Suspected fracture in neck. Advice?

[GetMeACoffee]

My mare had an accident two weeks ago while turned out in the arena. She appears to have jumped the fence, somehow cutting her face either in the process or beforehand (no one saw what happened, no CCTV). She got stitches for the cut (which has healed beautifully) and was a little stiff on her right hind at first so we figured she might have jarred something when jumping out of the arena. Physio checked her over a few days after the accident and said she was fine other than that slight hindquarter stiffness.

A week later, she couldn’t reach the ground for her feed bowl or to graze. Vet came and suspected a fracture in her neck due to the stiffness and soreness around her neck, but x rays came back clear. She’s been on box rest and bute twice daily since, and the vet is coming back next Monday to see her. Her mobility around her neck is returning very slowly. I’ve taken her for some short walks around the yard to keep her from getting too bored, and she’s been able to graze a little, but is hesitant at first to get her head down. The groom at the yard also said she forgot to raise her feed bowl from the ground yesterday morning and my mare quite happily tucked in.

Anyway, I guess I’m just after some advice. Has anyone experienced or seen anything like this before? How long did it take to return from an injury like this? How likely is it that it’s a fracture that’s just not showing on x rays (as the vet says) and not a muscular issue or severe bruising?

I know I need to be patient and let time work its magic and trust the vet, but it’s driving me nuts not knowing what happens next, and my mare is starting to go a little stir crazy too. Think I needed to get it off my chest more than anything!

 

[Gloi]

I think that if the x-rays didn't show a fracture it's likely to have been a muscular injury.

 

[Roobar]

I don’t want to alarm you but I just want to convey my experience. My horse fractured his neck in a field accident - it wasn’t identified until much later, but he displayed the same symptoms as your horse - stiffness, unable to reach ground etc. Vet thought he’d simply tied-up. We gave him some time off and brought him slowly back into work. A year later he started displaying wobbler symptoms - the fracture in his neck caused swelling onto his spinal cord. A neck fracture won’t show up on a normal x-ray. He has been incredibly lucky and has had surgery to correct the fracture and stop the swelling in it’s track, he’s now back into work. If your horse is still struggling to reach the ground or has an odd stance while grazing, I’d maybe ask your vet to take a second look - I‘d wished someone had alerted me to the things to watch out for- fingers crossed your horse is absolutely fine!

 

[ycbm]

My horse's broken up neck vertebra showed clearly on a mobile xray. I would expect a fracture to show but it might need another xray as they sometimes need 2 weeks or so to show up.

 

[ester]

yeah I was wondering if it was mobile xray or at clinic if vet thinks it's a fracture that isn't showing up

 

[GetMeACoffee]

Update: vet came last Monday to check how she’s doing. She’s been grazing normally, no odd stance or hesitation for over a week now. She’s still a little bit stiff moving her head left and right at first but this seems to be improving with gentle encouragement (on vet’s orders). She’s on 1 bute a day now. Vet is coming back on Friday to re-x-ray. Just have to wait and see I suppose!

 

[GetMeACoffee]

yeah I was wondering if it was mobile xray or at clinic if vet thinks it's a fracture that isn't showing up

it was a mobile x ray

 

[GetMeACoffee]

Thanks! The vet is coming back on Friday to re-x-ray. Her range of motion is significantly better now — not 100% yet going left and right but close — and she’s been allowed to graze and get some turn out. Don’t know if I’m hoping the x ray will show something or come back clear!

 

[GetMeACoffee]

I don’t want to alarm you but I just want to convey my experience. My horse fractured his neck in a field accident - it wasn’t identified until much later, but he displayed the same symptoms as your horse - stiffness, unable to reach ground etc. Vet thought he’d simply tied-up. We gave him some time off and brought him slowly back into work. A year later he started displaying wobbler symptoms - the fracture in his neck caused swelling onto his spinal cord. A neck fracture won’t show up on a normal x-ray. He has been incredibly lucky and has had surgery to correct the fracture and stop the swelling in it’s track, he’s now back into work. If your horse is still struggling to reach the ground or has an odd stance while grazing, I’d maybe ask your vet to take a second look - I‘d wished someone had alerted me to the things to watch out for- fingers crossed your horse is absolutely fine!

Thanks for sharing your experience. The vet came back to check on her last Monday. Her range of motion is significantly better now and she’s grazing completely normally (no funny stance or hesitation), although she is still a little stiff moving left and right (especially right). Vet said he wants her turned out, grazing and getting her feed from the floor again, and he’s coming back on Friday to re-x-ray. She’s also down to 1 bute a day.

How long was it before your horse’s range of movement returned after he first injured himself? Did he show any signs of ataxia then or was it just a year later?

 

[Michen]

I had A horse with a fracture that only showed when the leg broke. It was x rayed two weeks post incident and nothing showed.

good that you are re x raying in case!

 

[GetMeACoffee]

Another update! So vet re-x-rayed today and found a small stress fracture in her neck. She’s already been off for a month and we’ll have another month off before we re-x-ray and take it from there. Hopefully it’ll heal up nicely! ?