Pelvic Fracture

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bj666

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My horse had a pelvic fracture April 09 , it seems as though he had one previously . Now after a year of rest he's still not sound . Vet doesnt think he's in pain but is prob uncomfortable . He's only 10 years old and such a sweetie . I thought I'd made that awful big , last decision we do for our horses , but now I'm having second thoughts , esp when he's gambling around the field !!!!
Any suggestions ?
 
Define "not sound"? Does he come sound on painkillers? Have you had him scanned?

Also, how aggressive have you been with his physio? I've worked with a couple horses rehabing from pelvic fractures and it seems pretty standard that there is a fair bit of uneveness/weakness/compensation/proprioceptive disorder on going even if the fracture heals well. One very well known soundness vet also said he feels limited, controlled exercise in essential to the bone healing properly, let alone to address other related issues. Left to his own devices he might very well continue in patterns of movement which produce a mechanical imbalance and/or actual pain.

Of course, it depends a great deal on the individual situation - extent/nature of the injury, rate of healing etc - as well.
 
Hi , many thanks for the reply . He's not been on any painkillers at all and no physio . I was told by my Vet to give him the year off and see how he is then ,so no painkillers or physio have been mentioned at all during the year off . I thought that they would be the next step . I was thinking about swimming , to help build up ligaments/tendons/muscle to support his pelvis ?
I made the decision last weekend to have him put to sleep but I'd prefer him to get better !!!
 
Our stallion fractured his pelvis aged 5 and had 18 months off.
He came back into work but wasn't sound for another year or two, got rested again and now aged 19 he gets a bit stiff but stays sound provided he is on a joint supplement.
It depends on your financial circumstances, if you can afford to leave him longer he may improve judging by our chap. There are sometimes problems when he learns new dressage movements because he guards himself until he realises it won't hurt at all, but he's gone on to compete and win BE..
 
I think I'll speak to my Vet and ask about swimming to maybe get him mobile and trusting that he can move and build those muscles etc up ! I dont want to loose him but I dont want to be putting him thru stuff he doesnt need to .
Or am I just straw clutching ??
 
I didn't so much mean does he need painkillers (they rarely seem to for pelvic fractures) it was more a question of does his lameness improve on a "bute trial" or similar. If it does, obviously the root of his unlevel movement is pain but if it doesn't, there might be something else going on that either needs further investigation or would respond more positively to another treatment approach.

Magnetic and/or massage rugs, "hands on" physio, stretches, judicious ground work - there are all sorts of relatively non-invasive things you can do to build him back up again. You could also speak to your vet about Tildren, which may or may not be something you want to consider but it's been helpful for some.

And, as henryhorn said, time. It does seem to take ages for the fracture to heal sometimes.
 
Thank you ... this is all really helpful .... I'll speak to my Vet tomorrow and see what he says .
Alot to think about .... i'm looking for a pool as well as that may help ?
 
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