Dun Mare
New User
Sorry this is long, I've probably missed a few things but I'm in a bit of shock and just want to do the right thing.
Background:
So 19 year old mare, native connie type X. I've owned her 10 years, always been very low level - mostly hacking and until covid we had weekly lessons at the local riding school but nothing competitive. Last few years just hacking (I broke my ankle so had a little time off before we both got back into it) I just want to show we are not massive jumping/showing machines. Always been spooky, averse to schooling and was VERY nappy as a 6-11 year old but we worked through that and has been a happy hacker since. I feel we're closer because it took us a while to get to this point. Never been lame or ill, had one small injury to OS cannon area 8 years ago.
June/July this year we started having fortnightly lessons with our old instructor, again low level just getting back into it. Maybe the 4th one, she noticed my mare's shoulders seemed stiff, we did a longer warm up and a lower level lesson. Thought she's got cold and wet in one of the summer's storms that week. Gave her a couple of days off and then hacked, seemed better than ever. 2 weeks later next lesson, very forward hack there and within a couple of strides instructor pulled us up and said she was off behind. Looked 'stifle-y' to her. Stopped immediately, went home and not ridden since.
Main story: very low level hind lameness spotted in August in trot only, stopped riding immediately. Usually very stingy with rugs but have kept her rugged up ever since. Thought possible abscess but after 5 days decided to call vet to be on the safe side. They came (not our usual) heard her age and straight away said hock arthritis. I questioned this as no sign beforehand but we did a bute trial, hard to say at time if it made any difference and decided if it continued that I'd get her hocks x-rayed. He also nerve-blocked the OS hind up to below hock as thought at this stage it was this leg with no improvement.
I got chiro out who said she didn't think it was joints, no obvious discomfort, just the stiffness she would expect from a horse who was due to be seen etc. Anyway fastforward another 4/5/weeks, could now see a shortness on NS in walk so got our usual vet out, hocks x-rayed, all clear but she still thought inject hocks and said would see a difference in 5 weeks. Still a question over which leg it even was so thought bilateral.
She got steadily worse after this (not suddenly but there was gradually more of a hitch in her step) and when they came for the reassessment the vet was very surprised they hadn't improved and said that ruled out hocks. Talked about how worse she was and suggested it might be a case of long term bute. End result suggested 6 weeks on bute (2 twice a day for 2 days and then 2 a day after). Over this time I had been waiting for a vet physio to come out with an Indiba machine. I updated her to say horse now on bute (had been 2 weeks) and she basically said that meant she couldn't do Indiba. I then spent ages on phone trying to speak to vet and physio to work out what we're doing. In talking to vet I asked whether I should just take her off bute as it wasn't doing anything. Cue vet explaining that was very unusual and she would come and xray neck as she hadn't done any neuro tests on her and wonders if Wobblers. I panic now, physio comes out next day, again can't really any points of discomfort except slightly in pelvis/hip area. Asks if she is a very stoical horse (vets also previously asked this) - until this I would say she has never had a problem saying No to something she didn't like!
Physio says she is walking as though she has a peg leg - I had literally googled this previously as that is exactly what it looked like. Swinging NS leg out to side very straight to step forward on a short stride. But no real 'pain' points. Seems very optimistic and says we can work on it and she doesn't mind a challenge!
Vet comes out 2 days later Thursday just gone, thinks she's worse again. Can't xray due to bad weather (no indoor facilities) and does the neuro tests on the ground. Is very surprised how well she does and strong in sway test and says she doesn't think its neuro now. I get hopeful until she sits me down and says we've come to end of the line diagnostically, that area (hip/pelvis) hard to scan and that if she's not responding to bute and getting worse it must actually be something unusual or major, i.e. she's in pain and not showing it. At a push she has said load her up on bute for next 2 weeks along with paracetamol to see if makes any difference. But that basically this is for me to come to terms with PTS and find the other pony a companion.
