Birker2020
Well-Known Member
Well its good news really. Sorry for long post.
We had the vet out for a brainstorming session on Friday to decide my horses future whether that were retirement, blood bank, PTS or more veterinary intervention. This was another vet from the second practice, like a new pair of eyes.
The horse was lame on a circle, right fore, the right hind seemed to be much better. Flexion tests didn't make much difference, he was still a bit sore over his back. He was sound on a straight line on the concrete.
We talked about what had happened up to date and how Lari had pulled back when tied up and the bailing twine hadn't broken and he'd had an acute si injury as a result and then been extremely ataxic, I'd insisted on xrays which showed bony remodelling overc5-c6, and C6-c7 and had resulted in quite dramatic ataxia at the time. This ataxia has more or less disappeared now.
I explained about how he'd not been suitable for selling with the sales livery guy because he'd played up with him and then gone lame. I explained that when he'd come back to me from sales livery I had discovered that he'd over reached and a nail had come loose, we'd pulled it and he'd subsequently lost the shoe. We think this might have been why he'd gone lame on sales livery as he'd been sound up to this point so could have done this during turnout whilst there, and just caught the back of his shoe and caused the horse to break up and the clench to become loose.
I explained that on two occasions with me and one with the livery guy when we'd mounted him and walked a few steps the horse had started fly bucking. The vet was extremely thorough with him and hoof tested him, he was very sensitive around the inside toe area of the right fore, this corresponded with how he'd been previously when he'd lost a shoe and when he'd had a suspected abscess as the farrier had struggled to take his shoe off when he'd sprung it four months prior, because he was so sore.
I explained that the horse had a visible crack/split line across the hoof wall running horizontally, the farrier had determined by looking at the growth pattern that an accident had occurred around 12 months earlier and he felt the horse had had a fall or accident of some sort badly damaged that foot by over reaching. The seller had had the physio out to him in April 2021, so this might have corresponded with an accident he had, or it might just have been a coincidence.
I mentioned about turning the horse barefoot and whether that would be of any benefit and the vet agreed. We also agreed that we would remedicate the back as there were more than two processes involved and it had appeared that the first vet had only done the first two processses which is what I'd indicated to him on the photo I had on my phone of his xray. Although he felt it should have infriltrated the other areas too.
So the vet will speak to the farrier and determine if he feels the horse will benefit going barefoot to try and give this foot a rest from shoes and try and grow the crack out, the crack is unstable and moves at the moment. The medicating the back and the removal of shoes will have to be a few weeks apart other wise there's a risk of concussive laminitis, but the farrier might not think its in Lari's best interests in which case we will leave the shoes on. Its a bad time of year for removing shoes with the hard ground.
My friend came round on Saturday evening for a coffee and we had a bit of a brainstorming session and I talked about his neck xrays and what they had shown. We then started exploring whether these changes which were apparent on xray could have any detriment on his behaviour and we worked out that each time the horse had been mounted and we'd gathered the reins he'd exploded. He also had always been reluctant to eat his feeds on the floor, prefering a manger on the door. When on the floor the horse would become very animated, pawing , stomping, ears back, swishing tail. None of these signs were evident when the manager was at chest level or when I held his feed bucket up.
He only ever spun to the one side, when he trotted towards you his head was at a slight angle. He is lame in his fore foot (this can be common where lameness occurs in a front leg). There were other things, like when he was on sales livery the guy felt that he was much more wiling to work when not held together, when he sent him forwards in the school he looked very good which is why he'd suggested sourcing him a hunting home. He holds his head down quite a lot too, when he walks in hand he often holds his head low to the ground. He used to react when asked to work on a smaller circle, we put this down to saddle fit, but this can be another sign of neck pain. Typically horses with neck pain can be very spooky, Bailey also had neck issues and she was the same. He likes to pull back on the end of the rope so he stretches his neck out. Bailey used to do the same, she also had neck issues. He has a distinct lack of impulsion when ridden, which is typical of horses with neck pain. I always used to carry a schooling whip with me to jig him on a bit and I know the people who sold him insisted I rode him when I viewed him with a stick as he was quite lazy. When ridden he liked to have his neck quite low, not on the forehand but held lower than normal. I assumed this was his way of going from being in draw reins or something.
So I'm going to get his xrays from my previous vet and ask my new vet to have a look at them and see if we can book him into the clinic for an assessment on his neck. Its hoped if we can find the root cause of the issues and medicate he will be comfortable and I can then get him reschooled with a view to me getting on him again in a few months. If this doesn't work we will retire.
Here are some photos to show you what I mean about spookiness and holding head down low.
