I am currently on the
Tevis rider list, however....
My horse developed
a swelling on his right hind just above the fetlock in February. On a
training ride he just quit going and let the other horse go on ahead. NOT
NORMAL. As we continued on, I could feel that he was off. The
swelling was apparent the next day, and I gave him 10 days off to see if it
would go away. It got better, but still was palpable. He did not act
lame with it. I took him to an equine vet and he stated that it was a
"windpuff", to ride him lightly, ice it after exercise, and then wrap it and see
how it went. His next recommendation, if things didn't improve was
ultrasound.
That was about 4 weeks
ago. I have ridden him several times since then. He rarely acts off
in any way, but I occasionally feel it near the end of the ride,
particularly at a walk down hills. After the rides, he does have some heat
in it. I have tried the ice and wrap, the turn out and
see, massage, bentonite clay, a few homeopathic remedies, and added
glucosamine, msm, & chondroitin to his diet. Of all of
these, turn out after the ride seems to work best.
To the question I really want
to ask of those among you who have experience with these. Do you have
any advice about how to treat this? How long does healing
usually take? Should I forget this ride season and let him
rest? (sob) I know I should get off the list soon if he
can't be 100%, so the next gal/guy can start dreaming and
planning.
