WHY IS MY 16YR OLD TB ALWAYS LAME?

[EmmaAndSummer]

I bought her 2 years ago and she was thin and not looked after, i just felt sorry for her... shes now in great condition but when worked or lunged in a circle she is nearly always lame... she is happy to walk trot and canter in a straight line but i can tell she is unhappy and in discomfort in a circle. We have had x-rays on all legs but nothing showed up, she doesnt have laminitus shes got me completely puzzled I cant think of anything else apart from navicular but I would have thought that would show up on x-ray. Sometimes when shes in the field she is seen standing with a laminitic stance all spread out so no weight is on her 2 from feet. If you have any idea what it is please let me know. She is constantly on half a bute a day and seems happy but would like to do my best to make her better, she is only lightly ridden too as I dont want to do anymore damage.

 

[gothdolly]

From what I have read in vet books (Im not a vet!) navicular can be really hard to diagnose from x-rays. She could have previously had laminitis which has led to long standing problems in the foot (dropped soles etc). If she was thin and neglected then its unlikely her feet would have been trimmed regularly so mechanical damage could have been done. Or cold it be arthritic changes?

Theres lots of things it could be. And I know (Believe me, I know!) how frustrating it is when you cant get a diagnosis... but do you think she is happy as a hack, and are you happy with hacking her?

If it makes you feel any better I have two that I can only ride in straight lines now..!

 

[EmmaAndSummer]

I thought arthritis could show up on x-rays too.... could possibly be navicular then maybee. Not sure... My friend Leeann rides her because shes a bit of a nutter for me cos ive only been riding for a few years... I still love her would never sell her or anything, just would love to know the problem.... thanks for ur help it probably is problems of being left before and neglected but i dont know anything from her background!

 

[AmyMay]

Have you had a thorough examination of her back made?

 

[itsmyparty]

Navicular would not necessarily ahow up on an x-ray. I know this unfortunately from personal experience. Ask your vet to do a full lameness work-up, to include nerve blocks to the navicular. Navicular syndrome can affect the navicular bone (which MAY show up on the x-ray) the navicular bursa (which wouldn't) or the deep digital flexor tendon (which also wouldn't show up). Our horse went partially sound once the navicular bone and bursa had been blocked but the vet suspected soft tissue damage. The only thing to do to be really sure is to get an MRI scan (about £1000). With our boy it showed up small tears in both DDFTs and some other things going on (fortunately quite mild). He's now on 6 weeks box rest (we consider ourselves very lucky) and then will have remedial shoeing, cortisone into his navicuar bones and Tildren treatment. Vet thinks we should get another fwe years riding out of him. Thank God for insurance (SEIB have been great). Hope that helps. PM me if you want any more info. I'm not an expert by any means but now know a lot more than I used to !

 

[brightmount]

I agree with the above, itsmyparty's story is the same as mine. Most likely navicular and/or arthritis, could be ringbone or sidebone, these conditions often go hand in hand. Nerve blocking would help locate the site of the pain. Was she raced as a youngster? TBs often get hammered early on and are left with all sorts of problems.

Have you tried a joint supplement? I recommend Suppleaze Gold from Aviform. I think the MSM in it would help her.

If your insurance would cover an MRI scan it would be worth it if the lameness is located in the foot.

My mare went barefoot which corrected the balance and function of her feet and she made a miraculous recovery. This can sometimes be a bit of an uphill struggle with TBs though. Maybe your farrier could offer some ideas, like Equibuild pads. How is her foot balance? If it's not coming from the feet then you may be looking at the back. The vet might refer you to a physio.

Hope you get to the cause of it.

 

[misst]

The only way to know for sure is to have a full lameness workup with nerve blockes, maybe scintigraphy (bone scanning for hot spots), maybe MRI and maybe ultrasound. All this would need to perhaps include all four legs and feet especially the fronts and maybe the spine and pelvis as well.

Sadly sometimes it is due to soft tissue damage and this does not show on xray or scintigraphy.
Do you have a good farrier - TBs have notoriously bad feet.

At 16 if your horse had had a hard life he may have multiple issues.

Sorry probably not what you want to hear but it does sound as if your horse is quite uncomfortable and may need either more investigation or retiring.

 

[EmmaAndSummer]

If my insurance will cover the full lameness workup/ nerve blocks/ MRI scan... I would deffinatly get it done but its impossible otherwise because im a student. How would you know if they will cover this?

As for her feet, they are in great condition, 3 different vets and 2 farriers have seen them and said they are fine... were a bit messy when i bought her but nothing too bad.

She does have a slight pulse in her left cannon area.

Have concidered retiring her, was looking at a place in Durham but found out they sell them on etc, couldnt be parted with her I have to know shes safe and happy, dont trust anyone! She really enjoys being ridden, hates being stuck in a field.. so the max she is ridden is 2 times a week usually its only once just to keep her happy.

 

[EmmaAndSummer]

not sure if she was raced... tried tracing her freeze mark but they have moved house!

havnt had her back done doesnt seem a problem?

 

[brightmount]

[ QUOTE ]
If my insurance will cover the full lameness workup/ nerve blocks/ MRI scan... I would deffinatly get it done but its impossible otherwise because im a student. How would you know if they will cover this?

[/ QUOTE ]

Phone them and ask.

As a general rule, Petplan cover MRI in full on a vet's referral. NFU cover 50%, which would still leave you with a bill of over £500. As for a lameness work up, scintigraphy etc, it's best to have a chat with your insurance company and find out the position. It's a condition of your cover in any case that they are informed of anything that could give rise to a claim.

 

[EmmaAndSummer]

thanks. im with AIMS... they did pay out the other year when she lost her foal so hopefully they will be helpfull

 

[Aragon56]

Call your insurers and ask if they will pay for an mri scan, either in full or a percentage of it. They may ask you to send in a letter from your vet referring her for the MRI with their approval, to show that they recommend that course of action. I'm with Petplan, and they covered all of the cost for my mare's scan, which showed she had DDFT tears in both front feet. The only thing is if you have already claimed for this particular injury, you may only have one year from the date of the first claim to claim for anything else. I ended up getting our MRI scan done a week or so before the claim period ran out, as unfortunately I just couldn't have afforded to pay for it out of my own pocket otherwise.

The scan will only show up what the problem is, and if its advanced like my mare's, the treatment is still the same. I would say its well worth it though to know exactly what's happened, if it is DDFT the outcome is not always good unfortunately-there's a few of us on here who could write a book about it!

 

[EmmaAndSummer]

i am considering doing the scans, if she did have ddft what happens next, would she need a op.?

 

[JadeyyAndLadyy]

ive had a similar story to you, and my mare was recently diagnosed with arthritis in her back legs. it doesnt bother her much though =]

 

[Shanny]

Could possibly be kissing spine - have her back x-rayed

 

[itsmyparty]

Re: Would she need an op? Not necessarily. It depends on the extent and position of the lesion. They can heal on their own with box rest. Our boy's lesions are fortunately v small (he was barely lame and it was "on and off" like yours). Let us know how you get on with yr insurance company.