We had the vet out for a brainstorming session on Friday to decide my horses future whether that were retirement, blood bank, PTS or more veterinary intervention. This was another vet from the second practice, like a new pair of eyes.
The horse was lame on a circle, right fore, the right hind seemed to be much better. Flexion tests didn't make much difference, he was still a bit sore over his back. He was sound on a straight line on the concrete.
We talked about what had happened up to date and how Lari had pulled back when tied up and the bailing twine hadn't broken and he'd had an acute si injury as a result and then been extremely ataxic, I'd insisted on xrays which showed bony remodelling overc5-c6, and C6-c7 and had resulted in quite dramatic ataxia at the time. This ataxia has more or less disappeared now.
I explained about how he'd not been suitable for selling with the sales livery guy because he'd played up with him and then gone lame. I explained that when he'd come back to me from sales livery I had discovered that he'd over reached and a nail had come loose, we'd pulled it and he'd subsequently lost the shoe. We think this might have been why he'd gone lame on sales livery as he'd been sound up to this point so could have done this during turnout whilst there, and just caught the back of his shoe and caused the horse to break up and the clench to become loose.
I explained that on two occasions with me and one with the livery guy when we'd mounted him and walked a few steps the horse had started fly bucking. The vet was extremely thorough with him and hoof tested him, he was very sensitive around the inside toe area of the right fore, this corresponded with how he'd been previously when he'd lost a shoe and when he'd had a suspected abscess as the farrier had struggled to take his shoe off when he'd sprung it four months prior, because he was so sore.
I explained that the horse had a visible crack/split line across the hoof wall running horizontally, the farrier had determined by looking at the growth pattern that an accident had occurred around 12 months earlier and he felt the horse had had a fall or accident of some sort badly damaged that foot by over reaching. The seller had had the physio out to him in April 2021, so this might have corresponded with an accident he had, or it might just have been a coincidence.
I mentioned about turning the horse barefoot and whether that would be of any benefit and the vet agreed. We also agreed that we would remedicate the back as there were more than two processes involved and it had appeared that the first vet had only done the first two processses which is what I'd indicated to him on the photo I had on my phone of his xray. Although he felt it should have infriltrated the other areas too.
So the vet will speak to the farrier and determine if he feels the horse will benefit going barefoot to try and give this foot a rest from shoes and try and grow the crack out, the crack is unstable and moves at the moment. The medicating the back and the removal of shoes will have to be a few weeks apart other wise there's a risk of concussive laminitis, but the farrier might not think its in Lari's best interests in which case we will leave the shoes on. Its a bad time of year for removing shoes with the hard ground.
My friend came round on Saturday evening for a coffee and we had a bit of a brainstorming session and I talked about his neck xrays and what they had shown. We then started exploring whether these changes which were apparent on xray could have any detriment on his behaviour and we worked out that each time the horse had been mounted and we'd gathered the reins he'd exploded. He also had always been reluctant to eat his feeds on the floor, prefering a manger on the door. When on the floor the horse would become very animated, pawing , stomping, ears back, swishing tail. None of these signs were evident when the manager was at chest level or when I held his feed bucket up.
He only ever spun to the one side, when he trotted towards you his head was at a slight angle. He is lame in his fore foot (this can be common where lameness occurs in a front leg). There were other things, like when he was on sales livery the guy felt that he was much more wiling to work when not held together, when he sent him forwards in the school he looked very good which is why he'd suggested sourcing him a hunting home. He holds his head down quite a lot too, when he walks in hand he often holds his head low to the ground. He used to react when asked to work on a smaller circle, we put this down to saddle fit, but this can be another sign of neck pain. Typically horses with neck pain can be very spooky, Bailey also had neck issues and she was the same. He likes to pull back on the end of the rope so he stretches his neck out. Bailey used to do the same, she also had neck issues. He has a distinct lack of impulsion when ridden, which is typical of horses with neck pain. I always used to carry a schooling whip with me to jig him on a bit and I know the people who sold him insisted I rode him when I viewed him with a stick as he was quite lazy. When ridden he liked to have his neck quite low, not on the forehand but held lower than normal. I assumed this was his way of going from being in draw reins or something.
So I'm going to get his xrays from my previous vet and ask my new vet to have a look at them and see if we can book him into the clinic for an assessment on his neck. Its hoped if we can find the root cause of the issues and medicate he will be comfortable and I can then get him reschooled with a view to me getting on him again in a few months. If this doesn't work we will retire.
Here are some photos to show you what I mean about spookiness and holding head down low.
Last edited:
