Grade 3 is ataxic. Some find a way to compensate most of the time more than others. A friend just put down a 5 year old who had been showing and jumping. One big compression site and several other abnormalities. He could run and buck and play and jump. But he also fell at least twice in turnout. Once not able to get away from another horse. Once he went up to buck and play and forgot the landing gear. Those were the ones witnessed. Who knows if anything else happened. He also had a rotational fall after a jump and thankfully horse and rider only had minor injuries. If he hadnāt fallen in turnout, they might have retired him. Insurance was also a factor as he was purchased as a show horse. The vets advised that he was not safe to himself or others and also did not recommend surgery for his case.
Yes, I understand heās just compensating. Was just trying to explain heās not actually falling and/or damaging himself as we speak.
Anyway, Iām an engineer and very far from believing different āmagic pillsā or some weird āexpertsā whoād say they can fix or telepathically communicate with my horse from a photo or sth like. Iām consulting with Dr Kasparek and Dr Grant for surgery, whoās leading export for him. Then also with Equitom equine clinic and some other veterinary contact from our physio.
Iām very sorry to hear you and your horse are going through this ā¦unfortunately no amount of physio , chiropractic, accupunture , supplements , injections etc will fix wobblers (compression of the spinal cord) the best thing to do is stop riding the horse and retire him as a pasture pet.
He was never ridden. The question is whether to just keep him in pasture before he gets worse or try to do preventive surgery.
Iāve waited 10 years to buy my dream horse (I already have another pasture petā¦), and this is what I got for 10k euros 
If it helps, I know people with this exact story who spent $80k USD (76k euro or so). And a few six figure horses over here in the states. And a few cheap horses too. Unfortunately, it seems that the movement and scope we want in the show ring is tied to neuro findings somewhat.
Unfortunately, we just donāt know enough about neuro and spinal anything in horses to rule issues in or outā¦ not until the horse is symptomatic, anyway. And young horses DO go through strange phases, which doesnāt help.
Iām sorry youāre dealing with this. Itās been eye opening to go back through my journal with my neuro horse. At least now I know how to spot some of the warning signs.
Hi all, despite advices I couldnāt make myself give up just yet. The re-evaluation of the neuro exam put my horse on grade 2 (as I originally thought, not 3). It seems because original exam was after a very long drive, his neuro symptoms were very exaggerated. He is still in clinics, so the vet had long time to observe him, saw itās not that bad, re-evaluated him and put him on grade 2. She also told me he recovered exceptionally well from anesthesia during myelogram. He was up on legs from the first try despite ataxia and was very socially active (with people, was not at herd of course) pretty much immediately after he was led to box. He seems very content at the clinic, and all this put him as a good candidate for surgery & rehab path. The filmed version of neuro test was also shared with Dr. Grant, leading expert on this surgery, and he confirmed grade 2 and chance for surgical success.
I have a very good home for him where he could be rehabbed with a physio specialist, and there he could stay. He would be outside, so not risk to anyone, and we can start light work (in hand) if we are lucky and surgery is success.
It is not cheap thoughā¦ at allā¦ But after getting to know multiple success stories (talking directly to owners, not to vets), I just had to try. We will have surgery next week most likely. From my own āresearchā mostly the people who were very unhappy about surgery were show jumpers as their horses almost never recovered ability to jump. This is irrelevant for me, my other horse could also never jump for other reasons, I still have and was ok not jumping all 10 years I already own him. From other disciplines, I found multiple content people who even returned to riding after surgery. I donāt have much of this hope but we will see.
Best wishes for good results!
OP: Iām sure you have heard this, but just in case: The ābasket surgeryā if thatās what you are considering, is very expensive - I was quoted $15-$20,000. Rehab is very long and tedious. Stall rest required for several months. There is a thread here āCervical OA and Basket Surgeryā that is worth reading. Good things, setbacks, injections still done even post surgery, etc.
You will make the decision thatās right for you, and will almost certainly get moral support here no matter what the choice. I opted to do almost nothing to my 12ish yr old gelding. He is retired due to tripping etc. He is on daily prednisone - vet said not clear where to inject joints for relief, so this route keeps his inflammation in check. It of course creates other problems healthwise but is a fairly inexpensive way to delay the ābig decisionā. Hugs to you, its not a fun path to be on.
yes, I know the cost 
But decided to try it anyway.
