Navicular..... pls tell me about your experiences

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beaconhorse

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My 4 year old is having nerve blocks on Tues and along with xrays I am praying he hasn't got nav

How many youngsters get it and what is/what your long term prognosis

anything else
 
Mine has navicular , long term prognosis is poor .. short term prognosis wasn't much better .. she has other problems though .. if you search back to yesterdays posts in NL , there is a thread about nav and young horses
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my mare has just been diagnosed with it (she is only5 ) and i am also struggling to find out info. my mare has had special shoes put on
 
Mine has been diagnosed with navicular.

The more i research barefoot for navicular the more i am convinced that is the way to go.

I never gave it much thought how shoeing can compleately alter the way a horses hoof is designed to function with long term potentially catostrophic results.

I have read a brilliant article by Pete Ramsey 'Digging the truth about Navicular Syndrome and he has a website www.hoofrehab.com which is very interesting.

My horse has effectively been written off i am going down this route and praying we will get some results.

Good luck with your horse.
 
My wonderful old lad (only 20) had the worst djd and navicular syndrome the vet had ever seen. He was bilaterally lame so it didn't get picked up for months. Sadly, we were unable to help him enough to give him any quality of life. RIP Sullivan x
 
i would wait for x ray diagnosis before thinking the worst. navilox and isoxuprene drugs can be very effective and remedial shoeing to take toes right back and shorten the breakover point of foot. many horses have clinical changes on x rays and are sound, and others which are lame show little changes on x ray. make sure you are at the vets and watch and get them to talk through all your options in idiot proof language (not high spec vet terminology) and if in doubt you can always ask for a second opinion, or referral to a specialist! hope you are insured, and got loss of use. hope it is better than you hope!
 
First of all, dont panic until all the xrays etc have been conducted.
My mare was diagnosed with navicular syndrome in 2002, she was diagnosed through x rays, nerve blocks and scintigraphy at the Animal Health Trust.
They found ossification at the ditolateral angle of the distal border of the navicular bone. She was also diagnosed with osteoarthritis in her right hock. At the time she was 6 years old.

She was treated with bute, navilox, steroids, eggbar shoes of which none worked. We claimed LOU, turned her away and planned to keep her as a big pet!

However a year later she was sound (2003) and has not had a days lameness since. I have done affliated dressage, Trailblazers SJ (including finals) and am now competing her at 90cm/1m classes.

She is does not have any supplements, has bog standard front shoes and no shoes behind.

Navicular horses are not right offs but does depend on what they have been diagnosed with.
 
Good for you, nothing like good old time and rest!

It just makes you wonder how many horse are pts which could have been ok with sufficient rest.
 
Firstly wait for diagnosis. Secondly be aware that true navicular isn't overly common in young horses. 'Navicular syndrome' is however far more common and is often used to refer to a variety of heel pain.
My boy was diagnosed with navicular at the age of 8yrs. It was a number of years ago when MRIs weren't common. He eventually was referred to the AHT after six months of treatment and failing to improve. MRI confirmed it wasn't true navicular and he actually had a ruptured collateral ligament within the coffin joint. He was pts. No amount of rest would have helped.
True navicular is often treatable with the right shoeing and a careful owner. Navicular syndrome has a less positive outcome and is often not differentiated from true navicular as soft tissue damage can only be seen through MRI.
 
My ID was diagnosed with navicular / sidebone at 7 years. Following course of Navilox and remedial shoeing, she went on to compete at affiliated dressage and qualified for the 1m class at the Ponies UK showjumping final at Gleneagles, finishing a creditable 15th out of 60. Unfortunately, she was subsequently diagnosed with epilepsy, which ended her riding career, but is still a happy field hairy and is now 17. The whole arthritic component of her navicular / sidebone means she is now stiff, but has one Danilon daily and I'm a great fan of Maxivita supplements. On joint decision with myself, farrier and vet, she is now barefoot.

Don't panic if it is confirmed. Have a good scream, then make sure you have a supportive vet and farrier.
 
I have 2 'navicular' horses both now sound after being taken barefoot, so sound in fact that i'm taking one of them out on hound exercise today! IMO its definitely the way to go.
 
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