LAMENESS - LAMINITIS / NAVICULAR -PLEASE HELP

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b8xey

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Hi all
i have had no dealings with Laminitis, navicualr or ringbone and wondered if anyone can help with advice, im going to get the vet to come out as soon as i can get a day off work, but wondered if anyone could help but bare with me as im going to sound like a complete Novice!!
ive got a 12year old Appaloosa Mare, 15.2hh. Weight carrier lives on Fresh air. Ive owned her for Four years, show jumped hacked, nothing major (talking about 80cm jumping is my limit) so not hammered.
never had laminitis in the past, not as fat now as she has been in the past but this is the FIRST summer she has not ben in full work.
Her legs are not clean, has scars lumps bumps etc all over all four, however NEVER been consistantly lame, occasionally for a day or so and then been sound. Lunges fine, though sometimes can appear uneven in the front depending on which rein, but this is worse if she is unfit.
loves work very forward will not refuse to do anything, not at all mardy but very pig headed.
2 weeks ago she became lame, on what looks like both front. she nods as if it is her left leg, but looks short in her stride on the right leg.
if you turn a circle with left leg on the outside she just nods a bit, if she turns a circle with the right to the outside she takes very small steps like she cant stride out.
no heat in feet, slight pulse in fetlock but i dont know what im looking for!
not stuck to the floor or has worse issue on hard or soft ground. lame either way. Her feet are good, shod well although ive noticed her right toe is slightly longer than the left.
i thought laminitus, i spoke to my farrier as he knows her and her feet and he said it was more like navicular.
From her fetlock down to her hoof, down her pastern, she has hard bone like bumps, someone pointed out that due to the odd length in feet this could be Ringbone, that she will always have had but the toe issue could have made it worse!!?? on this one occasion i did use a different farrier as i could not get hold of my own. He is coming out to me as soon as he can.

i know the people i have spoken to are not vets, and we are all just guessing or giving opinion, but this mare is my absolute life and i am so so worried.
if anyone can give any advice i would so apreciate it..my plan was to bring her in, keep her in, and to treat as lammy for now, but obviously if it is not lammy am i doing the wrong thing for her?
Please help me im at my wits end and so scarred im going to do wrong by her.
 
I think you will feel much better once the vet has seen her as until then you will worry more than any actual diagnosis certainty. But to treat her as if it could be laminitis will do her no harm at all, although ideally vet would see her before changes are made, as this may cause the most extreme symptoms to disappear. He might also need to x ray to diagnose.

Also if it is lami she should really be seen asap even if it means taking a few hours off work as she will be in pain and that needs to be addressed.

I am v sympathetic tho, as my previously no-issues pony came down with lami a few weeks back :-(( Much better now tho and thankfully clear x rays.
 
hi, thankyou very much for taking the time to reply.
shes in at the moment with soaked hay and a very deep bed. I heard that alot of horses that have had lammy have been struck by it this year. i think ive probably listened to too many different ideas and worried myself so much with it that im at my witts end.
i could understand the ringbone due to the state of her legs, the navicular scared me and then ive been winding myseof up about the lunging etc picking faults with her that probably arent there!
ive booked emergancy holidays so i can get the vet out to her, tomorrow, so she will still be lame when they come to check her over, thankyou for the advice your definately right that i need the vet as soon as, its just that there are so many knowledgeable people on here, it was worth asking.
thanks
xx
 
If your horse is lame and in pain (and has been for two weeks) - then you need a vet.

No point in saying anything else.
 
yes i apreciate she needs a vet that is why i have taken time off work to get one out to see her, with the shortness in her stride and never having laminitus before i thought she may have just jarred herself in the field, i thought it may have been her shoulder.
depending on the cause she may have been better in the field as her legs fill up when in the stable,and she stiffens up, as well as getting extremely agitated when in for too long.
i was only asking for a bit of advice about a horse i care alot about to see if there was more i could do for her before i could get the vet out to her.
 
One of my ponies had a lameness that I was keeping an eye on. It started off as slight head nodding lameness, when lunged at trot, and progressed to a short choppy reluctant trot with no obvious lameness on any particular leg.

I took him off grass straight away and fed him soaked hay (his routine had been out muzzled on grass at night, and yarded with soaked hay during the day). Within a couple of weeks he was back to his usual whizzy self.

I have no proof, but I believe he was just starting with laminitis. It can show with one foot first. And the short choppy trot is absolutely typical.

The downside of a shod horse is that those signs can be masked for a while longer than in an unshod one.

