Odd lameness - an update

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saddlesore

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Quick update for anyone who's interested. :)

Horse went suddenly lame last sunday despite having been totally sound the day before. No heat, swelling, cuts etc and it was impossible to see whether he was lame in front or behind :confused:

Gave him a few days rest and lunged him on wed to see if it was clearer where he was lame; he was sound on the right rein but lame in front on the left. Farrier checked him on thursday, he was convinced he was lame behind! He said his feet were fine, but possible back/pelvis issues or bone spavin :(

Got osteo out today, again he trotted up lame but not clear where/why! She checked all his limbs and said his movement etc was excellent and no sign of any pain or granulation tissue etc. Then checked his back and he has a twist in his lumber spine and associated pain in his sacroilliac joint and poll? Anyway she did some deep tissue work and manipulation - including lots of cracking! - then we trotted him up again, including flexion tests and he was sound! :confused::confused:

He's to be rested till wed and check him again then. Fingers crossed and HHO vibes please!! x
 
Thanks BHW, sadly my horse ended up being pts after a long period of trying to fix the various issues that he has going on so feeling extra emmotional about the whole thing! The more fingers that are crossed the better! :) x
 
SusieT said:
a 'twist' in his lumbar spine? Any chance you can explain exactly what that means??
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Not really! Osteo did explain, something about if muscles get pulled for whatever reason then they can tense up and contract and make the body hold itself differently. So the right side of his body was contracted and the left side was stretched if that makes any sense? Guess just like we would do if we were sore.
 
I have back problems myself and my spine does not twist, it's not possible. I get tight muscles on one side certainly, but if you look at the spine..it's not really possible to twist! What deos he look like if you look at him from behind? Phrases like these are what concern me regarding osteopathy.
 
Yeah I don't think its twisted as such, but the muscles are do to being more contracted on the one side than the other. When you watch him trot from behind one hip was dipping lower than the other - although not after treatment. I expect she was trying to build a picture in my head of what was happening. I too was very sceptical of osteopathy until I seriously hurt my back and all the NHS seemed interested in doing was giving me painkillers and sedatives! So I went private and tried an osteo - my back in now fine. Maybe luck but maybe not.
 
The one hind dipping is a sign of hindlimb lameness. Fair enough, it wasn't doing it after treatment, sounds like a nice massage has eased some stiff muscles. Hope he continues to improve but be aware the muscles could have been stiff due to a primary issue, now they're been eased they should stay nice and loose if he's turned out.
 
Yeah I do agree, don't worry my eyes aren't closed! Just wanted to get osteo first as the lameness seemed to be shifting, although it was definitely behind today. However, I also don't want to focus soley on the worst case scenario - like I said, he was sound the day before so perhaps he has just done something silly in the field. Anyway, I'll still be keeping those fingers firmly crossed!
 
Hi there, I am very interested in this as I've been thinking about getting either a physio or osteo for my horse who vets say they think may have bone spavin but I think there's more to it than that as she also had stifle probs when a younster and hasn't felt 'straight' for a while. I wonder where you live - anywhere near Aberdeenshire? Best of luck with your horse, I am boggled by mine!
 
Its so strange! There are no signs of bone spavin in my boy at all shy of this weird lameness that has sometimes been behind? Osteo was super and spend and hour and a half with him and was really very very thorough. I'm not Aberdeenshire but I am Scotland and I know she travels. Think she's the only fully qualified equine osteo in Scotland? Her name is Julia Scott, www.equineosteo.com 07729301290 x
 
SusieT said:
I have back problems myself and my spine does not twist, it's not possible. I get tight muscles on one side certainly, but if you look at the spine..it's not really possible to twist! What deos he look like if you look at him from behind? Phrases like these are what concern me regarding osteopathy.
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It is actually perfectly possible for the spine to twist.

My 50 yr old neighbour has recently had an op (on the NHS) to straighten her spine. She had developed scoliosis and after the diagnosis we could see that her whole upper body was twisted, with one shoulder being lower than the other. The muscles on one side were pulling the spine out of position. Neighbour has had a metal rod put into her back to stop this happening again. She has also had extensive physio and is hoping to start riding again soon.

OP, I have everything crossed for your horse, when my horse had acupuncture the vet, who did it, explained it in scientific terms, which made perfect sense. Unfortunately many practitioners of 'alternative' therapies do not have such a scientific background and so cannot explain their work properly. They just 'know that it works'.
 
Thanks Pearlsasinger, she did explain it well to me - I'm the one having difficulty recounting it ha ha. All I know is that my horse trotted up lame (although more odd gait than lame if that makes sense?) and then trotted up sound after treatment. I'm going to be very good and not even trot him up between now and wed so as not to potentially aggrivate anything and hope for the best. Obviously if still not right I'll phone the vet.
 
Fingers crossed for you, i know all about mysterious back end lameness....not fun. Definitely sending healing vibes from me and fingers crossed you have a sound horse in the morning!
 
Fingers crossed for you...have a mare with back end lameness and we are running out of ideas. Physio has been but unfortunately although she felt better for a while she's gone back to being very stiff and dragging a hind leg. :(

Sending lots of vibes your way. x
 
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