Well there it was - clear as you like on the x-rays

PolarSkye

PolarSkye

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Navicular changes . . . in both front feet.

More lesions in his left fore, but all confined to the medulla . . . fewer in the right fore (his club foot) but one nasty one in the cortex. Pedal bones just fine.

Vet suspects there may also be some arthritis and it's possible there's some damage to the DDFT, but we won't see that without an MRI.

For now it's rest for a further two weeks, egg bar shoes with a rolled toe, low doses of bute (one a day) . . . he can go out in the field once he's shod. After two weeks we can start walking him in hand for a couple of weeks, building up to 20 mins a day and then I can get on him! We will review in six weeks and if there's no improvement, then we'll look at an MRI.

I can stop soaking his hay (although I will be reintroducing regular hay gradually) and will be giving him something to support his gut while he's on the bute . . . he's never been scoped for them but he is very girthy and grinds his teeth so I'm concerned about excess stomach acid and ulcers.

Vet is sending me the x-rays so I can show them to my farrier . . . so I hope to be getting shoes on him at the end of this week - so he can go back out in the field early next week.

As for prognosis . . . while there are no guarantees, vet reckons once we get him sound, we could have another 6-8 years of riding him as long as we're careful about the ground, etc . . . so into his early twenties.

So . . . not a fab diagnosis, but not unexpected . . . and it seems manageable.

Many, many thanks for all your vibes . . . you are all so supportive and kind. If anyone's got any experience with navicular syndrome, I'd love it if you could share . . . ditto any tips on effective management, supplements (herbal or otherwise), etc.

P
 
Well at least you know and can work on it...

Fingers crossed for you. My friend's horse went down this route and is doing great three years on now.
 
Great that you got a proper diagnosis :) I'd take navicular over lami any day. Once you've worked out something which works for them it's easier to manage for sure :)

Told you vets can't always feel sinking round the coronary band accurately didn't I? :p ;)
 
As above :) Could be a lot, lot worse. Riding into his twenties is something loads don't manage and he's lucky to have you as an owner.
 
Honey08 said:
Well at least you know and can work on it...

Fingers crossed for you. My friend's horse went down this route and is doing great three years on now.
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Zackly . . . feel like we've got something to work with . . . looking forward to cracking on with the plan . . . particularly looking forward to him going out in the field again . . . and fingers crossed we see some improvement.

Thank you.

P
 
jesstickle said:
Great that you got a proper diagnosis :) I'd take navicular over lami any day. Once you've worked out something which works for them it's easier to manage for sure :)

Told you vets can't always feel sinking round the coronary band accurately didn't I? :p ;)
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Yes . . . it was fab to actually see the x-rays . . . it was crystal clear. And, yes, you did . . . ;).

P
 
PolarSkye said:
Oh bless you - what a lovely thing to say!

P
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S'true. Plenty wouldn't bother with a diagnosis and plenty wouldn't try to manage the outcome...and I'm not talking about a merciful PTS either :)

I've got everything crossed for both of you.
 
pookie said:
S'true. Plenty wouldn't bother with a diagnosis and plenty wouldn't try to manage the outcome...and I'm not talking about a merciful PTS either :)

I've got everything crossed for both of you.
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Well, vet has been told in no uncertain terms that I'd rather he didn't sugar-coat any diagnosis he gives and he's to be as honest as he can about quality of life so that we can judge when to make "that" decision. In the meantime, navicular isn't the death sentence it used to be and we're a very low mileage home so it makes sense (to me anyway) to try and manage the condition so we can find what works for him/keeps him happy and well (mentally and physically).

Besides, I love him too much not to want the best for him . . . just like all of you guys and your horses.

P
 
So glad you KNOW what you are dealing with eh? :)

One tip - if he's staying in till end of week, then you can still 'damp' hay to slow his scoffing down, tho now not needing to soak it for time. (worked for BF for the weeks she was in).

Thanks for update on GD :)
 
don't suppose you could share the xray pics please as I would like to compare them to my boys? Understand if you dont want to though.
 
The Fuzzy Furry said:
So glad you KNOW what you are dealing with eh? :)

One tip - if he's staying in till end of week, then you can still 'damp' hay to slow his scoffing down, tho now not needing to soak it for time. (worked for BF for the weeks she was in).

Thanks for update on GD :)
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Oh yes absolutely . . . it's amazing how much of a weight that is off my mind.

Great tip on damping down his hay to stop him scoffing . . . I had planned to wet it anyway b/c our hay is quite dusty as is our straw and I wanted avoid coughing, but you're right - stopping him pigging out is a good thing (and he IS a pig).

Thanks for the great vibes :D.

P
 
Interesting, after a bout of sudden lameness our xrays did pick up some "navicular changes" however my vet didn't even class them as possibly the problem.
I too, would take Navicular over Laminitis...hope the rehab goes well for you PS :)
 
So sorry to hear that as I know exactly what you're going through. But as you've said navicular isn't the horrendous end of the world diagnosis that it used to be and it sounds like you've got a good plan in place to go forwards.

