Odd lameness present before & after abscess...

[skismurf75]

Bit long winded I'm afraid but wondering if anyone has had any similar experiences.....

..Davie had a few weeks of intermittently just not "feeling right" through September though never lame, just couldn't putmy finger on it. Around 24th Oct came in from field lame with heat/swelling in left fore...wondered if this was the culmination of the"off" feelings so cold hosed etc etc overnight and when no change next day got vet out. No response to hoof testers, lame on left rein but visibly worse on right rein (but lifting head when left hoof landing). Nerve blocked left hoof, left rein a tiny bit better, right rein still awful. Vet (who was leaving practice that week) booked him in for x-rays/scans the following week. Box rested from that point.

5 days later leg filled, pony obviously very sore so called vet out (she has since managed Davie's investigations). Explained all the above, she did hoof test again with no reaction but decided to cover all bases, take shoe off and poultice in any case....did hoof test again and found abscess under shoe. Had a dig and the pus came pouring out, thick, black and smelling worse than any other abscess I've witnessed. So x-ray appointment cancelled whilst we poulticed and got abscess dried out.

Vet was out to yard on Monday so I got her to check things over and we popped him on the lunge only to find the lameness still present as it had been originally . We've spent the last 2 days at the clinic. Left leg nerve blocked up to mid cannon with a vast improvement, then really thorough x rays and scans (inc of right leg for comparison). Everything came back absolutely clear which from one point of view is great but it means we still don't have a cause. There is the option to block the fetlock joint and the tendon sheath but Davie has (since the abscess) a recurring oedema in the affected leg which goes down after a short walk and vet didn't really want to risk rying to nerve block through the swelling. Last option would be a bone scan.

In the meantime the suggestion is that the abscess may well have been building for several weeks (perhaps accounting for the "not right" feeling) and therefore the internal bruising/swelling it caused may just take time to come right. I am waiting on a detailed e-mailed plan of action from vet but broadly speaking it seems we are going to go for getting the shoe back on (sole packed and hoof floated as farrier sees fit), then try a strict exercise programme prob starting with 10 mins walk in the school daily.

Obviously I am glad his musculo-skeletal aspects have had a clean bill of health but am still anxious.......has anyone had similar experiences, or does anyone have any ideas??

Sorry is so long - Maltesers and a dram of Baileys all round!!

[rifruffian]

Yes, I had a horse with intermittent lameness before and after abscess diagnosis and treatment. He was intermittently lame a good while (few weeks) before the abcess was exposed. Nerve blocks indicated the cause of the lameness was within the foot. The intermittent lameness was no longer apparent about three months after the abcess was dealt with. During the preceding three months he was certainly intermittently lame . He has been entirely sound since that....around nine months. There was not any course of treatment (other than to attend to the abscess and it was the farrier who exposed that). The horse lived out all the time.
I just add that the vet was called to the early intermittent lameness and ruled out the idea of an abscess. After nerve blocks he concluded that there was some problem within the foot and was ready to do some other technical investigations,(xray ?. scan?,) I just don't remember. But just before he got to work we agreed that the farrier should cut into the sole more aggressively and that farrier quickly exposed the abscess.

[ladynowak]

Have PM'd you

[skismurf75]

Thank you both for your replies and LadyNowak for your PM and sorry for not saying so before now .

Davie still looked really rough on the lunge, just as before abscess. Had a back man out to him who found his coccyx was out and manipulated it. Davie let out an audible sigh of relief. Gave him a few days then popped him on the lunge with my heart in my mouth. Never have I seen him look so good through his back (though the injury is thought to be only about 3 months old) or his hind end swinging so beautifully! A slight hint of discomfort when the abscess site under pressure but nothing else. I had a little cry! Since then we have been snow bound which is so frustrating....but looking forward to next season now....and hoping the insurance will cover the £974.61 bill.... . Never mind - I felt like Christmas had come early.....he means the world to me!

[sarahbing]

A great outcome. It is not uncommon for horse to put something else out whilst compensating for the original injury. They way it was explained to me was that horses will go to great lengths to mask any mild discomfort, as this marks them out to predators as the next meal. So there is no such thing as a mild lameness. By the time it gets to actually show, it really hurts!

For this reason they often strain something else trying to cover up their soreness.


I'm really glad your boy is better - he must feel great after all that and so must you ;D