What's your most mildly irritating horse injury...

[Fransurrey]

I have tooth repairs from when a horse I loaned tripped over both his front feet out hacking and I went straight over his head onto my chin. I know I broke 9 teeth, but some were minor chips, so they left them. This has left me with sensitive teeth and a permanent 'higher risk' category for dental insurance! I also have periodically ingrowing hairs in the scar on my chin, which form wounds when they grow!

From my own horse I have a dodgy wrist. I came off out hacking and tried to hold on to her. Not sure if I actually broke it, as I never got it seen to, but it clicks in certain weather conditions. That may be a red herring, though, as I have a connective tissue disorder so a lot of things click and need manipulating!!

 

[vetsbestfriend]

Couple for me spring to mind, out of the many through the years First one was when I was having to fix some fencing that another horse had broken at the front of my field. Using a sledgehammer to bang the posts back in and it slipped off the post straight onto my left hand that was holding the post. Looked down and saw large flaps of skin hanging off the length of 2 of my fingers and pouring with blood. So calmly walked up to my shed, got some poultice dressing and a vet wrap and drove myself to A & E. Fractured knuckles and bandaged up etc. Took ages for the skin to heal, they tried to leave the skin flaps but they died off so when a friendly vet was at the yard for someone else, I got them to cut off the dead skin with a scalpel.

Second one was when one of my horses saw a perceived monster when I was taking him to the field with my other horse. He spooked straight into me knocking me over, ran over the top of me and then was dragging me along the floor as I still had the lead rein. Took weeks for all the bruising to go and for my calf to go back to normal size from the double size it was.

 

[spotty_pony]

When a mare I used to own pulled back and bent my thumb back the wrong way… it’s never been the same since and I’m pretty sure it now has arthritis in the joint.

 

[Toby_Zaphod]

One of mine yanked his head back when I was leading him & this dislocated my left middle finger. I needed hospital treatment, the joint had moved around an inch out of place, and it was a hell of a game, I spent a fortune on taxi fares as my wife had my car. This was on the day her mother died. My fingers knuckle is permanently bent now, bloody horse!

 

[Skib]

My only real injury (needing minor injuries clinic) from riding was when a RS horse bit my thumb as I fed him a treat over the stable door. I was very new to riding and the small yard was not well supervised. A groom gave me the treat to give to the horse but did not warn me of the danger. The wound healed but the joint of my right thumb is permanantly enlarged.
I had regular falls hacking over my first 12 years but a good hat and bp mean no bones broken.

 

[iknowmyvalue]

I’m glad I’m not the only one who regularly thinks “hmm I should probably get this checked out” but then doesn’t because you know they’d tell you not to ride or because who has the time.

Another with a dodgy toenail. Has a line down the middle and doesn’t grow right on one side where it got ripped off by my IDx when he was too keen to get off the trailer. So painful, blood everywhere. Still got him round the SJ course though, just had to stuff tissues into my sock to try and stop the blood.

My other annoying long term one is whatever I did to my hip/pelvis coming off Pepsi about 18mo ago. It’s mostly fine, but sometimes I lie at just the wrong angle on it in bed and it really hurts. Most annoying when I roll over onto it and it wakes me up!

 

[nikkimariet]

I have much the same problem with both feet thanks to Rooni standing on each and breaking them both times.

Also got a thorn in my finger clearing fields last year and had the worst abscess which caused me a lot of pain for a long time!

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

The clipped horse hair in the nipple... that one was painful! When I turned to look right ?

 

[Landcruiser]

I have a fair few. Most irritating -dodgy right knee which stems from having it dragged down several concrete posts when ill advisedly riding a badly trained horse down a narrow alleyway footpath on a housing estate, aged about 14.. it flares up now and again, but I've never had it looked at.
Since owning my own horses these last 14 years, I've had several broken ribs, mostly from the saddle horn on my western saddle while trying to do things western saddles aren't designed for - jumping and TREC "low branches," for instance.My ribs are now so compromised that I have also popped one out crushing a sleeping bag into its bag, and also once when coughing...

 

[welshcobabe]

My old horse Stan tripped and went on his knees while I was riding and as he went down I slammed my right thumb into the back of his neck it dislocated and went back but not properly so the joint sticks out now should have had it reset but didn't but its fine. He is no longer with me colic took him after 22 years but I only have to look down at my hand and I am reminded of him. It does ache a bit in the cold but other than that works ok just not very pretty.

