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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 520
| Been having issues with my one horse again and I was hoping for some imput, I applogize this may get long but I want to try to cover everything if possible. Last spring I was trying to saddle fit him and was bucking it a lot of them, fine bareback. His reactions seems extreme, so had the vet out. He was showing signs of very slight back pain, vet put him on muscle relaxers which seemed to make it worse and he was sore all over his body. His lameness exam had him positive for arthritic changes in his right hind (he has a very large scar on his left hind, I do not know what from). Tested him for lyme disease, pssm, had some blood tests to check muscle enzymes, everything normal. Both Chiropractor and massage therapist were out a few times, never really found the cause of the back pain other than possibly his hip being stiff and causing discomfort in his back. He was off a couple months and we put him back into work (lightly trail riding) and he seemed fine. All this time I was having issues fitting a saddle to him so was riding him in a bareback pad.
Skip to this year. Hes been ridden a handful of times around the yard only about 15 minutes each time since the beginning of the year, I have a treeless saddle that he had been fine with. The weekend before memorial day my husband and I saddled up and all he wanted to do was hump up, he'd stop then try to lurch forward and hump up more. Got off him to round pen him a bit and all he did was rodeo bronc. He did finally quite, I got on him again and all I could do was spin in him circles to keep him from bolting/bucking. At the time I thought he was just being a jerk, but 2 days later he was extremely sore behind his shoulder blades, loin - worse on the right side and over his hip, and girth area. I couldn't get the vet out til the 5th, in the mean time he was on/off sore, and once she got here he was only sore in his girth area. Lameness exam, he was positive on 3 out of 4 legs on the flexion test. The only "good" leg was the one that was positive for arthritis last year, which was bizarre. He appears to be 100% sound just jogging him out. I saddled him for the vet and he did his rodeo thing. The only things we could come up with were ulcers, lyme, or arthritis. I had gotten on him the day after bareback, hes fine with me on him but obviously uncomfortable with my leg on him and I didn't ask anything off him.
We are treating him for ulcers (did not have him scoped), vet was more or less humoring me and didn't think it was likely but we can't come up with any other explanation for the girth soreness. Vet said ulcers should resolve in a week, which will be tomorrow. Within the week he has been continuously sore on his sides, was sore for one day on his right hip and fine the next day. Also had got his lyme results yesterday and he is negative. The vet at first told me his extreme behavior was likely not due to arthritis and as little bit as he appears to have should be fine with his light working job. But now that we got the results from the lyme test wants to either x-rays him and do joint injections, or do adequan. I feel like she is just stumped and is just wanting to try anything now. While I feel like adequan may be a good thing, I just feel like there is something else going on. I also don't think arthritis could be causing him to be fine one week and then suddenly rodeo bronc the next and be so sore. And I hate to sound terrible, but being as money is extremely tight I don't want to be injecting or putting a horse on adequan that may only be a pasture ornament. I have not seen him appear lame in the pasture at all, he and his buddy tear it up in the field quite often and he never shows any signs of stiffness anytime afterwords.
Has anyone ever had anything like this happen or really just any ideas what so-ever? I worry that injury may have caused nerve damage elsewhere. sacroiliac joint pain has been suggest by someone else.
Edited by Buckles 2015-06-12 8:31 AM
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 520
| Another thing, with the bucking/leaping/rodeo broncing, he doesn't start doing it until he starts trotting. | |
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 Not Afraid to Work
Posts: 4717
 
| Sounds very similar to my gelding... he isnt a bucker or anything but the inconcistent soreness. He was cinchy one day, fine the next, back sore one day, fine the next, hip sore one day, fine the next... He went lame for a day... Back X-rays confirmed Kissing Spine. It is common that horses buck, im just a lucky one.
The only thing that doesnt match up is usually after work, hes much better.
I would find the problem before you inject. | |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 520
| Thank you. The vet last year had mentioned kissing spine, but then when we had the chiropractor out she had thought it was unlikely because of the looseness/flexibility in his back. But that doesn't entirely rule that out of course. | |
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Not Afraid to Work
Posts: 4717
| Buckles - 2015-06-12 8:32 AM
Thank you. The vet last year had mentioned kissing spine, but then when we had the chiropractor out she had thought it was unlikely because of the looseness/flexibility in his back. But that doesn't entirely rule that out of course.
Very true... but your vet should have been able to decipher tightness. My chiro never mentioned "tightness" but my vet did. My horse was tight, some days worse than others. | |
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Expert
Posts: 1207
| I just did a search for kissing spine in horses as I thought this was a made up thing. Not so...and it all has to due to their "core muscles". Like ours. Very enlightening. | |
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Location: KS | EPM? | |
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 Take a Picture
Posts: 12841
| The first thing I thought of was kissing spine. Mine was diagnosed with an X-ray. | |
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Sock Snob
Posts: 3021
| Epm go on website pathogenes, dr ellerson, flordia. Send her bloodwork, treatment is like 200.00 | |
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Horse with on/off soreness