Have you ever just thrown an injured/rehab horse out to pasture?

[INoMrEd]

Once I felt I was at the end of my rope, I decided in January 2018 to have my 12 year old gelding’s shoes pulled and find another place for my rescue project.

Here’s the abbreviated version: Vinnie was purchased by me in February 2014 from the original woman who rescued him. He passed a very expensive pre-purchase exam with full x-rays. Fast forward a couple of years and he was very lame due to what I refer to as farrier f#&@ery. His hooves kept getting smaller and smaller and the heels lower and lower.

After having spend thousands of dollars on diagnostics and farrier work, my hoof/lameness vet who hooked me up with a great farrier who would actually follow his instructions, suggested an MRI, as there was some improvement but he still was not 100% sound. I decided against that as we’d already spent more on vet bills than we did for the horse. To say I was frustrated would be a huge understatement. My vet agreed thinking that being barefoot and having time to recuperate would be beneficial.

I found a place about 20 minutes away from the boarding stable where my other horse Louie lives and put him there in a 24 x 36 paddock for over a year. He was sound as of February of this year so at the end of the month I brought him back to the boarding stable and I am in the process of slowly bringing him back to full work.

[Dressagelvr]

If we’re just talking about soft tissue injuries: never turnout until stall rest and treatment protocol has been completed.

If things still don’t look good after 9 or 12 months, then sometimes Dr. Green is the best medicine. But, you have to start very slowly and gradually build up to 24/7. Of course, this assumes that adequate shelter and turnout company (even in an adjoining paddock) is available.

The one thing in your specific case that gives me pause is the allergy factor. Respiratory and skin allergies are often worsened by turnout. It is important that you run panels to know specifically what the allergies are.

Then your job is both to immunize as much as possible while also minimizing exposure to the allergens.

Good luck. I hope it all works out for you!

[CanteringCarrot]

@Dressagelvr

If we’re just talking about soft tissue injuries: never turnout until stall rest and treatment protocol has been completed.

If things still don’t look good after 9 or 12 months, then sometimes Dr. Green is the best medicine. But, you have to start very slowly and gradually build up to 24/7. Of course, this assumes that adequate shelter and turnout company (even in an adjoining paddock) is available.

The one thing in your specific case that gives me pause is the allergy factor. Respiratory and skin allergies are often worsened by turnout. It is important that you run panels to know specifically what the allergies are.

Then your job is both to immunize as much as possible while also minimizing exposure to the allergens.

Good luck. I hope it all works out for you!

I know his allergens since he was tested. He has respiratory allergens with the highest being dust and mold. Some plants. However, he has always done better outside than in a stable environment. I tried to stall him before, even with good ventilation, it’s really better for him to live outside or in a stall (wet hay, shavings) with a run attached that’s always open to him. We have not immunized because it hasn’t come to that. He hasn’t needed his nebulizer inhalor in months and is doing surprisingly well with the arriving pollen (not high on his allergens though for the most part - tree pollens that is). I was completely open to immunize, it just hasn’t been warranted yet after I changed his environment.

It’s the one thing he has going for him at this moment.

[beowulf]

@Dressagelvr

The one thing in your specific case that gives me pause is the allergy factor. Respiratory and skin allergies are often worsened by turnout. It is important that you run panels to know specifically what the allergies are.

I agree with your above post but stopped at this. It varies from horse to horse, but I have seen horses do much better outside than in when they have respiratory issues, allergies, or COPD. I have had horses in my management program that were night and day (some COPD, too) when we kept them out vs bringing them in at night. YMMV.

[HappyTalk]

Yes. I have a dressage horse that had grade 3 lesions both front suspensories (he did end up eventually being diagnosed with Cushings several year later ). We tried shock wave and rest w/ limited turnout which only brought him to Grade 2. We then tried ACell injections ( this was in the day before IRAP, stem cell, etc). He was stall rested for a week or two and then turned out to pasture. He is the type that is not stupid and takes care of himself. After about nine months he was slowly brought back into work. He went on from a dressage career to one in competitive trail and was very sound . We only did the 15 milers but he was capable covering those 15 miles in under two hours and over hilly, rough terrain. He is now a retired 30 year old and out in my pasture. My vet still marvels at his legs. He has the cleanest legs he has ever seen on an old horse; no puffiness, splints, etc. I was still galloping and jumping him over logs at age 26.

