Possible tendon damage?

[Christmas Crumpet]

Hi,

My sister's pony went hunting on Saturday all day and covered a LOT of ground!! She had slightly puffy front legs yesterday but was turned out and came in with cold hard legs. They were slightly puffy again this morning but with no heat in them whatsoever. The pony was trotted up and appeared slightly lame on its off fore - as in 2/10's lame no more.

After palpatating the leg the pony seemed to be sore about an inch below the knee on what would be her SDFT. After trotting up there was barely any swelling at all and again no heat. Could she have damaged her tendon?

She did apparently hit a set of rails hunting on Sat and I wondered whether it might be something to do with that but if it was why would the pony be sore behind the knee as opposed to the front of her leg where she would have hit the rails?

Having just had a number of problems with a tendon injury that ended up in my horse being PTS I am dreading it happening again.

 

[christine48]

She could well have injured her tendon. I'd keep her in, cold hose to reduce inflammation and get the vet to check her

 

[Christmas Crumpet]

I'm slightly baffled by the total lack of heat in her leg. I thought tendon injuries always gave off heat?

 

[christine48]

mine had a tendon injury with slight swelling, no heat or lameness.

 

[Christmas Crumpet]

What happened to yours and how long did it take to get the horse back on the road?

 

[cellie]

My horse had swelling and heat .I used cool packs made for horses but you have to be careful that they dont cause freezer burns.They are very good if you have problems hosing but there is no warning about burns .They need to be wrapped in a towel so there is no contact .If you are calling out the vet you are doing the right thing.We all worrry self diagnosing.

 

[christine48]

he had a 15% tear in his SDF tendon.and the only obvious sign was a slight bump on the back of the tendon ( we presumed he struck into himself as he pulled a shoe off eventing in very muddy conditions).
He was never lame or tender on it. The vet recommended stem cell therapyWe also sent him to a spa for the inital 2 weeks.
After the stem cell therapy the recovery was similar to any horse recovering from a tendon injury.
Box rest, then controlled walking for a few weeks. Then gradually trotting introduced for a few weeks. It was probably 6 months before he cantered or was allowed out in the field.
Scans were carried out at intervals before the work was increased.
He made a full recovery and returned to eventing the following year.
if your horse has had a tendon injury (and he may not have), the thing to remember is that they take a long time to heal as tendons have a poor blood supply.

 

[RachelB]

I'd get the vet out, nothing worse IMO than faffing around not knowing then months later finding out it was a tendon injury and you hadn't done anything you should have in what is so often called "the crucial first stage". It happened to me and I regret faffing for a month, let alone letting my vet faff for two more! My mare tore her DDFT though, she's had nine months' field rest (well six so far). Time and patience is always the key with tendons, as memo said.

 

[kerilli]

i'd ice it, tonight if at all possible. 10 mins with icepack/gelpack on, no more really. it won't do any harm, and it might make a lot of difference. i'd have her on box rest and walking out slowly in hand if she'll stay calm, for a day or two, and see if it improves. fwiw i've found that a lot of leg heat, tendon problems etc only show up on the late night check (10pm ish at my place), they feel fine in the daytime, very bizarre. if in doubt after another day or so, get the vet to scan it for your own peace of mind.
i know from experience that a completely cold, hard leg can still have a lesion, and a warm, slightly puffy leg can be completely clear on scan. only the pics tell the true story, unfortunately.
very best of luck, hope it's nothing!

 

[Christmas Crumpet]

Well... having investigated further and clipped the horse's legs we found a very scabby bit which is where it was tender. We had a good old root around to see if a thorn was in there or something but couldn't find anything. I cleaned it thoroughly and put aloe vera gel on it and bandaged her up. Taking off the bandages this morning there was no heat or swelling and she wasn't tender any more. Trotted her up and she seemed fine. She's still having a week off because she needs a rest.

I think whatever scraped/scratched her got slightly infected and irritated her and that was the cause of the tenderness because now its been seen to its not affecting her at all. Fingers crossed.

 

[christine48]

thats a relief for you

 

[Christmas Crumpet]

I trotted her up for the farrier today who said she is slightly favouring her other leg so the vet is coming tomorrow just to check it out.

Annoyingly there was definately a small area with heat to it last night so I think to be on the safe side...!!!