Vet Exam

Not Much to Report

The vet is pretty well convinced the lameness is in Tucker's foot.  X-rays did not show anything except perhaps a very slight drop of the coffin bone, but I'm not so sure it's not pretty identical to the situation we can see in X-rays I have from several years ago when Tucker last had an abscess.

Scott had dropped by yesterday, pulled Tuck's shoe and done his own exam, not finding too much either.  But as I recall, when we did have a hidden abscess before, hoof testers were not very helpful either.  So, for the nonce, I am going to treat is as an abscess and do the soaking and poulticing routine for about a week.  If nothing resolves by then, the vet will probably come out again for some more tests.  She did tell me to watch for any signs of lameness in the other front foot, as laminitis is always always a concern with front lameness.  Still what showed up in the X-rays was so minimal probably not a worry here.

The hocks?  Again, there is not a lot of significant arthritis, but his joints spaces are pretty narrow, again common as horses age and the cartilage gets worn away.  I am going to wait until he is sound in front and then probably get his joints injected just so he is more comfortable.  We could have done it today, but I figured there'd be no real point as he's stuck inside and can't be exercised anyhow.

Tuck's hocks are actually surprisingly clean for a dressage horse, so that's kind of good, but I do know how a lack of cushion in the joints can hurt, so I'm guessing that he protests his work at times due to some discomfort.  I was going to get my own knees injected a few months ago, but got sidetracked with this teaching job, so I guess I will do Tuck the favor instead.

Temperatures are on the rise.  By 11 AM it was already a bit over 80F.  I have a feeling this afternoon will be in the 90's.  Crazy since the other day it was in the 40's during the day and freezing at night.  Quite a radical change here.

I'll go out and soak Tucker's foot a little later and put some fresh bedding in his stall.  I might give Chance a little work if I'm not too worn out by that point.  My energy level is lower than I'd like it to be, that's for sure.

Oh, yes, the vet is sending Scott, my farrier, the X-rays too, so he will have a good idea as to what's going on.  I'll be interested to hear his take on it all.