WWYD - Tripping

[BBP]

They have called it an orthopaedic workup. So unless they have changed what they called a lameness work up (which is possible as its been 2 years since I did one of those!) Then I thought maybe it would be slightly different.

I'm going to the vets as i knew I would get an appointment earlier.

It’s a fancy name for lameness workup, just means any sort of musculoskeletal investigation really, so you’ll get the classic trot ups, lunge, flexions and blocks, and whatever else you can do.

My vets said they had a drop off policy during Covid and then they wanted the owner to leave, but I drove a long way and it was very quiet, so they let me stay in the horse box, and then to come out to watch the trot ups etc. Usually they would let me go in to watch the ultrasound or whatever but obviously that can’t happen now.

Mine did that annoying thing at the vets where they trot up perfectly, which is more frustrating than if they look super lame as the vets can’t block anything.

 

[splashgirl45]

i was quite shocked at that trip and wouldnt be riding him again until investigations are done. hope you get some answers at the vets

 

[Dyllymoo]

I've emailed the vet and asked about the video so should hear back Monday.

I've decided not to ride until the vets.

I did ride Thursday in the school and he was foot perfect but I'm worried about doing it now and would never forgive myself if something happened.

 

[splashgirl45]

glad you have decided to stop riding till the vet, apart from him hurting himself you will be injured if he falls on you so please be careful..

 

[Dyllymoo]

Vets this morning. Only just home so that shows how well it went

Briefly, walk and trot in straight line and lunging in school/hard ground showed up 0.5-1/10 lame on left front.

Neuro exam showed he dragged his left foot when asked to step back and had an "odd" action on it in trot (almost slightly twisting it out but subtle).

Xrays of his neck showed slight arthritic changes.

Scan of his neck confirmed the above..left worse than right. They are slight changes and they have said they cannot guarantee that is why he is tripping/stumbling.

Options: 1) medicate and see how we go 2) CT scan.

I've opted for option 2 as he is insured but I am worried about the general anesthetic.

Outcome may still be to medicate but vet was reluctant to discuss outcomes without the CT first.

Keeping his shoes on as she said she did want to investigate the lameness after ct etc is done.

So all in all im absolutely broken.

I hope the referral for the ct comes ASAP as I feel sick.

The 3 vets he saw were astounded as he didn't need sedating for any of the xrays/scans and was a gentleman throughout. Makes my heart hurt even more as he is such a sweet boy.

There we go. Wish I could be wrong about horses for once.

 

[Wheels]

Try not to worry too much before you get the results of the CT - do you know when that will be?

My friends horse has arthritic changes in the neck and some neuro symptoms as a result but she is still training high level dressage with him and medicates the neck when required.

 

[Tiddlypom]

Oof, that’s a lot to take in.

I hope that you get the CT slot soon, and that it sheds more light on what‘s happening, and that he responds to medication.

Well done for ignoring the yard busy bodies and getting him checked out properly, so many would have ignored the signs and kept going.

Horses .

 

[Dyllymoo]

I've no idea when the ct will be. We need to be referred to the Royal veterinary hospital.

I'm just exhausted. He has just turned 6 FFS. I literally can't catch a break with horses.

 

[Pearlsasinger]

I am sorry it wasn't better news.

 

[holeymoley]

What a rubbish day for you. At least there is some root cause that can be explored and hopefully you can get to the bottom of it. Did they shed anymore light on the lameness or are they stemming that from the neck?

 

[Dyllymoo]

What a rubbish day for you. At least there is some root cause that can be explored and hopefully you can get to the bottom of it. Did they shed anymore light on the lameness or are they stemming that from the neck?

They think possibly from the neck but they will investigate that after the ct scan and after he has been medicated.

 

[ForeverBroke_]

Sorry it wasn't better news

At least you followed your gut and didn't listen to any 'experts,' and are on the road to getting your boy sorted. He's young, so hopefully that will put him in a good position and you've started to get on top of things quickly. I hope the CT scan comes around quickly for you. Big hugs xox

 

[meleeka]

So he’s currently 1/10th lame and has slight arthritic changes? That’s probably the same as a large proportion of leisure horses in this country! Do try not to worry.
Hopefully it’s something that can be treated easily. He’s lucky that he has such a caring owner who thought to investigate.
Plenty of people would have just called him lazy.

 

[Mrs. Jingle]

I agree with Meleeka. Obviously not great news but IMO not the worse, in spite of him being very young still, early arthritic changes are not that unusual in horses and ponies of similar age and very often they go through years of work without those early changes making very much difference to them, or increasing the lameness issue.

Sadly not all owners are as vigilant as you are though, and the fact he is tripping, and tripping quite badly I think has to be investigated for both your safety and his.

Did your vet mention any chance of an upper body unknown injury (field accident etc.) - in perhaps the shoulder or wither area? I am by no means a vet so this is just a lay person perspective. I had a youngish cob who presented very similar to yours - very, very low level lameness on right front and definitely showed as dragging it in the school, sort of not enough lift to it if you see what I mean.