[BrookdaleBay]

4 years ago my horse had a suspensory strain - ultrasound showed abnormal fibres, no tears. He’s a quiet guy in turnout, so my vet said to continue his normal turnout routine as long as he does stay quiet. He had three months off in total, then slowly came back into work. He’s 24 now and still going strong.

[Texarkana]

I rehabbed horses for a living in a past life, but when it comes to my own horses, I let Dr. Green handle a lot of it.

I’ve had really good luck with using corral panels or electric tape on step-in posts to make easily-adjustable medical paddocks to suit your needs when confinement is completely necessary. For example, for my horse who was laid up for a year, it became evident a few weeks in that straight stall rest with limited hand-walking was doing more harm than good. Stall-sized paddocks were a better option for confinement in terms of mental health of the horse (and handler!). Those paddocks were gradually enlarged, which allowed the horse to do a lot of the hand-walking herself and also prevented the typical overly excited reaction to turnout after an injury.

[CanteringCarrot]

@Texarkana

I rehabbed horses for a living in a past life, but when it comes to my own horses, I let Dr. Green handle a lot of it.

I’ve had really good luck with using corral panels or electric tape on step-in posts to make easily-adjustable medical paddocks to suit your needs when confinement is completely necessary. For example, for my horse who was laid up for a year, it became evident a few weeks in that straight stall rest with limited hand-walking was doing more harm than good. Stall-sized paddocks were a better option for confinement in terms of mental health of the horse (and handler!). Those paddocks were gradually enlarged, which allowed the horse to do a lot of the hand-walking herself and also prevented the typical overly excited reaction to turnout after an injury.

The good thing is, I think that I can be flexible with his space as we have several paddocks and a few different sizes of fields and I could use temporary fencing as you mentioned, which may be a good idea. As much as he’d love to stay out in the very large field with a group of geldings, I don’t know that it’s in the cards for him this year.

He has a small, flat, even footing, paddock attached to his stall that I’ll keep open for him. It’s about twice the size of his stall. Not big but provides fresh air and he can see what’s going on outside.

I’m 90% sure he has a ligament injury. Just a gut feeling and the way it has presented itself. I’d love to be proved wrong at our appointment this coming week, but I don’t feel like that’s going to happen. I was really looking forward to competing this guy this year, but such is life.

[S1969]

@scrbear11

Interesting. My normal vet, and the lameness vet in our area (very well known) both do not like or encourage 24/7 turnout. Obviously, there are instances where 24/7 turnout is necessary. Both preach, the field is for eating, the box is for resting.

For rehab, or in general?

I think this is an odd statement for a vet to make - stalls are the unnatural part of that equation, not turnout.

In a properly created herd (not overcrowded, enough food, etc.) horses are able to rest outside as well as (or better) than in stalls.

I suppose vets might often see threadbare pastures, unsafe fencing/footing, no shelter, and too much competition for food. But if done correctly, I can’t see why a vet wouldn’t think 24/7 turnout (or access to turnout) is at least as good, if not better than stalling for most horses.

[ClaireBear_NZ]

I turned my then 23 year old Cushings horse out when he damaged a hind flexor tendon. He lived out 24/7 in a small paddock/large yard anyway and my vet advised against box rest because of his arthritis and because it would ruin him mentally.

He hasn’t taken a lame step since the initial injury but is now semi-retired due to a combination of factors (age, Cushings, time on my part etc).

[CanteringCarrot]

So, said horse’s suspensory was good to go, but he has a hematoma on his DDFT. Likely no tearing, but a recheck in a couple of weeks. This horse hits himself behind, and while I do ride him in boots, the other 23 hours of the day he’s left to his own devices. So he could have very well knocked himself and caused trauma. He’s much more sound 1/5 lame. Swelling is gone.

So we’ll walk under saddle on good footing (nothing deep) and see what happens at the recheck. So he’s not being completely “thrown out” …yet. :winkgrin: