STILL lame - any ideas?

[SillyMare]

I'm afraid this is going to be a bit of a long explaination - have been battling with this for a long time!!

Middle of March - the ground was just beginning to firm up. I took Lexi out cantering, worked her pretty hard (she was very fit). On the way home realised she had lost a shoe (didn't go lame until adrenaline had worn off).

Took about 4 days to get farrier, shoe back on. Nearly sound.

2 weeks later - I thought she was sound and took her to Goring. With hind-sight, that was a mistake - she didn't go well - I suspect she was still a bit footy.

Anyway, after Goring she was lame (same foot). Farrier thought bruised foot. Turned her away for 3 weeks - came sound so I started walking. Walked and did a little bit of trotting - 4th day she went lame again.

Called vet who said he thought it was a deep bruise. I should be patient. Put her in the field and forget about her.

Tomorrow it will be 6 weeks since Goring - she is STILL not absolutely 100% sound (much better than she was). Spoke to vet again who told me to be patient. Spoke to someone who trains racehorses who said she sounds as though she has a problem.

Now having a panic!!

Opinions please - can a bruised foot go on for this long? Should I call vet again? She isn't lame enough to nerve-block - what can vet do anyway?

 

[SillyMare]

Oh, I should add that I have been up and down her legs loads of times - no heat, swelling, lumps or bumps. No heat in the foot.

She has TB legs - very fine and easy to see if she has any swelling anywhere.

 

[ihatework]

Sorry to say this but sounds very similar to my horse.
When you say she is not lame enough to nerve block is this still the case on a 10m circle on concrete? is she better on soft ground than on concrete?
I think I would be getting some investigations done I'm afraid, if you need to work her a bit to get her lame enough to block then so be it

 

[SillyMare]

She is exactly the same on concrete and grass and in a circle.

The only time I can see a lame stride is when she trots downhill, even then is is so slight it is difficult to be sure. More of a 'just not right' situation than actual lameness (hence not lame enough to nerve block).

 

[ihatework]

Now I'm not meaning to be alarmist or scaremongering, there are so many reasons a horse can go lame that I'm not saying yours is exactly like mine.
but:
went to Highclere, lost a shoe half way round xc, didn't notice until had finished and adrenalin worn off.
Horse very lame, farrier on site replace shoe, horse immediately much better but still a bit lame.
2 week on horse still not right so withdrew from next 2 events and gave him his winter break early. He had sept/oct turned away and came back in November.
Started working him again and there was just something I couldn't put my finger on. Not lame as such just deteriorated flatwork and he wasn't quite right. In hindsight I should have done something about it then.
Worked through to january and he was turned out with a new horse that attacked him and he tore a ligamnet. Cue another 9 months off.
Back to work and after 6 weeks went slightly lame, by 8 weeks noticeably lame.
Investigated and it turned out to be navicular.
TBH I think the navicular type pain had been rumbling around for a while and I wish I had done more about it earlier, but my horse had quite a complicated previous medical history that I put it down to something else entirely.

Anyway, back to the point. I'd probably give the horse another month off, then start working it, if still not right I'd probably up the work with an aim to getting it blockable.

 

[eventing_chick]

A bruised foot can last for months. Sorry to give the bad news.

 

[BBs]

Ive done the bruised feet thing, last summer as you well know winston was plagued with absesses and bruised soles.
My vet told me to box rest for 2 wks, poultise twice a day and tub.

Bertie many years ago badly bruised his hind foot, it took 7 months for it to be 100% right.

HOwever, having had one horse with navicular and the other with ringbone.... I would be now starting to investigate a little further.

It wouldnt hurt to get x rays etc.

 

[SillyMare]

Starting to come round to the idea of x-rays etc (hence phone call to vet yesterday who told me to be patient).

Reassuring to hear that bruised feet can go on for a long time - desperately want that to be the reason!!

Don't think we are going to get much eventing this year!!

 

[_daisy_]

my mare Ebi went lame and vet diagnosed severe deep bruising withing her foot. She eventually came sound after 13weeks.
Unfortunately bruising can take months to sort. Luckily Ebi has been retired for 2 years due to ringbone and was retired. Shes just sat in a field so she had as much as she wanted to come sound.
Maybe having his foot exrayed may help to make sure nothing else is happening?

 

[samp]

My friends TB spent most summers with bruising and lameness so they elected every year to have pads placed on his feet and he was much better

 

[Dovorian]

Could there bit a bit of pus formed deep into the foot - I had this problem a couple of years ago with my boy and it toolk several vet visit s and nearly £500 to get to actually seeing the pus some out of the foot! Has this been excluded? Is it scintigraphy which can detect deep seated heat?

