Has anybody every gone this route for a horse with laminitis? I am hearing that it can be done standing at our university vet hospital, but that it could be a 9-12 month recovery. I would not want to do stall rest that long, but has anyone done the surgery and then let the horse putter around in a paddock after a few weeks? I am not concerned about returning to athleticism, but am very concerned about short term and long term pain management, and quality of life. Beautiful 8 year old horse with laminitis and rotation in one front foot that came on very suddenly for reasons that are unclear. We are 8 weeks in, trying various approaches, and will have to euthanize or try the surgery at this point, we believe. Kind, beautiful horse and we want what is best for him.
The two I have seen done (by a major university vet hospital) did not turn out well and the horses wound up euthanized anyway.
I would not do the procedure on one of mine.
So sorry you’re dealing with this, sending jingles.
Yes, I have. Operated Sept 2019; was in a shed/paddock living situation within 8 weeks out and chased us down for carrots. He was galloping & bucking around turnout by 12 weeks out. FYI - started riding again in July 2020. It’s been a journey, but he’s still with me and is living his best life. I did a podcast episode about the experience - https://soulbodyhorse.simplecast.com/episodes/the-brave-healing-journey-of-my-horse-gomez
Feel free to reach out to me directly via the site with any questions. There aren’t many other horses (that I’ve found in the US) that have gone through the surgery and are still around & being ridden 5 years out.
PS - If you haven’t already connected with one, I have found vets trained in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCVM) to be utterly invaluable in making my guy comfortable and illuminating what is going on, because it was sudden & one foot more severe than the other.
We’re rooting for you & your guy <3
I was faced with that decision last November - my vet was going to have a retired vet who had done many of these come out to help, since she had never personally done one. We had laminitis in one front hoof, due to horrible WLD. I wish I had tried the tenotomy before we tried what we did as I might have saved my horse. We did a consult with Dr. Redden and, even though I had concerns about the WLD still having an active spot, we put his special de-rotation shoe on (and one that was built up for the other front so she wouldn’t be so lopsided). Well, that WLD went rogue underneath the shoe and I ended up having to euthanize her after about 6 weeks. It didn’t help that a horse got loose at our farm and my horse went crazy in her run when it was running up and down behind her run. I think that was part of what caused issues. Her whole hoof turned into a massive infection/abscess under that special shoe.
Anyway, I wish I had tried the surgery instead. Since your horse is young, I would absolutely consider it. I was willing to never ride this horse again, just to try and keep her around.