 

[little_critter]

No longer an issue for me, but many years ago a pony did a cat jump over a jump, I wasn’t expecting it and my bum slammed into the saddle. My coccyx was iffy for years after that. Seems ok now though.
My right foot has slightly odd sensation across the top of it, I notice when I take my socks off. Likely due to being trodden on at some point.
I broke my wrist 3 years ago. It’s mostly ok now, just a bit weaker than the other one. But now when I get cold, the heel of my hand goes numb.

 

[rara007]

I think I’m probably another broken footer. Still growing out the nail in whatever form it’ll chose about 5 months on. Other than at the time and for a few weeks after it’s never really been painful like the other breaks, but certainly annoying.

 

[thommackintosh]

I, not too long ago, came off at speed at a cross country clinic, resulting in bruised ribs and a concussion. With hindsight, I probably shouldn't have driven us home afterwards ? And a gnarly looking toenail from where my chunk of a Highland planted himself on my foot back when I was a youngster.

 

[dorsetladette]

The most annoying injury has to be OH wonky nose after being trampled. The snoring!!!!!

 

[elliejhb]

Fractured my little finger when my mare spooked at a bouncy castle.

 

[EventingMum]

As a child, I spilt my chin vaulting onto a pony and mistiming it, landing chin first on concrete resulting in six stitches and a permanent scar.

I have broken toes several times courtesy of being trodden on. My middle toenails both grow with a permanent vertical split, I assume the nail beds were permanently damaged. My middle toe on my left foot won't straighten and is really sore if I move it with my fingers.

My right shoulder has been dislocated twice, once due to a show jumping fall, since then it's been operated on twice and still gives me quite a bit of pain.

A backing accident broke my leg 30 years ago and if the weather gets cold it aches a lot.

Horses have a lot to answer for!

 

[Mrs. Jingle]

The most annoying one that is still a nuisance to this day was taking a rotational fall of a youngster I was breaking in. Extremely painful shoulders and neck but hobbled around moaning for a few days and eventually went to Gp he gave me anti-inflammatories and gradually over a few weeks it seemed to settle down. But over the years my neck got stiffer and stiffer, to the point where I could no longer turn to look behind me either riding or driving without turning my whole body. It was also very painful. MY GP over here in Ireland sent me to the hospital for an xray when it eventually locked solid. The ED doctor blithely told me 'Oh dear you have a fractured neck - in two places' !!! After I had retained some composure from the shock, he assured me it was a very old injury and two parts of the neck that should move had fused together, hence my increasing inability to turn my head either way and now of course arthritis has set in. I did have physio for awhile but I think that boat had sailed many years ago. Nothing to be done just take pain killers and anti-inflammatories as and when needed.

40 years ago I guess they weren't so fussed about injuries and sending for xrays, but I do question exactly how dodgy it was walking around with the two fractures in my neck until they healed of their own accord.

Oh and I still have a faded half a hoof print impression bang in the middle of my chest that still shows up when I lose weight, from another rotational fall off a pony my brother was breaking in (I was only about 8) and the damn thing galloped straight over me, I screamed my head off it was agony. And I was sworn to secrecy never to tell my Mum and Dad what had happened as he would have got a good telling off for using me as his jockey lol! Again I shuffled about for days trying not to flinch when Mum or Dad were around in case they realised I was injured. Those were the days! ?

 

[Mrs. Jingle]

The clipped horse hair in the nipple... that one was painful! When I turned to look right ?

I actually shuddered when I read that one and I swear my left nipple twitched! ?

 

[AntiPuck]

My horse headbutted me and broke my eye socket, which meant a few weeks of not being able to lay down flat to sleep or blow my nose. Really didn't realise how often I blew my nose until then, it was a tough two weeks!

 

[HappyHollyDays]

A bit of an oops moment. Broken hand and mangled fingers.

 

[FFAQ]

RSI from poo picking with a scoop and rake!

 

[little_critter]

RSI from poo picking with a scoop and rake!

Oh yes, I got tennis elbow from that. I switched to a short handled rake….much better.

 

[Errin Paddywack]

Tenosynovitis in my wrist from poo picking with a small hand shovel. Excruciatingly painful. Switched to rubber gloves and picking up by hand after that.