Where would you go from here?!

[Hannahgb]

Sorry if this is long!
Rising 6 yr old, enormous, both parents 16hh he is currently 17.2.. far too big and grown far too fast.

Diagnosed with hock arthritis October last year, then bilateral hind suspensories in December- now 8 weeks post faciotomy. Did not want to go with the nerves being cut.

Started hand walking 4 weeks ago, and now on small turnout. However, he is still showing all the same signs as before the diagnosis of PSD.

In December he had a bone scan of his backend, there was also a small amount of heat on his L1-2 however, all vets including second and third opinions agreed this wasn't of concern. However, he is still not looking sound and now tempted to look at this further.
SIJs had also been a consideration before the scan but vets didn't want to investigate further as was sure once PSD was diagnosed that this wasn't needed.

Where would you go from here? Try inject SIJ and see if this helps? X-Ray L Spine to rule this out? Or thermal imaging?

I am not expecting miracles, no pressure to bring back into work. I know its still early days but was expecting him to look more comfortable than he does. I just want to make sure he is comfortable, even if it is only field sound.

 

[applecart14]

I'd make his spavin comfortable with steroid injections in the short term or possibly ethanol fusion and then xray the spine if you feel this is necessary.

I read somewhere that thermal imagining is very hit and miss in some cases and can be very ambigious with a real chance of a false reading being taken due to variant in temperature on and around the horse. Examples of this are moisture on the horse from rainfall, or sweat from a rug that they have worn.

The surroundings where the scan is taken can alter the readings significantly and will alter the correct interpretation of the scan. Anything that is 1-2 degees F temperature difference are considered significant. Heat from roofs, sunlight, fans, concrete flooring, a breeze, moisture in the air can alter a reading.

I believe horses have to be stood in a stable for 30 mins after a journey to regulate their heat - if they have worn bandages, boots or a rug to travel then this would alter the reading significantly.

For this reason I would prefer an xray.

 

[ester]

Was the hock arthritis ever treated?
Can I introduce you to 'straightness training' to use during rehab, in a nutshell classical in hand work in a slightly easier to understand breakdown of simple steps for a lay person. It is surprisingly difficult to walk a circle correctly .
He sounds like the sort that really needs all of his good bits to be working optimally to support the bad bits.

 

[Hannahgb]

Was the hock arthritis ever treated?
Can I introduce you to 'straightness training' to use during rehab, in a nutshell classical in hand work in a slightly easier to understand breakdown of simple steps for a lay person. It is surprisingly difficult to walk a circle correctly .
He sounds like the sort that really needs all of his good bits to be working optimally to support the bad bits.

Yes his hocks were injected on the day of diagnosis.
Yes, I would be really interested in knowing more! I am unable to take him in the school during rehab due to the soft surface, so all inhand work is done on a straight bridle path, with both grass and tarmac. Is there somewhere I could look online for more info on this?

 

[bollybop]

Where I would go depends on how much money I had to throw at the problem, how much I liked the horse, how much I thought the horse was likely to come back into work and do at least something I wanted, and how much time I had

 

[Goldenstar]

I would X-ray the back then you will know where you stand .

 

[springtime1331]

Personally I wouldn't bother with TI. My horse came back with a clean bill of health except a hot hock. Had a bone scan a few weeks later and whole horse was pretty much broken. I think it's interesting and makes for a pretty picture but that's about it (IMO)

 

[Hannahgb]

I have maxed insurance on suspensories and hock.

I don't care if the horse is never sat on again, so long as he is likely to come field sound I will keep investigating. Obviously if he has a chance to be ridden again it is a huge bonus, but without investigating further it is impossible to know!

 

[SusieT]

Personally I would put him in the field and if not field sound after 6 months I would pts - he's a young horse, his body is obviously not up to coping with work/life and investigating for horses is stressful so why put him through that when he is always going to have hind end problems?

 

[Hannahgb]

Personally I would put him in the field and if not field sound after 6 months I would pts - he's a young horse, his body is obviously not up to coping with work/life and investigating for horses is stressful so why put him through that when he is always going to have hind end problems?

My main reason to investigate further, is hind PSD is normally a secondary issue caused by something else. In theory, if something else is causing this, by fixing that it would help prevent the suspensories from being an issue in the future.

With the hocks being injected- it could (no guarantee) mean he could continue a ridden life.

 

[Gotcha!]

First, I feel for you. I have a 10 yr old DW-he is athletic and beautiful and was just diagnosed with mild ringbone in both front pasterns, I have resigned myself to make him comfortable and if rideable-bonus.
I have been doing tons of research and I have to say, for many the best cure seems to be putting them out to pasture for 6 months. After my research I have decided to hand walk my guy and leave him out 24-7, get corrective shoes, give bute, but mainly wait and see. It seems like being big brings along a whole host of problems...but they are horses and sometime mother nature knows best.
I wish you luck as you proceed on your journey.