Mechanically lame horses - have you got one?

[LilMissy]

Just interested to know if anyone else has a horse that is classed as mechanically lame?

What do you do with them? Are they ridden and how have you got on with whatever discipline you are doing with them?

 

[Pebble101]

I have one. One of the vets treating him didn't believe he would look so well if in constant pain.

He was eventing but is now retired and living a wonderful life as a companion to my other horse.

He looks OK in walk. Can gallop and buck with the best of them but looks terrible in trot, particularly when going uphill.

 

[LilMissy]

Thanks for answering! Was he lame before or after his eventing career and why is he lame? Did you try a bute trial to see if it made any difference?

I clocked mine galloping at 20mile per hour next to my car this week! (I was going down the track next to the field on the way to the gate to feed. He knows there are buckets in the boot!).

 

[ImmyS]

I used to loan a hackney x welsh D with huge paces. She had mechanical lameness in her near fore, it was investigated and no results were found to show any pain. Because of her big paces her lameness was very noticeable in trot however as her fitness improved the lameness would also improve. She went on to jump, locally show, pony club etc.. With no problems

 

[Sarah_K]

Yeah, my old TB was mechanically lame. She injured her stifle some how. Didn't stop her hooning around like an eejit. Was sound in walk, noticeably lame in trot and cantered as if she had 3 legs. She wasn't ridden after the injury as she was 28 when she developed it.

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

I have a tb who slipped the tendon off of his hock racing. Trot is the only pace where he is noticably lame but it is more of a kind of hyperflexion because the tendon isn't where it should be. He could have gone on and raced again after the injury but seeing as he wasn't the best before hand he was just retired. I rode him for a while but he was never really a fan of work so these days he lives the life of luxury nannying some of my other werdo's.

 

[Pondrider]

I had one that was classed as mechanically unsound: we did endurance riding for some years with the EHPS and he was always the same at final vet inspection as at pre-ride one, and One of the most consistent horses I've had.

 

[Spring Feather]

Didn't stop her hooning around like an eejit. Was sound in walk, noticeably lame in trot and cantered as if she had 3 legs.

This is my mechanically lame horse to a tee ^^ Horse broke leg, was retired although recovered to 95% sound in all gaits. Stayed 95% sound for a year. One day hooning around a field like an eejit, dislodged some of the calcified bone around the healed fracture, then sound only in walk, noticably lame in trot and canters as if on 3 legs. All trials and tests were done and proved mechanical only. Horse initially injured itself approx 6 years ago. Bleedin' buck burner!

 

[Alyth]

What do you mean by 'mechanically' lame? Surely a horse is either lame or sound?

 

[Tiarella]

Mechanically lame - unsound but not in pain

Lame - Unsound and in pain.

 

[Auslander]

What do you mean by 'mechanically' lame? Surely a horse is either lame or sound?

Mechanically lame is when the horse is physically unable to perform an action, rather than unable to because of pain. The example of the slipped tendon is a good one, as it renders the horse incapable of moving properly, but will not be painful.

I had a pony with one fused hock joint, and she was slightly unlevel because the joint wasn't as flexible as the other one.

 

[dotty1]

My old mare was mechanically lame, she tore her hamstring very badly and it mended in a bid tight knott. She couldn't bring her leg forward properly so in walk she would jerk it up and slam it down flat. It was only noticable in walk.

 

[zaminda]

One of ours was mechanically lame for a long time post surgery for a broken knee. He is never quite right after a break, but now seems ok. He is back competing in endurance, but it has taken two years.

 

[Pebble101]

Thanks for answering! Was he lame before or after his eventing career and why is he lame? Did you try a bute trial to see if it made any difference?

I clocked mine galloping at 20mile per hour next to my car this week! (I was going down the track next to the field on the way to the gate to feed. He knows there are buckets in the boot!).

No his lameness ended his eventing career. The tendon slipped off his hock and bute was given to him to reduce inflammation when he first did it. However it makes no difference to him now it has stabilised as much as it is going to.

 

[chestnut cob]

My last horse was, for a good while. Checked out regularly by vet and physio who were both happy he was mechanically "technically" lame but not in pain or unhappy. It would be more accurate to call it a funny or unusual action than a lameness, as that movement changed if he was in pain.

