LankyDoodle
Well-Known Member
Hi, I am a new user and came across the site when searching for information. I have 2 horses (mare and gelding), both welsh section d, both good doers but one is a blob on legs on a good day. They are both turned out overnight from April to October, for reduced hours, and receive no hard feed and only soaked hay. Exercise has been reduced this year as we have personal things at home and work, but they still are being exercised and we take them away several times a year, on holiday, where they get ridden heaps.
I will bullet point the details or the post could potentially go on for pages and pages. First I just want to say that our normal, very experienced lovely male vet was not available and a newly qualified girl was sent. We were OK with this - they are a good surgery and have good vets. She brought a student with her who seemed more confident than her, and at no point until the 3rd June did she want to commit to a diagnosis - she kept umming and ahing saying it could be infection or something else (til 30th June when the infection burst and then she said yes it is infection). We have our normal vet back now and won't be letting go of him!
* On 27th May, our mare came in from the field lame. I say came in but it did take about half an hour to get her from field to stable. Her offside fore was majorly swollen. We got the vet immediately who gave AB injections (for a week) and 2xbute a day for a week.
* By the friday of that week (30th May), she had made good progress, was coming sound, trotted up ok in the sandschool, so we were told to start walking her out 20 minutes a day (she was placed on 3 weeks box rest on 27th May). Started doing this and I inspected her feet thoroughly every day, for heat and softness in the hoof. Amongst her massive amount of feathers I found a lesion on the heel. The vet said this was where the infection had burst and had helped the swelling reduce, but we now needed to poultice and soak in salt water 20 minutes a day as well as walking out. The vet wanted an update on the monday unless she got worse over the weekend. The student said to her he wondered if it was laminitis and she said not at all, she's not showing signs of laminitis (but she is big as the grass had been so much lusher this year and she turned into a blip within about a week, so we WERE trying to reduce her weight again, section of the field more etc). So that was that, no laminitis... yay! At 15 she'd never had it and didn't want it to start now.
* On the Monday (2nd June - 3 days after last vet visit) we got to the yard and she was tucked in the corner of her stable, looked downbeat, really unlike her. We took her out to start her 20 minutes out of the stable, but got about 3 steps before I said to my husband 'she's got effin laminitis'. I had tears streaming down my face (she is his ride really). She had the classic tucked under hind legs, leaning back with fore stretched in front, turning veryt awkwardly leaning back even more on the hind, legs very weak, more heat in the feet. Called the vet who came as an emergency but we couldn't be there (I am a teacher and my husband's boss also would not give time at that moment). By the time the vet got there (a stable friend was up there at the time), our mare was sweating buckets, panting almost, tucked in the corner of her stable with bum rested against wall and looking like she wanted to go down. The vet sedated her and gave us ACP, examined her and said mild case of laminitis but very heavy horse so causing more pain. 2xbute a day for as long as needed. Keep poulticing, with frog supports and stop salt water treatment. We also bought bioflow boots for her and started putting epsom salts in her water. Her weight had already been reducing due to no grass, but now began to drop dramatically.
* On the Weds 4th June, the vet took an xray to ascertain the damage levels and said the founder measurement was 8 so she was fine. 12 is considered a worry but 8 is ok. She had no rotation or separation.
* The sedation and bute were helping. Over the next week she began to improve and the farrier who was due to shoe both horses anyway (on Sunday 8th June), removed the shoes and trimmed the feet back well, advising us to stop poulticing now. We trusted him but the vet was coming to see her on Monday 9th June, so we left a note for her and the owner dealt with the vet. The vet said it was right to take off the supports and the poultice at that point. The vet was happy with progress on the Monday.
* The horse continued to stabilise or improve slightly until around 17th June when she seemed to take a downturn. She was still happy and bright but in terms of soundness she had got worse, so we went to the vet practice to see someone. The vet dealing with it was away on holiday (we knew this, but was a relief to be honest as we had lost trust in her and this now meant we could have our favourite vet back).
* He looked at the xrays with us (he had looked at them with initial vet as she is inexperienced, and he has treated our horse for 12 years so knows her well). He explained what was going on and that she has come out of it ok, but he wanted to come out and see her.
* She remained bright but continued to get slightly worse. He had told us to put the bute back up to 2 (after farrier we had cut down to 1/2 a day as she was better). This seemed to help and he said call him if problems and he wanted to come and see her to xray the feet soon so the farrier could fit heart bars. She was still being poulticed with frog supports at this point (and still is now).
* She didn't get worse as such and she was still bright enough, speedy in her stable, but walking out of the stable (we were asked to do this every few days to check soundness as it is now 5 weeks since onset) she was bad. We just weren't happy.
* Vet came out on Monday 30th June and took xray. He showed us the xray of a horse who had a severe case and poor farriery had meant little imrovement. The horse had separation and significant rotation and had to be put down in the end. The vet assured us that our horse was not like this as the clinical signs (on no bute that day as he requested to see her natural state) were not there. But when he got back and developed the xrays he phoned us to tell us our horse now has separation (significant in one foot where she had the infection) and minor rotation. We panicked of course and he invited us to look at the xrays on Tuesday 1st July, which we did.
