But He's Out
Scott was by to shoe Toby and trim Chance. Afterwards, he gave Tucker a good going over. He didn't seem sore in his hoof. So, after a bit of rebandaging--Scott really liked the band aid--I took the big boy out to lunge.
OK. So, he limped. But after some careful reconsideration, I realized he was limping on his LEFT front now with his head nodding as the RIGHT front hit. So what now? Scott checked his left front and didn't find anything, but really thought he looked a little "funky" on the right once in a while too.
Now, the shoeing change was pretty radical, so that could be a factor. He'd been in for three weeks so his right stifle could be a problem. OR--heaven knows.
We decided to just turn him out and see how things progress. I left him out on his own for the rest of the evening, locking him in at late feed. It is supposed to be terribly hot today, so I finally decided to just let him go out with the other Boys for the day.
I might have been rushing things, but I don't think they are going to run around too much in the heat and thinking of Tuck locked inside again on a hot day was not making me feel too good.
There are all kinds of medical tests we can yet do to try to figure out what's wrong, but I do not have medical insurance on Tuck and my budget is really limited as to how much I can afford to spend. As long as he's happy and comfortable, I am just going to wait things out with this. I haven't been riding much and I do have both Chance and Toby to ride when I want to. Chance has a lot of potential as a dressage horse should I decide to do some showing again, but I certainly haven't missed the competition. If I can't ride Tucker, that will be just fine.
And, if by some chance I come upon a financial windfall, I might pursue some medical tests for him. If he gets worse, of course, then I certainly will treat him, but right now the limp is so slight you really have to look for it to see it. And he certainly doesn't seem much bothered by whatever it is.
More wait and see.
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We've got almost the same thing going on with Grady. With mystery lameness it is really hard to pinpoint the problem. We're doing the same thing, turning him out and the game of wait and see. The vet will come out in a week or two and maybe inject his tendon sheath? I'm not too good with medical so I hope I remembered that correctly. Anyway, I hope the lameness resolves on its own by some miracle for both our horses.
ReplyDeleteLet's hope it just goes away on its own - those mystery lameness things are very frustrating. When Maisie had her laminitis attack this spring, it was worse in the right front, but then she sometimes also looked sore on the left front - the vet said it could have been because she's been over-weighting it to take weight off the other front. But who knows with these things?
ReplyDeleteBasic turn-out with the herd can work inexplicable wonders. I hope Mother Nature decides to be good to you.
ReplyDeleteUgh. Hopefully some rest and relaxation will do him good. Best of luck!
ReplyDeleteno doubt before you know it he'll be sound again and no one will ever know why he was lame.. shame they can't tell us!
ReplyDeleteHonestly you are doing the right move.
ReplyDeleteIf he REALLY gets worse, then call the vet, otherwise let him be.
How many of us limps, hops, walks all twisted.
You should see how Saul walks lately. But He is not in any sort of kind of pain.
I have also taken this approach to Teena. She is sore, but no heat no swelling in her legs, she has pulses. So what shall I do? She eats well, her eyes are bright and cheeky, she complains LOUDLY that I do not let eat enough grass (because of the pulses, I do not let her eat any grass).
So iwait and see she is out of work. Until she grows more horn to be shod.
Our horses also age and tehy are less athletic then they were, just like us ;-D
Grrr! I'm chiming in with the crowd; those mystery lamenesses really stink! Our Paint gelding has been a little off at the trot for the past year, but with our super limited budget & lack of plans for him, the vet has pretty much said there's no point in pursuing an absolute diagnosis. He's a cheerful horse who clearly enjoys life & begs to go on trail rides with the hubs, so that's what we do. I always wonder if it's the right thing to do, but knowing how opinionated he is, I feel like he'll tell us if he doesn't want to go for rides or is in pain. Sometimes you just have to do what feels right in your gut and go with it. I'll keep my fingers crossed that Tuck comes out if it :-)
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