Neck pain, arthritis??

[Smccurrach]

I own a 7 year old ex-racehorse whom I have owned for a year. We started ridden work in June last year, mainly hacking with some schooling.
Now that we have ramped up the flatwork, I’ve noticed she is struggling. She’s become incredibly head shy around ears and poll. And visibly uncomfortable/uncoordinated on the left rein. On the lunge she will stop, turn in and refuse to move forward. Ridden, she is super heavy on my hands, constantly tries to pull me down, avoids contact and tilts her head sideways.
She is completely up to date with dental, which led to me call the vet. After watching her on the lunge, she palpitated her neck and asked if she ever trips. This did make me think, I’ve always thought she was a bit clumsy or lazy with her feet. The vet palpated her neck and advised there may be a neck issue. I’m not aware of any previous injuries in racing, as far as I am aware she retired sound.
We are booked in for X-rays and an ultrasound on Thursday so we should know a lot more then. In the meantime, I was hoping to hear of any similar cases, success stories, maybe even less successful stories?

 

[Birker2020]

The xrays will hopefully give you an indication of what the issue is. I assume she's a little ataxic which is maybe what the vet is referring to.

My wobblers horse had a fall onto his neck being brought in from the field. I believe he'd been roughly handled in a chifney and had reacted by going over backwards landing on his neck as I was told he'd suddenly reared for no reason which didn't seem at all plausible.

This sadly caused calcification in the spinal column which interrupted the signals from the brain to the legs due to the compression on the spinal cord. His front left leg used to 'give way' for want of a better word and he was ataxic behind. It was ages until he was diagnosed due to the vets incorrect diagnosis.

My present horse has neck arthritis as well as a myriad of other issues which means he's retired but when he was ridden he always held his head low and also when led anywhere.

See what the xrays show and go from there. Keep us updated.

 

[racebuddy]

my old boy 23 who i sadly lost in january unrelated , had neck arthatsis , he was xrayed and then injected with steroids initially he was severly ataxic due to his neck , was retired and enjoyed the last 12 months , he also had the arthamid which helped a lot , good luck for thursday

 

[sbloom]

It's rare that horses are truly, fundamentally, lazy or poorly coordinated, always worth exploring. I don't know about specific symptoms but ECVM is worth looking up, and I believe that postural improvements (bodywork, groundwork) can help, the extent to which probably dependent on how far the issues have gone. Good luck with the xrays etc.

 

[Birker2020]

It's rare that horses are truly, fundamentally, lazy or poorly coordinated, always worth exploring. I don't know about specific symptoms but ECVM is worth looking up, and I believe that postural improvements (bodywork, groundwork) can help, the extent to which probably dependent on how far the issues have gone. Good luck with the xrays etc.

My last horse had CVM whereby she had malformation at C7-T1. Dickie Hepburn studied her eating a hay net at one of his neck clinics at my vets practice but felt she didn't require any intervention at that time as she appeared comfortable. I'd say my current horse is more affectef than she ever was.

 

[Skips11]

I have very similar symptoms also with an 7yo ex racer, except our issue is the right rein; especially right canter. It has transpired that my mare has a fracture near her poll.

I believe it is quite old but became an issue when I started to ask more of her. I’m currently awaiting CT results so nothing helpful to add but hope the x-rays give you some answers!

 

[Smccurrach]

The xrays will hopefully give you an indication of what the issue is. I assume she's a little ataxic which is maybe what the vet is referring to.

My wobblers horse had a fall onto his neck being brought in from the field. I believe he'd been roughly handled in a chifney and had reacted by going over backwards landing on his neck as I was told he'd suddenly reared for no reason which didn't seem at all plausible.

This sadly caused calcification in the spinal column which interrupted the signals from the brain to the legs due to the compression on the spinal cord. His front left leg used to 'give way' for want of a better word and he was ataxic behind. It was ages until he was diagnosed due to the vets incorrect diagnosis.

My present horse has neck arthritis as well as a myriad of other issues which means he's retired but when he was ridden he always held his head low and also when led anywhere.

See what the xrays show and go from there. Keep us updated.

Thank you for sharing, sorry to hear of the loss of your boy. Mine often wants to drag her nose alone the floor when ridden. Some days are better than others, sometimes not showing any symptoms!

Will keep you updated post X-ray results!

 

[Smccurrach]

my old boy 23 who i sadly lost in january unrelated , had neck arthatsis , he was xrayed and then injected with steroids initially he was severly ataxic due to his neck , was retired and enjoyed the last 12 months , he also had the arthamid which helped a lot , good luck for thursday

So sorry to hear this, may I ask, did the steroid injections help at all?

