Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

Chris Paus:
> ...I do know some people heal suspensory and similar
> injuries by just turning the horse out to pasture for
> 6 months, on the theory that as long as it hurts, the
> horse won't overdo the exercise.

Except that suspensory/tendon injuries typically don't
have a lot of pain associated with them once the initial
"YOW!" has subsided.

Your classic tendon/ligament injury involves the horse
being off, you rest him, he's sound, you ride him, you
ride him some more, he goes off, you rest him, he's sound,
you ride him, you ride him some more, he goes off... etc...
Except as time goes on, the amount of riding it takes to
make him lame is less and less.

That said, Chris' remedy above is what was suggested to
me by the vet who looked at my gelding. With Provo it's
a case of "pick a leg" to figure out what's off. He was
diagnosed with a medial suspensory strain (as opposed to
Mouse's high up suspensory) and given that he can canter
up and down in a 12 x 12 pipe pen, confinement wasn't
really on the cards for him. After discussing his personality,
the vet suggested "Turn him out and ignore him until the
end of the year".

Provo's been turned out now since May 2004 and we've ridden
him a few times this summer and he was off once on that leg
when I made the mistake of blithely assuming he was "fixed"
and rode him up a hill during a six mile excursion. He might
come back (is 18 next year, though, and really hard work to
ride in events since he always wants to "win", no matter that
we're coming last), but not unless I do gradual loading type
riding and right now I don't have enough riding hours to do
him, rehab Mouse *and* try and keep Zini distance fit. It's
cruel on me, it is   :(



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Lucy Chaplin Trumbull
elsietee AT foothill DOT net
Repotted english person in the Sierra foothills, California
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