Swollen leg - suggestions anyone? Worried

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travelmad

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Horse was competed last weekend, had Monday off, legs were fine Monday, near fore swollen (all along canon bone down to fetlock) quite a lot Tuesday (no heat though) but horse turned out 24/7 as normal, hoped it was a knock. Brought her in weds.... Since then she's been in and leg has been polticed, she's on box rest and danilon, but leg is same. Can't find a cut or bite Mark. Farrier has been and her feet are fine. She seems sound (she is in walk - since I'm box resting Im not keen to trot her up). Any ideas what it could be? Yard staff think to stop polticing tomorrow and start cold hosing and cold boots, and stay on box rest. Vet Monday if no change. Any ideas what it could be? If it was tendon/ ligament surely she would be lame?
 
amymay said:
You should have cold hosed from the get go. I would fully expect your vet to tell you she's done a tendon.
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Why? I thought (and am prepared to bring wrong) that with a tendon you get lameness, heat, swelling, Pain - none of which she has except swelling? so I would suspect a knock not a tendon straight away as the first thing to spring to mind?


Also went on the yards advice on poltice for 2 days, then cold hosing.
 
travelmad said:
Why? I thought (and am prepared to bring wrong) that with a tendon you get lameness, heat, swelling, Pain - none of which she has except swelling? so I would suspect a knock not a tendon straight away as the first thing to spring to mind?


Also went on the yards advice on poltice for 2 days, then cold hosing.
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I wouldn't cold hose or poltice , both do nothing at all. I would keep the horse out, 24/7, the swelling will go.....
 
I would trot her up and see if lame to be honest. Is it hot? If not lame to be honest I would be tempted to cold hose and turn out as normal as moving about helps fluid disperse. Being in will just mean the swelling will take longer to go down.

Could be all manner of things, all horses are different and some get swellings from a minor nick/knock when another wouldn't. You know your horse after all. Mine have had odd swellings on occasions on their legs, have not been lame or bothered. I just cold hose, massage and keep an eye on them.
 
bonny said:
I wouldn't cold hose or poltice , both do nothing at all. I would keep the horse out, 24/7, the swelling will go.....
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This was my initial thought - first evening I just gave some danilon and left her out on it, thinking she would walk on it and probably be ok if it was just a knock - but then I deferred when it was still quite swollen by weds. Now I don't know... And of course am now panicking it's a tendon from above posts!
 
ladyt25 said:
I would trot her up and see if lame to be honest. Is it hot? If not lame to be honest I would be tempted to cold hose and turn out as normal as moving about helps fluid disperse. Being in will just mean the swelling will take longer to go down.

Could be all manner of things, all horses are different and some get swellings from a minor nick/knock when another wouldn't. You know your horse after all. Mine have had odd swellings on occasions on their legs, have not been lame or bothered. I just cold hose, massage and keep an eye on them.
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It's not hot, just quite swollen and hard, not soft.
 
the longer the leg is swollen and the more she stands around not using it, the harder the swelling will get and the longer it will take to go.....put her out !
 
travelmad said:
This was my initial thought - first evening I just gave some danilon and left her out on it, thinking she would walk on it and probably be ok if it was just a knock - but then I deferred when it was still quite swollen by weds. Now I don't know... And of course am now panicking it's a tendon from above posts!
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I am pretty sure if she'd done a tendon then she would be lame and it would be hot! I would trot her up and see if lame
 
If it was a knock, poulticing would help ensure the swelling DIDN'T go down. If he's done a check ligament or similar, turn out would give him the chance to totally wreck the ligament (and you can have a damaged check ligament wth JUST swelling - no lameness.

There is VERY little point in treating a swelling without knowing what's causing it! A few days of cold hosing, box rest and Danilon wouldn't hurt with most problems - but far better to find out what the problem is!
 
Firstly don't panic. Horses have swellings for all sorts of reasons. ANything from a knock to something alot more serious. Personally I would cold hose and box rest/walk in hand. Soft tissue swelling usually go down fairly quickly and the walking will help shift it. Soft tissue swelling causes do tend to fill up the entire leg down from the injury site.
I don't know who said it but unfortuently tendons can go with no lameness or very little lameness.
I would see what tomorrow brings then think about the vet especially if its heading towards a week.
Better safe then sorry
 
Stop poulticing, horse would have been lame if foot abscess. Cold hose 20mins twice daily and stable bandage. Have another good feel for a small nick thats become infected. Could be tissue swelling but after this long need to call the vet.
 
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