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Veteran
Posts: 264
 
| Acquired a gelding who came back from a nasty high fracture, pretty much had to leave him alone for 2 years then completely rebuild the whole hind end muscle wise. Due to the bone changes in his pelvis he is constantly tight in the hind end....after bone scan and X-rays vets didn't give me a solution for the hard/tight muscles (deep pelvic muscles/hamstrings/psoas). The suggestion was to run him on Ace to help loosen him up and get the muscles to relax. Curious who else runs their horse on Ace for similar reasons? He isn't a hot head, just strong so this would be purely to relax the muscles not for behavioral changes. |
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Location: Not Where I Want to Be | I would probably find a new vet or retire him.
Sometimes even though they heal, they are not whole.
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Expert
Posts: 1611
 
| You can do this but they build up a resistance to it overtime guanabenz is something they will build up a resistance to as well. Magna wave would be a great option to help this along with massage therapy and acupuncture. But drugs will work for awhile.
ETA: You don't have to retire if you can keep the scar tissue broke up and the muscles soft and relaxed. find a holistic vet that will help you plan a course of action.
Edited by astreakinchic 2017-01-24 7:40 AM
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 788
| I would think drugging them to "loosen" them up is not the best idea. Then he could easier strain something and send you back in the wrong direction. Massage could be a really good option so you can work the muscles back out as you strengthen them. |
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I just read the headlines
Posts: 4483
| 1DSoon - 2017-01-24 7:38 AM
I would probably find a new vet or retire him.
Sometimes even though they heal, they are not whole.
I completely agree with 1D. |
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 Not Afraid to Work
Posts: 4717
| GLP - 2017-01-24 7:55 AM
1DSoon - 2017-01-24 7:38 AM
I would probably find a new vet or retire him.
Sometimes even though they heal, they are not whole.
I completely agree with 1D.
I agree. Ace also has some potential side effects in geldings.
With all the therapy options out there, I would think there are more options to try. |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 690
Location: Georgia | I have one that gets tight in the back end and neck. He gets weekly/biweekly massages and maintained by our vet. But I do still give him 1cc ACE in the muscle before we leave the house. I only run him about once a month so he's not getting ACE every weekend. But I've found if he stays relaxed most of the day he will run more relaxed, even if the ACE has wore off by the time we run. And of course I am looking into other options. We also use a PHT blanket and im "trying out" Hidez hood. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 585
Location: Texas | You might talk to your vet about Methocarbamol. |
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 Expert
Posts: 5293
| I have one I run on Ace. The Precaution with Geldings is they can have paralysis of the penis and not be able to retract it. My vet explained to me very clearly, that this almost ALWAYS is in Stallions not geldings and the incidents where it did happen were when they were given ACE and hauled long distances. THe bouncing of the trailer made the problem worse. She told me as precaution that I should just get to the barrel race early and give when I arrive, not before I load up. ACE has its place and I have no problems using it when its needed. |
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 Straight Shooter
Posts: 5725
Location: SW North Dakota | Have you considered using a Pessoa or BTS as part of his rehab? I had a gelding who fractured his pelvis, and the vet recommended working him in it. I posted this picture on a different thread a while ago and people said it was cruel, but I am not joking- this gelding loved it. He would lean into the stretches. It made an insane amount of difference in his muscle quality.
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 585
Location: Texas | ND3canAddict - 2017-01-24 9:32 AM
Have you considered using a Pessoa or BTS as part of his rehab? I had a gelding who fractured his pelvis, and the vet recommended working him in it. I posted this picture on a different thread a while ago and people said it was cruel, but I am not joking- this gelding loved it. He would lean into the stretches. It made an insane amount of difference in his muscle quality.
I don't think this is cruel at all. It makes sense it would build the top line. |
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Straight Shooter
Posts: 5725
Location: SW North Dakota | workerbee - 2017-01-24 10:13 AM ND3canAddict - 2017-01-24 9:32 AM Have you considered using a Pessoa or BTS as part of his rehab? I had a gelding who fractured his pelvis, and the vet recommended working him in it. I posted this picture on a different thread a while ago and people said it was cruel, but I am not joking- this gelding loved it. He would lean into the stretches. It made an insane amount of difference in his muscle quality. I don't think this is cruel at all. It makes sense it would build the top line.
The person didn't like the lines bumping their mouth as the hips swung. The lines are a soft elastic, and I adjust them to have them just in contact at the furthest extension. IMO the BTS is a great tool, that is almost invaluable for building a topline. I work up to 32 min 3x a week. I get the same results with this as the aqua-tread. |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 678
Location: Canada | ND3canAddict - 2017-01-24 12:23 PM
workerbee - 2017-01-24 10:13 AM ND3canAddict - 2017-01-24 9:32 AM Have you considered using a Pessoa or BTS as part of his rehab? I had a gelding who fractured his pelvis, and the vet recommended working him in it. I posted this picture on a different thread a while ago and people said it was cruel, but I am not joking- this gelding loved it. He would lean into the stretches. It made an insane amount of difference in his muscle quality. I don't think this is cruel at all. It makes sense it would build the top line.
This tool is great for horses that are already supple, just need conditioning, and are owned by people who know what true collection is and should look like. For horses that haven't been taught to use their bodies and balance correctly (which a lot haven't) the horses just learn to tuck their nose and short stride to avoid being bumped.
It's a great aid in the right hands but when inexperienced individuals use it it can have horrible effects.
