Splint Question?? Update: Recheck results post 12

[Stitch_In_Time]

I know there are a million threads discussing splints, but I’ve been having issues since February and I’m wondering if anyone else has experienced something like this? (Sorry it ended up being so long)

Background: Horse is a 12 yo paint mare who I have owned for 4 years. She is my lower level eventing horse (or was supposed to be), but due to the splints we have been focusing on dressage this summer.

Timeline:

Late February- Noticed a hard bump on the inside of her RF, Horse was sound on the lunge line. Vet examined and x-rayed (traditional not digital). Dx was bone bruise, stall rest, tack walking, increasing work gradually. She could be turned out again once she was cantering under saddle. (about 4 weeks)

Rehab was uneventful, stayed sound, she was turned back out at the end of march.

End of May: We went to a hunter/jumper show to get her out jumping again. Jumped 4 courses ending with a 2’6" course. Rode a couple flat classes and then put her away. Got her out to hand walk in the evening and noticed that the splint bump was larger and there was some swelling lower down on her cannon bone. Hand walked, put standing wraps on her and took her home the next day. Called a vet with digital x-ray for an appt.

Early April: Haul to clinic, full lameness exam and x-rays. Horse is completely sound, x-rays show a possible healing/healed fracture line. Vet thinks she just whacked her leg at the show and irritated it (no swelling since show). 2 weeks light work then bring back to full work.

At this point I decided to take a break from jumping to give her time to heal.

July: Notice a hard bump on her LF leg about the size of a pencil eraser, decide I’m imagining things and need my head examined…

July/August: The bump grew slightly in size, no swelling, no pain, no lameness. On the advice of several exp. horse people I continued riding her on the flat. The bump stayed the same.

End of August: I popped over a couple tiny cross rails figuring I would start from the ground up with jumping again. I then left for vacation and she a 1 1/2 weeks off.

Now: The lump on her leg is now bigger, and for the past 2 weeks or so has been painful when palpated. She is still sound.

I am going to haul her back up to the vet to have this leg x-rayed, but I’m really scratching my head trying to figure out why my 12 yo horse is popping splints? The footing is good, her workload hasn’t changed (in fact it’s less since we aren’t jumping). The splint in February I chalked up to a wrong move on frozen ground, but I can’t explain the one that appeared on the other leg in July??

The only 2 things that have changed are that she has been barefoot since last October, and I started her on Acetyl-D Glucosamine in the spring. The only supplement she gets is MSM.

[jetsmom]

I’d guess that she may need shoes for support. She seems to have changed her way of going enough to stress her legs more. Maybe less traction, so there are different forces at play on her legs, or she is tender soled, and using herself differently. But I’d try shoes again (at least front), and see how she does.

Shockwave therapy can help quicken healing.

[Stitch_In_Time]

[QUOTE=jetsmom;8320757]
I’d guess that she may need shoes for support. She seems to have changed her way of going enough to stress her legs more. Maybe less traction, so there are different forces at play on her legs, or she is tender soled, and using herself differently. But I’d try shoes again (at least front), and see how she does.

Shockwave therapy can help quicken healing.[/QUOTE]

She is actually rock crunching sound barefoot. I considered putting front shoes on earlier this year when I had the LF x-rayed but the vet advised against it because she was so sound on the asphalt. I really don’t want to put shoes on now, they would only be on for 1 cycle before I pulled them for winter.

[Pennywell_Bay]

[QUOTE=Stitch In Time;8320863]
She is actually rock crunching sound barefoot. I considered putting front shoes on earlier this year when I had the LF x-rayed but the vet advised against it because she was so sound on the asphalt. I really don’t want to put shoes on now, they would only be on for 1 cycle before I pulled them for winter.[/QUOTE]

Rock crunching sound may not be the issue.

If the horse is 12 and having these problems, I’d consider a new farrier. If the horse’s hooves are not balanced, it can cause splints, at least in young horses. Perhaps a farrier can weigh in on their thoughts.

[Stitch_In_Time]

[QUOTE=Pennywell Bay;8320886]
Rock crunching sound may not be the issue.

If the horse is 12 and having these problems, I’d consider a new farrier. If the horse’s hooves are not balanced, it can cause splints, at least in young horses. Perhaps a farrier can weigh in on their thoughts.[/QUOTE]

This thought has definitely crossed my mind. The farrier that I use is considered one of the best in the area, but I don’t think he trims many barefoot horses. I haven’t been real happy with the way he’s been trimming her. To me it looks like he’s not taking enough off of the inside of her foot, and if that’s the case putting shoes back on is not going to solve the problem. The odd thing is that he’s been trimming her for a year and a half, and I didn’t start having problems until February.

I’ll make sure to have the vet look at her feet when I get her x-rayed and get their thoughts. I’m definitely open to switching farriers if I have to but it’s hard to find good farriers in this area.

[ferndixlou]

I am dealing with a similar problem now! my horse was competing at the preliminary level & fractured his inside right front splint in February. He was only slightly off on a left circle. Rested and walked for 6 weeks, gradually back to work. Re ultra sounded in May fracture 100% healed. Vet cleared him to go back in full work 6/1. Did a training level event end of July. Slightly sore on splint again after that. Ultrasound showed splint active again and now rubbing suspensory. Injected splint gave him 4 weeks rest. Everything was quiet again so we started back in light work for 3 weeks and now he is very slightly off again on left circle.

