Splints & return to work

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Boughtabay

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After a brief meltdown over my bubble wrapped BFF developing small splint, I’m now looking to plan his return to work. The vet advised 7 days of cold hosing and 7 rest, then crack on unless anything unusual cropped up but with a planned week away, he’ll actually have 3 weeks off.

Thinking back the splints likely came from some overenthusiastic high-knee-trotting with tired legs as he wanted to shoot off after an endurance pony who passed us on the road towards the end of a fun ride. I feel like this is relevant because there’s an actual “cause” rather than a question over his action generally ridden/in the field. Maybe it isnt. They’ve settled well, he’s not been lame, and I know they’re mostly cosmetic - but I’d like to avoid any flare-ups/further damage as they’ve gone down a lot over the last week and a half.

I’d hoped to get him jumping and to a few summer shows this year, but with his work now resuming beginning of August, and most of the show fields I know of being so dry that’s unlikely now. it might still be nice to attend some farm rides/xc courses if the weather allows towards the end of August/start of September. But should I treat this like a return from a longer break (back to walk and build up over 6 weeks … longer?) in which case games are off for summer … or just ease back slightly and continue where we left off (avoiding roadwork for now)?

Pre splints I was lunging or long lining 1x a week/every other, schooling once on a surface, “schooling” once in the field & starting to up the length of hacks on the weekends
 
For one for the show ring, where a bump matters, I ice and hose and give off 2 x the length of time that they were hot. So, if they were hot for 2 weeks I would give a total of 6 off then start slowly again and monitor.

For a normal workaday horse, I start work, not too intensively, as soon as they are no longer hot.

This is presuming the horse is sound, of course.
 
Red-1 said:
For one for the show ring, where a bump matters, I ice and hose and give off 2 x the length of time that they were hot. So, if they were hot for 2 weeks I would give a total of 6 off then start slowly again and monitor.

For a normal workaday horse, I start work, not too intensively, as soon as they are no longer hot.

This is presuming the horse is sound, of course.
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He’s definitely not one for the show ring 🙈 but I’m still trying to get them down as much as possible anyway - as a personal vendetta. They were never hot & he was never lame with them. So I’ll just take a few steps back when we return to work but I won’t go all the way back to endless walking in that case. It’s not like he had a massive workload 😬
 
Boughtabay said:
He’s definitely not one for the show ring 🙈 but I’m still trying to get them down as much as possible anyway - as a personal vendetta. They were never hot & he was never lame with them. So I’ll just take a few steps back when we return to work but I won’t go all the way back to endless walking in that case. It’s not like he had a massive workload 😬
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With the ground as hard as it it, it's perfectly possible he set on off with a hooley around the field when turned out!
 
Thanks everyone! Yes it’s true he could’ve just as easily done it in the field but the timing says he did it on the fun ride (I’m a horsey hypochondriac … there isn’t a lump or bump I don’t know about on that horse 🙈). Looking back I think I can pin point it to the momentary loss of senses as he fancied bombing off after a speedy Arab and for every cm he wasn’t allowed to rush forwards, the small % of welsh cob in him took those knees up!!

@Errin Paddywack did you wait x amount of time to reintroduce faster work or was it just a gradual thing ?
 
Boughtabay said:
Thanks everyone! Yes it’s true he could’ve just as easily done it in the field but the timing says he did it on the fun ride (I’m a horsey hypochondriac … there isn’t a lump or bump I don’t know about on that horse 🙈). Looking back I think I can pin point it to the momentary loss of senses as he fancied bombing off after a speedy Arab and for every cm he wasn’t allowed to rush forwards, the small % of welsh cob in him took those knees up!!

@Errin Paddywack did you wait x amount of time to reintroduce faster work or was it just a gradual thing ?
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I can't remember, it was a long time ago in the 70's, I doubt if it was very long. Back then if they were sound we just cracked on. Used to go miles, 5 mile hack to our local RC every weekend, compete all afternoon and hack home at night. A lot of that would have been trotting on the roads. Never threw another splint. I think he only threw that one because I had been using our cattle yard to school him in before it got mucked out after the winter, going was a bit deep.
 
Ha, Erin P, that brought back memories! Virtually identically happened to me, probably late 80s. I had a gorgeous 15.3 beautiful dun from a just backed 4yr old. Can’t remember what age he was when I found identical splints just below the knee on both front legs. They seemed to come up overnight, I had done nothing exceptional to cause them. No heat but my god they stared you in the face and he was good enough to show.
Had the vet out in a panic, he was a family friend. He sort of took it seriously as he examined him well but basically he laughed and just told me he had splints and just to carry on!
I can’t tell you the time scale but they both completely disappeared.
 
My mare had a large splint on her front, think she got it in the field one summer when the ground was rock solid. Never lame etc so never thought much of it, ended up getting magnetic bands for when stabled over winter, unintentionally put the front band on the leg with the splint and now the splint is gone! Don't know if it is something to do with the magnetic bands or not but it was a relatively large splint that has now disappeared!
 
Errin Paddywack said:
I can't remember, it was a long time ago in the 70's, I doubt if it was very long. Back then if they were sound we just cracked on. Used to go miles, 5 mile hack to our local RC every weekend, compete all afternoon and hack home at night. A lot of that would have been trotting on the roads. Never threw another splint. I think he only threw that one because I had been using our cattle yard to school him in before it got mucked out after the winter, going was a bit deep.
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Yep that’s what’s thrown me - in 30 years including all sorts of daft activities and definitely trotting on the road I’ve never had one with a splint so even though I know there’s no long term harm I’m still a bit annoyed by their existence 🙈
 
Horsegirl25 said:
My mare had a large splint on her front, think she got it in the field one summer when the ground was rock solid. Never lame etc so never thought much of it, ended up getting magnetic bands for when stabled over winter, unintentionally put the front band on the leg with the splint and now the splint is gone! Don't know if it is something to do with the magnetic bands or not but it was a relatively large splint that has now disappeared!
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I am trying some magnets and I’m 50% laughing at myself for buying them 50% being convinced they’re working 🙈
 
According to an old thread on here goose fat is the way to go!

ncarter

Thread 'Splint forming - bone reduction gel / cream?'

Hi,

I have heard on the grapevine that there is a cream or gel avalaible to reduce the bone growth of a forming splint - is this true? If so, what is it called, where can I get it from and roughly what price is it? :D

I am currently using compagel.

Thanks
 
Squeak said:
According to an old thread on here goose fat is the way to go!

ncarter

Thread 'Splint forming - bone reduction gel / cream?'

Hi,

I have heard on the grapevine that there is a cream or gel avalaible to reduce the bone growth of a forming splint - is this true? If so, what is it called, where can I get it from and roughly what price is it? :D

I am currently using compagel.

Thanks
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I can only imagine the flies if I slathered him in goose fat before turning him back out on the bog 🙈 I think time will have to just do what it’s going to do now & I’ll have to accept the outcome 😬
 
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