To say I'm shocked is an understatement. She really doesn't look like a horse in a massive amount of pain, is at the gate for breakfast and tea, banging on the gate and calling. Has good appetite, not dropped any weight and doesn't have that pained expression on the face. She is grazing but moving around field very slowly and has lost muscle from her hind end.
I had the trimmer out on Friday as already booked. She is a pretty hard woman and was also shocked they had suggested it (although she is very holistic and doesn't trust vets!). Said she definitely didn't have that pained look but did say she was more reluctant to weight bear on that leg than previously and was worse than when she saw her 4 weeks ago.
However I have never wanted to be one of 'those people' who keep a horse going longer than they should.
It's just so hard as no idea what it even is despite having multiple visits. From the start it has never been about keeping the horse riding just getting her comfortable. Have our own fields so that's not a problem. My old mare was 33 so I just thought I'd have at least another 10 years before having to deal with this.
By big fear is that it's just something that needs time and I PTS on the vets say so too early.
But we are going into the worst months of the year and though our fields are not that muddy we only have natural shelter and I would hate it to get worse and we're in freezing February.
Honestly until the vet suggested it I don't think I was anywhere near to a PTS decision but the fact she put it bluntly for a quality of life means she must think it is that bad to warrant it. And looking back she was starting to angle towards this 2 weeks ago at the hock reevaluation.There is only one other vet practice around here which she did say I could get an opinion from if I wanted but that they didn't have access to any other diagnostic equipment so again it would be narrowed to same area etc with no other course of treatment. Nearest Bone scanner is 7 hours plus away and as we've not boxed in the last 10 years I wouldn't do that to her now.
It's the fact it hasn't got better with 3.5 months field rest, in fact much worse. And doesn't seem to be responding to any pain relief.
Don't know what I want from this really but I've been reading thread after thread on here trying to work out what it could be and how I could help since the beginning so thought I had nothing to lose. I've gone from thinking PSD, arthritis, cracked pelvis to just now PSSM. But wouldn't these respond to bute? I realise I'll never know the answer but thought someone else might have had the same experience.
Please be gentle. The very last thing I want is my horse in pain with no end.
I feel the vet has put me on a countdown to 2 weeks and that's it.
I have videos if that helps.
Background:
So 19 year old mare, native connie type X. I've owned her 10 years, always been very low level - mostly hacking and until covid we had weekly lessons at the local riding school but nothing competitive. Last few years just hacking (I broke my ankle so had a little time off before we both got back into it) I just want to show we are not massive jumping/showing machines. Always been spooky, averse to schooling and was VERY nappy as a 6-11 year old but we worked through that and has been a happy hacker since. I feel we're closer because it took us a while to get to this point. Never been lame or ill, had one small injury to OS cannon area 8 years ago.
June/July this year we started having fortnightly lessons with our old instructor, again low level just getting back into it. Maybe the 4th one, she noticed my mare's shoulders seemed stiff, we did a longer warm up and a lower level lesson. Thought she's got cold and wet in one of the summer's storms that week. Gave her a couple of days off and then hacked, seemed better than ever. 2 weeks later next lesson, very forward hack there and within a couple of strides instructor pulled us up and said she was off behind. Looked 'stifle-y' to her. Stopped immediately, went home and not ridden since.
Main story: very low level hind lameness spotted in August in trot only, stopped riding immediately. Usually very stingy with rugs but have kept her rugged up ever since. Thought possible abscess but after 5 days decided to call vet to be on the safe side. They came (not our usual) heard her age and straight away said hock arthritis. I questioned this as no sign beforehand but we did a bute trial, hard to say at time if it made any difference and decided if it continued that I'd get her hocks x-rayed. He also nerve-blocked the OS hind up to below hock as thought at this stage it was this leg with no improvement.
I got chiro out who said she didn't think it was joints, no obvious discomfort, just the stiffness she would expect from a horse who was due to be seen etc. Anyway fastforward another 4/5/weeks, could now see a shortness on NS in walk so got our usual vet out, hocks x-rayed, all clear but she still thought inject hocks and said would see a difference in 5 weeks. Still a question over which leg it even was so thought bilateral.