Excellent farrier & vet both considered among best in country. Vet feels like things are going in right direction advised to walk him for a month and then start back again… seems like an endless cycle

Side notes: Splint can not be removed because it is too high & surgery would involve screws etc. Vet also advised against shockwave. This horse fractured his inside left front splint 2 years ago & it healed up with no issues.

[chicamux]

When horses are barefoot they can wear their own feet unevenly and cause stresses to structures in the legs. Your farrier cannot prevent this natural wearing off of the hooves without putting shoes on the critter. Changes in hoof balance can very easily cause splint problems that may go on and on. I recall a middle aged gelding that had been sound for years and barefoot until he was taken to a new barn. He got a new farrier and was shod because of the farms many gravel drives. He began a chronic splint problem that got worse with jumping. His hoof balance was probably changed by new farrier. Or because he was shod he no longer could wear his own feet to the same levels that he had while barefoot.

You did not say if you had switched farriers around the time you took her barefoot or if your farrier was SHOEING her while she was sound and shod and into the barefoot period.

[silverdog]

Ferndixlou - Had a very similar prob. Thankfully the splint was low enough that the vet just removed the lump and the lower part of the splint bone. Horse did fine.

[joiedevie99]

Ditto what others are saying about needing shoes - it’s not a soundness question - its a balance question.

While you are at the vet, I’d shoot some hoof balance x-rays to see what you are working with - but keep in mind exactly how many days into the trim cycle the horse is, since that will effect what you are seeing. I’d be inclined to x-ray the horse late in the cycle to see if the horse is wearing them unevenly (and thus needs shoes). If you wanted to check up on the farriers trim, you’d want the x-rays as soon as possible after trimming.

If you haven’t done so already, I’d ultrasound the splints as well to make sure there is no soft tissue irritation caused by the scar tissue which was causing the occasional swelling.

[JASecond]

I’m very much having the same problem. Horse popped a left front outside splint. Confirmed via x-ray given 3 weeks off injected the splint, didn’t hold up to being back in work. Re-x-rayed, splint 95% healed so gave another 3 weeks off and appeared fully sound. Walked then trotted, not holding up once we started cantering. Vet coming again tomorrow. Very frustrated.

[Stitch_In_Time]

I’ll add an update to this thread since it’s been bumped back up.

The vet was out last Wednesday. She watched the horse jog, horse was sound on a straight line, about 2/5 lame on a circle to the right. We x-rayed the splint and it is fractured, non-displaced and not interfering with the suspensory. The splint is too high up for surgery. She is on 2 weeks stall rest,2 weeks small paddock turnout then reevaluate.

I questioned the balance of her feet because I’m not sure what else could be causing these. We took hoof x-rays (5 weeks from last trim), The following is what the vet sent me about her feet:

Horse has long toes both feet (1 cm RF and 1.5 cm LF), her heels are pretty even (0.5cm higher on lateral heel/outside on LF), she has inside hoof wall flare on the RF and outside hoof wall flare LF.

I will be discussing all this with my farrier, but the vet didn’t feel that her feet are off enough to cause problems. Her theory is that she travels close up front and she whacked herself (I always ride in boots unless I’m riding a dressage test in a show). The vet that looked at her the first time said that these are usually twisting injuries and maybe she did it running around in the field. We never see her running around but she’s a horse so who knows??

The vet feels that once this heals she’ll return to full soundness and be able to jump again. I plan to take jumping lessons on another horse for now, we’ll take it easy over the winter and I’ll try to start her back jumping once the ground thaws in March.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/125205613@N05/albums/72157659003581848

[Stitch_In_Time]

“You did not say if you had switched farriers around the time you took her barefoot or if your farrier was SHOEING her while she was sound and shod and into the barefoot period.”

No farrier change at all, we pulled her shoes for the winter last year and just never put them back on.

[Stitch_In_Time]

Just an update in case anyone is interested:

I hauled my mare back to the vet yesterday for a recheck because she was still not sound. The vet examined her, and watched her jog. He decided to start with blocking her foot to rule out heel pain. There was no change after the block, so we moved on and blocked the splint in the area of the fracture. This block gave us about a 50% improvement, he went ahead and blocked the high suspensory to see if we could get her 100% sound. There was no change after the suspensory block, so the vet feels that the pain is coming from the splint fracture. He did not recommend ultrasounding the suspensory at this point since there was no change after the block.

The vet felt that her feet are very well balanced, but he thinks that the concussive forces going up her legs changed when I took her barefoot. He has recommended shoes and pads up front, and 60 days rest with small paddock turnout. We will recheck in January, and hopefully she will be cleared to go back to work.

I saw a different more experienced vet this time, and I was much happier with his exam and I feel more confident with his plan. This vet kind of just shook his head at the other vets treatment plan (and she works for him!), 1 month off is simply not enough for this injury. I asked the original vet several times if having her barefoot was the problem and she was confident that it was not (and I believed her because the horses feet are nicely balanced), the vet last night felt it was not a balance problem, but a problem with the way the bone is absorbing concussion. Hopefully we are on the right track and I will have my horse back after the new year.