The highs and lows of horse ownership

HaloHoney

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Apr 30, 2017
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The highs and lows of horse ownership: yesterday- cross country and a rosette. Awesome. Brave, bold & honest.

Today: lame. Gash on leg from being kicked in field, vet out, due to where he's been kicked being on the bone with no padding, there's a risk of it being fractured but it won't show on an x-ray today. So he could be absolutely fine or he could have a fractured leg that could "blast open" at any point if we just put him out in a field. An x-ray today (well if we're using the insurance it makes no difference, does it) showed a hairline of something that might or might not be something if you cock your head to one side and squint. So Schroedinger's horse is on rest for 2 weeks. He seems fine in himself (angry about his delayed lunch), but I'm gutted that my best bud isn't sound.

It's a good job he's a very cuddly chap on the ground. He'll be very shiny after 2 weeks of being groomed, fussed-over and loved.

Outstanding irony bonus for Flash for me having spoken to the vet not 30 minutes before to book his bloody annual boosters for tomorrow.

Roll on 2 weeks...
 
It sure can be a rollercoaster ride. Hopefully your vet is just being cautious but its a good excuse for some bonding time and a few extra carrots :)
 
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Did they x ray both legs? I only ask because when mine was x rayed they were itching the head and getting second opinions, but it's normal for mine to have this bone bit that shouldn't look like it does. ( because she hasn't read the book)

Fingers crossed, it's fine.
 
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Oh no, flipping horses - always throwing something at you to worry you to death. Hope he's ok and copes well with the box rest
 
He's doing really well on it actually. Going to ask people to give him fuss not treats because he's getting a bit rude searching me for treats every time I'm next to him, but he's being really stoic about it.

Was thinking he'll be too cold with no rug, but too sweaty with a turnout rug on in his box... until I remembered that when I bought one of his turnout rugs it came with a free fleece stable rug. I thought at the time "he lives in a field not a box, don't know when he'll be wearing that! Oh well." And lobbed it in the bottom of my tack box at the stables. Suffice to say, he looks very smart and cosy in it in his box!

Groomed him today- bloody hell he looks so shiny without the mud! I always wondered how the hell people keep their horses looking so clean. He's changing his coat, too- shedding hair everywhere. I was brushing him from his neck all the way back is to his bum and getting rid of the loose hairs- but by the time I'd finished his bum his neck was covered in loose hair again. Painting the Forth Bridge sprang to mind...

The injury/cut is going down a lot from what it was, still looks swollen and lumpy though. Law of sod dictates that it won't be just 2 weeks rest, and it'll be the serious injury type from this. Bracing myself for not riding him for ages. Will be pleasantly surprised by anything else.

Can you bubble-wrap horses for putting them in their field?

Will upload some pics in a minute. Xx
 
I'm quite philosophical about it actually.

1. If he *had* to go lame, at least he waited until after the XC we did the day before. I thanked him profusely for that.
2. If he *had* to go lame, doing it at the beginning of the weather turning colder isn't a bad thing- they'd upped his feeds to try and get some condition on him going into winter- so staying in getting fat & happy in a box for 2 weeks isn't a bad thing in itself.
3. If he *had* to be lame- I'm glad it's something obvious that we can treat and manage, rather than an intermittent lame/head scratcher job. This is a thing that we can find out what it is, and treat it/manage it.
4. God forbid it's the last time I ride him... but if it turns out that way, he was perfect for me on that last XC run. And we had fun.

So yeah, I'm sad that he's not sound but he seems reasonably chipper and ok with his lot.

Thank goodness he's such an utter dude in the first place. Starting with something less than chilled temperamentally and then boring it to tears wouldn't be easy... but he seems pretty much like himself so far.

Here he/we are:

View media item 25168View media item 25169View media item 25170View media item 25171
 
You've kind of got to take this attitude, even force yourself to think like that or you would just make yourself miserable and that won't help either of you. Glad he is being so good about it :)
 
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Update:
Not the worst news, but not the best either.

Trot-up, he looked much better than 2 weeks ago. Vet cleaned the wound and could still feel a lot of heat around it. She assessed him as 1/10 lame.

X-ray showed no obvious lines on it, but an area around the injury that is mending itself- pretty much like a stress fracture.

So he's got a further 2 weeks of box rest, with the occasional trip out to pick at some grass- for his mental wellbeing more than anything else. He's back on bute for a bit too, to try and get some of the heat out of it, and then a re-exam, and then go from there...
 
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It could have been lots worse, hopefully the remodeling is just a little chip that's reattaching itself and once its done it will never bother him again :)
 
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I'd say overall that was good news, and while it does mean you can't ride for a while at least you'll have plenty of time to get to know each other.

Until you know what he'll behave like be careful when you walk him out for grass - some are fine, some less so! Personally I always found anything was best done as a routine, particularly things they look forward to, so if you can do roughly the same time each day that may be easier for both of you.

Fingers crossed the next x-rays show him all healed x
 
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Ah yes, that does look a bit like an injury to me. But at least it didn't go all the way through....and no floating bone fragments. 1/10th lame is a vast improvement too. Be patient.... Sounds like everything is healing well.
 
In terms of it being a chip- that would have shown up as a line somewhere- vet said there's no line and it looks more like an area of impact- so it looks a lot like a stress fracture in terms of the x-ray.
 
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