Navicular/ Over-reaction

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robynandTilly

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Hi,

currently own a 7 yo, 16hh TB mare, never raced and bought having only been hacked about, the lady who owned her before me purchased her from the stud yard she was bred at and had her vetted with no problems. Anyway started doing some schooling with her as i'm wanting to compete, never had any lameness apart from once when she bruised her hind foot on a stone. Anyway i was having a lesson today and my instructor asked me to change the rein in trot on the left rein as i came off the corner onto the diagnol i felt her become uneven/unbalanced (possibly not exactly lame as it was only one stride) which was also noted by my instructor who said she wasn't sure she was sure she was 100% sound through her right shoulder, this being the first lesson with this horse she asked if i'd ever noticed it before which i replied occasionaly she can be unbalanced however not nessarily off a corner/on a circle. Anyway the lesson carried on clearly my instructor was alert to that uneveness and said she was slightly stiff through her hind which she does not work correctly having never been made to and i must also point out that before 3 months ago she had 8 months off. we progressed through the hours lesson and didn't have anymore uneveness/lameness despite trotting 10m circles off each corner on both reins. I know that when navicular first starts it can work through the uneveness. My only other concern is sometimes whilst out hacking she can occasionaly trip/slip on the road (not on every ride just now and again and nothing like falling down), my farrier is currently happy with her feet which have been done every 6 weeks since i purchased her. I don't know if i am over reacting and once she is being consistantly schooled and loosened up she will be fine as this is the first time she has done intense schooling with me all i have done is fitten her up to strengthen tendons etc.

Any opinions/ suggestions welcome.

Thanks
 
It could be any number of things, navicular can only be diangnosed by scans/x-rays. my tb has navicular and he was very lame on the lunge but abit better trotting up in a straight line. He has come sound now but cannot be shod again so he wears hoof boots. the stiffness through the shoulder could be secondry. I would have her back done to see if they pick up on any tight spots. My mares back has just been done due to her being incredibly stuffy and stiff on the left rein, turns out her left shoulder was extremely tight and her pelvis was massively rotated.
 
her heels are quite low which the farrier is starting to build them up he's said her toes aren't long though i should point out he is the farrier at the racing stables nearby. Yes she trots up sound in a straight line and whilst out hacking, it was only that one blip earlier today. Will ask my instructor for a good back person or is it better to ask the vet my previous ponies have never had any problems only seen the vet for routine jabs and if anything had been wrong my dad would have sorted it for me, unfortunatly a little to old now to rely on good old dad.
 
Does anyone think this is an over reaction on my half or should i get a vets opinion ? my only problem is shes sound on the straight hard and soft ground and other than that once sound ! Failing this does anyone have any good schooling excerises to help soften her and strengthen her hocks/hindquaters.

Any opinions/ suggestions

thanks
 
I think if it were mine I'd start with either an osteopath or someone similar, start with the simple things and go from there, I went through a stage where my TB had regular massage sessions and I was surprised at how much tension he was holding in certain areas of his body and how that related to how he felt to ride. (just to add, the massage lady was a friend so I know she wasn't just coming for the money)
 
This is exactly how my horse was, had investigated, vet said navicular, also ringbone in one leg as well.
Tried him barefoot for 10 months but it didn,t work for him, is now in eggbars and on a small amount of danilon a day, he has the odd bad day usually after shoeing or hooning round the field but on the whole he is ok, I don,t do any tight turns with him!
 
Navicular is a man made syndrome, horses which have been jumped and worked hard early on in their lives are at risk of developing this syndrome. From what you say your TB doesn't seem to fall into this category. It occurs predominately in the fore legs. There is a board test one can perform to confirm the diagnosis. x-rays are only useful if the damage has progressed enough to show up on film.

If your mare is stiff through her hind leg she may be compensating for an issue at the front end.

The board test: Place a stout board on the ground in line with the horse and one front foot.
Place the horse's foot on the end of the board and when ready lift the other end to about knee height and hold it.
Eventually the horse will take it's foot off the board.
If he places his foot flat on the ground the result is negative, if he stands toe first then the result is positive. You may have to do this several times as you have to watch the foot placement - this is crucial.

If the horse has navicular the board test increases the pain because it increases the tension in the deep flexor tendon and the pressure exerted on the surface of the navicular bone - hence the toe first placement.

Other then that I think all horses deserve a massage regularly and a good equine physio/chiropracter is worth looking into and as owners we can be taught to apply simple massage techniques to our own horses.
 
The vet thinks my boy may have navicular... He's started tripping and twice now has fallen down once in a sandschool and once on the road ... The foot he reckons it is worse in is alot smaller than the other and he has started standing with the foot in front of the other one ... Have had his back and evrything checked so this wk he is having some x rays done to double check ... I know how it feels when they trip it's unnerving especially landing on a road :-( ... Hope your boy gets better mine is 20 now so if he has got it will retire him gracefully
 
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