Xrays Update

From the inside-out

What a laminitic (post) hoof looks like almost 3 years later

Yup...almost 3 freaking years later.

Oct 2009 is when he first got ill, so this Oct will be 3 yrs

Medial view of RH

Big chip in his hoof wall, which is dead hoof wall

Under run, crushed heels

Wavy tubules

Odd toe

**The purple marks you see is leftover from thrush treatment I jam into his exposed white line

It's interesting to see how his lateral side visibly looks different than his medial

From the back

Low crushed under run heel

And now, the INSIDE view;

Updated digital xrays

Lots of toe to be removed which is interesting because his hoof LOOKS soooo small from the outside. How much can one take away before it compromising the horse's weight on a small hoof?

His coffin bone still has that 'elf' tip which is osteoporosis 

And that sole-THIN! Could be because of the thick hoof wall issues, thrush, bacteria, etc in that hoof

You can see view from the top of coffin bone, how it's tipped medially as well (in picture towards the right side) See?

Shot from the front; you can see he is still rotated medially (inward)

and sole-is oh my, still thin thin thin thin thin thin

sigh

If you are interested in comparison shots; click HERE for Xrays from 2010/2011

It is somewhat frustrating to not be further along with his hoof progress despite our, and other's best efforts. 

BUT, I have to remain confident in the people I chose to hire, so again, we now have a new plan.

I'm SO hoping this works

Updated Plan is;

Get Laz now on Ixosuprine   

I tried the all natural Jiaogulan since November, with no change so it's out.

After trimming all hooves and paring back the hoof wall to connective tissue, we soaked his hoof for 40 minutes in clean trax, dried off, and applied No Thrush (the purple markings) before getting ready to cast his hoof.

Yup, cast his hoof!

Below, applying the bonding glue to hoof wall, to adhere cast to it

Glue gunk

 Keeping Laz busy with some hay while M applied the casting wrap securely.

At this point, we were already at over 2 hours, so Laz was getting antsy

All for you my sweet boy!

 Laz trying to lick/bite his soaking boot off! 

We soaked his club in clean trax after the RH

Say Hello to Equicast

Finished and casted. It's actually more black than purple

Fingers crossed it stays on for minimal 2 weeks, hopefully more like 6!!!

It's intended to help his compromised hoof wall structure and encourage support/growth and comfort.

Laz standing on it, on a pad to allow the cast to harden/form around his hoof shape and sole.

He seemed VERY comfortable in it and when walking out, lifted his toe instead of dragging it.

A good sign, that hopefully he'll walk better, which will in turn build up the back of his hoof/heel/digital cushion/lateral cartilage/stimulate better hoof growth and more soundness and a better sole=better hoof. 

Is that a lot to ask for? lol

Once we were done, Laz was feeling quite good

He enjoyed a fat boy PLOP and rolled

Happy puppy horse

 Mid puppy Shake

Tomorrow I'll go back to make sure he's still happy/comfy.

I also got the OK to "get on and RIDE him"

(We are talking soft grounds at the walk unless he wants to trot and to stay off the gravel roads for now)

It's OK, I'll take what I can get as long as he's comfortable

We are also backing out our trims to allow more growth in between.

Something that's different for me. Instead of every 4 weeks, we are going 6ish.

This will be interesting to see how/if it works, but I'm hopeful it will and trust my new trimmer's knowledge and background.

Stay tuned!

Xray follow up

Well, it's official.
I'm a HOOF nerd.

It's Friday evening, and all I can think about are Laz's tootsies.

And I love it!

Ok, to the good stuff.

I met with my Vet this morning to review his Xrays.

It was all very good news in the fact that she is confident that I'm on the right path and I can get him to soundness (or more sound).

Cue the confetti and brass musicians!!!!

I can't tell you HOW nervous I always get when reviewing xrays but it's getting better each time.

She even loaned out the xrays to me so I can review with my Trimmer which is SO great. 

Vet did NOT see infection although she said she wouldn't be surprised to see abscessing happening in his future due to his thin sole/bruising.  

Just in general, a bit of an unhappy, transitioning foot. Not a miserable foot...just unhappy right now....but it's hopefully temporary as it grows.

Our goal is to BUILD up that sole.

It looks thicker from the side view...

 In below xray, you can see he still is rotated slightly bi-laterally..to be expected.

However, here you can also see (although hard b/c this is me holding the xrays up to my bathroom window..so image is grainy due to window texture) how thin the sole is.
She said like a smidge thicker than paper thin.

THIN.

 We need to build it up.

So, HOW?...

I was relived that she didn't push "STALL 24/7" treatment because I just won't do that to him.

She said, pick/clean daily. Put combo of 1:1 ratio of 7-10% iodine mixed with alcohol on sole/hooves to dry out and keep moisture out.
It's a bit of a challenge now with rain/mud season but his pastures are pretty dry actually.

