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Dead tail?

Horse Care
#1

I am thinking about taking on a pasture companion, who has a mystery tail issue. I take care of a farm on the weekends and have fallen head over heels for a mare there. She is trying to find her a home but because of this issue, she is having a hard time finding anyone that wants to take her on. Her personality is just the greatest and I look forward to seeing her every week.

She is only 5, and was trained for halter and harness shows. She was with a trainer and apparently after she was starting to be trained under saddle, her tail mysteriously went “dead”. Trainer called the breeder (lady I work for and her owner), and told her she had to send her back. Supposedly a vet has looked at her and they say it isn’t broken, there appears to be no trauma. This happened about 4 months ago. She can’t swish for flies, and vet said no hay only soaked alfalfa cubes, soaked grain with mineral oil, and Vitamin E for her diet, to keep her gut moving. She strains to poop but it has gotten a little better, and she pees down her tail because she can’t lift it, and 24/7 turnout.

I suspect a tail block gone bad from my research, but the trainer swears she wasn’t blocked and it happened after her 3rd ride. However, her breed I don’t think would even be at a high risk of someone deciding to do a tail block (Morgan)?Supposedly she didn’t flip, and nothing traumatic supposedly happened. I have a fantastic chiro, acupuncturist, vet, and massage therapy team for my mare who has some reoccurring issues and I think they could help her. I have tried to get her to get any number of people out for her, but she doesn’t want to spend any money on a horse that went from being a $35k horse to in her mind, worthless. The vet she did have look at her did not recommend euthanasia and said with the above diet, turnout, and extra care, she should live a comfortable life. She appears to be a happy, spirited, comfortable horse and it doesn’t seem to bother her except for the fly issue. I recently purchased a fly sheet for her because the owner, again says she doesn’t want to sink any more money into her, but I couldn’t watch her be tortured by the flies.

Is there a way to tell if a horse has been tail blocked? Could it be that she has something out in her topline that is contributing to this? Is there any hope of perhaps fixing the issue more than the owner has tried, or would it be a waste of money and time? I don’t care if all she ever is is a big pet, but because of the urinary and pooping issues, ideally I would like to help resolve some of those issues for her if I bring her home. Is she more at risk for UTI’S because of the urinary issue? Should a horse with a dead tail really be fed NO hay? This may be one issue that will block my bringing her home as I leave hay out 24/7 for my other two horses.

Any other advice (even if it is…run for the hills, don’t do it!) would be greatly appreciated.

I do plan on having my vet and chiro at least review her medical records before I make a decision, but I wanted to reach out to the ever knowledgeable COTH board first to see if I should even go that far. Thanks!

#2

If you feel you can provide a good home and quality of life for this little mare, I think she’d be lucky to have you.

10 Likes
#3

I wonder if she had a busy, swishy tail under saddle and something was done to quiet it. Stuff can be injected into the tail to deaden it. I am a big softy and probably would consider taking a chance on her.

6 Likes
#4

Do you know if she was ever made to wear a tail set?

Asking for a friend…

1 Like
#5

I’m not sure, what is a tail set? I know she showed harness before they decided to start her under saddle. These issues supposedly started after her 3rd ride. I don’t know the trainer personally and neither did the breeder, she tends to just send her young stock off with whomever the big names are at the time…

I really really like her, and I think the feeling is mutual. Is it true if they have a dead tail that they can’t ever be ridden? I also have read that if they blocked her tail, it can take 6 months or more and sometimes full or part function returns. But again, I am not 100% sure that is what was done. I think it would be too early to look for the telltale white hair signs of a block but I am going to when I go to feed tonight.

1 Like
#6

She might not have worn a tail set but she could have worn a bustle - that’s fairly common in Morgan barns. However, a bustle or a tail set will neither one cause a dead tail, so I would suspect that she got hurt or someone deliberately deadened it. Much more common in quarter horses, I’m not so sure about Morgans.

I have know quite a few horses that have had tail blocks and were ridden, so I don’t think you have to worry about that.

You also won’t necessarily see white hairs from a block either.

I would think that if you were willing to give her some time, her function may come back.

The one horse I knew with a block ate a normal diet. Only issue was not being able to swish flies off, so they had to be careful with turnout. She also made quite a mess of herself since she couldn’t get tail up out of the way when she pooped.

Don’t be surprised if you never get the straight story on what happened to her.

ETA: Another possibility: they could have nicked her tail like they do with Saddlebreds and it went wrong. That may not have been done by a vet either, so increasing the chance that someone made a mistake. Check for scars on the underside of her tail.

5 Likes
#7

Ok so I just fed for the evening. No scars under or around her tail, no white hairs anywhere. However she is obviously sore above the tailbone on top of her hindquarters where the tail ties in and looks slightly out of place. Not super reactive but seems to be sensitive there.

#8

If the tail is going to be non functional and a mess due to urine and manure, you could consider having it amputated.

The fact that the horse is sensitive where the tail ties into the spine would make me wonder if the horse didn’t somehow break the tail.

Before I would pay for or take on a free horse with the above symptoms, I would want access to ALL previous vet records and I would want to do a pre purchase exam that would help to identify the problem and whether it would preclude her from being a horse with a job.

8 Likes
#9

I would be very worried it’s something neurological that isn’t just affecting the tail. No tail use isn’t a big deal, but if she is straining to go from neuro issues you could be in for a load of trouble.
For a great personality, especially for a free horse, I would take her and have the vet do a full workup focusing on neuro issues in the hind end. If it really is just the tail, you could amputate it as jawa says. It looks less weird than you would think (knew a grey who had theirs amputated for melanomas and showed in local hunters)

2 Likes
#10

Can you get xrays? I’d wonder about a fractured pelvis or some other fracture.

