Movement/lameness experts (or enthusiasts!)

[BBP]

It's so tricky as there are a lot of conditions that cause a poor canter. My vet thinks it may be the muscle myopathy that we haven't fully diagnosed yet. I've been away this week so after a chat with my vet he is now booked in on Thursday for a muscle biopsy so that we know exactly what we are dealing with muscle wise. The muscle/liver specialist will be there and so will their lameness specialist. On the bone scan there was nothing that lead them to believe hock or spine issue (and this canter performance issue predates that scan, it isn't a new thing), but I'm going to get them to have a good poke and prod so we dont just discount anything.

 

[ester]

Is it possible that it is just his confo/breeding that means he doesn't have the greatest of canters? as you aren't observing a change/deterioration as such as he has never had a great one?

 

[BBP]

Is it possible that it is just his confo/breeding that means he doesn't have the greatest of canters? as you aren't observing a change/deterioration as such as he has never had a great one?

You may be right there, he probably won't ever have the engine my sisters horse has, but he has nice conformation and I think ought to be able to maintain a 20m circle. To be honest it's more the banana shaped inverted posture and ear pinning (including on lunge and in field) that bothers me. If he was just a bit weak I would assume it's just a schooling issue. I'll try to hop on and get some slow motion ridden video this weekend...he showed me up in the lunging one by looking quite normal!

 

[shellibob]

Has he been checked for ulcers/hindgut problems, if hes had alot of pain/stress and meds its very possible, my welsh had ks, hock arthritis, sacro pain, ulcers and hindgut acidosis, headshaker and extremely stressy and spooky , rising 7 and still trying to get it all balanced

 

[BBP]

Ulcers will definitely be the next port of enquiry after the biopsy comes back. I already treat him as if he has them in that he is never without forage and never worked on an empty stomach, he also gets Ulsa-soothe supplement which there has been no change on (he loves it though!).

Do vets only prescribe gastroguard after scoping or will they give it without having scoped first? I do not want to put him through scoping if I don't absolutely have to (and if hind gut they won't show?)

 

[be positive]

Ulcers will definitely be the next port of enquiry after the biopsy comes back. I already treat him as if he has them in that he is never without forage and never worked on an empty stomach, he also gets Ulsa-soothe supplement which there has been no change on (he loves it though!).

Do vets only prescribe gastroguard after scoping or will they give it without having scoped first? I do not want to put him through scoping if I don't absolutely have to (and if hind gut they won't show?)

They will prescribe without scoping but your insurance, if you have any left!! may not pay out without having a scope done, GG will not treat hindgut ulcers and may make them, if he has them, worse but the succeed test could be done for them without him being stressed in any way, my horse had a short course of GG as an emergency measure it seemed to work so he was not scoped, it was part of ongoing issues as he was by then over the insurance limit it was never put forward with the rest of the invoices.

 

[BBP]

I have no insurance (they excluded pretty much everything at my last renewal...think they must have had a premonition that I was about to investigate everything, so in a fit of temper I cancelled it!). So I can do a faecal test for hind gut? And if not present on the test potentially treat for ulcers with gastroguard? Sounds like it will be worth considering (and lots more volunteering for duty shifts at work to pay for it!). He isn't even slightly girthy and is fat and shiny but as in one of my other posts he does yawn/grind teeth/get bitey quite a lot as well as his movement issues. I will discuss it with vet once she calls me about the biopsy.

 

[be positive]

With his history I would not be surprised if he has ulcers, not all horses with them will have the classic signs, mine was not in work and had just gone through a lot of pain, drugs and an op then I saw him just start cribbing one morning while still on box rest, I knew it was out of character and my first thought was ulcers so I rushed off to the vets and collected some GG, he stopped cribbing as quickly as he started so my hunch was probably correct.
My friends horse looked fab was competing successfully, when he was sound, he was not girthy but was very ticklish and sharp, he had had suspensory problems and at first it was put down to that coming back but he proved to have gastric and severe hindgut issues way beyond her vets expectations, they have been resolved with treatment.