 

[Smccurrach]

It's rare that horses are truly, fundamentally, lazy or poorly coordinated, always worth exploring. I don't know about specific symptoms but ECVM is worth looking up, and I believe that postural improvements (bodywork, groundwork) can help, the extent to which probably dependent on how far the issues have gone. Good luck with the xrays etc.

Thank you, I’m just doing a bit of research on ECVM now. Looks like it’s more the C6 C7 vertebrae’s in the neck. I may have forgotten to add in the original post that she is tender around the C3/C4 vertebrae. Obviously would be silly to rule out CVM, will ask vets opinion tomorrow!

 

[Smccurrach]

I have very similar symptoms also with an 7yo ex racer, except our issue is the right rein; especially right canter. It has transpired that my mare has a fracture near her poll.

I believe it is quite old but became an issue when I started to ask more of her. I’m currently awaiting CT results so nothing helpful to add but hope the x-rays give you some answers!

hi, I also found mine struggles most in canter. Was yours particularly head-shy on one side?
I believe this is something that she came to me with. Looking back on old videos, she was always stiff/reluctant to work on that rein however I put it down to general greenness/typical ex racehorse characteristics

 

[rextherobber]

I have a horse with neck issues but radiography (neck, back and legs) and whole body (including face) bone scan have shown absolutely nothing, Bute trial made no difference, Robaxam made no difference...so am following with interest!

 

[sbloom]

My last horse had CVM whereby she had malformation at C7-
T1. Dickie Hepburn studied her eating a hay net at one of his neck clinics at my vets practice but felt she didn't require any intervention at that time as she appeared comfortable. I'd say my current horse is more affectef than she ever was.

Was it diagnosed by xray? This https://thehorsesback.com/tag/ecvm/ is a very good resource.

 

[Birker2020]

Was it diagnosed by xray? This https://thehorsesback.com/tag/ecvm/ is a very good resource.

Yes I put this up on the forum a few years ago as my vet physio friend told me about it.

I can't remember if its in that text or I read it elsewhere but there's a famous statue based on a horses skeleton that shows the abnormality of the C6-C7 and C7-T1 junction as the statue was bizarrely moulded on the skeleton of a horse that just happened to have the very condition! No one realised to decades later!

And talking of abnormalities even more interesting is the very link within the text about other abnormalities and that of the Northern Dancer lineage. So bloody sad. Please read it if you've not already seen it folks as it makes fascinating and horrifying reading and shows how congenital abnormalities are passed down throughout the generations. Convinced this is why so many thoroughbreds and WB'S end up knackered so quickly especially when the TB blood has been infused with WB'S as I don't think I know of a WB that hasn't had lameness issues along the line.https://www.espn.com.au/sports/horse/triplecrown08/columns/story?columnist=nack_bill&id=3399004

 

[sbloom]

I didn't think you meant it was diagnosed over the stable door but just checking . I guess it must vary a lot in its severity.

 

[Birker2020]

I didn't think you meant it was diagnosed over the stable door but just checking . I guess it must vary a lot in its severity.

Yes sorry I never answered your question did I? Bails had had one, maybe two steroid injections previously as it had been diagnosed on xray some years before. She was very badly ataxic the once when my physio did the 'sway tail test' on her but after she had steroid she was fine and never repeated the ataxia to that extent although she was very slightly ataxic and would ket you place her feet wide and move them after a few seconds rather than straight away. She was a candidate for the Dickie Hepburn clinic as my vets invited me to let her take part in his clinic as they were short on suitable horses but he felt she was comfortable and so didn't need steriod. At this point in her life all we were doing was hacking a couple of times a week (1.5 hrs between the two days) and he felt that that was appropriate exercise for her and was actually benefitting her, keeping her moving.

I remember when I went to collect her I was told by my vet that he watched her for some ten or so minutes from a distance eating from a net and then the floor and felt happy with her stance and head position and didn't give him much cause for concern, which was a relief.

 

[rextherobber]

Yes I put this up on the forum a few years ago as my vet physio friend told me about it.

I can't remember if its in that text or I read it elsewhere but there's a famous statue based on a horses skeleton that shows the abnormality of the C6-C7 and C7-T1 junction as the statue was bizarrely moulded on the skeleton of a horse that just happened to have the very condition! No one realised to decades later!

And talking of abnormalities even more interesting is the very link within the text about other abnormalities and that of the Northern Dancer lineage. So bloody sad. Please read it if you've not already seen it folks as it makes fascinating and horrifying reading and shows how congenital abnormalities are passed down throughout the generations. Convinced this is why so many thoroughbreds and WB'S end up knackered so quickly especially when the TB blood has been infused with WB'S as I don't think I know of a WB that hasn't had lameness issues along the line.https://www.espn.com.au/sports/horse/triplecrown08/columns/story?columnist=nack_bill&id=3399004

My horse is Northern Dancer lineage...Will go and read !

