Chocka
New User
Hi again!
Here is the original thread to save me writing out the back story http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?633599-What-the-hell-is-wrong-with-this-horse
Having talked things over with my vet again, the treatment options seemed to be either rest or steroid injections (which I am reluctant to do with such a young horse) so I decided to get an appointment with a vet called Donna Blinman who seems to have a good reputation with this type of case. It was a 6 week wait til the appointment and he was field rested in that time with no change (i popped the saddle on every couple of weeks to guage his reaction).
Anyway we have now had the appointment and to say I now feel awful would be an understatement!! She found lumbosacral pain on examination as expected and also found reactions on the acupuncture points for kidneys, bladder, liver and stomach. It is apparently unusual to have both kidneys and bladder and usually it is just one or the other so it indicated a problem with the ureter. On further investigation she found that when he was gelded (at 4yrs) the spermatic cord from the right testicle was cut too low and became caught in the scar which then put pressure on the ureter meaning he was unable to empty his bladder fully.
The result of this is that he has a long term bladder infection which he has probably had for the best part of 2 years and the bladder wall is thickened on one side, twisting the bladder and meaning it definitely can't empty properly. (He had a big wee while we were there and when she did a rectal examination a few minutes later his bladder was still quite full!)
Amazingly, she managed to release the gelding scar manually by first going up his sheath and then rectally (it took about half an hour and he had no sedation at all!) and he did a massive yawn and dropped his head when she was done.
So I now have a months worth of treatment for the infection plus a supplement for urinary system support and I have to go back after Christmas to have his liver and stomach looked at: the long term infection has put pressure on his liver and caused ulcers but I was told there was no point in doing much with them until the bladder was sorted but it does explain the girthiness as both are in the girth area.
I am very glad I didn't spend £500+ on x rays, scans and injections as they wouldn't have solved the problem and I hope this update may be useful to others in the same situation. It seems that this gelding issue is more common in late cut horses when they are done standing and both testes are removed from the near side as the offside one is pulled across more than down and therefore the tube is cut too low (sorry if thats TMI for some!).
I haven't worked him yet but he is already standing more comfortably with his hindlegs further back and tracking up better in walk. He is also peeing out some revolting red/brown gunk every time he goes so when that clears up, watch this space for more updates....
Here is the original thread to save me writing out the back story http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?633599-What-the-hell-is-wrong-with-this-horse
Having talked things over with my vet again, the treatment options seemed to be either rest or steroid injections (which I am reluctant to do with such a young horse) so I decided to get an appointment with a vet called Donna Blinman who seems to have a good reputation with this type of case. It was a 6 week wait til the appointment and he was field rested in that time with no change (i popped the saddle on every couple of weeks to guage his reaction).
Anyway we have now had the appointment and to say I now feel awful would be an understatement!! She found lumbosacral pain on examination as expected and also found reactions on the acupuncture points for kidneys, bladder, liver and stomach. It is apparently unusual to have both kidneys and bladder and usually it is just one or the other so it indicated a problem with the ureter. On further investigation she found that when he was gelded (at 4yrs) the spermatic cord from the right testicle was cut too low and became caught in the scar which then put pressure on the ureter meaning he was unable to empty his bladder fully.
The result of this is that he has a long term bladder infection which he has probably had for the best part of 2 years and the bladder wall is thickened on one side, twisting the bladder and meaning it definitely can't empty properly. (He had a big wee while we were there and when she did a rectal examination a few minutes later his bladder was still quite full!)
Amazingly, she managed to release the gelding scar manually by first going up his sheath and then rectally (it took about half an hour and he had no sedation at all!) and he did a massive yawn and dropped his head when she was done.
So I now have a months worth of treatment for the infection plus a supplement for urinary system support and I have to go back after Christmas to have his liver and stomach looked at: the long term infection has put pressure on his liver and caused ulcers but I was told there was no point in doing much with them until the bladder was sorted but it does explain the girthiness as both are in the girth area.
I am very glad I didn't spend £500+ on x rays, scans and injections as they wouldn't have solved the problem and I hope this update may be useful to others in the same situation. It seems that this gelding issue is more common in late cut horses when they are done standing and both testes are removed from the near side as the offside one is pulled across more than down and therefore the tube is cut too low (sorry if thats TMI for some!).
I haven't worked him yet but he is already standing more comfortably with his hindlegs further back and tracking up better in walk. He is also peeing out some revolting red/brown gunk every time he goes so when that clears up, watch this space for more updates....