Thanks for the tip with the thread, I will read it. I cannot decide between doing rehab in Germany or at our home stable. I see pros and cons in both approachesā¦ Even if I do not mention financial differences.
I am here for this approach.
Iāve spent stupid amounts of money on animals to help them achieve quality of life ā but, I canāt force that to happen, I can only give it the best try. Heck Iām doing it now for a horse. [I know someone who is taking on a part-time second job to support major rehab for her dog, in the anticipation that the dog will enjoy a great life as a result ā but if it isnāt done (or isnāt successful), is likely a candidate for euth, sadly.]
But Iāve also come to the conclusion that it is not kind or fair to ask an animal to cope with significant impairments, when I can see that the animal is truly distressed.
Just my own observation that animals donāt have the internal resources to cope with serious life impairment, the way people sometimes can. All the animal knows is how bad it feels right now. And how threatened, due to natural instincts of dread of what happens to an impaired wild animal, an instinct hard-wired into the brain.
Just some general remarks. Not necessarily germane to the OPās current situation with her horse, which seems much more optimistic.
That was the final, definitive sign that it was time to let my aging dog pass over the bridge.
He was gradually struggling more with basic navigation, but seemed to do ok with some extra area rugs covering hard floors.
Until we found signs that when he was alone in the house, even for just an hour, he would be down and couldnāt get up. Dog-sized spots of hair on the rugs ā that had never happened before. Poor boy!
It seemed he would try to get to his bed but didnāt always make it. Heād go down on some random spot on the floor, and there he would be, until he had more energy. Within a day or two of realizing this, it happened when people were at home, and we saw it.
He really couldnāt be left alone any more. He needed so much support from humans just to get through an hour or a day. And he was less cheerful and more anxious about his situation. Putting it all together, that was the time to allow him to make a graceful exit before he was in any more distress.
Many jingles for you and your boy. I hope youāre able to keep us updated 
Some animals have much more try and determination then others. It entirely depends on the horse. Think of Endo the blind. Who could imagine a blind horse doing all those things?
Absolutely there are situations where it is cruel to continue. But sometimes you wonāt know until you try. You wonāt know how well a horse will handle the surgery and recovery until you make that attempt. Some horses may handle it just fine, while others not so much.
I say that because it isnāt my money being spent on this horse. I donāt know anything about this horses personality. I do know my older horses are much more patient and likely to handle recovery then my young horses. It entirely depends on the horse.
If you can afford it and the results look promising, give it a try. If youāre anything like me, youāll want to know at least you tried something, and not spend years thinking that you could have done something but didnāt. Best of luck on the surgery and recovery.
Luckily, from my two horses, this younger one is the one that I think could make the rehab. Heās extremely sweet and calm with people and clinic, even my surgeon, who originally did not really advise surgery, changed her mind after observing my horse for more time. He is very gentle and seem to know, at least in some way, that we are helping him. He has no symptoms of explosive and/or unpredictable behavior sometimes associated with Wobblers. He is a very easy-going nice lad that goes miles to please his people. If any horse deserves this chance, itās him.
Also, from observing results of other people, Iād say I see mostly sport people not satisfied with the result of the surgery. Usually show jumpers that cannot jump even after surgery. Several people PTS the horses after successful surgery because āthey did not get better, though they were not in painā. I find this confusing. It seems the horses were low grade, not falling and not in pain. I didnāt ask more but assume this is situation where people just did not want to have a pasture pet. I do not mind a pasture pet. Yes, I would prefer a horse for riding, but this is life, it doesnāt always go as we want. If I can have this horse for a simple liberty work only, then so be it, he deserves that much. If he can join on my walks on other horse in the nature, without his own rider, amazing, even better.
Of course, if heād end up in pain, thatās another story and euthanizing will be considered. But if heās not falling and not in pain, he deserves to just be a horseā¦ Iām trying not to think how much money it costs. I rather think about it in terms of time. Am I ready to work for 2 years 3-4 extra days in month to give my boy a chance? Well, of course. I like my job anyway.
There you answered my 2 questions I asked above. No, he is not a danger of falling on people and yes, he may have a chance at a pain free life as pasture pet or best case after surgery/rehab of being ridden at a recreational level. Best wishes for a successful surgery and rehab and many years together.
My boy is gone š„¹ Itās over.
I am so sorry 
Iām so sorry.
Aww Iām so sorry
