paddock rest v. box rest

[HashRouge]

I was just wondering what people's experiences of box rest/ paddock rest are, and what do you prefer? Do you think paddock rest is as effective as box rest?

Thanks!

 

[Bikerchickone]

Personally I don't like box rest and would much rather mine were on restricted paddocks than stuck in a box for however long.

In dire circumstances then I'd think about it but it would have to be something like a broken leg where they weren't supposed to put weight on it all. Just my opinion of course though.

 

[Montyforever]

Depends on the horse, if you have a sensible horse in a small pen and the ground isn't too soft or too hard you can get away with it. But in my mares case (laminitis) grass is the issue so shes in alot more than I want her to be

 

[Brightbay]

Mine's having a paddock rest for a bad abscess just now. He's very happy in his small electric tape pen with his hay, because no matter where they go in the field, he can see his little herd, and they come over and stand with him at sleep and dozing times. He is not normally stabled, and though we can stable him, the additional stress of isolation would affect his ability to heal I am sure.

My only problem just now is that it is pouring with rain and the ground in the little pen isn't going to hold out long, so we'll have to keep moving it...

I would always choose this over box rest, much calmer, more settled horse = greater ability to heal.

 

[Goldenstar]

I believe it your duty as an owner to train your horses to settle in a stable so they can tolerate box rest if it is necessary.
Personally I can't bear horses that are tense in stables and deal with over their first summer with us.
It's one of the things that makes me walk away from a horse when buying if they don't look good in a stable.
Small paddocks are all ok but you can't so that in Febuary having nursed one though a broken leg and another though what was described as a catastrophic tendon injury it can be the difference between life and death.
I hate the dread words box rest but I know mine will accept it.

 

[Slightlyconfused]

Depends on injury or illness.....

 

[Ginger Bear]

Prefer paddock rest.. Mine goes nuts kept in over long periods! He had quite a major op on his leg & the only way to keep him from doing himself damage was a tiny sick paddock next to a lami pony being fed haylage constantly. He had become thin & crazy stuck in, refusing to eat & stressing!

 

[MissTyc]

I like to build a little roundpen - about the size of stable and move around grassy paddock during the day ... boxrest at night. Obviously this only valid if horse can be walked at all ... Generally I don't believe in complete confinement, but sometimes for a few days post-injury it is necessary, even in cross ties if need be. All mine tolerate it fairly well, but they seem to heal faster if they're out

 

[zaminda]

My mare had 2 very long periods of box rest with a muscle injury. It hasn't actually helped, andalthough she was perfectly behaved in the stable, leading her out of it for thefirst time was exciting. She also ended up with ulcers as a result. I avoid it where possible, but 2 have had to have it post surgery, and coped well. My little mare was turned away with a hunt the tendon sized hole, and came back 9 months later,and after a long rehabilitation, has never had another problem. Horses for courses, and injury dependant, but I prefer paddock rest.

 

[Clava]

Depends upon the injury, but I hate box rest and feel that for many things such as abscesses that gentle movement helps. My tb is used to being stabled as she is an ex-racer, but even after weeks of trying I cannot get her to really settle in a stable...if she had to be stabled I would have to move her to some sort of barn arrangement with other horses stabled next to her.

 

[Sophstar]

I'm currently dealing with my pony who I've caught foot sore quite early. Last time of laminitis he was put on box rest and almost killed us all and himself after 3 days of trying to clamber over the door and pacing round his stable, calling and panicing because he was on his own before he got vet approval for a bare paddock.

This time I wasn't even going through the stress of box rest. Brought in for a few hours in the morning but goes out in his bare paddock through afternoon and night with his herd right next door. Much happier, calmer and settled pony and much less stressed mum!

Obviously depends on the injury and what facilities there are to use.

 

[Littlelegs]

Depends on the injury/illness. In general I think their happier & heal better for most things outside moving around. But some injuries do require keeping still & not doing anything more strenuous than walk, which isn't practical outside. And some laminitics need the cushioning of a deep bed initially which also can't be done outside, even if you have somewhere grass free. I do think all horses should learn to manage box rest if needed, in some circumstances it can be the difference between recovering or not.

 

[HashRouge]

Thanks guys! My horse is very sensible and I think would be fine on paddock rest. She is also fine in the stable, but she has arthritis now and the vet is worried that box rest would make her incredibly stiff. She has ligament damage in her right fore, injury related but we're not sure how or what. She will be having MRIs soon and my vet has warned me that box rest may well be advised. I thought paddock rest could be a good alternative for her

 

[Allover]

OP in your situation i would ask your vet what the prognosis is for both box and paddock rest, for me if the healing of the injury would take longer in the paddock but the horse would be happier then i would take the paddock option.

 

[dalidaydream]

Thanks guys! My horse is very sensible and I think would be fine on paddock rest. She is also fine in the stable, but she has arthritis now and the vet is worried that box rest would make her incredibly stiff. She has ligament damage in her right fore, injury related but we're not sure how or what. She will be having MRIs soon and my vet has warned me that box rest may well be advised. I thought paddock rest could be a good alternative for her

My pony is currently on paddock/stable rest. My vet thinks he has probably agrivated an old tendon injury (because it is very low down within the hoof the only way to confirm is mri and he's not insured) but he also has athritis so vet suggested paddock rest. He goes out for about 4 hours with a grazing muzzle on (I don't want laminitis on top of everything else) and is then perfectly happy in his stable. Sometimes it's a case of finding what works best for your horse although sometimes box rest is the only way.