She got steadily worse after this (not suddenly but there was gradually more of a hitch in her step) and when they came for the reassessment the vet was very surprised they hadn't improved and said that ruled out hocks. Talked about how worse she was and suggested it might be a case of long term bute. End result suggested 6 weeks on bute (2 twice a day for 2 days and then 2 a day after). Over this time I had been waiting for a vet physio to come out with an Indiba machine. I updated her to say horse now on bute (had been 2 weeks) and she basically said that meant she couldn't do Indiba. I then spent ages on phone trying to speak to vet and physio to work out what we're doing. In talking to vet I asked whether I should just take her off bute as it wasn't doing anything. Cue vet explaining that was very unusual and she would come and xray neck as she hadn't done any neuro tests on her and wonders if Wobblers. I panic now, physio comes out next day, again can't really any points of discomfort except slightly in pelvis/hip area. Asks if she is a very stoical horse (vets also previously asked this) - until this I would say she has never had a problem saying No to something she didn't like!
Physio says she is walking as though she has a peg leg - I had literally googled this previously as that is exactly what it looked like. Swinging NS leg out to side very straight to step forward on a short stride. But no real 'pain' points. Seems very optimistic and says we can work on it and she doesn't mind a challenge!
Vet comes out 2 days later Thursday just gone, thinks she's worse again. Can't xray due to bad weather (no indoor facilities) and does the neuro tests on the ground. Is very surprised how well she does and strong in sway test and says she doesn't think its neuro now. I get hopeful until she sits me down and says we've come to end of the line diagnostically, that area (hip/pelvis) hard to scan and that if she's not responding to bute and getting worse it must actually be something unusual or major, i.e. she's in pain and not showing it. At a push she has said load her up on bute for next 2 weeks along with paracetamol to see if makes any difference. But that basically this is for me to come to terms with PTS and find the other pony a companion.
To say I'm shocked is an understatement. She really doesn't look like a horse in a massive amount of pain, is at the gate for breakfast and tea, banging on the gate and calling. Has good appetite, not dropped any weight and doesn't have that pained expression on the face. She is grazing but moving around field very slowly and has lost muscle from her hind end.
I had the trimmer out on Friday as already booked. She is a pretty hard woman and was also shocked they had suggested it (although she is very holistic and doesn't trust vets!). Said she definitely didn't have that pained look but did say she was more reluctant to weight bear on that leg than previously and was worse than when she saw her 4 weeks ago.
However I have never wanted to be one of 'those people' who keep a horse going longer than they should.
It's just so hard as no idea what it even is despite having multiple visits. From the start it has never been about keeping the horse riding just getting her comfortable. Have our own fields so that's not a problem. My old mare was 33 so I just thought I'd have at least another 10 years before having to deal with this.
By big fear is that it's just something that needs time and I PTS on the vets say so too early.
But we are going into the worst months of the year and though our fields are not that muddy we only have natural shelter and I would hate it to get worse and we're in freezing February.
Honestly until the vet suggested it I don't think I was anywhere near to a PTS decision but the fact she put it bluntly for a quality of life means she must think it is that bad to warrant it. And looking back she was starting to angle towards this 2 weeks ago at the hock reevaluation.There is only one other vet practice around here which she did say I could get an opinion from if I wanted but that they didn't have access to any other diagnostic equipment so again it would be narrowed to same area etc with no other course of treatment. Nearest Bone scanner is 7 hours plus away and as we've not boxed in the last 10 years I wouldn't do that to her now.
It's the fact it hasn't got better with 3.5 months field rest, in fact much worse. And doesn't seem to be responding to any pain relief.
Don't know what I want from this really but I've been reading thread after thread on here trying to work out what it could be and how I could help since the beginning so thought I had nothing to lose. I've gone from thinking PSD, arthritis, cracked pelvis to just now PSSM. But wouldn't these respond to bute? I realise I'll never know the answer but thought someone else might have had the same experience.
Please be gentle. The very last thing I want is my horse in pain with no end.
I feel the vet has put me on a countdown to 2 weeks and that's it.
I have videos if that helps.
