Reassure me there are sound horses out there...

FlyingCircus

FlyingCircus

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I'm just about to take the plunge with a 3rd. My first one is old boy with arthritis and currently a suspected (hopefully!?) abscess, so is slowing down significantly. My second is my mare who had all kinds of problems...

I've also had a project pony who cost me a fortune in vets bills for various reasons, though not actually soundness related.

Then another project on loan who went back pretty quickly due to suspected preexisting lameness issues...

Please some reassurance that if I buy a 3rd, I'm not setting myself up for 3 unsound horses. Surely the universe needs to work in my favour at some point!? How many horses do I need to collect to have one available to ride 😂 In all my collecting, I've never managed to have more than 1 in work at a time...!
 
I have 2, 1 is totally unrideable and 1 has not got out of walk for about 18 months. So a minimum of 3 ime.
 
There are loads of sound horses, but absolutely none whatsoever who will STAY sound their entire lives.
IME although accidents happen to anyone, a lot of it is down to management. If they can live out in a suitable environment and not spend hours every week in an arena, you’ve got a much better chance.

Also, I think it’s worth remembering that horses will have the odd lame day, just like we do. They don’t all need investigating to the nth degree - very often a week or two off work in the field will cure it.

Another thing I see causing lameness is over-treatment. For example, if one of mine gets an abscess I’ll get it dug out, then turn back out and swill the hole out with dettol twice a day. They come right just fine. But I see other people getting the vet involved, wet poulticing for days, putting them on box rest, restricting exercise. All this has the potential to cause further issues, such as injuries when finally turned back out, soft feet from being constantly wet, grumbling abscesses that don’t clear up because they’re in a dirty environment (ie bedding), ulcers from box rest.

People fiddle with horses far too much in my view, and often cause themselves extra problems. Not saying this is the OP’s issue, just a general musing on the thread title.
 
Patterdale said:
People fiddle with horses far too much in my view, and often cause themselves extra problems
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This is true compared with how horses were looked after before 1914 and during the FWW. Miller wrote convincingly about the polo ponies he had over-wintered, that the ones turned out (the least valuable) were in far better nick the following spring than those he had kept boxed. He was persuading people that turn out was good for horses. But in those days, there was no turn out for the average city horse.
 
FlyingCircus said:
I'm just about to take the plunge with a 3rd. My first one is old boy with arthritis and currently a suspected (hopefully!?) abscess, so is slowing down significantly. My second is my mare who had all kinds of problems...

I've also had a project pony who cost me a fortune in vets bills for various reasons, though not actually soundness related.

Then another project on loan who went back pretty quickly due to suspected preexisting lameness issues...

Please some reassurance that if I buy a 3rd, I'm not setting myself up for 3 unsound horses. Surely the universe needs to work in my favour at some point!? How many horses do I need to collect to have one available to ride 😂 In all my collecting, I've never managed to have more than 1 in work at a time...!
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Hi
This was in in January of last year. I retired my horse as he is 34 and I felt he had enough. I have had him 25 years. I have a mare who I have had for 18 years but she has nerve damage and is completely in rideable … so I was stuck. Heart broken and not ready to stop. Then my husband said get another what’s one more but like you I was scared I would end up with three un rideable horses ! Then I found Lottie ! I jumped in. Had her checked. She is a bit smaller but totally bomb proof just faster than the speed of light and what an amazing year I have had .. don’t over think. Just do it xx
 
I have three and all are sound, although they haven’t always been. An old boy of 27 who has had navicular, kissing spine, proximal suspensory damage and a few injuries. He’s still in work and amazing. A 10 year old who has had hock arthritis but seems ok at the moment. And a 7 year old who hasn’t done much yet so we’ll see. (Also, a 20 year old second pony, out on loan and being amazing for her little girls, with cushings and the worst conformation you’ve ever seen). They all live out, have minimal fussing and as others have said, are rested if anything seems off, before calling the vet. Maybe I’m (currently) lucky but regime makes a big difference. On the subject of colic: I’ve never had a horse had colic while living out all the time.
 
Patterdale said:
There are loads of sound horses, but absolutely none whatsoever who will STAY sound their entire lives.
IME although accidents happen to anyone, a lot of it is down to management. If they can live out in a suitable environment and not spend hours every week in an arena, you’ve got a much better chance.

Also, I think it’s worth remembering that horses will have the odd lame day, just like we do. They don’t all need investigating to the nth degree - very often a week or two off work in the field will cure it.

