Odd lameness in young horse :(

Lammy

Lammy

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Before I start I just want to confirm that we are due another vet visit with the diagnostic van and a different vet to do some proper investigating but I really need somewhere to vent my worries!

Whilst I was away on holiday my four year old presented with a very odd hind leg lameness. Vet came out to see him Tuesday as I told my friend looking after him to get the vet out asap after she sent me a video. There's no heat, swelling or any sign of obvious injury but he is lifting the hind leg high and then slamming it down, almost kicking his front leg he's reaching forward so much. Vet immediately told my friend it was stringhalt after one trot up the drive and doing small circles. Hence why I've asked to see another vet and for them to bring the diagnostic van.

He was prescribed Danilon 2 sachets a day and box rest as he was much worse when turned out and it was noted by my friend that when he cantered he wasn't using both hinds, just kind of hopping on his good leg. Vet who examined him couldn't find any pain anywhere and he fully rests his weight on this leg however the danilon trial seems to have made the problem less severe so I'm thinking there must be pain somewhere?

I really don't think that it is stringhalt, vet said it could be brought on by trauma but there's no signs in the field to say he's slipped over and his field mate has definitely not done him any damage. Also some days it's better although mildly and at other times it's worse. I've come back from holiday and got a look at him this morning, I'm really not convinced it is stringhalt, the action is similar but at the same time different to what I've seen from other horses with stringhalt. Either way I'm really worried about him and just want him better :(, can't believe he hurt himself while I was away!

Does anybody have any experience of anything like this? Is there anything else I should get the vet on Monday to be looking for?

Thanks for reading!!
 
It's a strange one but often missed by vets as they are so busy looking at the lower parts of limbs they fail to see the obvious. Check his tendon is still on his hock properly. That would A. Make him lame and B. Produce a stringhalt like movenent.
The horse I took home from work did this. The vets at the races said fetlock/pastern fracture. Got back home and it was a further hour of xraying and scanning the lower limb before they noticed the hock didn't look quite right.

I hope it's something simple and easily fixable!
 
EKW said:
It's a strange one but often missed by vets as they are so busy looking at the lower parts of limbs they fail to see the obvious. Check his tendon is still on his hock properly. That would A. Make him lame and B. Produce a stringhalt like movenent.
The horse I took home from work did this. The vets at the races said fetlock/pastern fracture. Got back home and it was a further hour of xraying and scanning the lower limb before they noticed the hock didn't look quite right.

I hope it's something simple and easily fixable!
Click to expand...

Exactly EKW - and its the subject of the vet article in H&H this week. Can be unstable where the tendon slips on and off, and panicks the horse, or stable where it stays off...

Good luck on Monday Lammy x x

Fiona
 
I had something very similar with an elderly Thoroughbred (aged 30) He came up the field with an extremely odd hindleg action looked all the world stringhalt ish lifting the leg high under his body and slamming it down.I got the vet out the next day and he said it was a stringhalt action but didn,t think it was stringhalt could be neurological! couldnt easily exmane the hoof or leg as he is an old boy and finds it hard to hold his leg up in certain positions as he has bne spavins.
The vet gave him a large IV dose of bute this was around 6pm and said he would come back at 9am the next morning when it would have taken full effect.
He came back and said he had consulted with other horse experts and was very concerned due to the horses age and severity of his lameness.
He examined the hoof and found a mark on the sole he followed the mark in quite deep into the toe when all of a sudden puss exploded out of the toe with a loud pop and literally glugged out black smelly puss and blood masses of it.I was to tub the foot twice a day and change the poultice twice a day. He was walking a lot better but it took 6 days of tubbing and poulticing for the stream of puss to subside. I have never seen an abscess eplode out like that before . The lameness came on very quickly and was very dramatic.
The vet was so delighted he really thought (like me)we were at the end of the road with the old boy!. He was sound in a couple of weeks and is still with me cantering about the fields enjoying his old age
 
EKW said:
It's a strange one but often missed by vets as they are so busy looking at the lower parts of limbs they fail to see the obvious. Check his tendon is still on his hock properly. That would A. Make him lame and B. Produce a stringhalt like movenent.
The horse I took home from work did this. The vets at the races said fetlock/pastern fracture. Got back home and it was a further hour of xraying and scanning the lower limb before they noticed the hock didn't look quite right.

