At the beginning of 2021 it became known that Equnews was going to collaborate with the well-known equine clinic Equitom. We already got an exclusive look behind the scenes and our readers were allowed to send in their own story so they could get professional advice from the vets. Today we are covering the first case with the team of Tom Mariën.
The story read as follows: "I bought a horse at the end of July. I was, of course, overjoyed but the horse fell limp pretty quickly and has basically just been limping ever since. I had already consulted several vets but no one could really help me; that changed when I finally found a vet (Peter) who thought he had found the problem. He said my horse was limping on the left front leg but to me it seems more likely that he is limping on the left from the shoulder. After some searching I also found the first owners of the horse. They told me that the horse never suffered any injuries. I provided them with my videos and they also suspect that the horse seems to be suffering from his shoulder. I am sending you the vet's certificate and the pictures that were taken off his shoulder. Hopefully you can help me...".
We went to the Equitom team with the question, videos, pictures and the certificate. The question came specifically to Dr. Lothar Vanslambrouck, Dr. Elodie Dufay and Dr. Roberto Atonio Mangano who specialize in orthopedics.
"On the video we see a lameness of the left forehand, which manifests itself very clearly and is more visible on the right hand there is a reduction of the protraction (the movement of the shoulder girdle where the scapula is pulled forward along the chest from the neutral initial position) of the limbs, which seems to be more a problem of the proximal limbs (Proximal means closer to the origin (point of attachment) of the structure. In the lower limbs, the knee is proximal to the foot and distal to the femur)".
Analysis of the photographs:
"On the photographs, degenerative abnormalities are seen such as fragments, a thinning of the joint space and arthropathy. The cause of these abnormalities is not precisely known but a hereditary vulnerability cannot be excluded".
Advice
"The best advice we can give is to have the radiographs taken again with a more powerful device so that the cause may become clearer. It is also advisable to make an ultrasound of the different tissues and the joint. Only in this way will it be clear to what extent the horse will still be able to have a sporting career and what treatments are still possible."
In short:
It is not exactly clear what exactly is causing the horse's limp but the photos currently used are not sufficient to fully assess the situation. Thus, only further and more in-depth research will reveal what exact problem is causing it and what this means for the horse's sporting career. This is a difficult case since there is currently no immediately identifiable cause.
Do you also have a problem with your horse for which you cannot find a solution? You can still send an e-mail to marketing@brandingpro.be. Please give as much information as possible! You can always include any tests that have already been done!