Get used to feeling the digital pulse. I've asked 3 different people where best to take this pulse, and they've come up with 3 different answers! However, the one I go with is to take it just behind and immediately below the knee, on the medial side. If the horse is starting with laminitis, the pulse can feel really strong and bounding instead of just a weaker pulse. Also, in this place you can feel if there is any fluid building where you take the pulse - this can be a good indicator of laminitis impending too. As laminitis strikes, the blood vessels in the foot close down and so circulation in the leg too is impeded, and so the fluid starts to collect from the knee down, if that makes sense.

Personally I would have her shoes removed, if she's comfortable enough to have that done. Then the vet and/or farrier and yourself can have a good look at the state of her feet from underneath. Plus you have the chance to trim back those feet regularly to stop any lever forces which will exacerbate any laminitis signs. If the hoof wall changes angle from how it is at the coronet band to further down towards the ground, then you know that the foot is not in good shape and needs some attention.

Take a look on Pete Ramey's website for some photos of how feet should look. There are so many appallingly maintained feet out there, it can be difficult to get a "good" foot to look at. http://www.hoofrehab.com/ See how the hoof wall stays the same angle the whole way down the hoof.

I think you are right to treat it as laminitis until you know otherwise.

If you've had the shoes removed, and the foot trimmed well, then you will be leaving less space for any sinking to take place.

If she doesn't have acute laminitis at the moment, then you may prefer to allow her more movement as standing still can be more dangerous than controlled movement. Worth investing in a few barefoot books and swotting up. I'd recommend Founder by Jaime Jackson, and his other book whose name I've forgotten. Plus Pete Ramey's guide to natural hoofcare. Then you can make up your own mind.

Hope she's ok.

Sarah
 
hi thank you very much for the info, my farrier is coming to take her shoes off and have a good look at her feet, and he said he will have a chat with me on what is best to do.
i had brought her in for a week to rest, and turned her back out to see if it had heled anything as in if it was a strain or pull but was still the same, thats why i had not got the vet out straight away.
she has a bit of a pulse but not really pounding, just slight, which i presume indicates a slight problem, she will trot up etc but as i can see she is in pain i dont want to push her with this. im gonig to keep her in and rested until the vet can come out, i have read a few bits and bobs on the internet about Laminitis etc think i will just have to waite and see what the vet says, with what it is, knowing our vets they will advise box rest for a few weeks first and go from there,
thank you x
 
hi, oh right thanks, by the looks of things she may have that between her fetlock and coronet band she does have hard bny lumps, some thought appear to be swollen and new, one in particular on front right, on outside appears to be bigger than ive noticed before, also that is the foot with the toe that is a little longer than the other one and someone suggested that this could have made the ringbone worse! something else to read up on, but the vet is coming out now, so i guess it is a wait and see... thanks for your help x
 
You've probably seen the vet by now, but I was going to suggest that you get him to show you how to feel for the digital pulse - it's always useful to know how to do it.

Hope your mare is OK.
 
Hi first of all I have not yet had the joy of a horse with laminitis so cannot comment except to say if you think it is a possibility then treat for this until vet sees the horse - as others have said it will do no harm.

However one thing that stood out for me was the change in farrier. If your horse does have navicular syndrome or any soft tissue damage in the foot then any change of foot balance will cause these symptoms. It does sound as if the shoeing changed a little. So once you know it is not laminitis (hopefully) then I would get your old farrier out to assess the shoeing and stick to him! I hope you get it sorted out soon.
 
hi
thanks for the replys. Have had the vet out now and Vet has confirmed to be High ringbone as i thought it could be.
My mare has always had hard lumps down her pasterns but as it has never caused any issue in the past i have not had her checked over.
The vet confirmed that it was not anything that i have done, however the hard ground and slight change in foot management is probably what has caused the ringbone to become more painful than before.
i got the farrier straight out after the vet (my usual farrier) and he has followed the vets instructions as to keep toes short and well balanced and a different sort of shoe.
Vet has said that x rays would help to see what is gonig on inside the foot as well, perhaps navicular / low ringbone on the inside.
I have asked about the injections into the joint i have heard of and she said that basically as far along as it has got there is little chance they would be able to get the needle into the joint and that this tends to only work for a certain period of time.
she has advised to rest her for 6 months and see how she is then, i really dont mind if i cannot ride / jump like we used to as long as she is comfortable and happy im happy to have her as a pet. completely gutted, i love my girl, but the vet said that the 6 months off may let the joint fuse which would be the best outcome.
thanks all for your help.
x
 
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