* The xrays show that she has separation further down the hoof, which she has recovered from and then there is healthy hoof and then more separation caused by this attack. This indicates that either she has had laminitis a short while ago which we have somehow missed (difficult when it is bad enough for separation), or the first lot of separation was that first week of laminitis which she got better from and she's had a second attack. Whatever anyway. The rotation is slight but the pedal bone is still very close to coming through on one side. In our favour, as the vet said, she has very hard hooves and soles, and she has large, wide frogs, plus she is on rubber matting with 3 feet of shavings on top. Her founder measurement is now 12, which the vet says is still OK.
* This xray was done for the farrier, as he is going to come and fit heart bar shoes tomorrow (which are now even more vital as they will offer better support than the frog supports.
* This mare is 14.3hh but the vet estimates her weight at 650-700kg! Remember, he didn't see her in that week when she turned into a blip! This has obviously not helped her case with that much weight on her feet and is meaning she does make slower progress. What the hell else can we do!? She's never been skinny (as a heavyweight, good-doing cob), but our other cob seems to stay quite trim. I know she gorges more than him, so we are going to muzzle her when she is back out.
Anyway, that's most of the background as I remember it. I just wonder what other people's experiences are? The vet has warned us things can get worse (obviously pedal bone can come through, sole could turn really soft etc), but also said while she is a very serious case, it is not terminal for her. Has anyone had this happen and their horse is now back working? How long has it taken people's horses to recover? We are into 5 or 6 weeks now and things have got worse, not better. The vet thinks we can start walking her out at the end of July and riding end of August. What sort of difference will the heart bars make?
Also, another question: we were due to take the horses on holiday for 2 weeks at the end of August (this is 6 weeks away). We don't want to let the owners of the yard/cottage down as they have become good friends, and we do need a holiday - so do the horses. Obviously she would be on box rest down there and would be controlled like she is at home, but we are saying now that we will probably not go because of the journey. Is it realistic to expect a laminitic horse, in recovery, to travel a moderate distance in an Equitrek trailer? The vet, before these xrays, said it would be unlucky if we couldnt travel her and it looks good for now. But after the xrays we are wondering if this will have changed. We did mention it to him in passing but didn't get a clear answer. I feel a change of scene could do her good (and she knows the place as we are there several times a year). The journey, I feel, could cause unnecessary trauma and could damage her legs.
So confused at the moment and don't want to see her going through this again. Ever. She is being tested for cushings etc and we get results back in about 2 hours!
I will bullet point the details or the post could potentially go on for pages and pages. First I just want to say that our normal, very experienced lovely male vet was not available and a newly qualified girl was sent. We were OK with this - they are a good surgery and have good vets. She brought a student with her who seemed more confident than her, and at no point until the 3rd June did she want to commit to a diagnosis - she kept umming and ahing saying it could be infection or something else (til 30th June when the infection burst and then she said yes it is infection). We have our normal vet back now and won't be letting go of him!
* On 27th May, our mare came in from the field lame. I say came in but it did take about half an hour to get her from field to stable. Her offside fore was majorly swollen. We got the vet immediately who gave AB injections (for a week) and 2xbute a day for a week.
* By the friday of that week (30th May), she had made good progress, was coming sound, trotted up ok in the sandschool, so we were told to start walking her out 20 minutes a day (she was placed on 3 weeks box rest on 27th May). Started doing this and I inspected her feet thoroughly every day, for heat and softness in the hoof. Amongst her massive amount of feathers I found a lesion on the heel. The vet said this was where the infection had burst and had helped the swelling reduce, but we now needed to poultice and soak in salt water 20 minutes a day as well as walking out. The vet wanted an update on the monday unless she got worse over the weekend. The student said to her he wondered if it was laminitis and she said not at all, she's not showing signs of laminitis (but she is big as the grass had been so much lusher this year and she turned into a blip within about a week, so we WERE trying to reduce her weight again, section of the field more etc). So that was that, no laminitis... yay! At 15 she'd never had it and didn't want it to start now.
* On the Monday (2nd June - 3 days after last vet visit) we got to the yard and she was tucked in the corner of her stable, looked downbeat, really unlike her. We took her out to start her 20 minutes out of the stable, but got about 3 steps before I said to my husband 'she's got effin laminitis'. I had tears streaming down my face (she is his ride really). She had the classic tucked under hind legs, leaning back with fore stretched in front, turning veryt awkwardly leaning back even more on the hind, legs very weak, more heat in the feet. Called the vet who came as an emergency but we couldn't be there (I am a teacher and my husband's boss also would not give time at that moment). By the time the vet got there (a stable friend was up there at the time), our mare was sweating buckets, panting almost, tucked in the corner of her stable with bum rested against wall and looking like she wanted to go down. The vet sedated her and gave us ACP, examined her and said mild case of laminitis but very heavy horse so causing more pain. 2xbute a day for as long as needed. Keep poulticing, with frog supports and stop salt water treatment. We also bought bioflow boots for her and started putting epsom salts in her water. Her weight had already been reducing due to no grass, but now began to drop dramatically.
