What to do?

[Doodle92]

Robin went to his first BD back today. All great but he was lame! I had schooled there on Tuesday and he was lame. Left front on a left trot circle only and not even the whole circle. Cried a bit and called the vet. Vet was due the next day, I brought him in and scrubbed his feet and found what looked like an abscess pop out his heel. Great I thought, cancelled the vet.

Poulticed etc. lunged on Friday sound. All good. Hacked yesterday, bonkers but sound

Today lame on left front on a left circle in trot but not the full circle.

I stupidly did both tests as I couldn't get it consistent and he was being quite zoomy and I wondered if balance.

Got decent enough marks but both judges but both said in judges words you horse is lame

First judge I ask get lessons from and runs the place so asked her about it. She said he was sound right circle, sound straight lines, sound walk and canter. I told her about the abscess and she said their surface is quite hard so he is maybe just still feeling that foot. She said she would leave it a few days before calling vet.

I don't know how to test if he is sound at home. Do I cry and get the vet now? Do I ignore it for a week? I feel if a horse is lame on a certain surface then he is lame full.stop.

 

[Doodle92]

Oh to add the first time I schooled (rather than a very easy brief trot) him I took him to this place and he was amazing and totally sound.

 

[carthorse]

I agree with you, lame is lame. Although you had pus I wonder if the abscess hasn't full drained and is brewing up again? Is there a raised digital pulse and/or heat in the foot?

If it was me I'd be inclined to get the farrier out to have a look tomorrow if you can, and if he can't find anything then get the vet.

 

[Doodle92]

I can't feel any heat and I can't find pulses, but that could be just me not finding them.

This is what it looked like on his heel. I wet poulticed and nothing really came out. So then went dry then blue spray.

 

[Tir]

I am going to go with thats a nasty one and its nothing else too sinister.

Took my horse over a month to come sound from one of those. One day 100%, next week a bit 'off' and 2 weeks in he went hopping lame. Then burst and sound again...rinse and repeat. He ended up with another drainage hole appearing and had no issues afterwards.

Id call your farrier not your vet for that on the first intance.

P.s. if it helps I also did dressage on mine after the first pop and knew at the venue he was off turning one way in trot. Didnt show in the canter. Didnt withdraw as it was team quest and i knew what it was!

 

[Doodle92]

I like that answer thankyou . I will message farrier tomorrow to see if he is passing at any point. I had wondered if it had been an over reach but he had has over reach boots on ridden and in the field. I had vaguely though that heel had looked slightly pink the day before but dismissed it.

 

[Jessey]

Yeah I think I’d call farrier first. A sore heel (even if it’s just not all the way healed and the abscess isn’t rebrewing) could be uncomfortable if it’s a particularly rough surface, but your farrier knows what went on before and will be your best guide if he thinks a quick X-ray is in order.

 

[Doodle92]

Thanks, I'll message tomorrow. I can't bear to go through that again. Luckily different foot or I really would be panicking

 

[Doodle92]

Spoke to farrier. Don't panic, keep it clean and he will come out in a couple of days.

 

[Doodle92]

This is it today.

Farrier never got back to me. He hasn't taken a lame step since but I haven't ridden him and it was only on left turns ridden in trot. I feel really bad for taking him to competition. It only stopped being so bruised yesterday. I changed from alamycin spray to sudocrem which I think worked better. My plan is if the school is harrowed this week on wed I will ride on there then. If still lame I will ring the vet.

 

[carthorse]

With that crack I'd put some vetwrap over it before riding in the school, you don't want surface getting in and a new infection starting.

 

[Doodle92]

Vet wrap won't stay down. I was planning good old sudocrem then too!

 

[carthorse]

Not even if you go under the heels of the shoe and then up round the pastern?

 

[Tir]

Spin him in a tight 5m circle around you in walk on a hard surface. If he is still feeling it one way you will be able to see. Its how i diagnose all my abscess problems!

With that hole though Id road hack until i was sure of soundness then use something like field paste to seal it up.

Edit. I am going to go with sound. I think your problem stemed from the small crack right above the shoe and that looks to have opened since the first picture!

 

[Doodle92]

Spin him in a tight 5m circle around you in walk on a hard surface. If he is still feeling it one way you will be able to see. Its how i diagnose all my abscess problems!

With that hole though Id road hack until i was sure of soundness then use something like field paste to seal it up.

Edit. I am going to go with sound. I think your problem stemed from the small crack right above the shoe and that looks to have opened since the first picture!

Yep I have done that on various surfaces, in his field, outside the school which has remnants of surface, on the yard and on the concrete and couldn't see anything.

I know he will be sound road hacking tho. At least he was sound on that when he was lame if that makes sense. He is sound on trot up, sound trotting in the field. He was Sound trotting on the straight ridden and sound trotting right ridden.

I am 99% sure it was an abscess that popped out the day after I first noticed the lameness.

My reason for just riding in the school is that he was sound hacking and if he is not sound in trot on the left turn after 2 weeks then it needs the vet. Road hacking won't re recreate the issue I was having.

Vet wrap will wear through going under his shoe I would think.

 

[newforest]

That does look more bruised than the last photo. Is it warm. It does look like it might be sore.

 

[Doodle92]

Not warm. I can poke it without reaction. It is actually less bruised than it was. It took a couple of days after first pic for the bruising to come out fully (of course I didn't think to take photo).

 

[carthorse]

For Jim I'd do vet wrap and then protect the bit under the shoe with gorilla tape, that would hold for an easy school session and he was a big horse.

 

[Doodle92]

Waiting for the vet to call me back to come and have a look at him. I'm not happy with it

 

[Doodle92]

So the vet decided he was basically fine as he galloped off up the track to the fields....

Once we retrieved the horse and did the usual tests decided his foot is still a bit bruised and sore but nothing more sinister and he was only slightly sore trotting on the hard on a circle (eekk). Danilon for a week and get him shod (it's 4 weeks since done so not over due) and he should be fine.