WWYD? Help and advice!

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delaneys

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Hi all I have an 8 year old ex racer who is showing random signs/ symptoms listed below. The problem is he is sound so I'm not really sure what I should/shouldn't be asking the vet to do or If it's behaviour.
Teeth/chiro/massage/saddle all up to date.

No muscle on back end despite months of hacking

Extreme reaction (rearing) or bunching up when asked for a contact

Over reaching and panicking when lunged

General flightyness ie spooking violently and taking off when entering field.

Will not bend and cross legs over on left rein when asked to walk in a circle around me, ok on right but doesn't cross properly, runs backwards rather than bends

He has a general bad reaction to being asked to bend his neck and head.

If I think of anything more I will add on!
He has been owned by me for 2 years and I have never known him to be so spooky and flighty!

He's on grass, lite balancer and a handful of chop.

I have been told his severe reaction to bending is due to his poor muscle but I think something else is going on here,
Please give me any ideas!
 
Having no muscle despite proper work indicates an issue which is of concern without the add ons of being reluctant to bend, unable to step under etc, I am surprised the chiro has not referred him to your vet for this alone as he has obviously not responded to chiro treatment properly, I would get the vet and if appropriate a physio to look at him.
 
I haven't had the vet moomin, that's why i am asking, what to ask the vet to do,
The step under thing has been in the last few days not when the chiro saw him, she just said hack hack hack and Pessoa once a week.
The reason I'm so confused is that he is sound in walk trot canter.
I don't know wether to call the vet and just say I want a full MOT or what to say.

If he was showing more signs of Being a bit cold backed I would be thinking kissing spine?
I'm lost!
 
Ok I was just a bit worried as didn't want to sound like some weirdo to the vet who thinks her horse is dying and doesn't know why!
Can u request a full (MOT) for horses? I feel like I want to get his back and neck X-rayed
I would rather spend the £££ and find out he's just a twit and least I can crack on with things then!
 
Moomin1 said:
No probs. :-)

I would just ring the vet, explain the problem, and let them decide what to do to start with.
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I absolutely agree. Vet would be my first port of call.

What you need to do is simply describe the symptoms to your vet, and leave them do the rest. I would expect a full lamess work up to be the starting point.
 
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Parkerpops said:
Ok I was just a bit worried as didn't want to sound like some weirdo to the vet who thinks her horse is dying and doesn't know why!
Can u request a full (MOT) for horses? I feel like I want to get his back and neck X-rayed
I would rather spend the £££ and find out he's just a twit and least I can crack on with things then!
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Haha, well I definately must have sounded like that to my vets in the past then lol!!

Honestly don't worry - you just sound like a concerned and responsible owner to me - certainly not like a weirdo!!

Yeah you can just ask them for a full MOT and work up - though they may well say to just have a general checkup to start with and take things from there.

Keep us posted and good luck!
 
my exracer was exactly the same and it turned out to be s.i. issues and kissing spine. I had one vet out he said he would have passed a vetting on flexions etc and thought he was in great shape. Another vet spotted issue immediately and got x-rayed etc and injections for treatment.
 
Thanks all!
Going to call my vets tomorrow and book him for next week.
I will do an update post for you.
Thank you x
 
Paddi- what was the outcome for your horse.
My horse is not insured and I don't think I could finance an op for him :(
 
Parkerpops said:
Paddi- what was the outcome for your horse.
My horse is not insured and I don't think I could finance an op for him :(
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The best thing to do is not panic or try and diagnose from other people's experiences - it's the worst thing you can do as there are so many different things it could be, from minor to major.

My mare once had a massive nosebleed - blood everywhere. I spent all night googling symptoms/diseases etc etc and by the morning I was convinced she had Guttural Pouch Disease and was inevitably going to have to have an expensive op, and probably die anyway. Turns out she had shoved a twig up her nostril......
 
Parkerpops said:
Paddi- what was the outcome for your horse.
My horse is not insured and I don't think I could finance an op for him :(
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I was in the same boat. Horse was fostered from a charity and a tricky character anyways, so couldn't afford/justify the operation. Vets advice was to try injections, think total cost was 500 euro. After that it was months of lunging, long-lining and physio. What helped him a lot was going from limited turnout to full turnout as well. I moved him to cheaper grass livery, and the moving around and grazing did wonders for him. He's back in work now and we do our shows and dressage and he's in great form.
 