* On the Weds 4th June, the vet took an xray to ascertain the damage levels and said the founder measurement was 8 so she was fine. 12 is considered a worry but 8 is ok. She had no rotation or separation.
* The sedation and bute were helping. Over the next week she began to improve and the farrier who was due to shoe both horses anyway (on Sunday 8th June), removed the shoes and trimmed the feet back well, advising us to stop poulticing now. We trusted him but the vet was coming to see her on Monday 9th June, so we left a note for her and the owner dealt with the vet. The vet said it was right to take off the supports and the poultice at that point. The vet was happy with progress on the Monday.
* The horse continued to stabilise or improve slightly until around 17th June when she seemed to take a downturn. She was still happy and bright but in terms of soundness she had got worse, so we went to the vet practice to see someone. The vet dealing with it was away on holiday (we knew this, but was a relief to be honest as we had lost trust in her and this now meant we could have our favourite vet back).
* He looked at the xrays with us (he had looked at them with initial vet as she is inexperienced, and he has treated our horse for 12 years so knows her well). He explained what was going on and that she has come out of it ok, but he wanted to come out and see her.
* She remained bright but continued to get slightly worse. He had told us to put the bute back up to 2 (after farrier we had cut down to 1/2 a day as she was better). This seemed to help and he said call him if problems and he wanted to come and see her to xray the feet soon so the farrier could fit heart bars. She was still being poulticed with frog supports at this point (and still is now).
* She didn't get worse as such and she was still bright enough, speedy in her stable, but walking out of the stable (we were asked to do this every few days to check soundness as it is now 5 weeks since onset) she was bad. We just weren't happy.
* Vet came out on Monday 30th June and took xray. He showed us the xray of a horse who had a severe case and poor farriery had meant little imrovement. The horse had separation and significant rotation and had to be put down in the end. The vet assured us that our horse was not like this as the clinical signs (on no bute that day as he requested to see her natural state) were not there. But when he got back and developed the xrays he phoned us to tell us our horse now has separation (significant in one foot where she had the infection) and minor rotation. We panicked of course and he invited us to look at the xrays on Tuesday 1st July, which we did.
* The xrays show that she has separation further down the hoof, which she has recovered from and then there is healthy hoof and then more separation caused by this attack. This indicates that either she has had laminitis a short while ago which we have somehow missed (difficult when it is bad enough for separation), or the first lot of separation was that first week of laminitis which she got better from and she's had a second attack. Whatever anyway. The rotation is slight but the pedal bone is still very close to coming through on one side. In our favour, as the vet said, she has very hard hooves and soles, and she has large, wide frogs, plus she is on rubber matting with 3 feet of shavings on top. Her founder measurement is now 12, which the vet says is still OK.
* This xray was done for the farrier, as he is going to come and fit heart bar shoes tomorrow (which are now even more vital as they will offer better support than the frog supports.
* This mare is 14.3hh but the vet estimates her weight at 650-700kg! Remember, he didn't see her in that week when she turned into a blip! This has obviously not helped her case with that much weight on her feet and is meaning she does make slower progress. What the hell else can we do!? She's never been skinny (as a heavyweight, good-doing cob), but our other cob seems to stay quite trim. I know she gorges more than him, so we are going to muzzle her when she is back out.
Anyway, that's most of the background as I remember it. I just wonder what other people's experiences are? The vet has warned us things can get worse (obviously pedal bone can come through, sole could turn really soft etc), but also said while she is a very serious case, it is not terminal for her. Has anyone had this happen and their horse is now back working? How long has it taken people's horses to recover? We are into 5 or 6 weeks now and things have got worse, not better. The vet thinks we can start walking her out at the end of July and riding end of August. What sort of difference will the heart bars make?
Also, another question: we were due to take the horses on holiday for 2 weeks at the end of August (this is 6 weeks away). We don't want to let the owners of the yard/cottage down as they have become good friends, and we do need a holiday - so do the horses. Obviously she would be on box rest down there and would be controlled like she is at home, but we are saying now that we will probably not go because of the journey. Is it realistic to expect a laminitic horse, in recovery, to travel a moderate distance in an Equitrek trailer? The vet, before these xrays, said it would be unlucky if we couldnt travel her and it looks good for now. But after the xrays we are wondering if this will have changed. We did mention it to him in passing but didn't get a clear answer. I feel a change of scene could do her good (and she knows the place as we are there several times a year). The journey, I feel, could cause unnecessary trauma and could damage her legs.
So confused at the moment and don't want to see her going through this again. Ever. She is being tested for cushings etc and we get results back in about 2 hours!
