horses with arthritis

[nelle]

Hello

My share pony went lame when I was riding her a couple of weeks ago (our first hack out) and i felt really awful, kind of blamed myself, but nothing happened that would have caused it.

Anyway the vet was called and he thinks it may be arthritis, he gave her some joint supplement and bute and recommended rest for a few weeks.

She is okay at the moment, but hasn't been ridden since and I've not ridden either cos I can't face going back to a riding school (was having private lessons with an instructor who came to the livery and she was brilliant, learnt so much more with her).

Now I'm a bit worried, what does the future hold for my share pony? I be interested to hear about other people's experiences of ponies with arthritis, will I ever be able to ride her again?

[amandal]

Mine's just been diagnosed with it too. She's had 3 weeks off with Danilon (bute alternative) and her hocks/fetlocks swelling did go down. Vet came out and rechecked her after 3 weeks and i have the official go ahead to put her back into work. While she's getting fit again vet said to give her one Danilon sachet and if we're working intensely up that to two. She's not been ridden/worked yet as I want her back checked as she's had back problems which I think are related to how she's carrying herself. I am also giving her the NAF version of Cortaflex at the mo and her hocks feel much better after a week of that.

Lots of horses at the yard seem to have it, one owner uses apple cider vinegar for her oldie, one owner uses Equine Market (I think) version, other's use Devil's Claw - it's just trial and error and whether you want the more homeopathic route really. The prognosis shouldn't immediately be the end of ridden work for most, although I do know one horse that's gone quickly down hill since last year's diagnosis and is now not ridden at all.

[fataldream]

my horse has had it most of his life .... glucosamine and that really helps...for horses obvo lol

[Grace O'Malley]

It depends on how severe it is and what the vet says, but a lot of horses (and people) live and exercise with arthritis and get on very well, thank you. In general, exercise is good as it strengthens the muscles which support the joints. One has to be careful not to overdo, though, which can be something of a trial and error situation (if he stiffens up every time you do a certain activity, like, say, jumping, then it probably would be better not to do that). Sometimes he'll be stiffer, sometimes looser, and it won't always be obviously correlated with the work you've been doing. So you have to pay attention to the symptoms, and always be careful to do a good warm up and cool down. But with the right balance of supplements and exercise, there's every likelihood your pony will be happy and ridable for years to come.

[amandal]

Just had physio visit and my mare has very tight hamstrings and not a back problem - hamstrings are tight because of how she's been holding herself to avoid the pain from the arthritis. So I now need to work her on hard ground - ie roads - for her hamstrings and to work her on soft ground for her arthritis. Plus I need to avoid hills which should be interesting as I'm in a hilly part of Kent at the mo and am about to move down to around Bath which isn't exactly flat either. :eek:

I'm really pleased it's not her back and her hamstrings can be worked on/with - gentle exercise will help loosen up her arthritic joints and the physio recommended using Apple Cider vinegar too.