Hello everyone,
My 11 year old gelding was diagnosed Aug 2018 with moderate coffin joint arthritis. He had been slightly off for a while and eventually showed up sore on his LF which led to xrays. Vet at the time did not feel it was a career ending diagnosis but cautioned that it was a condition that would have to be managed.
Started injecting Pentosan on a monthly/bimonthly basis and daily use of Equioxx. Also changed shoeing slightly to improve angles. This worked well in late summer and fall and he was feeling good. I gave him some time off in November and stopped Equioxx use for about a month due to just being turned out (I figured even if he was a little stiff walking around pasture, he wouldn’t be suffering too greatly). I did notice he seemed a little foot tender on the frozen hard ground in pasture. We have kept shoes on due to being afraid to change his foot situation too much but farrier put bohrium on shoes for winter and added rim pads (we live in Canada). At most recent chiro appt, my regular vet mentioned that bohrium on shoes might not be a good idea as she’s seen it really aggravate arthritis in horses - especially in coffin joints due to sudden stopping. I am not enthusiastic about just using smooth shoes due to winter weather (we’ve had a lot of ice this year) and both my farrier and I are not sure about barefoot as an option for this horse. Which is leaving me feeling a bit lost.
This has led me to schedule an appointment for coffin joint injections. My horse is currently boarded (usually lives at home) and I am responsible for graining him and giving meds. This has led to the odd couple days when I don’t make it out to give Equioxx. I notice a difference if he does not receive pill everyday. My vet wants me to give for 30 days and then a week off. He’s on his week off currently and I notice he’s stiff in his body and short strided up front. Which makes me believe that the Equioxx is just covering his soreness.
I have been very hesitant to go with joint injections but I feel like I am out of options. My hope is to get one more season of this horse and then re-evaluate options next year. I’ve accepted his career as a sport horse is not going to be that lengthy. My hope is to get a couple events at BN and some clinics in - so not exactly upper level stuff.
I am looking for experiences of people who’ve done coffin joint injections. My concern is that they will need to be repeated more and more frequently. Or if someone has other ideas for what we could try. Sorry this is kind of a rambling post!
