Please can i have some input re lingering foot lameness

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Spirit7

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hello everyone
have not posted for a good while as have been managing quite well for last few years but am really at a loss today and am requesting any help at all. its a bit long so sorry!
approx mid June (so 3 months ago) ago my lovely boy came in very lame left fore- poulticed for abcess, lots of lovely black puss next day so carried on box rest and poultice for a couple of days and then poulticed and booted (unshod) for turn out. Came sound and back to work for 5-6 weeks.
Then looked a bit lame again (left fore i thought but very slight) so I box rested and poulticed again and got puss again, then poulticed and turned out after puss stopped horse still looked lame, as a bad owner it took me a couple of days to notice he looked lame on right fore not left (bear in mind i was only really poulticing and turning out and going to work then yard were bringing him in so i only saw him move first thing and he looked more or less ok in mornings). then i noticed a throbbing pulse on the inside of his right fore just above digital pulses bit if that makes sense between the bones?? So after calling vet we decided laminitis as I think he has low grade and am always careful with his turnout- we made this descision as he had changed fields and got his muzzle on the first day :-( and then was not worked for a couple of days after due to my work commitments. Vet agreed so I box rested and treated for laminitis and he was fine, sound on hard ground etc in walk and trot on day 3, so vet advised controlled exercise as he does not box rest well and this vet beleives in work burning calories etc(17hh warmblood party horse:)) was fine and got up to trotting and gentle canter (vets advice) within a week then he bu**ered off me on chalk at full gallop uphill ( away from home grrrr )and i was forced to turn sharp on right fore to stop as was now going downhill !! pulse back with a vengence. so vet up, nerve blocked right fore from fetlock down and instantly sound. vet said laminitis or fractured pedal bone, box rest 10 days bute (2 a day for 10 days) then if sound and no pulse bare small paddock turn out so he can only trot a few strides- he bucked and bronked but stayed sound then after 4 days off bute still sound put in field for an hour, tuned out with herd that he did not really eat grass as was dripping wet with sweat from pratting about and came in a bit lame with throbbing pulse again ( right fore only) this was yesterday, today bare paddock only on vets advice and lunge tonight (he was nearly sound with no pulse this morning ) and have x-rays tomorrow. really i just want any advice or info at all, part of me keeps wondering about tendon or ligament damage in foot but vet seems to think no.....sorry no capitals and thanks for reading!!!
 
Poor you, very frustrating.

My TB did this to me for many months and Xray diagnosed a bruised pedal bone. 6 weeks box rest and he came right. We sedated thehorse lightly for a few days when first turned back out.

Have also had a similar thing with a deep abscess - kept returning. In the end we poulticed for a long time, also using the topical antibiotic used to treat cow mastitis as it comes in a tube with a long nozzle - great for poking into holes in the foot.

Then once clean and sound packed the hole with Stockholm tar and cotton wool, covered sole with a leather pad, again sealed to the sole with Stockholm Tar and then shod. Twice we had to remove shoe and plug and re poultice - overall it took three months to get a permanent result.
 
X-Rays should give you a better indication so hold off worrying too much till after them. At least the nerve block was conclusive. Might be worth testing for Cushings if recurrant foot abcesses, test fee is free at the mo I think
 
Oh no, sorry to hear this. Im currently battling chronic laminitis with box rest etc so i understand how you feel, its a nightmare.
Firstly it is imperative that you get to the bottom of the cause of the laminitis, with my boy he had cushings diagnosed so once we treated that it gave us a much better chance of addressing the laminitis and associated damage. Also worth testing for EMS, see http://www.thelaminitissite.org/ for some really great info.
Have you had your xrays? was there any pedal bone rotation? again this is key to managing the recovery as you need to make sure the foot is properly supported to prevent further pedal bone damage.
With my boy, he was on and off lame with laminitis despite box rest and soaked hay before the vet tested for cushings, all my laminitis management just wasnt working because we hadnt addressed the cause of the laminitis.
Good luck, its a hard road x
 
Tnavas said:
Poor you, very frustrating.

My TB did this to me for many months and Xray diagnosed a bruised pedal bone. 6 weeks box rest and he came right. We sedated thehorse lightly for a few days when first turned back out.

Have also had a similar thing with a deep abscess - kept returning. In the end we poulticed for a long time, also using the topical antibiotic used to treat cow mastitis as it comes in a tube with a long nozzle - great for poking into holes in the foot.