 

[BBs]

[ QUOTE ]
Could there bit a bit of pus formed deep into the foot - I had this problem a couple of years ago with my boy and it toolk several vet visit s and nearly £500 to get to actually seeing the pus some out of the foot! Has this been excluded? Is it scintigraphy which can detect deep seated heat?

[/ QUOTE ]

Very good point.
The bruising from winstons foot caused absesses. Took ages for it to be diagnosed/come to a head.

 

[RachelB]

[ QUOTE ]
Is it scintigraphy which can detect deep seated heat?

[/ QUOTE ]
Not scintigraphy, that shows up where bone is more active, often where it is healing (hence the common name "bone scan") but the images show as little red areas where the problem is. CAT scanning is Computer Aided Thermography which would be the one to show up heat. I believe that abcesses can be sometimes shown on o-rays though? Not totally sure though, but a friend once told me of a horse that showed up a faint line on an x-ray where an abcess had tracked up the foot and it then burst through the coronary band (eugh!)

 

[RachelB]

I would be pushing my vet to do something by now. My mare went suddenly lame at the beginning of February, like yours she was just "not right" (she went hopping lame for a day then was just "off" for a few weeks). She was lame downhill especially when trotting, and uphill on a left turn (all on the left fore). Vet eventually decided to nerve block but as she was only half a tenth lame I had to ride her into the ground for a week to make her more lame. She ended up 1-2 tenths lame and vet blocked it to the pastern joint, x-rays and ultrasound showed nothing. 4 weeks' box rest later she was worse but still blocking to the pastern joint, vet did additional blocks to rule out navicular (we were convinced it was this until all three blocks used to diagnose navicular were negative). 3 and a half months after the initial lameness she is being MRI scanned (today

) and hopefully this should show something. I have to say though, my vet was reluctant at first to do anything, he was convinced it was a small insignificant lameness that would right itself after a few weeks' box rest. Although I agree with others that bruises can take a long time to come out, you can't hang around forever. Especially if it turns out to be something that needs treating and you have to claim on insurance, most companies only give you 12 months to diagnose and treat until they stop paying.
Good luck finding out what it is!

 

[alisonpook]

Sorry to say but I can second Ben and Jerry's experience with the navicular problem and can sympathise with the 'not lame enough ' for a diagnosis. We had a lovely horse who at times we felt was not quite right. The vet could not find anything obviously wrong despite xrays. A while later the horse pulled a shoe and was immediately lame. When he didn't come right after several weeks we had another trip to the vets. He blocked out sound to the back part of the foot but then on xray appeared clean for navicular changes. The vet could not understand why he was lame so asked for another different set of shots where the camera is held under the tummy. Sadly this showed advanced navicular changes.

 

[Sparklet]

I had a problem with my daughters horse last year - she is out overnight and one night there was a pretty wild thunder storm. In the morning she was lame - no heat etc.

Called vet out who nerve blocked and searched for gravel but could find nothing (did confirm it was in her hoof though). He advised poulticing to draw the pus downward and I did for several days without any sign of pus. Removed shoe and continues wet then dry poulticing on advice of the vet and still no sign of anything.

This went on for about two weeks and I was just about to give up hope and have her transported for x rays when a small dark patch appeared on her foot - over the next few days it got larger and larger until it was slightly bigger than a 2p peice.

We did breathe a sigh of relief because we finally knew what was causing the lameness, however it went on for several weeks more before it finally cleared. To be honest because she had her shoe off we had to take a decision to replace it because it wasnt clear if she was foot sore or still lame.

All in all it took about 12 weeks before she was sound.

 

[henryhorn]

Several suggestions, may be a deep seated abcess that is quietly brewing up but not causing enough problem yet to be apparent.
She may have cracked a bone which with time should heal.
We had a lameness like this and eventually discovered a nail had gone in two pieces when the shoe came off and a small part of it was horizontally across the frog. The frog has sort of grown over it and hidden it.
She could have picked up even a sliver of glass without you knowing..
I would possibly..get farrier to check again for pus.
get the foot X rayed.
Try a pad on that foot to see if she goes better or worse..
Failing that turn away for four weeks and see what that produces..
Sorry I really wish I could suggest a fool proof solution...

 

[SillyMare]

Thanks for all the suggestions. She looks better this week actually (touch wood) - going to give her a couple more weeks off to be absolutely sure!!

 

[Alex_kate]

i would probably get xrays just to be sure, i know how you feel its so frustrating having a lame horse when you just wanna get out there and have fun!
hope it all turns out ok for you