I agree that there seems to be a lot of variation in aftercare! My vet’s plan is pretty similar to yours though, except with 4 weeks of stall rest instead of 3 and riding starting at 56 days instead of 45. I’m not feeling optimistic about riding in another couple weeks at the moment though. 
I rehabbed one from a severe hind suspensory tear, he was given to me for free as Alamo Pintado doubted he would recover. I handwalked for a month, literally anytime someone in the barn had a free moment they would walk and hand graze him so he got out at least twice a day for 10 mins or more. 2nd month started on the lunge walking for 15 mins, by end of month trotting as well for 10 minutes, for a total of 20 mins. Did that for 3rd and 4th month, by which he was sound and looked great so started cantering him on lunge for a few laps each way towards end of 4th month. He was still going sound 2 plus years later when I gave him to a friend of mine and had even been jumped by a student during that time.
Quoting myself to update. (Feels a little egotistical somehow? But anyway…)
The surgeon finally got back to me and said that he doesn’t even look at them for 60 days, so just keep turning him out and let’s see what he looks like then. Obviously I’m not 100% comforted because we wouldn’t be horse owners if we didn’t worry about our horses, but I guess that’s something. Although I’m not sure if he means he doesn’t know if that’s normal because he personally never sees them until 60 days after OR he deliberately won’t look at them until 60 days after because up until then it’s meaningless (or something else). I really was trying not to look at him but the occasional super short steps in the walk made me worry, so I jogged him. I guess I should have kept my blinders on.
In good news, he’s staying out happily in a small paddock all day now, next to his friends. He does bounce around occasionally but BLINDERS, BLINDERS!
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Libby, the surgeon finally got back to me and said the swelling was completely normal. My mare has her 6 week post-op ultrasound this Monday and I’m terrified. I think her leg looks just horrible, though she is not lame on it at all. She is just all swollen I’m sorry to hear you are going through something similar. I would understand your vet to mean that he would take everything prior to the 60 days with a grain of salt, but I could be wrong.
Thanks, Sonestra! I think you’re probably right. Glad to hear your mare looks comfortable and I hope the swelling goes down. Good luck with the US and let us know how it goes!
So, we have some good news and some so-so news. The good news is that the left hind has totally healed. The so-so news is that the right hind is still too swollen to tell how much healing has been going on. Vet said that the swelling I’m seeing is from the tendon sheath, not so much the ligament itself, and that the ligament is still very “angry” looking. He thinks that there must have been more going on than what the surgeon relayed to me, so he will be contacting him. We will be starting shockwave to reduce the inflammation and try to jump-start the healing process a bit more. I am definitely bummed, but when I asked my vet if he thought she’d be sound and rideable, he said yes, that she will be fixed. He was very certain that she would be fine down the road, which is comforting to me because initially he gave about an 85% change of complete recovery. So, back to worrying and waiting!
Hmm, bummer about the mixed news but I’m glad your vet is confident about a return to soundness!
I had an interesting development. I was thinking my guy looked sore in the SI so I called a vet who does acupuncture and other bodywork. A few days after his first session of acupuncture, I noticed that the swollen area on the right hind was much cooler to the touch than before. At the next visit, the vet also did some manual therapy on the incision area and it flattened out significantly. Jury is still out on how it might help his overall comfort.
I’m happy to report that I jogged my horse again yesterday and he looks MUCH, MUCH better than he did 11 days before, when he was super short in both hinds and looked tight in the SI area. He might not be 100% sound, but it’s quite close. I don’t know if it was just time and turnout, or if the acupuncture helped (I’m a bit of a skeptic).
The swelling on the RH has gone down a lot and it looks and feels pretty much the same as the LH now, which I think is very interesting because it was consistently swollen and warm for over five weeks until the first acupuncture session (when she massaged it).
The vet who did the acupuncture also suggested a few stretches and exercises for his back/SI that I’ve been trying to keep up with, to include:
- Belly lifts;
- Tail pull and push;
- Lifting each hind leg and bringing it up under the body (first he was weirded out but now he relaxes into the stretch);
- Walk poles (she actually suggested putting them in his run or turnout area and letting him exercise himself–sounds great to me, as I’m already short on time!);
- DIY “cold laser” with a bike light (which I already had on recommendation of a different vet), both on acupuncture points and on the incision areas themselves.
We have a slightly early 60-day checkup on Tuesday (actually 54 days because I’m leaving for Florida soon) and I’m curious to see what the surgeon says.
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I was hoping to get my first really short ride in tomorrow (10 minutes of walk). But between the horrible weather and lack of turn out, I’d rather wait instead of fighting with my horse to stay calm.
