Update p.18: it's a stifle injury Elevated digital pulse - but only in hind feet?

[alteredcarbon]

I’m at a loss, google isn’t helping, but I don’t think this is emergency vet territory. Has anyone got experience with a horse being vaguely off (popping up and then escalating over several days) and having an elevated digital pulse, but only in the hinds? Horse is barefoot, wears hoof boots in front in turnout and during riding, lives outside but the pasture is pretty poor so she mostly stands under her shelter.

Under saddle we walk/trot on trails, short rides most days. Recently she’s been feeling a little off, not really lame but soft behind? I thought maybe it was just some soreness so I backed off the work a bit, but today was the worst it has been in a while. My friend says she looks “disjointed” like her body is going in all different directions, and her hind feet are swinging out and around instead of in like usual (she wears brushing boots behind because she usually interferes).

She is shifting her weight back and forth between her hind feet and has an elevated pulse on both hind feet but normal on the fronts. I kept her in with some bute and will check her pulses in the morning but does anyone have any ideas what this could be? Laminitis in the hinds only? Google is only telling me how to take a pulse or about front end laminitis, which isn’t helpful.

I will call the vet if needed but I’ve never even heard of a horse having laminitis in the back feet only, or anything like this at all.

[barnesthenoble]

I have heard of cases where horses have laminitis only in the hind feet, or start only in the hind feet. Could also be inflammation from a different issue higher up. Could be an abscess brewing that isn’t ready to pop yet and she’s inflamed the other foot trying to keep weight off the really sore one.

How long has it been since she was last trimmed? Any recent changes in diet, weather, lifestyle that correlate with the weirdness behind? Any heat in the lower limbs/feet? Does she wear fly boots? Have the bugs recently gotten a lot worse, could she be stomping hard at flies and bruised her feet? Do you have a pair of hoof testers available to you?

I wouldn’t necessarily make this an emergency after hours vet call yet, but I would be trying to make an appointment this week, if it were one of mine.

[alteredcarbon]

She is due for a trim (5 weeks) next week. I started her on a higher calorie diet in April, it’s not crazy high NSC but it’s not low either. An abscess could be brewing I guess. She does wear fly boots on all 4 and the bugs haven’t been any worse recently than they have all spring/summer. She used to wear boots all around but the farrier thought she would be okay with them only on the front.

No heat anywhere I can feel. No hoof testers either, but she is bullnosed on the hinds and had some really bad long feet (long story) not that long ago. They’re better and I’ve been swiping at the toes when they get chippy. When I swipe at her hind toes she immediately goes from slightly camped under to more square. I take very little just enough to flatten the chips and take any sharp edges off but I have done it twice since the end of May. Could I have caused this? I thought that the standing more square was a good thing…

[barnesthenoble]

@alteredcarbon

When I swipe at her hind toes she immediately goes from slightly camped under to more square. I take very little just enough to flatten the chips and take any sharp edges off but I have done it twice since the end of May. Could I have caused this? I thought that the standing more square was a good thing…

While not impossible, I think it’s unlikely that this is coming from you swiping at her toes to help with chipping. Generally yes, standing square is a good thing, assuming she’s not parking out really far behind herself or leaning forward or backward substantially when she’s doing it (which could indicate trying to get weight off her feet/relieve pain).

It would be helpful to get a slightly clearer timeline to help you pinpoint.

So she was trimmed 4 weeks ago. Was the wonkiness behind present before that? Or has it developed in the past 4 weeks? When were her feet really long/how many trims ago did they start getting addressed? When exactly did you start to notice the NQR behind, and has it been present every day since you noticed it, or only occasionally until the last couple days? When did you notice the pulses for the first time–today? Is the bullnosing new? Does she drag her hind toes?

What was she eating before, and what is she eating now? Why did you change?

[NaturallyHappy]

If she wears boots in front, I would wonder about “road” founder if the ground is really hard.

[alteredcarbon]

She’s definitely not parking out. I’ve just never seen such an immediate change when I swipe at them like that.

She was trimmed about 3 weeks ago (I was wrong). She didn’t start presenting notable not quite right or lameness until 3-4 days ago, she was just giving me normal unfit horse things before that. Her feet were neglected before she came to me and we have been addressing them since December they were really long. I just noticed the pulses today, and she only drags her feet at the trot on concrete, that’s new I think. The bullnosing is maybe new like I said her feet were really long but not bullnosed really. Hard to tell.

