Re: sore, sore, sore

MA Sandy wrote:

> The BO and I managed to somehow COMPLETELY miss one shoing cycle of
> Reason's, so he went almost 12 weeks between shoings.  

How? How can someone pick a horse's feet on a daily basis and *not*
notice that he's due to be trimmed?  

> BY some
> miracle, the shoes held onto the feet of my notoriously bad hoofed
> Thoroughlystupidbred until the left front let loose overnight Monday
> (farrier was due on Wednesday.)
> 
> Rea was a bit gimpy coming in on Tues am and the BO said he was sore
> Tues pm.  

So you have something, and it's getting worse. Did you examine him then?
I'm not saying that everybody needs to call the vet on the first day of
a lameness, but every horseowner ought to thoroughly examine the horse
and note *all* signs of something amiss, and if they're not confident,
get someone knowledgeable to cast their eye over the horse as well.

If nothing else, it will help you should the problem reoccur. Minor
issues, if they happen every couple of months, can be major indicators.


> He was three legged lame Weds am, so I gave him a gram of
> bute and left him in his stall for the farrier to do.  

Does your horse have a history of going three-legged lame when he casts
a shoe? 


> Well, when I
> got there last night (long story, but luckily NOT planning to ride!)
> he was out in the field laying flat out on his side.  BO said he was
> SO sore on all 4 feet that he almost left HRH in his stall overnight
> and Reason didn't seem too upset by that prospect (which tells you how
> sore he was; HRH HATES being in a stall overnight unless absolutely
> necessary!)

Not a good sign.
 
> Now, HRH is known to be a tad on the lazy side outdoors and takes full
> advantage of being the boss out there to ensure he gets PLENTY of flat
> out on his side snooze time, but this was after 6pm at night and the
> sun was NOT all that warm.  He did a half hearted roll as I was
> watching him from the bottom of the hill paddock in which he lives,
> and I figured I had better check him to be sure he wasn't colicking or
> something else.


I'm sorry, but if my horse had been three-legged lame in the morning, I
would not 'figure I had better check him' I would have checked him as
soon as I had the op****tunity, and asked other people to check him, too,
and if I could not be there, to call a vet if he showed any signs of
getting worse. 


> Wasn't colicking, but what a chore to get him back up on his feet, and
> then he REALLY didn't want to move at all.  Had a bute last night,
> will have another this am, but I am a bit worried about this.  

I, on the other hand, am *very* worried. Horses that are three-legged
lame - that have *one* hurting foot - tend to avoid lieing down more
often than not. Horses that have two or more hurting feet, on the other
hand, can lie down a lot. Your horse sounds like a classic case of
laminitis. 


> My first thought is that he is just sore from having his feet so
> overgrown that he used different muscles, 

No. If his angles had bothered him, he'd have been bothered all along -
I don't know whether you would have noticed, but he would have been
stiffening up and more reluctant to move. A proper trim should have
brought relief. (Again - if his angles were that bad, why did nobody
notice?)

> and his soles are sore from
> having so much overgrown hoof removed.  Make sense?

A horse may be sore after a bad trim, but it should not be sore after a
good trim. However much in need of one he might have been. And 'a little
feely' is different from 'lieing down and refusing to move when made to
get up.'

 
> Has anyone else seen this extreme a soreness after an overdue shoing?
> Sandy
> (who can be impartial and detached about other's horses in an
> emergency, which is a good thing in an acting BM, but who turns into a
> quivering pile of goo when it is my BABY involved!!!)

Then call a vet for your baby already. Don't ask advice of strangers
when your horse is poorly. 


Catja

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