Tendon injury, nearly a year on.... longish!

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darksecret99

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My boy injured a tendon in his hock last summer... he had several months off, then very very gradually built the work back up... and is now doing up to an hour in the school...

I know tendons take a loong time to heal and so I've been very careful of what I've done with him.... the vet was happy with his progress and just said for me to carry on doing what I'm doing..... but some days he doesnt seem to use that leg properly..... not lame as such, just not powering with that leg as much as the other one.... theres no heat or swelling.... and he is prone to being lazy, which doesnt help! But I'm a bit worried that he will never truely be 100% sound all the time.... I've got no previous experience of tendon injuries, so am not sure whether its normal for this to occur or not?

I did a dressage a couple of weeks ago and got 7s for his paces.... but this week, he has felt a bit wonky a few times....

It doesnt seem to be worse if I do more work with him etc... its just the odd few steps in trot here and there, so I'm not sure whether to call the vet again... (you can guarantee he will be fine when the vet comes out!!)

Any advice or experiences appreciated!

He was not scanned because he is not good to box and the vet doesnt have a portable scanner...
 
It would be interesting to get a vet out that has a portable scanner to see what was really going on with the hock......
 
There are no portable scanners on the island (Guernsey!).... and the vet surgery is on a busy road and you cant get a trailer in the car park, so have to park in the road.... not good for a horse that is bad to load / box!!!
 
18 nmonths ago my horse split his DDF. He had ultrasound and a tenoscopy when the tear was noticed. He had also damaged the feltlock cartilage. I was devastated as it was thought he would be too lame to potter in a field. But I gave him a chance and 18 months later we are back to light hacking.

Saying that, he has his good and bad days. The injured leg he tends to be 'lazy' with and rests it more than the other one. The leg is permanently swollen in the fetlock area. I fed him Global herbs windgall and tendoneaze for 12 months which seemed to make a difference. I have stepped down his workload and warm him up and cool him down for longer after exercise. Considering he was on 3 legs with a bleak outlook, I am delighted.

Keep persevering with lots of regular gentle exercise as it takes 18 months for tendons to heal. It may be that that leg will always feel a bit 'weak and tired' to your horse and his workload will need to accommodate this.


I hope he continues to make progress.
 
Had the chiro out yesterday and it turns out his pelvis was wonky, which could actually explain the not quite rightness... fingers crossed! I dont think the chiro has ever known anyone so pleased to hear that there was something wrong!! But the pelvis is much easier to sort out than the tendon!!

Keeping everything crossed that he will be ok again in a couple of days!

Thanks for your responses, I'm glad to hear its normal for him to have not so good days (dont we all!!), he's only 5 still, and was never lame in walk, only in trot on a slope or circle, so hopefully the outlook is quite positive for him!
 
Good luck to you both, hopefully it was his pelvis causing the issue.

My lad is currently in week 9 of box rest for injury to his SF tendon so it is great to heat some positive outcomes from tendon injuries.
 
I rode yesterday and although still a bit stiff and sore to start off with he seemed much better (than before chiro) when he was warmed up... I just walked and trotted big circles etc.... will just hack in walk again tonight then try some schooling tomorrow.... keeping fingers crossed!
 
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