She was eating Kalm and easy, 2 scoops a day. I added two scoops of ultium a day to that in March or April because she was skinny and not gaining weight. She also gets grass hay and some alfalfa as a snack. She’s not fat but she’s not underweight anymore.

[alteredcarbon]

I wondered about that? I had been riding in boots all around for a couple months and turning out in boots all around for a few weeks but it’s really a pain trying to keep her from getting rubs so my farrier said she could do just fronts. I haven’t noticed a difference in her until this week but I had noticed her sometimes being tender on the big gravel driveway even in boots on all four. After that I rode her across it with boots on the front only and she was only tender on her bare hind feet so idk.

Our ground did dry up in the last month or so, but it’s not concrete hard just yet it’s still okay on the grassier areas.

[alteredcarbon]

Update:

1g bute in dinner and 3.5-4 hours in the stall has the bounding pulse gone out of the right hind but still present in the left hind. I’m leaving her in overnight and will check the pulses again in the morning before deciding if I will turn her out for the day. I want to, and I’ll likely put boots all around again if I can manage it.

I rode her right before finding the pulses. Not even 30 minutes and only a few minutes of trotting. She got progressively worse as the ride went on, which isn’t normal for her and has been happening the last few days. Could this point to road/mechanical laminitis? Maybe an abscess in the left? I’ll get the vet out most likely since I should probably get xrays of the hooves I think?

Ugh. I’m already looking at a huge vet bill for one of my oldies that’s being strange. This is going to hurt my wallet.

[ATXmom]

I would start icing the hinds right away.

I lost my daughters horse to laminitis several years ago that started in his hinds. If I were you I’d be pretty aggressive with treating but YMMV

[alteredcarbon]

That’s what I’m afraid of but she’s only 6 and there’s no heat in her feet they’re nice and cool?

I can ice them. It won’t be easy but I can. I’ll call the vet first thing tomorrow, maybe they can squeeze us in since the office is close to me.

[ATXmom]

It may end up being nothing but after our experience (which was horrible and I would not wish on my worst enemy) I lean towards being super aggressive early on.

Hopefully, it will turn out to be benign but ice never hurts

[alteredcarbon]

Update again:

No elevated pulse this morning in either hind foot so I’m putting her outside. I have a call in to the vet to see if they can come out today and check her, I’m guessing xrays might be a good idea? To check for thin soles or a bad abscess.

[ATXmom]

Glad to hear!

[FjordBCRF]

@alteredcarbon

I can ice them. It won’t be easy but I can. I’ll call the vet first thing tomorrow, maybe they can squeeze us in since the office is close to me.

If you suspect laminitis, check out the ECIR site on icing. They do not recommended icing for laminitis; something to do with restricting circulation when it needs to be promoted I think.

[alteredcarbon]

Oh, I didn’t know that but it makes sense.

[alteredcarbon]

Also, update again. Vet can’t come until Friday but my mare came in from turnout with no discernible elevated pulses in either of her back feet. I’m going to bute some more and keep an eye on her until the vet can come out.

[FjordBCRF]

When Charlie started his last flare up I bought the ice boots and have yet to use them now . Good to have handy though!

[alteredcarbon]

Update again: it’s a stifle injury.

Vet was out today and did a lameness exam where the general conclusion was “off behind, reactive to hoof testers on the front”, not anything firm enough to block. Wobblers was mentioned, as she did fail the tail pull test by letting me pull her way off to the side both ways. I decided to xray the feet because she was reactive to hoof testers and the vet said the soles were super thin, maybe rotation in front but also likely to be farrier related instead.

We took X-rays of her stifle that sometimes locks up a bit and saw nothing bony but the ultrasound shows fibers in the joint, inflammation and fluid, with ligament and meniscus damage. Not new but definitely a reinflammation or worsening of an older injury. I do not know if it was a tear or anything like that but I will get the report soon and know more. IRAP, PRP, and ProStride were suggested as options but the vet wants to consult for best practices and said to rest and bute her for now. I guess the question for the consult is if surgery is needed.

I’m hoping to hear more soon, but for now I’m wondering about stifle prognosis for something like this. I’ve only had mild stifle catching issues before, nothing that would really show up on ultrasound.