Anyway ,many £s later it was sort of narrowed down to a problem in his shoulder area that side - but no real evidence to back that up. He went on bute trial and was fine whilst on it, but reverted to low level lameness and 'drag' a few days after stopping bute. I was fortunate enough to have my own land and another horse to ride so in the end I just turned him out for a few months that winter and when I brought him back into work in the spring he was as sound as a pound and I had him for several more years with no sign of any lameness again.

We don't always get a definitive reason even after lots of investigation but it doe snot always mean it is going to be a major life changing event for them. Try and stay positive and everything crossed for a good outcome.

 

[ester]

Thanks for updating, iirc it was the left on the video that didn't extend and he tripped on which is interesting given the neuro findings so far.
It's a lot to take on at this point, it is crap but you know you have done absolutely the right thing for your horse by raising this.

 

[ycbm]

Oh stuff. Hopefully the neck will be nothing to do with it, a vet recently said that they are seeing 50% of neck x rays with changes on them and most of those aren't affecting the horse. And then hopefully the lameness will be a minor foot imbalance.

Sorry it didn't go better
.

 

[Dyllymoo]

Does anyone know the process for starting the insurance claim?

Do I need to tell them before we go to the referral appointment for the ct scan?

Thanks for all your kind words. Im trying not to think too much until we go for the ct scan.

 

[doodle]

Yes contact them now and start a claim.

 

[Melody Grey]

Does anyone know the process for starting the insurance claim?

Do I need to tell them before we go to the referral appointment for the ct scan?

Thanks for all your kind words. Im trying not to think too much until we go for the ct scan.

In my experience, larger vet practices will process the claim for you, you’ll just have to fill out the owners section of the claim form and they may do the rest.

sorry it wasn’t better news, but you’ve listened to your horse and prevented a potential accident for both of you, so go easy on yourself for that at least.

 

[Tiddlypom]

Let the insurance company know now.

You will be asked the date of the start of the issue. As his symptoms been so vague, maybe date it from the day of the video of him stumbling. It is perfectly reasonable to say you that wanted him checked over by the vets after that.

 

[Apercrumbie]

So sorry OP, this stuff is never fun and particularly when they're young.

I only just saw this post but would have suggested checking the neck for arthritic changes - that's what caused my old Welsh D to start tripping quite badly. At first we just thought it was a laid back boy not picking up his feet properly but it soon became clear that it was something more. He also went down on his knees a couple of times.

Due to his age, the vet's suggestion was to strategically use danilon on days we rode for a trial period with the aim of getting him moving as comfortably as possible. It worked pretty well actually in that he needed far less pain relief after the trial period as the increased movement had helped the arthritis enough to make him that bit more comfortable. There would be different treatment options in a younger horse so I am hopeful of a good prognosis for you. Best of luck and keep us updated.

 

[Buster2020]

Op make sure you insurance actually covers what your getting done. I actually thought my insurance covers vet bills but it didn’t it only covers if it life or death bills. Unfortunately you didn’t have much luck when it came to the vet majority of normal horses would be 1/10 lame anyway according to my brother who is a vet.

 

[splashgirl45]

sorry that he has problems but well done for listening to him and jgnoring the people who said he was just lazy...hope you get a reasonable outcome so you can continue to ride and he is comfortable..

 

[ester]

I know people are saying 1/10 lame isn't much/lots of horses are that lame but if it's neuro the degree of lameness isn't the main takeaway/significant info at this stage

 

[milliepops]

I know people are saying 1/10 lame isn't much/lots of horses are that lame but if it's neuro the degree of lameness isn't the main takeaway/significant info at this stage

This
My neuro horse presents very slightly lame but we kind of ignore that because its a side effect of whats going on in her neck rather than a leg issue. (She's no longer ridden).

Sorry you had such a rubbish day OP x

 

[Dyllymoo]

My mare was 1/10 lame when she went to the vets 4 times... eventually we went to Sue Dyson and she was diagnosed with PSD in both hinds, sacroiliac issues and negative rotation of both pedal bones in her front feet.....

1/10 lame to me feels like crippled

I'm absolutely heartbroken today and I'm 100% giving up horses. J can be retired or whatever to be kept comfortable but the whole 7 years I have actually owned a horse (3 in that time) all of them have had medical issues that as much as I try I cant fix.

All 3 of them have been amazing horses in their own rights, with amazing personalities and honestly I'm now completely broken myself.

 

[doodle]

They break your heart. I lost 2 in 7 months. I then bought the wrong horse and had to sell again. Luckily then got Robin but he will be my last. I love having a horse but things going wrong too hard to bear. So hopefully it will be in years time but he won’t be replaced.

 

[Reacher]

Sorry it’s not good news, especially for such a young horse. Hope the CT scan sheds light on the matter and that he can be medicated appropriately.
You have had a tough time with your horses ? Try and take care of yourself.

 

[Dyllymoo]

I've got the date for the CT at RVC. He is going in on Wednesday afternoon, CT on Thursday and then home Friday morning.

I'm going to miss his little face so much but I'm so pleased we have a date now.

Then we can know exactly what we are dealing with and make a plan

 

[splashgirl45]

fingers crossed for you