Useful life for a horse after a pelvic fracture

[Aurelia]

My four year old gelding has been diagnosed with a pelvis fracture after slipping in the field. He was re scanned yesterday and injured himself two weeks ago. He is unbroken but had started long reining etc. Does anyone have anyone have experience of a horse having a useful life after a pelvic fracture? If he is not going to be able to be ridden, or only gently hacked I will make the hard decision to have him put to sleep. I have had him since a foal but he was going to be sold to go eventing rather than kept for me. I appreciate that if he can be ridden, it will be limited but I would like to have an idea of to what extent. Thanks

 

[Tiddlypom]

Horses can go to make a full recovery from a pelvic fracture. What do your vets say?

I presume that that he is on full box rest now? Careful management during the healing process is critical to a good outcome.

Where in the pelvis is the fracture?

 

[Barton Bounty]

My friends tb is a riding horse and she has the occasional jump on her even after a pelvic fracture she has made a really good recovery.

 

[ihatework]

Obviously I’m not a vet and I haven’t seen the images, but I wouldn’t automatically rule out a full return to work. It will be dependent on the extent of the fracture, how well it heals and the quality of the rehab but I certainly wouldn’t write the horse of yet.

I’ve got a really nice 5yo who recently had a bad accident and whilst not pelvic fracture something equivalent in terms of time/chances/rehab. Realistically I think it will be 9 months to really know if a long term ridden career is still possible.

 

[HopOnTrot]

A question for the vets/physio viewing the horse and X-rays. My best friend lost her horse to a broken pelvis.

 

[TPO]

I had an ex racer who fractured his pelvis in racing as a 2yr old (it wasn't disclosed or picked up in vetting ).

He did return to racing after it. I'm presuming he was sound for that to happen.

When I got him and started fixing (or trying to) his asymmetries and general wonkiness all the wheels fell off because I disrupted his compensations. I think he was 9 when I got him so the compensations were well established, even to fool a specialist equine vet (there's a long story there).

I'm going to assume that if the fracture was treated properly while healing and he had proper rehab/ended up in a home that had continued that he would have been fine.

Obviously it's a question for your vet (& physio) but depending on where the fracture was, from what I read when I had that horse, there were excellent recovery rates back to full work. I'm going to assume the recovery and rehab is crucial.

 

[irishdraft]

My friends tb has had a stress fracture to his pelvis, happened in the field, he's now cross tied at the vets for 6 weeks but I don't think there is any talk of not being able to be ridden when recovered.

 

[Tiddlypom]

This is a post of mine from a while back. The horse, a shire x, came good from a fractured wing of ilium.

The longest box rest I've done was 8+ weeks in the cross ties with a big shire X mare. She had a # wing of ilium. She adapted very well, we hung her water bucket on one side of the door and her haynet on the other. I jiggled all the turnout so that she could always see other horses, and left the radio on all day.

She wasn't even mine, she was a neighbour's horse who injured herself whilst the neighbour was on holiday, and having very cautiously walked her to mine to stable her immediately post injury, with the vet as outrider, we didn't fancy risking walking her back home even when neighbour came back in case the pelvis went. She came good despite getting laminitis in a hind foot due to having to stand for all that time

 

[nicolenlolly]

A friend is eventing her horse at intermediate and he fractured both sides of his pelvis a few years ago

 

[conniegirl]

Ive owned a horse who fractured his pelvis. He came back into full work.

I also know one mare who fractured her pelvis in 3 places as a 3 yearold (she also knocked herself out) she spent several months in a sling due to the severity of the injuries combined with the head injury.
She is now 16, has had a full active ridden life including jumping and eventing.

See what your vet says.

 

[Aurelia]

Unfortunately the horse had to be put down last week. The fracture was being managed by 4x Bute and 40 paracetamol a day and ultimately the Bute created colitis from perforated ulcers. A devastating end, and to have the pain management cause colitis was awful. There was no way he would have recovered.

 

[TPO]

So sorry for your loss.

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

So sorry x

 

[ihatework]

That’s horrible, I’m sorry

 

[IrishMilo]

So sorry, what a horrible ending.

 

[Mrs. Jingle]

That is very sad for you and your horse. So sorry the outcome wasn't a happier one.

 

[AShetlandBitMeOnce]

So sorry OP - you did your best

 

[Birker2020]

So sorry. That's really sad.