Wobble
Member
Hello.
Feeling sorry for my poor friend whose horse just seems to have one thing after another atm!
He is a rising 8 year old gelding who had been kept very fit over winter being ridden up to 6 times a week being schooled with at least one hack a week and going out at least every other week to lessons/ clinics, BS shows, and arena eventing. My friend was planning to start going to hunter trials and event him this season.
Mid feb friend and I went to ride around a local farm ride and after a canter (we didn't make it even half way around ride) my friends horse started having what seemed like a sneezing/ coughing fit which resulted in a nose bleed. Long story short we walked him back to box and vet ok'd him to travel home over the phone. He had another episode and nose bleed later that day so vet came out, scoped him and initially thought that he had somehow inhaled a foreign body which caused the nose bleed. He was given 2 weeks off and some bute and then friend was to bring back into work.
Over the next month or so he had several nose bleeds and was becoming more and more lethargic so vet ran blood tests, results showed a very low WBC count and anemia(?sp), vet said was most likely a virus. Vet put on two complementary feeding stuffs to boost him back up, he had a week off, was then hacking and over last two weeks has started having the odd canter, and has been back in the school. Friday the vet came back and took bloods, horse has the all clear now so to go back to normal but not to rush.
We went on a hack on saturday, route was about an hour and a half no longer than what she had been building up to, first canter he was behind me and my horse, all started off calm then my friend flew past me, when she finally managed to pull him up she said he just bolted. He has always been strong and is ridden in a pelham when hacked and jumping but always listens and has never bolted before. Route is a loop and by this stage quicker to carry on than turn back home so went into another field and just decided to walk. We were walking side by side, my horse was on buckle end and hers would normally be calm but again her horse trying to bolt and when she wouldn't let him he was bouncing up and down/ going sideways. When we were nearly home we were trotting up a hill so we could move out of the way for a tractor who had stopped for us at the top, hill is a concrete hill and again he was behind which normally isn't a problem, but he shot out from behind me and my horse and bolted towards tractor.
After the first bold we thought maybe excitement but all other behavior indicated pain.
Friend had a lesson booked with someone who knows her horse very well on monday so when instructor came she told him what had happened day before, as soon as my friend started to warm up instructor said he isn't right behind.
He has had rest of week off and today vet has come to asses:
-He has been walked and trotted up, vet commented not right behind.
- He has had flexion tests where one hind leg was maybe not right but vet said it wouldn't be anything normally to concern her as very subtle.
- He has been lunged and ridden in walk trot and canter and again not right behind but worse when ridden.
When I say he is not right behind we mean that his back legs look like they're in China! He has never had the strongest of canters but has been 3 time for at least 18 months. Looking at him today it looks like he has had a fifth leg!
- Vet has felt all along back, he is fine where his saddle goes, and he seems fine along pelvis and SI area (As Sacro illeac pain was my initial thought). He is showing a pain response behind the saddle which stops at pelvis, when palpated he really ducks away and if you persist he will turn and try to kick.
The vet has said at this stage there are several possibilities but nothing she can definitely say "That's it". Suggestions made were kissing spines, arthritis, hind limb problems causing the back problems (horse has had hock operations as a 4 year old but sorry I can't remember exactly what!) but vet did say her gut feeling wasn't hocks.
Horse is being referred over next week or so for full work up but in the mean time my friend is stressing and looking for anyone's similar experiences/ suggestions.
Sorry for super long essay! and well done if you made it to the end
P.s sorry if it's poorly written it has been a super long day and lots of information to put in!
Feeling sorry for my poor friend whose horse just seems to have one thing after another atm!
He is a rising 8 year old gelding who had been kept very fit over winter being ridden up to 6 times a week being schooled with at least one hack a week and going out at least every other week to lessons/ clinics, BS shows, and arena eventing. My friend was planning to start going to hunter trials and event him this season.
Mid feb friend and I went to ride around a local farm ride and after a canter (we didn't make it even half way around ride) my friends horse started having what seemed like a sneezing/ coughing fit which resulted in a nose bleed. Long story short we walked him back to box and vet ok'd him to travel home over the phone. He had another episode and nose bleed later that day so vet came out, scoped him and initially thought that he had somehow inhaled a foreign body which caused the nose bleed. He was given 2 weeks off and some bute and then friend was to bring back into work.
Over the next month or so he had several nose bleeds and was becoming more and more lethargic so vet ran blood tests, results showed a very low WBC count and anemia(?sp), vet said was most likely a virus. Vet put on two complementary feeding stuffs to boost him back up, he had a week off, was then hacking and over last two weeks has started having the odd canter, and has been back in the school. Friday the vet came back and took bloods, horse has the all clear now so to go back to normal but not to rush.
We went on a hack on saturday, route was about an hour and a half no longer than what she had been building up to, first canter he was behind me and my horse, all started off calm then my friend flew past me, when she finally managed to pull him up she said he just bolted. He has always been strong and is ridden in a pelham when hacked and jumping but always listens and has never bolted before. Route is a loop and by this stage quicker to carry on than turn back home so went into another field and just decided to walk. We were walking side by side, my horse was on buckle end and hers would normally be calm but again her horse trying to bolt and when she wouldn't let him he was bouncing up and down/ going sideways. When we were nearly home we were trotting up a hill so we could move out of the way for a tractor who had stopped for us at the top, hill is a concrete hill and again he was behind which normally isn't a problem, but he shot out from behind me and my horse and bolted towards tractor.
After the first bold we thought maybe excitement but all other behavior indicated pain.
Friend had a lesson booked with someone who knows her horse very well on monday so when instructor came she told him what had happened day before, as soon as my friend started to warm up instructor said he isn't right behind.
He has had rest of week off and today vet has come to asses:
-He has been walked and trotted up, vet commented not right behind.
- He has had flexion tests where one hind leg was maybe not right but vet said it wouldn't be anything normally to concern her as very subtle.
- He has been lunged and ridden in walk trot and canter and again not right behind but worse when ridden.
When I say he is not right behind we mean that his back legs look like they're in China! He has never had the strongest of canters but has been 3 time for at least 18 months. Looking at him today it looks like he has had a fifth leg!
- Vet has felt all along back, he is fine where his saddle goes, and he seems fine along pelvis and SI area (As Sacro illeac pain was my initial thought). He is showing a pain response behind the saddle which stops at pelvis, when palpated he really ducks away and if you persist he will turn and try to kick.
The vet has said at this stage there are several possibilities but nothing she can definitely say "That's it". Suggestions made were kissing spines, arthritis, hind limb problems causing the back problems (horse has had hock operations as a 4 year old but sorry I can't remember exactly what!) but vet did say her gut feeling wasn't hocks.
Horse is being referred over next week or so for full work up but in the mean time my friend is stressing and looking for anyone's similar experiences/ suggestions.
Sorry for super long essay! and well done if you made it to the end
P.s sorry if it's poorly written it has been a super long day and lots of information to put in!
