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Barnyard Buddies:  Short Steppin Horse  |
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Megan
True Blue Farmgirl
155 Posts
Megan
Hudson
South Dakota
USA
155 Posts |
 Posted - Jun 28 2012 : 4:14:38 PM
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My old mare Filly cut her leg really deep in the canon area last year. I doctered her for months, 6 months, I would get the leg to heal and it would break back open. The vet thinks that she may have had small bone chips that she was pushing out and that caused it to break open. It also go really infected right away, now this year i have started to ride her and have noticed that on that leg she short steps. also she will not pick up that lead (at pasture or when im riding). She never shows signs of pain but she is known to push through all pain to try and get the jobs done ahead of her....
Does Anyone know of any exercises that may help her get all movement back Or should i just retier her to a broodmare?
here is a pic of the cut 2 days after it happened, the next is her yesterday
.jpg) .JPG)
www.rockriverexoticsandkennel.net |
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crittergranny
True Blue Farmgirl
1096 Posts
Laura
Lindrith
NM
USA
1096 Posts |
Posted - Jun 29 2012 : 09:57:58 AM
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Sounds like a bone chip to me. The vet will probably be able to spot it from xrays if that is what it is. They can sometimes be treated by injections that causes protection to grow around the chip. It only lasts for 6 mos or so usually. The surgery to remove the chip if possible usually runs about 1200 dollars. But the good thing about bone chips is that although they can be difficult to diagnose sometimes they can many times be removed and the problem fixed. I hope you get it figured out and she gets better :) Can be so frustrating.
Laura
Horse poor in the boonies.
www.nmbarrelhorses.com |
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oldbittyhen
True Blue Farmgirl
1511 Posts
tina
quartz hill
ca
USA
1511 Posts |
Posted - Jun 29 2012 : 1:47:39 PM
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no matter the current problem, is she ever going to be sound enough to ride at all, or be able to bear the weight needed to carry a foal to term?...when you can honestly answer these questions along with a vets recomandation, you will know what to do, either she becomes a pasture buddy or ...
"Knowlege is knowing that a tomato is a fruit, Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad" |
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Megan
True Blue Farmgirl
155 Posts
Megan
Hudson
South Dakota
USA
155 Posts |
Posted - Jun 29 2012 : 2:59:07 PM
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we have ruled out bone chips, my vet is really a cattle vet, but he believes that it is tendon related due to being confined to a small area last year( about a 30*20 pen)
She has shown no signs of weight being an issue, have taken her out 2 times for short exercise training sections of trotting circles as the horse vet from Sioux city suggested to find out about true bone damage. he said that real damage to the bone would cause her to be lame or limp around but she has not shown any signs of lameness.
but he has no real physical therapy type exercises for her
www.rockriverexoticsandkennel.net |
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KansasFarmMomma
True Blue Farmgirl
91 Posts
91 Posts |
Posted - Jun 29 2012 : 3:47:27 PM
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Many horses that spend time in small pens can develop leg problems over time, this is one of the big problems with lay-ups after injury.
If you have an arena or a pasture with soft footing I would start there. Does she only show problems at the lope? I would start at the walk and spend a good while a day doing figure 8s, backing up, rollbacks, etc just things to get the leg moving in different directions. I would probably do a week at just the walk, even though she may not act like it's bothering her(not pain wise), the tendons & ligaments may still be tight. Start trotting her through the same exercises and see how she does there. After a week or two then you can try the same things at the lope. The biggest thing is just to get her stretched out.
I would also walk her up & down hills. This works every muscle in the horses hindquarters and will also help strengthen. Did your vet mention when this accident happened if she actually nicked a tendon or ligament or were they all in one piece?
There are some stretching & massage exercises you can use too, I will have to look them up I don't remember them off the top of my head but I will try and find them & send them to you.
Also, call your farrier. You'd be amazed at how much some of them know and the suggestions they can come up with!
Even if she's not comfortable for riding, that injury in no way shape or form will prevent her from carrying a foal and making a pretty little broodmare.
Nicole
Farmgirl # 4209
www.bearpawphotography.weebly.com
www.KShappyhomemaker.wordpress.com |
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oldbittyhen
True Blue Farmgirl
1511 Posts
tina
quartz hill
ca
USA
1511 Posts |
Posted - Jun 29 2012 : 4:31:42 PM
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if you have a pond nearby, swimming is a GREAT therapy, and will keep her weight even, as she paddles, the tendon may have shortened due to not fully extending and it will take alot of time to work it back, I'm surprised your horse vet did not mention this ...