Another thing I see causing lameness is over-treatment. For example, if one of mine gets an abscess I’ll get it dug out, then turn back out and swill the hole out with dettol twice a day. They come right just fine. But I see other people getting the vet involved, wet poulticing for days, putting them on box rest, restricting exercise. All this has the potential to cause further issues, such as injuries when finally turned back out, soft feet from being constantly wet, grumbling abscesses that don’t clear up because they’re in a dirty environment (ie bedding), ulcers from box rest.

People fiddle with horses far too much in my view, and often cause themselves extra problems. Not saying this is the OP’s issue, just a general musing on the thread title.
Click to expand...

You are so correct, I often think this myself. People go looking for problems too.
 
My experience is I can keep them sound on the whole but they find weird and wonderful other ways to be creative with needing the vet. Recently:
Leptospirosis
Pulled Muscle which required bone scan etc just in case as couldn’t decide if sacroiliac.
Ulcers (probably due to undiagnosed Lepto)
Tooth Abscess
Cut foot which resulted in a £1200 bill
Grazed hock which resulted in a puncture.
Bruised feet

I have a 5yo who is just a walking disaster. More x rays than you can imagine and currently on box rest due to the cut foot which resulted in a flap of skin and major infection risk but is sound….

It’s just horses….
 
well, mine are all sound at the moment,
Patterdale said:
There are loads of sound horses, but absolutely none whatsoever who will STAY sound their entire lives.
IME although accidents happen to anyone, a lot of it is down to management. If they can live out in a suitable environment and not spend hours every week in an arena, you’ve got a much better chance.

Also, I think it’s worth remembering that horses will have the odd lame day, just like we do. They don’t all need investigating to the nth degree - very often a week or two off work in the field will cure it.

Another thing I see causing lameness is over-treatment. For example, if one of mine gets an abscess I’ll get it dug out, then turn back out and swill the hole out with dettol twice a day. They come right just fine. But I see other people getting the vet involved, wet poulticing for days, putting them on box rest, restricting exercise. All this has the potential to cause further issues, such as injuries when finally turned back out, soft feet from being constantly wet, grumbling abscesses that don’t clear up because they’re in a dirty environment (ie bedding), ulcers from box rest.

People fiddle with horses far too much in my view, and often cause themselves extra problems. Not saying this is the OP’s issue, just a general musing on the thread title.
Click to expand...
could not agree more!
 
This is making me feel like I've just had some really bad luck! Mine are kept out 24/7 unless the worst of weather. They have low sugar, high fibre diets. They spend 90% of their time hacking out in New Forest when they're sound, 10% or so in the school for clinics or lessons.

They really have an easy and good life 😂

To be fair, the arthritis in the gelding aside aside, I think it's the retired 8 year old that has me scarred. I dread to think her vet history...intact, I try not to 😂
 
NoodlesHalloween said:
TB was suffering with recovering with one last week when I initially contacted and has since had another same hoof have been told he was turned out and poultice came off which is more than reasonable and I am probably just being a little wary
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I'd wait until they were sound just in case it's recurring for something more serious than mud.

I am paranoid though. One of my own horses had a recurring abscess in that first lockdown. It was a genuine abscess but tracked so high up he lost an enormous chunk of hoof. Was totally sound once half his foot fell off but I wouldn't have been able to sell him! (& that was the depressing "own 3 horses none are sound" period 🙄)
 
I ride fit horses, but they are not privately owned. I am used to riding/sharing horses who work 6 days a week and do 3 or 4 hours hacking every working day, each ride including 3 canters.
Two of the hard worked RS horses I rode lived to be over twenty, so we were not working them to death. But I dont know how any private owner could provide a horse with so much work. And that is why I abandoned the dream of buying my own.
 
FlyingCircus said:
This is making me feel like I've just had some really bad luck! Mine are kept out 24/7 unless the worst of weather. They have low sugar, high fibre diets. They spend 90% of their time hacking out in New Forest when they're sound, 10% or so in the school for clinics or lessons.

They really have an easy and good life 😂

To be fair, the arthritis in the gelding aside aside, I think it's the retired 8 year old that has me scarred. I dread to think her vet history...intact, I try not to 😂
Click to expand...
Mine are out 24:7 too except when the field flooded and even then only stabled overnight. But horses can find weird and wonderful ways to damage themselves and sometimes you're just unlucky
 
Is my gelding with an abscess sadly :( It has drained but he's still lame on that foot. Hard to tell quite how much as he is shoeless on that one but shod on the other 3. Will be having shoe back on then reassessing!


New boy passed his vetting and came home today.


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