He's very lucky to be in such a good home and I really hope his recovery goes well. :) x
 
BoolavogueDC said:
Interesting, after a bout of sudden lameness our xrays did pick up some "navicular changes" however my vet didn't even class them as possibly the problem.
I too, would take Navicular over Laminitis...hope the rehab goes well for you PS :)
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Really? Although, I wouldn't call the GreyDonk's lameness sudden . . . he's been funny on and off for a while and since we bought him has intermittently come out pottery and worked through it. Perhaps it also depends on what those changes are (and where - the lesion in the cortex of the navicular bone is what really troubled my vet).

Oh, plus, forgot to mention, he also picked up minor sidebones . . . but said they wouldn't be causing the lameness and are probably pretty normal for a horse of his age/previous history.

P
 
Good to hear you have a diagnosis, and as you said, not great but something you can work on.
I've no experience of navicular, but did have my then 15 yr old diagnosed with desmopathy (never heard of it before!) and at the time said with rest and 24/7 turn-out he may be ok for a very small bit of light hacking.
At the time I was devastated, never thought we would go out for a 'fun' hack again. Fast forward 5 years, and he's been sound all that time, ok we haven't done any schoolwork, but we have hacked, and up to 2 hours out with trot and canter, and he's still sound and enjoying life.
So hoping you can have a good outcome to this, and that you have many more enjoyable years together. :) Good luck to both of you x
 
bikerchickone said:
So sorry to hear that as I know exactly what you're going through. But as you've said navicular isn't the horrendous end of the world diagnosis that it used to be and it sounds like you've got a good plan in place to go forwards.

He's very lucky to be in such a good home and I really hope his recovery goes well. :) x
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Thanks for the good wishes . . . now fingers crossed that our recovery/rehab plan works. I have to say that he's been a very good patient all things considered . . . and he will be veeeery happy to go back out into the field with his friends (and I will be veeeery happy to be able to leave that straw up and air his floor . . . I'm doing the best I can to stay on top of his bed and keep it clean, but that floor so needs to dry).

P
 
PolarSkye said:
Really? Although, I wouldn't call the GreyDonk's lameness sudden . . . he's been funny on and off for a while and since we bought him has intermittently come out pottery and worked through it. Perhaps it also depends on what those changes are (and where - the lesion in the cortex of the navicular bone is what really troubled my vet).

Oh, plus, forgot to mention, he also picked up minor sidebones . . . but said they wouldn't be causing the lameness and are probably pretty normal for a horse of his age/previous history.

P
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On my horses xrays, navi changes looked like small circular areas from memory but he glossed over them so we didn't take much more notice than that.
She also has sidebones, her's are massive and she's 7 :o. He also wasn't convinced it was that :confused:
I wonder if we compared our xrays - whether they'd look similar?!
 
Crazydancer said:
Good to hear you have a diagnosis, and as you said, not great but something you can work on.
I've no experience of navicular, but did have my then 15 yr old diagnosed with desmopathy (never heard of it before!) and at the time said with rest and 24/7 turn-out he may be ok for a very small bit of light hacking.
At the time I was devastated, never thought we would go out for a 'fun' hack again. Fast forward 5 years, and he's been sound all that time, ok we haven't done any schoolwork, but we have hacked, and up to 2 hours out with trot and canter, and he's still sound and enjoying life.
So hoping you can have a good outcome to this, and that you have many more enjoyable years together. :) Good luck to both of you x
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Thank you. Very glad to hear that your boy came sound and you continue to enjoy riding out together . . . any pics of your lovely horse?

P
 
BoolavogueDC said:
On my horses xrays, navi changes looked like small circular areas from memory but he glossed over them so we didn't take much more notice than that.
She also has sidebones, her's are massive and she's 7 :o. He also wasn't convinced it was that :confused:
I wonder if we compared our xrays - whether they'd look similar?!
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Hey, it's worth a try! Like I said, I'll see what I can do about posting mine once I get them.

P
 
Navicular - bah.
That's nothing scary nowadays.

My friend's horse has been fully sound and competing since the remedial shoes came off in 2009.
And he'd been lame for years!
 
PolarSkye said:
Thank you. Very glad to hear that your boy came sound and you continue to enjoy riding out together . . . any pics of your lovely horse?

P
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Oh I think I might have one or two! :)
This is from before the diagnosis, but to be honest this is how he is still when we go out. I gave him about 6 months off real work and he did a stint at the RDA just walking in hand during that time. Since then although I monitor his legs daily, he hasn't actually looked lame. Some days he has a swelling, so I wouldn't ride if he did, but I bought a 4 yr old mare last year and heck the amount of charging around the field they do!!
Changing his routine to 24/7 turnout made a huge difference for us, but obviously it's a very different diagnosis. I did as much research as I could, as it's not a common condition. I hope there is more out there for you, and you can find something that work for you. :) x

Highclereride1.jpg
 
Had one with Nav on loan. 14 yr old 16.3 IDx. Owner had tried remedial shoes and struggled with lameness, so had neurectomy and more remedial shoing . Could only hack on danilon. I was looking for companion so to him on. He pulled his shoes off himself (earlier than planned!) Had proper barefoot trim and never looked back. A year later after gradually increasing hIs work he was schooling and jumping. No danilon. Vets were very impressed as they said usually after neurectomy nerves grow back and horses worse!!

Also had 12 yr old mare now 17/18 with sidebone that had now gone completely since receiveing a correct and balanced trim and correctly fitting saddle!!!

I hope yours works out. Xxx
 
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