Moomin1 said:
My mare once had a massive nosebleed - blood everywhere. I spent all night googling symptoms/diseases etc etc and by the morning I was convinced she had Guttural Pouch Disease and was inevitably going to have to have an expensive op, and probably die anyway. Turns out she had shoved a twig up her nostril......
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I shouldn't really but that really made me lol!!

OP have you tried a bute/danilon trial? Also has the horse been scoped?
 
Broke_But_Happy said:
I shouldn't really but that really made me lol!!

OP have you tried a bute/danilon trial? Also has the horse been scoped?
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Yes well, when the vet found said twig damage I didn't quite know whether to laugh, cry (due to very large vet bill, lack of sleep and increase in grey hairs) or sell her.... Lol!!!
 
Moomin1 said:
The best thing to do is not panic or try and diagnose from other people's experiences - it's the worst thing you can do as there are so many different things it could be, from minor to major.

My mare once had a massive nosebleed - blood everywhere. I spent all night googling symptoms/diseases etc etc and by the morning I was convinced she had Guttural Pouch Disease and was inevitably going to have to have an expensive op, and probably die anyway. Turns out she had shoved a twig up her nostril......
Click to expand...

Omg!
Now I'm paranoid about twigs!! Lol
 
Broke_But_Happy said:
I shouldn't really but that really made me lol!!

OP have you tried a bute/danilon trial? Also has the horse been scoped?
Click to expand...

No bute trial, I do have stacks of bute but think I will wait for vet now.
Scoped for what? Ulcers? It's a possibility, my other ex racer had ulcers which are now under control hopefully, but I treat this horse as if he has ulcers too!
 
I would get the vet personally, I would say that he doesn't like contact as he is staying sound using his neck to compensate. My little TB mare was fully sound but in incredible pain in her neck when we sorted that out with acupuncture and physio she went lame as she was carrying it all in the neck, if that makes sense. Good luck with your horse, I hope you find the problem
 
You want the vet, but a decent one who won't talk to you like you're mental for having a "sound" horse investigated. There are enough symptoms there for them to go off to begin with, and just the fact that you know the horse and that its attitude and capabilities have altered significantly should be enough to expect them to take your concerns seriously. Or you could try giving the horse a decent spell of rest and then start off again and see if whatever it was resolved itself.
 
The original plan was to give him intill September off but I can't shake the niggling feeling that I need to know what if anything is going on.
If I why him checked now then least I know if he needs rest/retirement/ or a big kick up the butt!
 
Is he getting enough of the right food to develop muscle on his back end? Some horses need more specific feeding than others and it might be that the work you're doing is draining more from your horse's strength than you're putting back. If he's weakening he will struggle to work correctly overall. I made this mistake with my horse and he needed more protein than he was getting to build up his muscles. A good vet should be able to give you some guidance on if this might be part of your problem.
 
I'd try a danilon trial, if he improves then you know he's in pain. Also if he has ulcers they will need treating, however there is a new ulcer drug on the market which is a lot cheaper than gastroguard.
 
I don't have much to add except I wouldn't personally be trying a bute trial, unless the vet suggests it, at least until ulcers have been ruled out. Speaking from experience, if it is ulcers then bute will probably just irritate them and make the situation worse. Good luck OP, I hope you get to the bottom of your problems
 
Update!
Vet came yesterday, he is sound on both reins, flexions etc, he has a slight bit of pain over the 'typical area' for kissing spines, he also is reluctant to bend his head to the left..
The vet doesn't think it's anything un manageable but we will X-ray the are next week to be on be on the safe side!
 
Parkerpops said:
Update!
Vet came yesterday, he is sound on both reins, flexions etc, he has a slight bit of pain over the 'typical area' for kissing spines, he also is reluctant to bend his head to the left..
The vet doesn't think it's anything un manageable but we will X-ray the are next week to be on be on the safe side!
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Fantastic news - sounds very positive. Keep us posted.
 
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