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 678
Location: Canada | With respect - I'd be seriously questioning my Vet if that was his advice. If your horse has chronically tight muscles why wouldn't he prescribe an oral daily muscle relaxant to help relax the muscles?
Have you tried BOT Track products, Sports Massager, or other topical type treatments (ex. Voltaren) or massage. I'd try all of those first to try to soften the muscles as much as possible. I'd want him as relaxed as possible when he's not running so that you eliminate as much risk as possible for torn muscles, ligaments or other soft tissue injuries. The last thing you'd want is to have to stall him again for a soft tissue injury when he's already stiff.
Best of luck.
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 929
| ND3canAddict - 2017-01-24 7:32 AM
Have you considered using a Pessoa or BTS as part of his rehab? I had a gelding who fractured his pelvis, and the vet recommended working him in it. I posted this picture on a different thread a while ago and people said it was cruel, but I am not joking- this gelding loved it. He would lean into the stretches. It made an insane amount of difference in his muscle quality.
How is this cruel? (Sorry...I grew up in the h/j world and we used the Pessoa system all the time. People shouldn't hate on something they don't understand, IMO.) |
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  Sock eating dog owner
Posts: 4557
Location: Where the pavement ends and the West begins Utah | Biohesper C/K vitamin E and HA. slow work in hilly areas and if there is a river or lake to ride in. I had one that had the hind end torn in an accident that couldn't lift one hind leg and when she did she couldn't put it back down. I had to stretch the leg before riding. I spent most of my time walking on flat areas as the muscle stretched I started doing hills just small ones and progressed to bigger ones as she improved. Don't use ace, when it wears off your horse will lose his marbles. It would be best to use Magnesium and B1 to relax the horse. The vitamins I mentioned will help repair muscle tissue. |
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Veteran
Posts: 103
| If you want the best prescription drug to relax muscles that they can still run on I think Methocarbamol would be a good choice. I had a horse that would hold his anxiety in his back and then his back would get tight and sore, and my vet suggested Methocarbamol and it worked wonders for him. As it is more of a muscle relaxer rather than a sedative, he still fired hard and ran good on it when I needed it. |
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Gettin Jiggy Wit It
Posts: 2734
| Did this horse fracture their pelvis? I have a mare that is finishing up her 6 months of stall rest due to a fractured her pelvis last year. It's just a stress fracture but her psoras muscle is still slightly inflamed. So once she's healed we hope she isnt a candidate for lower back pain. |
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Veteran
Posts: 264
| Thank you all!
Robaxin was brought up and candidate as well, they didn't have any in stock but I will call and request to have it ordered.
We actually do have the Pessoa system! LOVE it! When he got the go ahead to start working we put him in the system for the first 30 days, but to be honest it hasn't been used since. Maybe for this particular horse it should be in the routine weekly workouts.
As far as other treatment options, magnawave seems to be the one that helps dramatically. Just as far as upkeep and routine maintenance the entire barn gets treatment biweekly. I will start searching for a massage therapist, who has there horse on a regular massage schedule? |
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Veteran
Posts: 264
| cow pie - 2017-01-24 9:11 PM
Biohesper C/K vitamin E and HA. slow work in hilly areas and if there is a river or lake to ride in. I had one that had the hind end torn in an accident that couldn't lift one hind leg and when she did she couldn't put it back down. I had to stretch the leg before riding. I spent most of my time walking on flat areas as the muscle stretched I started doing hills just small ones and progressed to bigger ones as she improved. Don't use ace, when it wears off your horse will lose his marbles. It would be best to use Magnesium and B1 to relax the horse. The vitamins I mentioned will help repair muscle tissue.
Thank you so much!!! I will certainly look into the supplement. |
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Veteran
Posts: 264
| WetSaddleBlankets - 2017-01-25 4:56 AM
Did this horse fracture their pelvis? I have a mare that is finishing up her 6 months of stall rest due to a fractured her pelvis last year. It's just a stress fracture but her psoras muscle is still slightly inflamed. So once she's healed we hope she isnt a candidate for lower back pain.
Unfortunately yes, fracture and tore sacral ligament and muscles. I would say the psoas muscles were one of the hardest to eventually fix. It was a solid 6 months till we saw the tension go away. I had a woman show me some stretches to help keep up on the area in between magnawave treatments. Also...we had a set back where he started showing lumber/psoas tension again, couldn't figure out why. X-rayed the hind feet and they were negative. :-( soon as we corrected the problem there was no more tension. Definitely keep up on proper angles on the hind end, when recovering from such an injury there are so many factors that can set you back. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 690
Location: Georgia | turnedout - 2017-01-25 8:24 AM Thank you all! Robaxin was brought up and candidate as well, they didn't have any in stock but I will call and request to have it ordered. We actually do have the Pessoa system! LOVE it! When he got the go ahead to start working we put him in the system for the first 30 days, but to be honest it hasn't been used since. Maybe for this particular horse it should be in the routine weekly workouts. As far as other treatment options, magnawave seems to be the one that helps dramatically. Just as far as upkeep and routine maintenance the entire barn gets treatment biweekly. I will start searching for a massage therapist, who has there horse on a regular massage schedule?
I have my horse on a regular schedule with his massage therapist. Shes helped him so much. She was coming ince a week until we got him sorted out, now we are down to at least once a month. |
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 Extreme Veteran
Posts: 494
| IMO what sounds the best for your horse would be an aquatread, ACCUPUNCTURE (works wonders) & guanabenz is my choice over ace. |
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