Stable bandages, why + pros and cons??

[PnO]

Just wondering why, if any of you bandage your horses legs at night and for what reasons? And what do you guys think are the pros and cons? x

 

[lizzie_liz]

I have been bandaging my horses back legs at the moment, only because she cut her leg in the field and am trying to keep it clean to help it heal and it helps minimise the swelling

 

[flyingfeet]

I don't, I only bandage if the horse has a chill or has damaged a leg

In theory it is much better to keep the tendons cooler

Have to say I am really confused by Team Federicks on H&C TV, they use an ice machine on the legs and then bandage them up... makes no sense to me!!!!

 

[Nailed]

Ted is banadaged for about 22 hours out of every 24.
He is bandaged to prevent his legs swelling. This in turn prevents the lymphantic fluid from settling on his legs and getting infected.
With Ted it is necessary.

Pro's - Prevents swelling.
Allows legs to be kept warm if the horse is clipped.

Con's - Can come undone and tangle around other legs.
Cant provide heat in areas you dont want it (tendon sheaths)
If applied incorrectly can cause pressure points.

Lou x

 

[Rana]

Warmth - my horse suffers with filled legs (following lymphangitis) and arthritis in her back legs. Keeping them warm helps with the filling, and helps her joints.

I don't use bandages though, unless she's injured, I use wraps (don't offer any support, just warmth).

I think it helps - her legs don't fill, and she doesn't seem as stiff in the morning if she's been wearing them. Also, she only wears them on very cold nights - below freezing.

 

[only_me]

I bandage merlin's legs the night before a comp, to make sure his legs stay clean and to prevent him cutting himself when I leave travel studs in over night.

Also when he is injured etc. The pros? Keeps him safe, and I can keep practicing my bandages

lol

 

[Joss]

I think you should only use stable bandages if you really need to. For example if your horses swell badly when left in for any length of time. Like Lou has to for Ted.

Its fairly normal to have a tiny bit of puffiness but this should go immediately with exercise. I would speak to a vet first if my horse had big legs every morning but stable bandages would be necessary in this situation.
Other uses would be to keep legs warm if the horse was ill or you had just clipped out & the temperature took a massive dive. Also nothing wrong with sticking a bandages on the night before a competition to keep the legs clean.

I would not like to get into a regular situation of bandaging though. Much better/healthier to have air circulating freely around.

I simply can not understand those stable chap things. No way they can be tight enough to provide support, nor would you want them to be as they would have pressure points. I would hate to put them on top of wet legs, surely warm & wet is just a breeding ground for bacteria.

 

[mil1212]

I was also confused by team fredricks bandaging on h&c tv, Lucinda said she bandaged to reduce swellings from windgalls. She also only bandaged to the fetlock, the way I do it, and the PC way I was taught, was to go below the fetlock onto the pastern, because otherwise I thought it may be more likely to slip down....
I only bandage the night before a showing show to reduce windgalls and to keep any white legs clean. I don't bother for SJ or eventing. I have also bandaged recently for warmth when it has been really cold.
It is not something I like to do incase of uneven pressure points or them becoming unravelled, or indeed too much heat on tendons. I have heard of occurrances of too tight bandages damaging tendons.
Horses tend to get slight leg filling when they stand in stables for periods of time, I don't bandage to reduce this, as the filling goes once they have been out.

 

[only_me]

I put rubber mats at the front of my stables and merlin's legs have never been better!

 

[Bossanova]

I bandage when we stable away in temporary boxes to prevent injury and after xc rounds if ground has been harder than perfect or if it has been a tiring course for support

 

[Skhosu]

O_M-travel studs?? Haven't heard of them before?
I never bandage unless there is an injury, or swollen legs.

 

[Nailed]

Travel studs are just the smalled grass studs you can get.. Just stop the whole clogging while you travel if the horse is a bit sparky at the show ground.

Lou x

 

[china]

my horse has windgalls so he had sportbac boots on his hind legs to reduce the swelling which worked untill he ripped them lol. but now he wanders in and out of his stable onto the yard so he isnt stading around. i am moving yards at the end of the month and he wont have the luxery on wondering around so he will have his back legs bandaged at night again.

 

[only_me]

I think they are extremely small road studs tbh, the are flat and square and protude enough that you can get the spanner on them - MUCH easier at an event with excitable horse

I shouldn't need to bandage really for them, but I wouldn't like to give merlin a chance

 

[OskyWoskyPonio]

when the weather was very cold i bandaged my horses legs - he is clipped out and he had about 3-4 rugs on of varying thicknesses as it hit -11!! So i also bandaged him to give his legs some support from that. he seemed pretty chilled out about it all tbh! lol