Ace is home!
The scans were clear and no-one felt there was any need for more xrays. He's off the intravenous antibiotics and only on oral ones now, so the catheter has been taken out of his neck. They did one more of the tourniquet treatments but that is the last one. He's in a stable with a pressage on - on of those lycra zip-up whatsits that puts a little pressure on it. My instructions are to keep him on box rest for another ten days until the vet comes again. I am not at all sure that is the right thing to do. It may be "least risk" but whether it is "best course", I doubt. I will review it over the next couple of days but with no serious soft tissue damage and no bone damage at all it seems to me that the best thing he can do now is walk about on it. Tonight he can go in the barn and Radar out in the field. Tomorrow I will put them together in the barn and then tomorrow night review the situation.
Radar is happy to see him back and immediately started to eat. I have always suspected that Radar is a "competitive eater" and that was confirmed over the last couple of days. He has hardly eaten any haylage while he has been in by himself during the day. Ace back in the yard 30 seconds, Radar heads for a hayrack :-)
Let's hope this is now the beginning of a lovely summer with my two dark horses :-)
C
Set up the fans in my barn today. Summer is upon us.
ReplyDeleteI would think walking would help Ace too, but the vets must have had some reason to want him in. Perhaps you should call them to ask what their theory is, just to be safe???
Funny about Radar. Glad he's eating. With all that dressage work, he's going to need his strength...and so are you...*G*
I too question the recommendation for stall rest. I do understand that it's least risk, considering what they can do to get into trouble, but stall rest has very strong negative effects.
ReplyDeleteGlad your boy is home! How long before you can ride?
I'll be interested to hear what the vets say if you call them - my experience is that there is a Pavlovian reaction amongst many UK vets - injury=box rest. The view seems different on the continent and box rest is not (usually) supported by clinical research, but that's a whole 'nother story :-)
ReplyDeleteGreat to hear he is home, and hope all goes well from now on.
Jean the theory is to keep it clean and to keep pressure on it so that it heals as small as it will heal. I get the first, and it will be covered while he is in the dusty dirty barn. But the pressure bandaging is as likely to cause problems, as it did with Radar's knee, as it is to solve any. I couldn't care less if his hock heals a little thicker than the other as long as it does not affect his movement and I think that is very, very unlikely given how it looks at the moment.
ReplyDeleteAgain ML, I am not "supposed" to ride him for "quite some time", but for me, a sound horse is a sound horse. I will be walking him out in hand and if he copes with that I will lunge him in trot and if he copes with that then I will ride, gently. He is currently trotting sound in hand and I believe that mental happiness is as important to healing as the physical stuff. I know he will be happier if he can do a bit of "work" for me.
Your experience is also mine Nic. If this were a human the doctors would now be telling him to use it as much as he can without too much pain, so as to prevent adhesions and make everything pull in the right direction.
I think I can pretty much state that (unless anything changes) after tonight and tomorrow in the barn, he will be going out at night with Radar when it is cool and fly free, and in the barn with Radar, pressure bandaged, during the day. This is his normal summer routine, and again it will be the way to keep him mentally happiest.
Got to go exchange the two over right now, then off to MiB III. Seeya!
C.
Great, glad he's home and has such a positive outlook. I'll keep them crossed for another week.
ReplyDelete:)
Brilliant.. so glad he's home... Happy patients recover quicker ;) You know your horse
ReplyDeleteand LOL at Radar and the hayledge
ReplyDeleteI may have no option with the bandaages but to leave it off. I have replaced the pressage already once but he got it down round his ankle again while we were out, so now I have taken it off rather than risk it like that overnight. I have stuck a human 10cm plaster over the wound, which covers it nicely. I have had quite a bit of success with human plasters over wounds in the past, so hopefully it will stay on and keep it clean.
ReplyDeleteThanks Tracey, we need no backsliding when the antibiotics end, fingers crossed.
NH Radar is very funny, he has a wierd head-circling movement that I have only ever seen one other horse do when he is warning others to stay away from his food. Hold your arm out in front of you straight and rotate your hand around your wrist and you will get the idea :-)
C