I hope it's something simple and easily fixable!
Click to expand...

Thanks for this! I will have another look at his legs tonight and get the bet to check on Monday. I'm definitely going to be getting them to look at every possible reason why he has this symptom as I really don't think it is stringhalt.
Should have mentioned what he does have is an ever slight indentation on the same side right up by his tail which I will get the vet to look at too. Almost like a prophets thumb mark but on his bum, which makes me think muscle or tendon and not nerve.
 
Fiona said:
Exactly EKW - and its the subject of the vet article in H&H this week. Can be unstable where the tendon slips on and off, and panicks the horse, or stable where it stays off...

Good luck on Monday Lammy x x

Fiona
Click to expand...

Thank you Fiona, I'll read this later, definitely something to look into.
I'll be keeping my fingers crossed on Monday that's for sure! X
 
horselib said:
I had something very similar with an elderly Thoroughbred (aged 30) He came up the field with an extremely odd hindleg action looked all the world stringhalt ish lifting the leg high under his body and slamming it down.I got the vet out the next day and he said it was a stringhalt action but didn,t think it was stringhalt could be neurological! couldnt easily exmane the hoof or leg as he is an old boy and finds it hard to hold his leg up in certain positions as he has bne spavins.
The vet gave him a large IV dose of bute this was around 6pm and said he would come back at 9am the next morning when it would have taken full effect.
He came back and said he had consulted with other horse experts and was very concerned due to the horses age and severity of his lameness.
He examined the hoof and found a mark on the sole he followed the mark in quite deep into the toe when all of a sudden puss exploded out of the toe with a loud pop and literally glugged out black smelly puss and blood masses of it.I was to tub the foot twice a day and change the poultice twice a day. He was walking a lot better but it took 6 days of tubbing and poulticing for the stream of puss to subside. I have never seen an abscess eplode out like that before . The lameness came on very quickly and was very dramatic.
The vet was so delighted he really thought (like me)we were at the end of the road with the old boy!. He was sound in a couple of weeks and is still with me cantering about the fields enjoying his old age
Click to expand...

This is definitely a happy read for me as I've said from the start it could be an abscess, farrier hasn't seen anything but I'll keep checking his sole and ask the vet to look at this too.
So glad it turned out to be an easy fix for your old boy!
 
The vet said the only way he could put weight on his heel to walk and avoid painful toe was to throw his foot up and under his belly and slam it down on the heel. I have seen a lot of abscesses but never seen this presentation before neither have I seen one explode like that the puss shot out glugging for ages I spent the whole of that night mentally preparing to say goodbye to him!.Hope your resolves as easily.
 
Another vote for checking the hock closely as this happened to mine and she presented almost exactly as you describe. The first vet that saw her thought abscess and whilst we were treating for that we noticed the hock began to not look right, slight swelling to the inside of the hock and I got my usual vet (he'd been away on holiday) to come out and check and confirmed the little structures holding the tendon in place had torn and the tendon was coming off the hock.
 
Yesss - I totally forgot, I also know a horse with a detached tendon/ligament (not sure which) on the hock that made an exaggerated movement.

The horse is sound now, I know she had a couple of years off, but am not sure what the treatment was, or indeed if that was the reason for the time off.

I do hope it is the abscess though, what a relief that would be.
 
Thanks everyone for the replies! It's really comforting to know that there are other things it could be. Spoke to the vets again this afternoon and I'm happy that my usual vet agrees he needs to do a full investigation and that he's not going to go on what the other vet has already said.

Had another look at the "indent" again tonight and it's come out as more of a swelling now, still no heat but at least it's something to look at. It's in a really odd place...

IMG_2900.jpg


He's also been spoilt, a new Horslyx and a treat to go on his likit. He's in on his own most of the time and is being really well behaved as long as he has food, really happy with how well he's coping particularly if we're looking at a long recovery period. Hopefully after the vets been out I can see if making him a pen in his field is a good idea. He's not going to stay sane for long and trotting him for the vet on Monday is going to be interesting!
 
Hrm, this might be a better angle of that swelling. It might be a coincidence but can't think for any other reason that would appear there.
IMG_2899.jpg
 
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