTH, eyes and teeth and I tagged on the lameness that has been stressing me out completely.....

Walked out of stable - not lame.
Trotted up the yard and back - not lame.
Trotted him on a 20m circle on tarmac - slight nod on the left rein.
Flexion test on the left front - not lame



Vet is now looking at me like I'm a nutter while I promise I'm not making it up .

Tried hoof testing. I warned the vet not to let him see the hoof testers or he would freak out......Vet again looks at me like I'm a nutter .

Vet applied the hoof testers and Obi promptly freaked out . I thought it was a positive reaction until Vet said he hadn't even started yet
No help from that test either

So I've been advised to keep an eye on him and appreciate how sound he is for a 26 year old horse .

Vet left me a stock of Danilon for if I ever feel he needs some help.

What I did forget to ask (in my fluster ) is how do I dose him for 'recreational' purposes?

If his rider wants to take him for a potter round the roads at some point - say at 9am, should he have a Danilon the night before or in the morning?

 

[Pinkvboots]

His doing pretty well for 26 he may have bruised his sole on the hard ground can take weeks to heal, I would give him one a day for about a week and see if his any better.

 

[Holly Hocks]

LOL!! I've had lameness problems with the TB mare for just over a month so yesterday took her in for x-rays. Got to the vet, put her front boots on for the trot up - she was only about 1/10 lame - she's been hopping for weeks!

We'd been treating as bruise/abscess, but as it is the x-rays did show something, which I put a thread on about yesterday so was glad I took her. So yes, I know the feeling of looking like an idiot when you've made out that they're on their last legs!

As for the Danilon, I would give it the night before, but I've often found that one random sachet doesn't do anything and that it only starts working after a couple of days use....

Hope you find out what it is!

 

[The Boy]

I've previously been advised by vet to give one Danilon the night before riding, one in the morning and one that evening. This was when intending to hack gently for an hour or so.

If that is doing the trick then you can try to reduce to 2 doses (and then down to 1 if able to) so if you are going out first thing you could reduce to one night before, one after riding.
Basically trial and error until you reach a level where you feel comfort is maximised/Danilon dose is minimised. That level will depend in part on how often you want to ride.
Hope this helps

 

[Oberon]

Hope you find out what it is!

Vet's eyes glazed over when I mentioned his Cushings affecting his feet......but I know I can see patches of thinner sole around his toes.

I saw this in April and that was what prompted me to get him tested for Cushing's.

The medication and diet over the summer helped him fill in those patches and put some nice sole down overall, but during the autumn he has lost some sole again.

I reckon the frosts, hard ground and thin patches of sole have added together to make him sore. And I guess that's fair and can't be helped.

I wanted the Vet to double check I wasn't missing something obvious while concentrating on the feet. I'm pretty glad there was nothing to see.

I bought some hoof boots last year, knowing he may need them eventually. I'll dig them out so he can potter around in comfort.

I am waiting for his latest ACTH results with my hands over my eyes

 

[Holly Hocks]

Yep - I think the same happened with mine - but in my case it was the boggy ground which made mine worse and I think the feet weren't as strong as they should have been when she did the stone dance and that's why she's damaged her pedal bone.....am I the only person with an unshod horse who shouts "Roll on spring and all the lush grass it brings"?

 

[SusieT]

as its when he's coming out of the stable I would be suspicious of arthritis-stiffening up due to lack of movement espec. in cold weather.

 

[Oberon]

I've previously been advised by vet to give one Danilon the night before riding, one in the morning and one that evening. This was when intending to hack gently for an hour or so.

If that is doing the trick then you can try to reduce to 2 doses (and then down to 1 if able to) so if you are going out first thing you could reduce to one night before, one after riding.
Basically trial and error until you reach a level where you feel comfort is maximised/Danilon dose is minimised. That level will depend in part on how often you want to ride.
Hope this helps

Thanks

 

[TwoStroke]

I'd give a bute in the evening and one in the morning iiwy, and then see how he is in the evening/next morning.

I must say though, that my TB has been absolutely hopping lame with an abscess this last week. There was NO reaction to hoof testers - none at all, despite horse being nearly non-weight bearing at times. So it's obviously not always a guarantee that there's nothing going on in there. Or perhaps I own a freak of nature .

 

[Flame_]

Walked out of stable - not lame.
Trotted up the yard and back - not lame.
Trotted him on a 20m circle on tarmac - slight nod on the left rein.
Flexion test on the left front - not lame



Vet is now looking at me like I'm a nutter while I promise I'm not making it up .

Been there, done that. Every time there has been a problem.

My horse's second vet visit for a foot problem. He had been informed over the phone of a suspected keratoma and was coming to do x-rays of the foot.

The condensed vague transcript as I remember it...

Me: Horse has been not right for about three months and pointing LF, first suspected LGL, I've tried addressing this with no improvement. His foot has altered shape and now a large dry hole in the sole has appeared so farrier thinks keratoma so that's why I want it x-raying.

Vet: **Looks at foot** It doesn't look like a keratoma to me, he'd have a proper bulge in the hoof wall. Farriers think everything's got keratomas, they never have, they're really, really rare. It is best to do the x-rays though, just to be sure.

Me: Right, yes.

Vet: I've brought the machine but not brought the x-ray blocks, I'll have to go back for them.

Me: Right.

An hour and a half later

Vet: **Takes x-rays** Nope, there's no keratoma here, look on the screen.

Me: **After looking at screen** Right, well what is wrong with him then?

Vet: Let's have a look at him move.

Horse trots up sound on the driveway, lunges sound on the arena and lunges sound on the car park.

Vet: He's sound.

Me: I know.

Vet: Well how do you expect me to diagnose lameness in a sound horse?

Me: I want you to diagnose this horse's foot problem. He definitely has one or why would he feel off, point that foot nearly all the time at rest, why would his foot have changed shaped and why is there a big hole in his sole?

Vet: Silence, IIRC. If I were you, I'd get shoes back on him and get him back in work, he's sound. **Looks at me like I'm the barking one**

Me: Yes, I know he looks sound, but are you saying I should I just ignore all those things, the foot pointing, stuffiness, foot changing shape and big hole?

Vet: Yes, I would. He's sound.

Me: So you've pretty much done all we can do, you don't know what's up with his horse and there isn't a next thing to do to find out?

Vet: Well the next thing would be MRI but the horse is sound.

Me: OK, thanks.


Five months later a good vet came back and took the right x-rays which clearly showed up the keratoma. Can you tell I'm still miffed about it?

Maybe your lad's got an abscess brewing? I hope he's on the mend soon but it makes me so cross that they think we've imagined the horse's are wrong.

 

[BlackRider]

Glad he's ok.

I'd just try one bute the night before, and see how he is on that, then if that isn't enough try one at night and one in the morning.

I used to play it by ear, and just give Mist bute if she looked a bit stiff, but now I've got her on one sachet every other day, as she seems happier on that.