thoughts on selling horse with Neurectomy in foot

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vicky1234

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hi,

My horse was de nerved in his foot in August due to a cyst in the pedal bone. He is sound now and just as good as before. I was thinking of just sticking to dressage with him as thought the jumping might put alot of strain on the foot your thoughts????

He is at elementary level dressage. A school master but not a novice horses ride. He hacks alone and in company and is great to hack. 16.2hh TB x Warmblood. He has 5 BD points. I was thinking of getting more BD points on him and selling him next year.

Has anyone sold there horse with a neurectomy, was it difficult what sort of price range? He was bought for six thousand as a school master before. I would rather sell him to a dressage home.

Im not trying to sell him on here just need people thoughts please
 
With respect, how can you say he's as good as before??? He is not.
The Neurectomy is masking degenerative changes in his foot, therefore his foot will continue to get worse - and this is where the contraversy lies in that because he can't feel it, he could end up with a catastrophic breakdown at some point, and at best un diagnosed absesses and god knows what else.
You are risking yourself and him to even think about jumping...
You owe it to him to find a trusted long term home, and make sure he's not sold on to some poor unsuspecting purchaser.
This is quite an interesting article... http://www.sportpolo.com/barn/Navicular.htm (navicular syndrome can be a cause of Bone Cysts)
You will not see any of your £6k back unless you don't disclose what he's had done.

Sorry if this sounds harsh, but I wouldn't even do this treatment unless the horse was super talented and I had ultimate control of it's future.

Just my opinion - and I have my Tin Hat rammed firmly on
 
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A neurectomy due to pedal cysts, I am afraid you are talking meat money if you are looking to sell.

He will need careful management on an ongoing basis, so if you are looking to rehome I would suggest a loan whereby you can keep an eye on him and make the right decision for his future when the time arises.
 
I am afraid to be blunt how can he be described as a school master with 5bd points there are 4/5yos with more points.I cannot even understand how a neurectomy was considered the best for the horse as I am pretty sure he could not compete legally at BD .
To be honest to even consider jumping him would not only be a welfare issue for him but a huge risk to you .I think that anybody you were honest to tell about the neurectomy would just walk away so selling would not be a realistic outcome I am afraid to say.
 
sorry but i think you are being rotten thinking of selling him.
1 he only has 5 points so wouldnt class him as a schoolmaster
2 he is as good as before coz he cant feel anything. he wouldnt even feel a 3 inch nail in his foot
3 schoolmasters can generally accomodate a novice rider
4 has the cyst been cleared out surgically? and what do current post deneving x rays look like?

i am not totally against de nerving as in 2 to 3 yrs the nerves do regrow albeit in a jumbled form (worked in many sj yards where it was done frequently 10 to 15 yrs ago) but you do have a duty to declare this. de nerving can allow a horse to have a masked pain free life for a few yrs, but generally makes them unsaleable(unless supremely talented think 5000 bd points). so if i were in your shoes i would be totally upfront, involve your vet for discussion, and look for a nice loan home if you can find one (and keep regular checks monthly) otherwise the choices are keep him yourself and enjoy him knowing the risks, or be responsible an PTS. sorry but you did ask ..............
 
thank you for your honest answers....i would never sell him without telling them about his de nerving....all I want is a good home for him I am no way expecting my 6 grand back. He only has 5 BD points because he has low mileage. That was his second novice ever. He has great paces and is safe on the road but I do not want novices riding him and pulling his back teeth out.

That is why I want to let him go to a great home because I need an eventer and do not think its fair to ask him to jump. The de nerving was my last opition and he is so happy now even if there is something happening we dont know about if I ever found out he was in pain I would not put him through anymore.

The loaning is a good option i thought about but a good home with good care would be great just wondered if there were people out there that would want a horse like him. Seems such a shame as he is an amazing horse with talent.

On the showjumping yard did they cope with the de nerving? Or any eventers been ? I know this is an issue which alot of people will not agree with me here but all opinions are good.
 
the cyst has stayed the same in the foot not got any bigger or smaller...we tryed remedial shoes first and this was the last option....
 
I feel for you vicky1234, however if you do go down the re-homing route, be very very careful.
There are some horrible people who may take him off your hands knowing about his de-nerving, and then sell him on to some poor unsuspecting buyer the following week. You only have to look at the number of horses stolen whilst on Loan.
Theres even a suspected case of a woman taking on 'Free to Good Home' then selling them to the knacker man for a quick buck.... truly wicked, but some people really don't give a stuff.

If you can't keep control via a secure Loan, I would genuinely consider PTS to ensure he had a safe and sensible end no matter how genuine someone may seem.
 
Where are You based? We would take him on for our bhs stages three And four students to train on. We recently took a horse that was advised on here to be pts ( puffin the spotty horse if any one remembers the Very long post!)
We have had him for over a month now and he is one of the most popular horses we have! We Just learn to manage issues. Pm me if You like.
 
vicky1234 said:
On the showjumping yard did they cope with the de nerving? Or any eventers been ? I know this is an issue which alot of people will not agree with me here but all opinions are good.
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As far as I am aware denerved horses are banned from all competition now.Certainly BE will not allow you to compete.The reason it was banned is because over the years there have been some very unpleasant sights in rings around the country of broken horses that cannot feel what has happened.I am sure if you had seen some of these you would not think jumping is an option.Good luck finding a home.
 
charlie76 said:
Where are You based? We would take him on for our bhs stages three And four students to train on. We recently took a horse that was advised on here to be pts ( puffin the spotty horse if any one remembers the Very long post!)
We have had him for over a month now and he is one of the most popular horses we have! We Just learn to manage issues. Pm me if You like.
Click to expand...

Oooh this would be perfect! Good luck!
 
popsdosh said:
As far as I am aware denerved horses are banned from all competition now.Certainly BE will not allow you to compete.The reason it was banned is because over the years there have been some very unpleasant sights in rings around the country of broken horses that cannot feel what has happened.I am sure if you had seen some of these you would not think jumping is an option.Good luck finding a home.
Click to expand...

I am not IN ANY WAY advising this and I think the rule is absolutely right - if a horse is that sore, it's not a competition horse anymore and cutting the nerves doesn't make it any less broken - but you might be surprised how many nerved horses are out there competing, even at the top levels. ;) The fact is, if it's done well and successful, it can be very hard to tell and you can't convince me at least some people out there with such a horse don't even know!

Re the disasters, I'm not doubting you've seen them but nerving practices have changed a lot over the years. A good vet won't do the whole foot so the horse does still have sensation and proprioception to some extent. Even in my lifetime it was known to "high nerve" horses up into the pastern and even higher and yes, that often ended spectacularly badly. The reason it's banned is for the same reason NSAIDs and steroids are banned - they limit pain and mask symptoms. The reasoning is, if your horse needs such measures to compete, then he shouldn't be there. Nerving is not singled out. (Although presumably neurectomies for PTSD don't result in a ban, do they? I find it fascinating that people are "okay" with one and not the other.)

Don't get me wrong I AM NOT IN FAVOUR but I definitely know horses that have gone for years and years, even doing jumping in the context of being high grade school horses and shown no ill effects. It is at least possible the OPs horse is such a horse and in the right situation, with good management he might be okay.

Personally, I would NOT sell the horse. He is broken and not as he seems. Even if you tell a potential buyer you are passing on a significant problem. If Charlie76 can offer you a solution, it's definitely worth an conversation. But otherwise, no, I would not put him out on the open market.
 
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