Hey y’all just popping on here to give you and update on the ongoing issues with B. Last week on 3/16/2023 Bacardi had a vet appointment with our regular vet. The TL;DR of it all is he is still lame and we still have more diagnostic testing to do in 2 weeks. Please see below for the full brief and timeline.
Jan 24 2023 – Bacardi fell while on the lunge line. Got up and seemed fine. Rode him on 2/5/2023 and nothing seemed amiss.
2/7/2023 – First inkling something was WRONG. Bacardi was fighting me on the inside bend going to the right and actively trying to bend to the outside. We medicated for a few days in hopes that he would be sound for my lesson that weekend.
2/11/2023- tried to get B warm for our lesson. Was markedly lame when ridden. Gave him time off and moved up chiropractic appt to 2/21/2023.
2/21/2023 – Chiro came out and adjusted B. No crazy findings. Normal subluxations.
02/24/2023 – Tried to ride B. Still pulling to the outside going to the right. Gave him another couple days. Rode 3/1/2023 still having the issue. Scheduled for bodyworker to come out.
3/5/2023- bodyworker out. Found SEVERAL tight areas indicating compensation and pain. Bodyworker lent me their cold laser to try lasering B throughout the week. Got on him a few times just at a walk to check if lameness still present. Lameness still present. Scheduled vet appt on 3/6/2023
3/11/2023 – second massage from bodyworker. Noticed tightness in neck. Much improve muscle relaxation. Continued to ride sparingly at the walk to see if stretching could help. Lameness still present.
3/16/2023 – the big day. Vet came out. – per vet initial lunge B looked sound. no lameness noted. Tacked up B and rode for vet. Vet observed lameness. Dismounted vet checked for lameness. More lameness appeared in hand. Suggested putting on lameness locator to confirm. Lameness locator indicated both push off and impaction lameness in right hind. Vet noted no appreciable stiffness in neck. Vet recommended treating hock. Injected hock with steroids and blocked at same time. Checked B for lameness after block. Some improvement but still mild to moderate lameness. Vet wanted to follow up in 2 weeks and block right stifle. Discussed potential for need for bone scan to get accurate dx.
3/17/2023 – called vet and scheduled appt for stifle 3/30/2023. Discussed putting B on stall/small paddock rest for a few weeks in case has soft tissue injury he keeps damaging in turn out. Vet requested me to Ride B a few days before next appointment to check if lameness is still present.
So if you got through all of that, what we thought was maybe just some stiffness from the fall has been revealed as right hind lameness. We are unsure right now where it is coming from. Next step is the stifle and if that does not reveal answers, most likely course is going to treat the SI. Unfortunately, a bone scan is prohibitively expensive. It may be an option down the road if this becomes a bigger mystery but right now the plan is stifle check and potential treatment of SI.
I have scrapped all my show plans right now. Maybe if we find an answer , a late summer show and Ride for the Roses. The most important thing is getting B healthy again. Otherwise, he looks great. Good weight, healthy coat etc. Fingers crossed for more answers come the 30th. I will keep you all updated.
XO, A