He hacked, did a bit of light schooling, the odd fun ride with a few smallish XC fences, hunted 7 or 8 days last season when the ground was good (again, with a few jumps). He has ringbone in his LF and according to my farrier, the way it had developed meant he tended to want to walk on the outside of that foot so he looked like he was dishing a little in front (just that leg). Also tended to be a bit short on it. But not sore, it was just him. Even up until he retired, he would still cart you off across the fields out hacking and lived for his hunting.

 

[Emilieu]

My vet told me that the only way Deano would ever be 100% sound was if we could remove his leg, rotate it slightly to the left and then reattach it so i suppose he is just a bit wonky really but the vet says he will be up to doing whatever I want with no restrictions so i'm not too worried about it as long as he is not in pain

 

[el_Snowflakes]

Can somebody explain to me what 'mechanical' lameness is & how it differs to any other type of lameness?

 

[Emilieu]

Mechanically lame - unsound but not in pain

Lame - Unsound and in pain.

el_snowflakes see above

 

[measles]

Elder son's pony Measles was lame behind because of a fused spavin and he did pony club and small jumps as befitting a 12.3hh first pony club pony. We had him on trial and did a bute trial and various other diagnostic tests before agreeing to buy him with that hind lameness. He served A well for 18mths until he outgrew his ability and then went on to do the same job for other small people.

 

[LilMissy]

Glad to hear that people have still ridden and enjoyed these horses. Its such an unusual thing that Im finding it difficult to know what to do.

Basically my boy managed to injure himself as a weanling, cut across the inside cannon of a hind leg just under hock, which sliced the extensor tendon. Somehow he also managed to slice just over the fetlock and the tendon fell out of his leg! Vet removed, box rested etc and he was turned out again a few months later and has been living out ever since.

Not very noticable in walk, fetlock flexes a lot more in trot and cant really see anything in canter. Physio was happy that pelvis wasnt lopsided and hasnt developed more muscle on one side either. He can still gallop and jump happily and is a very happy boy, if a bit of a 'Kevin' at the moment!

I did a little bit of long reining with him last summer and he was sat on twice and walked around the yard but I didnt feel he was strong enough to do more. He then came down with a spleenic abcess which put him back hugely.

So, he will be four in June, I am expecting my second, cant ride or do much at moment and thinking he really needs more one to one as he adores people. But would someone loan (longterm) or buy a horse who is missing a tendon?!

 

[el_Snowflakes]

el_snowflakes see above

Thanks

This is what I thought....but how do we know that horses is not in pain?

 

[LilMissy]

10 day bute trial was how I satisfied myself that mine wasnt in pain.

Made absolutely no difference whatsoever!

If a severly lame horse which was in pain was on one bute a day you would expect to see it a little more comfortable even if not sound.

My boy could at the most be described as 1/10 lame, he is more unlevel than lame really as the fetlock flexes more than the other. He does look much worse on very soft ground. Hope this makes sense

 

[mjcssjw2]

Lilmissy, thats a most unfortunate accident, horse managed to do the most unfortunate things. My friend has a horse who had a very usual tumour which was removed with 4 inches of extensor tendon, her vet says he will learn to adapt, but wonder if he might have an aquired gait. mind you think thats the least of her worries as the tumour type he had is very aggressive.

 

[burtie]

I had a TB that was very slightly mechanically lame. He was obviously born a bit over at the knee, but was given to me for free due a previous serious tendon injury. When I had him the tendon had healed fine but he was even more over at the knee on that leg, in fact his leg would wobble slightly as he stood square as it basically had healed so tight, he was noticeably shorter on that leg! He was pretty sound in a straight line, but when we did dressage I always kept him a bit bent towards the short leg or he'd look unsound to the judge!

I had him for 5 years and even did low level unaf eventing. In the end his hocks gave way badly due to arthritis and we had to have him PTS, so nothing to do with the front legs!

 

[Spring Feather]

This is what I thought....but how do we know that horses is not in pain?

Nerve blocks, extended trials of bute etc

 

[Emilieu]

Yes nerve blocking for mine.

 

[googol]

So would a mechanically lame horse remain lame if the whole leg was nerve blocked but a lame horse wud go sound?

 

[Spring Feather]

So would a mechanically lame horse remain lame if the whole leg was nerve blocked but a lame horse wud go sound?

Yes