Suspensery Op - costs and outcomes?

madhector

madhector

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OK, anyone who has had this done could they please give me any info the have?

What level of damage pre op, and what was the outcome?

Plus how much does it cost? Worried we are going to exceed our insurance limit at this rate
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What is the recovery plan?


Thanks
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Didn't get to do the op., but did a lot of reading before I realized what stage Tiggy was at. According to my research:
1. the nerve is cut. The nerve can grow back in x number of yers.
2. there is a seventy percent success rate.
3. 'success' can be anything from being a light hack to returning to full work.
4. box rest alone will not cure it.
5. box rest can work with shockwave therapy, there is also some stem cell therapy.
6. costs for an op seem to be around the £1500 to £2000 mark.
7. if your horse has not already been seen by one of the leading experts, I'd suggest getting your vet to refer to Sue Dyson at the Animal Health Trust at Newmarket.

Hope it all works out for you. Hugs. C.x
 
Is in the best place then
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Sue is lovely. If you need to, as I did need everything explained in words of syllable, get your vet to talk to Sue and have him/her explain it to you. It's what my vet did and it helped immensely. If you call the AHT equine office they'll give you a quote for the op. Recovery time seems to vary, but is in the months category.
 
my mare has just had the op done (monday) she will be coming home sat.
op went well just got to wait and see now.
went and see her today and she isreally dragging back feet vet didnt mention anything so taking it as this is noraml after surgery.
its 6 weeks box rest when we get home after 2 weeks in hand walking building up then after that small stable sized paddock rest with walking in hand then after so many weeks gradually get back on in walk.im going to really really take my time and double the time of what vet says.
she was not lame really at all just not quit right when ridden and passed 4 lots of flexion tests until the last one ware she finally came up lame.

ive been told 80% success rate but again could just be a hack or full work.

when doing my reasearch i would say i found it 50/50 with the people i came across of full work to not really working!

i think it depends alot on how they react to the nerve blocks before op. mine is costing 2000

goodluck
 
As Mrs M and twinkle says, mine had his right hind done last October; cost £1300 ( at Oakham) he's now back in full work; hacking/schooling and a little jumping;
We've done beach rides this year and a 12 mile pleasure ride; And now he's bonkers because he's fully clipped and very fit!!
 
My horse had the operation September 2007 at Willesley.

We think from looking at her BSJA record that she had been suffering for about 4 years. She went from jumping 1.30s to 1ms. She still won £1k in the year I bought her, so she kept going like Jerry. I didn't know any of this when I got her as I took her in a swap to escape owning an awful horse I got of a dealer - so I didn't get her vetted as I was desperate not to be stuck with the first horse.

Her near hind was the worse with lesions etc and the other leg showed changes, but she wasn't lame on it. I was advised to do the operation on both legs because if one went the other will go. It also cost £1,300 for one and £1,500 for 2 legs - so financially it made sense as well.

The vets had mainly been doing the operation on Advanced Eventers and Grand Prix dressage horses and he had had a 90% success rate of them returning to the same level of work. I don't know how accurate that figure is, but it made me decide to do the operation. I figured that I wouldn't get a new horse of Dolly's ability for £1,500 so it was worth the risk.

I can send you a copy of the vets report of the operation it has all the technical terms on it, and everything that they did. I didn't really understand it fully when I decided to do it, I just went on the %ages.

When I picked her up I was shocked at how well she looked, I was expecting a sore miserable pony and found this fiesty thing sat in the stable. The incision is tiny, you could hardly see it (I can send you some photos) and now a year on there is no way anyone could tell she had every had the operation. The only thing was that she had pressage bandages on and they rubbed her legs raw and she is now covered in scars from them. I was supposed to leave them on but I removed them after the first bandage change as it horrible.

She was on 4 weeks box rest, but allowed out for walks twice a day to have some grass for about 15 mins. I then made her a tiny paddock and she would go out in that during the day. I started riding her 6 weeks after the op, walked for 6 weeks, started trotting, had her looked at in dec and she still wasn't sound behind. I then went to South Africa for a month and she was turned out and when I came back she was a lot stronger and sound. So I think it took about 3 and a half months for her to come sound after the op.

She was back in full work by March, I was taking her to her first show, got her in from the field the day before and she was lame again. This time she did her front suspenory. I've started riding her again this week, she had been turned out for 9 months and fingers crossed she seems OK. It's quite difficult to tell as she doesn't trot.

The operation did work, and I would do it again. But I'm just upset that she went and did the other leg and I spent all that money and I still haven't got a horse to ride
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My horse did 2 front suspensorys and one back. I was told about the op, but my vets didn't say it had a a particulaly high sucess rate, and I know of someone's horse that had it done, and because of the nerve being cut at the back and them not feeling so much down there went crazy. She was n't ever rideable. So I think it works for some and not others.
I didn't havn't it done because of the sucess rate, and the chance it cld send my horse mad literally!
 
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