The weather looks like it will be much better next week so maybe Tuesday or Wednesday.
Well, I got shitty news on Tuesday. My guy is lame on three out of four legs (both hinds and one front). The hind end isn’t too bad and could still show some improvement post-surgery, especially since our checkup was early. The front end is bad though and there isn’t a good explanation for it on x-rays. The vet was really negative about my horse’s prognosis. He says he sees horses with his size and conformation have these exact issues (hind PSD and front collateral ligament, which is his first suspicion for the front end lameness) and never come sound. The fact that he’s not even five, hasn’t worked very hard, and is already lame on three legs is not a good sign. The vet says we can talk about more diagnostics after I get back from Florida with my other horse in six weeks. Until then, he’s just going to be turned out with my old man and the donkey, and I’m going to try not to think/worry about him. My coach thinks I should turn him out for a good six months and see what I have afterwards.
I’ve been crying a lot the last couple of days. I bought this horse as a yearling, started him myself, and had so much fun with him until he went lame in October. He’s a talented dressage horse but he also has the world’s best brain so we were foxhunting a little and he won the first horse trial he entered in September (teeny tiny jumps, but still!). I’ve put so much time, money, and love into him. I’m crushed.
That is awful news. Horses can be so frustrating. Having had him since he was a yearling just makes it that much worse. The only thing I can say is better the issues come up now than 2-3 years down the road when you’re even more invested.
My trainer had a horse like that. She bought the mare before she was even weaned. Right as they were getting ready for 3rd level, kissing spine reared its ugly head. Her mare was very stoic and actually had two spinous processes crossing, not just touching. Two rounds of back surgery later, she still had an unsound horse. The mare is only pasture sound at this point. This happened a few years ago and the treatment for kissing spine has come along way in that time. If the same scenario happened now, she might have had a horse at least sound enough for trail riding.
I did get a chance to ride my mare for the first time since June yesterday. It was just 10 minutes and only at the walk but it still felt SO good to be on a horse again. I put her on the lounge line for 10 minutes on Sunday at the walk on the biggest circle I could make. She was super well behaved both times. I’m going to get on for another 10 minutes today and then give her a couple days off.
Just a brief update for anyone who is curious.
I am now riding about 35-40 minutes 4 days a week. I introduced trot last week but I’m only doing about 5 minutes of that in a ride and not all at once. We take lots of breaks on a completely loose rein.
I’m going to keep it at 40 minutes for at least another couple weeks and work up to 60 minutes over the next 4-6 weeks depending on how she feels.
I’ve actually been having to hold her back some as she has been super willing and much less opinionated than before the surgery. It’s hard to tell how much of that is because she feels better and how much of that is because I’m giving her lots of breaks and praise. Things are less physically demanding overall so that could also factor into it.
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Glad to hear she is doing well!
TM and Sonestra, how are your horses doing?
(Mine is on stall rest for a LF collateral ligament injury now, and just last week an ultrasound showed desmitis of both medial hind suspensory branches–i.e., not the part of the ligament that was addressed by the neurectomy. I am now pretty sure that the surgery was unnecessary and did not address the problem. Ugh.)
She is doing really well except the heat has been getting to her the past couple weeks so I have to be careful with her. It’s been nearly 100F with high humidity.
I’m not asking for the same frame as I used to but I now ride 4 times a week for 45-60 minutes. She is finding shoulder in much easier, stays in front of the leg, stopped fussing with her mouth constantly, and is generally more willing.
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Hi Libby,
I’m terribly sorry to hear about your horse! Why wasn’t that seen on previous ultrasounds?
My horse is doing okay, I think. We are only walking 25 minutes under saddle and the swelling in her right hind is down significantly. The ultrasound shows that there is still one spot that needs to fill in a bit better on her right hind, but it is almost normal. However, she has been really fussy under saddle (in her neck/mouth) , especially if I pick up the left rein, and has been rooting. I had the chiropractor come out and she is sore in her lower back, but not terribly so. I’m worried about SI, hocks or stiles after compensating for this injury for so long. I’ve tried different saddle with no change. The whole thing is so frustrating. Due to my work schedule, progress has been at a snail’s pace.
My sympathies to you. these situations suck.
I retired a mare last year - 15 due to the same basic issues - three of 4 suspensory branches impacted and a small bowed tendon front leg. My vet that the bilateral presentation raised suspicion that it might be degenerative and also told me that hind legs are more likely to have the problems recur. I threw in the towel and moved her as fast as I could to a cheaper place, lots of turnout. Partly because of his comments, and in part because the mare has been 7 years of significant health problems and I’m done.
My current theory is that she will now live to be 35…fat and sassy.