"Knowlege is knowing that a tomato is a fruit, Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad" |
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StrawHouseRanch
True Blue Farmgirl
1044 Posts
Paula
Holt
Missouri
USA
1044 Posts |
Posted - Jun 30 2012 : 08:37:02 AM
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Poor girl..that was one nasty injury. They sure know how to get into trouble don't they?
Definitely try stretching and massage. Since the injury happened so long ago, it might take awhile with physical therapy to regain the movement. You can also try cold water therapy, especially if it breaks open again. Cold water really helps tissue rebuild, almost like magic. I did it with my appaloosa when he sliced his leg open a couple of years ago on a t-post and it healed up so quickly..it was amazing.
Do some google searches on cold water therapy for equines...it might help with old injuries like hers too.
Paula
Farmgirl Sister #3090
Yesterday is History, Tomorrow is a Mystery, and Today is a Gift.
"Look deep into Nature, and then you will understand everything better."--Albert Einstein
"A meal of bread, cheese and beer constitutes the perfect food." --Queen Elizabeth I
http://www.etsy.com/shop/StrawHouseDesigns |
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crittergranny
True Blue Farmgirl
1096 Posts
Laura
Lindrith
NM
USA
1096 Posts |
Posted - Jun 30 2012 : 10:00:15 AM
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The only way to really know what you are dealing with is to take her to a good horse vet. But it could be from a bad trim too. In the meantime you could look to see if she has any bruising on the bottom of the hoof. A bruise will be a purple color. If it is bruised on the frog it is probably a bad trim where somebody has taken off too much hoof wall and not enough frog. Years ago I started having problems similar to that with all of my horses and came to find out it was just a bad farrier, I got a different farrier and they were fine within a couple of weeks. Also if you are having dry weather it can sometimes grind down the hoof and make the foot sore. Shoes can help sometimes. And if she has been kept up she may be having to readjust to hard ground. Vet or good farrier is the next step. Pressure tests to see exactly where the pain is at, by numbing certain areas and then pressure testing for a reaction they may be able to go from there or maybe have to have xrays. Also she may benefit from easy boots till her feet toughen up some more. The key is to find out what it is and try to keep her moving painlessly so she doesn't get too fat and compound the problem.
Laura
Horse poor in the boonies.
www.nmbarrelhorses.com |
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Megan
True Blue Farmgirl
155 Posts
Megan
Hudson
South Dakota
USA
155 Posts |
Posted - Jun 30 2012 : 4:56:47 PM
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Filly has good sound feet, never had any problems with my trimming before, my grandpa is coming to look at her he is a really good farrier and he trimmed her last.
the horse vet that i go to says that it is in the leg, but has ruled out bone chips, or bone injuries. He thinks that it may have something to do with the way the local vet had me taking care of it here at home. he had me clean the cut and bandage it but i wasnt to change the wrap for 2 days, by then with the warm humid weather it had alot of proud flesh in it, the reason for wrapping it that long was that she may have scrapped the bone and we didnt want air getting to the bone to cause more problems. but with the proud flesh in the wound it had to be wrap snug to get rid of that, with that and a combination of no exercise the vet and i had the same idea of tendon/ muscle problems. The horse vet didnt have any therapy for her to try.
I might take her over to the river to let her play in the water, i didnt think of that and she loves to swim. I haven't heard of cold water therapy will look into, have found that she like liniment rubbed into the leg and she shows some length in stride then.
do any of you streatch your horses legs from the ground? or know if this could help, i havent ever tried it.
www.rockriverexoticsandkennel.net |
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oldbittyhen
True Blue Farmgirl
1511 Posts
tina
quartz hill
ca
USA
1511 Posts |
Posted - Jun 30 2012 : 5:45:23 PM
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check out Linda Tellington (google her), she is one of the best with teaching stretch excersises...
"Knowlege is knowing that a tomato is a fruit, Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad" |
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goneriding
True Blue Farmgirl
1599 Posts
Winona
Central Oregon
USA
1599 Posts |
Posted - Jul 01 2012 : 07:44:01 AM
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I would suggest basic dressage movements, in addition to the above suggestions. Also, an injury like that can take a long time for everything to heal up. You're dealing with tissue and nerves, which can be a pain (literally and figuratively) to heal. She may have gotten so used to using one side, her other side isn't on the muscle.
As for stretching, be careful there. I don't know much about LTJ so not pointing at her per se, but, a lot of 'trainers' have this idea of stretching only the neck from the shoulders, instead of stretching thoughout the ribcage, from poll to tail. This is where western dressage has its' value.
Also, as for a broodie, with this market, be sure you have a reason to breed her, not just because she's standing around. Not trying to be mean, but, just recently I picked up an abandoned horse and there are lots more being turned loose. Your girl is cute but you might get stuck with a colt/filly for a good long time, unless you can keep it forever or find a good home. Since I picked up this horse, I'm getting calls from people who bred horses, sold them and now are having to take them back because the buyer needs to dump the horse. Long story here but be sure to think it through.
As I said, I'm not trying to be mean, just realistic in this economy.
My website: http://antlersantiqueswindchimes.weebly.com
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oldbittyhen
True Blue Farmgirl
1511 Posts
tina
quartz hill
ca
USA
1511 Posts |
Posted - Jul 01 2012 : 11:22:27 AM
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winona, Linda tellington was a dressage/eventing trainer who had a facility in Cal a few years back called PCERF, she is highly admired in the horse world, she does whole body stretching excersises...also agree about breeding, way too many homeless/abandoned grade and registerd horses out there...
"Knowlege is knowing that a tomato is a fruit, Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad" |
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rphelps4
True Blue Farmgirl
620 Posts
roxanna
westport
indiana
USA
620 Posts |
Posted - Jul 01 2012 : 11:34:12 AM
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| I wonder if part of it could that skin is tight there, I know when I had surgery by my out leg close to my knee,I had area removed due melanoma, it took awhile for my skin to stretch. |
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Megan
True Blue Farmgirl
155 Posts
Megan
Hudson
South Dakota
USA
155 Posts |
Posted - Jul 01 2012 : 5:29:01 PM
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if i breed my filly the baby or 2 would be to replace our older horses and mule. Filly is getting older and my mule is in his mid thirties or so. I like to have horses that i know have been handled and fed well, i purchased a horse that was really explosive, i paid 500 for the horse as a yearling and feed him trained him and then sold him to a kill buyer for safely reasons for 150. If i can breed my horse for nothing to a great stud my grandpa has why buy a colt. Sorry i believe that horses that are junk and or insane have to be put out be it by the vet or on a kill truck.
Im not going to bred my horse just to have a colt, i want a usable baby that we can raise up on our farm. after that she would be a pasture pet for kids to enjoy.
Thanks for all the advise on Filly leg, hoping to get her back to riding soon, but she has earned her spot in the pasture if thats what it comes down to.
www.rockriverexoticsandkennel.net |
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crittergranny
True Blue Farmgirl
1096 Posts
Laura
Lindrith
NM
USA
1096 Posts |
Posted - Jul 02 2012 : 11:27:23 AM
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I don't really think any horses are junk. I love them all. But there are some that require a lot more skill than others and when one has one that they can't do anything with then the options are somewhat limited. People need to think about the purpose of breeding. So sad when people breed mindlessly. I breed only select mares for big money and purpose in mind. I only breed a grade mare if I want it for myself, like Megan is talking about. Most breeders are breeding responsibly, it's mostly hoarders that are a problem or just greenhorn dummies. They might also call themselves breeders but really aren't. Not all registered horses are the same. Just because a horse is registered doesn't mean that it has been bred right. One must take into consideration temperament, health, marketability and most of all purpose. Sometimes people want to breed a mare to my racebred stallion and I have to tell them only proven or other select mares because I want a high percentage of winners of his foals. Some of my own mares aren't even high quality enough to breed to him, but are fantastic trail horses. Most of my horses I have for business are straight racing quality but I pretty much only sell to barrel racers because so many in the straight racing industry are so ruthless and greedy. But not all. If one feels they need to put down a horse it is their decision and it really isn't any different than killing any other animal. Horses are livestock after all. They have no more feelings than a cow or a deer. Although I will say that I do believe that being vegetarian and trying to relieve animal suffering is always the best way. I used to be a vegetarian and would like to get back to it some day. I will say that sometimes horses that are rank make good rodeo stock and actually have pretty decent lives. But it is hard to find a good home for a rank horse and it can just be in their blood to be that way and the older they get the more tricks they learn. And if one sells them to someone that can't ride them either then they will get hurt and mad and the horse ends up as dog food anyway. The economy is steady for good broke horses and high quality horses it's all the greenbroke horses unregistered or not that are a hard sell. Everyone wants something young and broke. That's a 3000+ dollar horse at least registered or not. But a green horse that hasn't had the buck ridden out of it 0 dollars usually. If you breed it you gotta be ready to keep it and break it...cause you might end up with it for quite some time. And stand behind it cause that's your reputation on the line. My daughters somtimes buy very high quality greenbroke horses to finish out and sell, but it aint for everyone. Including this ole lady.
Laura
Horse poor in the boonies.
www.nmbarrelhorses.com |
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goneriding
True Blue Farmgirl
1599 Posts
Winona
Central Oregon
USA
1599 Posts |
Posted - Jul 03 2012 : 08:30:25 AM
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Last week, I went to the livestock sale. Three horses were there, all stud-horses, older, no handling. Manes and tails were solid knots. One sold for $7.50 and the other two sold for $2.50 each. The auctioneer tried to GIVE them away in the ring and couldn't. I don't know how ponied up some money but they did. The $7.50 one was pretty cute and I thought about buying him, swing by the vet on the way home, get him cut and then home. He sold so fast, it was over before I thought it all through!! He seemed to have a brain, too. I went around back trying to find them but they were gone in a NY minute. I don't know what happened to them. Then reality hit about my fences and liability, flies and heat, trying to deal with a major cut on a wild horse, etc. Really, at my age, I don't need this. I stopped by one of my horses' breeder on the way home. She has quite a few unhandled horses too. All males are still studikins... The horse economy here is going under a major change, it has too!!
My website: http://antlersantiqueswindchimes.weebly.com
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Megan
True Blue Farmgirl
155 Posts
Megan
Hudson
South Dakota
USA
155 Posts |
Posted - Jul 03 2012 : 09:40:29 AM
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I puruched the colt i was talking about out of a really good stallion, but the mare was unheard of. the colt had a great attitude and handled like a dream on the ground. i put alot of ground work in on the horse because he was to be my show horse for team penning and ranch rodeos. When he started to blow up it was with out any signal. Pro trainers turned him away saying that they didnt want any horse that was that rank.I looked into rodeo bucking stock but they said he was to short 13.2hds.
I would bred my mare Filly a reg breeding stock paint with good bloodlines and conformation to a AQHA stallion that has thrown good sound colts that do well in our area roping and barrels. Filly doesnt meet color requirements but has some color, last filly she had out of the same stallion was spotted.
Please Bred horses responsibly, around here it been good because they are consider hay burners, so if you have one make it a good one.
www.rockriverexoticsandkennel.net |
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RedHoopWoman
True Blue Farmgirl
513 Posts
Kathryn
Yoder
Colorado
USA
513 Posts |
Posted - Jul 05 2012 : 7:55:03 PM
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Megan I am sure you did the right thing with your colt,I have been training for a number of years and most of the time I can get along with a horse or if not in some cases I can find someone who can but there are just some that can be really dangerous and you have to be real about it and make realistic decisions about thier future,I sure hate to see someone get hurt or killed when there's alot of really great horses out there,I made a choice to put one of my own horses in the ground because he was just too dangerous,he was a Norwegian Fjord and like your colt I had invested alot in him so it wasn't easy to make that decision and I sought alot of counsel about it from better horsemen,the consensus being that those who could ride him wouldn't want him and those that would want him couldn't ride him.
As far as breeding,it's a great time to purchase good quality colts but I don't see anything wrong with breeding your own if you have access to a good stud whose history,temperaments and bloodlines you are familiar with and think would make a good cross with your mare.
I think alot of irresponsible breeding occurs among the barn blind horse owners who might have a nicely colored mare or stud but is otherwise a parrot-mouthed,pig-eyed,jug-headed,club-footed and cow-hocked dink with a snorty temperament and they usually breed thier nicely colored dink with another dink and there you have the junk horse that becomes a drug on the horse market and has a very grave future.
Then there's the hoarder type who takes any free horse (usually dinks) offered on craigslist and turns them all out together uncut and allows them to breed prolifically until they can't afford to feed the things anymore or they might breed thinking they're going to make a profit selling young stock when even the top breeding outfits are having trouble making money on thier quality stock.
I know you're not any of those mentioned above and I think if your mare checks out well enough to breed and you like her qualities and the studs qualities to produce your own colt then that sounds like a good plan to me.
As far as her lameness goes,she may just need some time and gentle work gradually building up to more,Dressage is great for this,I would recommend anything by Sylvia Loch to help with this and the suggestion of stretches and other exercises from Linda Tellington Jones is a good one.
I know of one mare I trained who got a really severe flesh wound to her leg that took a long time to heal and even when the wound had healed visibly it still took a long time for her to become 100 percent but she's doing real good now and is cross country jumping and going on long trail rides in the mountains,she does great,it just took time so don't give up on your mare and keep an open mind about her future and I'm sure all will turn out fine.
"Today's Mighty Oak is just Yesterday's Nut" |
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Barnyard Buddies: Short Steppin Horse |
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Short Steppin Horse