 

[ellie_e]

I believe it your duty as an owner to train your horses to settle in a stable so they can tolerate box rest if it is necessary.
QUOTE]

Really?!?! All horses are different some put up with box rest, others do not! You cant train a horse to be relaxed in a stable 24/7 if It likes being outside in a field, you can try but it doesnt always work.

 

[MagicMelon]

Im someone who keeps their horses out 24/7 all year round (even clipped competition ones), so when my horse did seriously damaged his tendon in March I've been struggling to keep him on box rest since. I've been told he's to be on box rest for some months.

Goldenstar - My horse has been perfectly used to being kept in overnight sometimes for early events the next day or staying away at events, but proper box rest is totally different although he's been dealing with it as well as can be. He is a naturally very active horse so it goes against everything for him to be so cooped up all the time. I dont believe any horse is happy to be kept in permanently, no matter how well its been "taught" to tolerate it.

I absolutely hate box rest and am only doing it as I have been told to do so by the vets although I do intend to buy some 6ft high steel fencing shortly to section off a stable-size bit of grass for him to go into for a while every day (when its not muddy), purely to try and keep him happier.

I think it depends on the injury as to what is best but at the same time there's nothing worse IMO than a depressed horse, they never heal quickly. When my first pony came down with concussive laminitis many years ago, we were told to keep him on strict box rest for what turned out to be a year, but after 2 months he started losing heaps of weight (even though he was never fat to begin with) and looked utterly miserable so we sectioned off a very small bit of paddock and gave him hay and he was instantly happier.

 

[Littlelegs]

No horse will enjoy going from 24/7 turnout to box rest suddenly but if you make the effort to get them used to it over time the majority will learn to tolerate it when its the only option. I had a horse who had been shut in for months & chased away from the door with whips to get hay & water in. When I got him with a lot of time & patience I reached a point he would go in & manage 10mins before stressing. Unfortunately before he could manage any more he was injured & had to have box rest. Two days in a paddock left him 3legged, which vet had predicted would be the outcome. As a result of being unable to be stabled, he had to be shot. That isn't a situation I would want to be in again so to me its an essential skill. My 23yr old spent 12months on box rest with very limited turnout in a tiny high fenced paddock the size of two stables. She now only happily stables overnight in winter or for a few hours. But if she needed a few weeks in, she wouldn't like it & would no doubt be miserable but would tolerate it. Anything involving a couple of months I wouldn't do at her age, but I accept that the direct result could mean some injury/ illness could be fatal.

 

[dafthoss]

Prefer field rest if possible and its not going to make the injury worse or a small turn out pen in the day and stabled at night if they can move enough to go from stable to field and back again each morning. OP in your situation either a small (as in stable sized) paddock either 24/7 or day time and in at night as in my personal experiance it means horses are clamer and happier.

To who ever said horses should be happy kept in 24/7, thats just not possible for some, loads of horses mine included are happy stabled for periods of time but not 24/7 especally when every thing else is going out.

 

[Horseyjen!]

My horse was on box rest all last year - in the end I made a series of small paddocks no bigger than his stable and he went out in there. I think it makes a difference to them mentally and physically, Its good for them to get fresh air.

I also think it has a lot to do with the horse, for eg if you have a horse who will box walk constantly because he cant see his friends then he is going to do less damage being in a small field.

 

[jumpthemoon]

It depends on the injury and mostly on the horse. The two horses I have at the moment I would box rest over paddock rest, as they are silly in the paddocks but both are happy to be stabled. However I've had horses before who would go nuts if left in, so box rest wouldn't be an option without sedation.

Each individual scenario needs to be judged individually IMO.

 

[GinaGeo]

I'd take paddock rest over box rest where possible but sometimes box rest is necessary. Mum's horse blew his Superficail Digital Tendon last year from above the knee to the pastern. He had to be box rested solidly for three months, he never left it, apart from when the vet came. We graducally started walking him out and eventually made him a pen on the lawn (the only flat place) which we moved daily much to my dad's dismay. Eventually he went into a larger in the field until 6 months after the injury when we shut ur eyes and turned him out 24/7 with the herd. He's not been ridden since and is still on paddock rest now. Due to his age, we reckon he's 25+ he won't be ridden again, he's not sound enough. But he is happy living with his herd pootling about and will have a play when it suites him.

 

[oldywoldy]

Depends on the reasons for the rest. Box rest for initial mending if you have heat and inflammation that needs to settle before any exercise then either controlled exercise or a pen if your horse is sensible. We rehab a lot of injured horses - it is very important that the initial healing period is allowed to happen whatever the injury. Then we are always keen to get limited exercise into the horse gradually building up the amount.

 

[acw295]

Molly will be on box rest again when she gets back from her surgery on her splint bone fracture - after a month or so she will probably be allowed to go in a small pen. But, I doubt she will cope with this as she is hopeless on individual turnout - every time I have tried in the past after injury she has thrown herself about like an idiot and stressed terribly.

She doesn't like box rest but is very calm in her stable, not calm at all out on her own even if there are horses the other side of electric fencing - so I can see me having to do a longer spell of boxrest with inhand walking and grazing inhand and then put her out with the herd

I do think box rest is prescribed too often when paddock rest could work instread, even if it takes longer. But in our case strict box rest is required due to the surgery and injury.

 

[scarymare]

I had to box rest for 6 months for a fractured stifle and swore I would never do it again. Horse and I both miserable. However, roll on 20 years and needed to box rest my horrifically injured in-foal mare. Middle of winter, degloved hock - no choice. I was pretty miserable but she was absolutely fine as is a WB and I suspect never saw grass till she got to Blighty. Horses for courses I suppose.