Then once clean and sound packed the hole with Stockholm tar and cotton wool, covered sole with a leather pad, again sealed to the sole with Stockholm Tar and then shod. Twice we had to remove shoe and plug and re poultice - overall it took three months to get a permanent result.
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Thanks, Am hoping it is a bruised pedal bone now as last night he had been in bare paddock in the day and no pulse and then i lunged him as vet said to so as to get as much info for today and he was really sound in school in walk trot and canter although i could only do five minutes due to fitness then i trotted him up on hard he was possible a tiny tiny bit short right fore but only i could see it, so then i rode him in school in walk trot and canter and he felt great, after he had a pulse but not as bad....am hoping its a bruise on the way out but still getting it x -rayed as would be good to see angles etc as he was also a barefoot rehab after "remedial" shoeing for navicular. thanks for helpful info!!

lizness said:
X-Rays should give you a better indication so hold off worrying too much till after them. At least the nerve block was conclusive. Might be worth testing for Cushings if recurrant foot abcesses, test fee is free at the mo I think
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had cushings test last year all good but thanks and yes he did have one abccess behind frog but i think it had just been brewing for a long time and i did not get it all out first time as he had foot and frog parred away by farrier 2nd time and we saw the root of it! thanks so much

Rjd84 said:
Oh no, sorry to hear this. Im currently battling chronic laminitis with box rest etc so i understand how you feel, its a nightmare.
Firstly it is imperative that you get to the bottom of the cause of the laminitis, with my boy he had cushings diagnosed so once we treated that it gave us a much better chance of addressing the laminitis and associated damage. Also worth testing for EMS, see http://www.thelaminitissite.org/ for some really great info.
Have you had your xrays? was there any pedal bone rotation? again this is key to managing the recovery as you need to make sure the foot is properly supported to prevent further pedal bone damage.
With my boy, he was on and off lame with laminitis despite box rest and soaked hay before the vet tested for cushings, all my laminitis management just wasnt working because we hadnt addressed the cause of the laminitis.
Good luck, its a hard road x
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well i dont think it is lami now but have x-rays today so shall see. I am very interested to see angles as 3 years ago they were very flat to floor (pedal bones) he has had cushings test and was clear but if x-rays show nothing and he goes lame after field turnout again i will re test. thanks and good luck with yours xx
 
its so hard to know whats going on inside those hooves isnt it?! Interestingly, my boy was tested for cushings last year and was negative, this year - very positive so previous tests are not to be relied on in my case. Also, my horse never had any heat in his hooves and only a very slight pulse, even his lameness was on and off - some days only to trained eye could see it and he would be hopping the next day. The very couldn't believe how bad my xray was compared to his actual presentation so it just proves how every case is different.
I really hope it isnt laminitis or dropped pedal bone, hopefully the xray will shed some light xxx
 
Rjd84 said:
its so hard to know whats going on inside those hooves isnt it?! Interestingly, my boy was tested for cushings last year and was negative, this year - very positive so previous tests are not to be relied on in my case. Also, my horse never had any heat in his hooves and only a very slight pulse, even his lameness was on and off - some days only to trained eye could see it and he would be hopping the next day. The very couldn't believe how bad my xray was compared to his actual presentation so it just proves how every case is different.
I really hope it isnt laminitis or dropped pedal bone, hopefully the xray will shed some light xxx
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Hello:)
My boy was sound for vet but still had x-rays and nothing wrong except very slight broken back pastern axis on hoof which had had abcess so probably due to sole and frog being massively parred away to sort abcess (left fore which was ok anyway!)
Vet reckoned it was the end of a pedal bone bruise as pulse still coming up a bit after work but going quickly.
The really good news is that his pedal bones were perfectly parrell to dorsal wall in both feet and the vet was pretty impressed as last x-rays in 2010 showed really thin soles and very flat pedal bones ( during remedial shoeing with graduated pads!) so vet agreed barefoot suits him and to carry on with whatever i am doing (i have been doing his feet myself for some time) and said to get him into work with No future restrictions !!
I am so happy as same practice wrote him off in June 2011 as billateral navicular disease (I said lgl but not unt I saw white line under shoes) and said possible hacking while shoes worked then pts.

I rode in boots and pads today to be safe and he felt amazing.

Thanks again and best of luck to you.
X
 
That's blummin' brilliant news! :) I bet your very relieved! Thank you for updating, sounds like you've had quite a journey but all your faith in your boy has paid off!
Hoping mine will too, as vet wrote him off and advised pts 8 weeks ago but now he's coming on in leaps and bounds vet has taken him off death row ;)
Horses eh?! ;) x
 
Great news! I've always wanted to do this. I took my boys shoes off in 2005 after vet and farrier both said no more could be done for him and I didn't want to go down the de-nerving route.
He's still going strong today at age 25 and bare feet are great.
Well done you!!
 
Erm not to sound rude or anything but any horse is going to have a pulse in their legs after exercise/ hooling around in the feild, your vet should know this and tell you.
It's if the pulse is still up after standing still for at least an hour the then something is wrong.

Glad horse is okay tho.
 
slightlyconfused said:
Erm not to sound rude or anything but any horse is going to have a pulse in their legs after exercise/ hooling around in the feild, your vet should know this and tell you.
It's if the pulse is still up after standing still for at least an hour the then something is wrong.

Glad horse is okay tho.
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Errm you do sound ride and are obviously slightly vonfusef as to what you have read. I assume your horses only get a throbbing pulse in one leg at a time only then. I would like to think having managed a navicular rehab at home successfully as said by vet after x-ray that I can take a pulse and differentiate between pain and exercise.
Not sure why you posted as no real pony was there ?
 
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