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#11

I knew a horse who rushed backwards and slammed into a post. The tail was dead for a while, then gradually regained some limited mobility. It didn’t affect ridden work at all, and the horse stayed on the same hay and grain diet as before with no issues.

If you’re finding painful spots around the tail there may be some swelling, alignment, or similar issues affecting the nerve function. I don’t know the timeframe here, but if that’s the case the swelling or misalignment needs to be corrected ASAP to reduce the chances of permanent nerve damage.

If you like her that much take the chance.

2 Likes
#12

Well, reading this, I’m a softee, I’d take her if I were in your position. Her current owners are not “valuing” her, have lost interest in her. You are “valuing” her. Whether she will recover or not, I’d wait and see. If there are worse problems, terminal problems that become apparent, neurological problems, sepsis, etc, you may have to put her down, which is hard, but part of horse ownership (Walt Disney doesn’t write the script). But I think that is unlikely, from what you have said. My guess would be that she has broken her tail, right at the top, either by mistake on her part during play or being cast or other equine related misadventure, or due to a “trainer’s” action causing her to flip over or fall (and no one is owning up to this- not surprising). If this is the case, it will heal in time, and the nerves may start working again, at least to some extent, when the inflammation decreases and things heal.

If the lack of motion in her tail is problematical, short term or long term, I’d start by shaving the hair off (at least) the top of the tailbone, just to keep things easier to keep clean. Worst case scenario, you may have to have her caslicksed, cheap and easy surgery to avoid infection of female parts.

Good luck with your decision, and I hope she works out well for you.

2 Likes
#13

https://www.topnotchtails.com/mediac/450_0/media/96974ddeccb5afb9ffff8782ffffe41e.jpg

When I was looking at my mare before I bought her, the seller said “She’s worn a tail set, but we didn’t break the tail.” and I told her I was glad of that. At the time, I had seen “those sorts” of tails, but didn’t know what went into them. I had never looked.

Then I started looking…

A nice article about tails.

https://thehorse.com/128876/tweaking-tails/

This is a tail set. There are some that are more draconian than others, but you can get the gist,

https://freedmanharness.com/products/freedmans-roll-top-crupper-set-complete-1

This is a bustle, like oldernewbie was saying.

https://www.topnotchtails.com/mediac/450_0/media/96974ddeccb5afb9ffff8782ffffe41e.jpg

There are some videos on YouTube on how to put one one, and many more photos of botched jobs all over the net. They’re not pretty. And I’m not a fan.

#14

You might want to check for EPM or other diseases that have neuro symptoms. Wobblers can run in some Morgan lines.

#15

I knew a horse that had no tail. I don’t know what happened to cause him to lose it though. If you like the horse, i say buy it and get it vet checked. A vet can give you a better idea of the prognosis and whether amputation is even necessary.

#16

I’m with @NancyM after reading your new info. I agree - she could have flipped in harness or under saddle or just had a silly accident in her stall. Seems like no one wants to call the vet and get some imaging done and see exactly what the problem is. Will the owner give her to you? I think if you set a budget, have the vet out, and know what your limits are you could do her some good. At least someone will give a darn and do the right thing for her. Good luck!

1 Like
#17

She is free. She offered her to me about 6 weeks ago, but I have been mulling it over. She seems impossible to nail down and talk to her. She has been saying for weeks she will meet up with me while I am at the barn with the paperwork from the vet so we can discuss. But she is out of town a lot. I texted her tonight and told her I am still interested in her, and asked for a time we can meet to go over everything or have her files forwarded to my vet for review. I didn’t want to jump into anything, or take on something over my head, so I have been slowly processing this, and the whole time this mare has been working on me (HARD!) and I am leaning towards bringing her home. Pretty sure the breeder doesn’t want to have anything further diagnostically done with her, especially since she is giving her away. I really worry about where she will end up. She has phenomenal bloodlines and is a gorgeous horse, but with these issues I worry someone wouldn’t want to keep up with the extra mess of the tail/hind end, or actually try to diagnose or fix what is wrong, if it can be.

5 Likes
#18

Awwwwe! I can totally understand! The practical side of me says no way, but the marshmallow side of me bought back one of our old race horses from a kill buyer this spring. If the owner will let your vet go over her I would recommend that though so you don’t end up in a really sad situation, or at least you go into it knowing the kindest thing to do. We got lucky with my boy, he is wicked sound even though he spent about 5 years as an amish horse from what we know. After blowing 3 absesses from 3 different feet and strangles, he is in great shape! Good luck with your decision!

1 Like
#19

I have a friend whose gelding has a dead tail, due to a permanent block years ago by an unscrupulous trainer. It is a total pain for her, but she loves him. She rides him primarily on trails now after a very long and successful show career. But she has to keep him protected from flies, so no summer turnout, (he lives in his stall in front of a fan all summer) fly sheet, leg wraps, face mask, has his tail banded to try to keep it clean but basically washes it every day since he can’t lift it to poop. He’s lucky to have her.

2 Likes
#20

DON’T accept her for free. BUY her for a dollar, and GET a signed receipt. You should get her registration papers too, all signed just like any other sale, but if they refuse to do that, you will still have the receipt. Make it official. If, by chance, the tail miraculously recovers, and the value of the horse increases substantially, you MUST make sure that you are the owner, free and clear. You do not want this to come back and bite you on the butt. Good luck! Make out the receipt in advance, everything you want it to say, and the amount paid, all they have to do is sign it to make it good. Protect yourself, and your new horse.

22 Likes

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