 

[Birker2020]

My horse is Northern Dancer lineage...Will go and read !

Don't panic, I think its only part of that gene pool and if they are too closely interbred from what I could gather.

 

[rextherobber]

Don't panic, I think its only part of that gene pool and if they are too closely interbred from what I could gather.

It's grim reading though, isn't it?

 

[sbloom]

The neck is so vulnerable - downwards compression in the base of the neck and upwards compression towards the top. I don't think we take it into account enough when handling and riding our horses (not having a dig at anyone including OP!).

 

[Birker2020]

It's grim reading though, isn't it?

Its horrendous. I'm afraid I'm a bit anti racing anyway when I see 2 and 3 yr olds raced to death before their joints are even formed and hearing of professionals having to mop up the damage, figuratively speaking I find the whole horse racing thing very disturbing.

What makes me sadder than the deaths of three and four year olds that have broken down or suffered terrible catasphrophic fractures is hearing about how it could have all been prevented at the stud farm stage.

Of the 12 that died on UK racetracks during last month their average age was 7.

 

[Smccurrach]

So a little update for you from today, of course it was snowing!
Vet brought all equipment to the yard which saved us travelling. We didn’t find anything obvious from the X-rays, which is good I guess. No fractures, abnormalities or signs of arthritis. There are some very slight points on her vertebrae’s. The vets seem quite confident it’s not prominent enough to be wobblers but will still do the checks and let me know.
They did have a look in her mouth while she was sedated. Last saw dentist December 22. Her left side is completely slanted. Called shear mouth?
She only eats her hay on the opposite side, so is avoiding chewing completely. Could she possibly need a tooth out? Or is this affecting her TMJ?

 

[Birker2020]

So a little update for you from today, of course it was snowing!
Vet brought all equipment to the yard which saved us travelling. We didn’t find anything obvious from the X-rays, which is good I guess. No fractures, abnormalities or signs of arthritis. There are some very slight points on her vertebrae’s. The vets seem quite confident it’s not prominent enough to be wobblers but will still do the checks and let me know.
They did have a look in her mouth while she was sedated. Last saw dentist December 22. Her left side is completely slanted. Called shear mouth?
She only eats her hay on the opposite side, so is avoiding chewing completely. Could she possibly need a tooth out? Or is this affecting her TMJ?

Here's good reading with photos

Texas Equine Dental Care: Common Horse Problems | Texas Equine Dentistry, Weesatche TX

South Central TX mobile veterinary equine dentistry treats a variety of horse dental problems including tooth wear, wolf teeth & parrot or sow mouth: Texas Equine Dentistry, Weesatche Texas

www.texasequinedentist.com

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

So a little update for you from today, of course it was snowing!
Vet brought all equipment to the yard which saved us travelling. We didn’t find anything obvious from the X-rays, which is good I guess. No fractures, abnormalities or signs of arthritis. There are some very slight points on her vertebrae’s. The vets seem quite confident it’s not prominent enough to be wobblers but will still do the checks and let me know.
They did have a look in her mouth while she was sedated. Last saw dentist December 22. Her left side is completely slanted. Called shear mouth?
She only eats her hay on the opposite side, so is avoiding chewing completely. Could she possibly need a tooth out? Or is this affecting her TMJ?

Yes her TmJ could be the issue you can get therapists that can help release any tension there i would definitely look into that.

 

[Birker2020]

Does your horse ever stand like this? I've noticed horses with neck issues do this, i think it relieves discomfort in the neck.

Its a very slight but constant pressure.

 

[Birker2020]

Yes her TmJ could be the issue you can get therapists that can help release any tension there i would definitely look into that.

It might also be her atlas out. I had a horse who held his head at an angle. Physio sorted.

 

[Skips11]

hi, I also found mine struggles most in canter. Was yours particularly head-shy on one side?
I believe this is something that she came to me with. Looking back on old videos, she was always stiff/reluctant to work on that rein however I put it down to general greenness/typical ex racehorse characteristics

Yes, when grooming. I have to be very gentle or just not brush that bit! Her fracture is in the form of a bone fragment on the right hand side of her neck which explains the soreness there, although she is sore to palpate on most of the top third of her neck.

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

My old mare had a poll issue she was always a bit head shy, but I just thought it was because she didn't know us and she had been a brood mare for years and lived out, I put a bungee over her head through the bit and attached between her legs it wasn't at all tight, she really didn't like it and I took it off immediately and I never used it again.

I did get a physio out to her and told them what happened and she found some scar damage to her poll, it felt like bony lumps there so it's possible it had fractured there at some point, she said it's quite common so might be worth checking that out.

My mare was actually ok to ride you just had to minimise any poll pressure so she had a prolite pad under her head piece, she had the most softest mouth so she was always ridden in a happy mouth.