With snow coming, she felt it's actually a drier wet and shouldn't be a problem.

She'd rather him be barefoot than in a boot or even a homemade plastic diaper filled with "No Trush" with duct tape boot. She feels the sweat within an encased boot/bootie will be more moist than just free. Well, that is WAY easier on me!! AND, I won't have to worry about heel bulb rubbings, thrush, etc.

She likes Laz's diet and wants me to add MSM to his beetpulp, and Isoxophrine  for vessel opening to encourage circulation and aid in healing. For the Isoxophrine, I'm leaning more towards using the herb Jiaogulan for Laz.  

Vet feels Laz is in NO daily pain other than 'feeling' his hoof's bruise, but didn't feel he needed any Bute/Equioxx, etc. HOOORAH!!! 

She does want me to bump his grain (Triple Crown L/S) a bit for  more rib coverage. For those that think Laz looks chunky, it's JUST a fiber belly! ;)

Vet wants me to remain massaging him (Go Masterson!!) to help circulation and she saw how Laz LOVES it (I did a quick demo). She also wants me to add Chiro to help with his overall body stiffness.

And...give Laz TIME. Time to grow that sole.  She said to constantly check the hoof, and if it seems thicker in a matter of a few month, to do another xray.  Basically, reconnect to check and see how things are going and maintain.

I just want to say, this new Vet for us, so far has been GREAT. Open to my comfort level to how I chose to keep my horse (barefoot and out) and open to discussing things with my trusted Trimmer, and very compassionate of how Laz and I are as a team.  So far, it was a great switch.

She also checked his teeth and thought he in fact did not need a floating and she'll check him in Spring-so I am postponing that for now.  She also gave me free Flax seed from a client that gave it to her. Score!

Ok, now for some comparisons of how Laz rotated.

His rotation wasn't typical ..his were LATERALLY (to the side, medially (meaning inward towards each other, in his hind legs only) with also a downward tip rotation.

Right Hind (RH) being the worse and what is on all xrays here.

Below-the far left TWO are from FEB 2010

 Below are from JUNE 2011-Front view

Note how he's more balanced side to side

Below, our latest NOV 2011

Great balance..although now we are dealing with MEGA thin soft sole

My theory...UNPROFESSIONAL AND UNTRAINED..keep in mind.

I think when we switched to barefoot, it was our #1 step in healing. No doubt.

Laz had built a lot of false sole, possible overlaid bars to 'protect' his sole/hoof/from penetration. His body's way of protecting it. However, left on too long it also became a hindering pressure. Like walking on a stone, constantly. So in removing it (starting this past June) and alleviating some pressure, that underneath material was soft and like a baby thin nail. Hopefully by allowing him to heal, altering his diet and putting him on some natural remedies and giving him TIME, his sole/hoof will grow.

Thoughts? Questions? Confused? 

I'm popping open some Champagne tonight and celebrating this tiny step forward!

Any NON bad news, is GOOD news to me!

Go Team Laz! (which happens to be an all female team except for Laz, lol!)

Xray/Vet appt-Part 1

Upon my arrival at the barn, this morning.

What a happy site to see. Hay stuffed ponies sunbathing...

 I've seen this scene a few times now. Laz and Justin (the WB/Paint x) napping with Red, the other OTTB watching over.

 "Ohhh cookie Laydee is here! Time to Roll and get ektra durty"

 Eesh, neck muscles not looking good.  I made a mental note to ask my new Vet about it.

Laz impersonating a snorting Elk

So, our Vet arrived and we got talking (as she's only met us now twice) about where we are at, what we are concerned with and what we want to accomplish.

As I was explaining Laz's past....... I started to cry. 

EEesh.

 I felt so embarrassed but when I talk about what he's been through, it just gets me. 

EVERY TIME.

Any way, she was there for 2 hours and gave us a VERY thorough exam.  She writes down her thoughts, recommendations, etc so I can review after our appt too, which is so great.

We took xrays of the RH only (she agreed I didn't need them on his Club foot and she thought his Club wasn't as bad as I thought..whew).  

These are non digital xrays so I don't have results yet.

We will talk results, review images and formulate our plan in the next day or so.

I love a good plan...so I'm hopeful there is one that is doable.

Hoof tester on his RH was almost a joke. His sole is so soft that she barely had to squeeze with one hand.  She was very concerned about that, as both my trimmer and I are-hence why I brought the Vet in.  

I don't know what our next steps are yet, she didn't want to tell me our path BEFORE reading our Rads.  She smiled and said "I know you are a nervous Nellie so I don't want to tell you anything until I know for sure" 

Is it that obvious? 

I kid...I know it is.

I hope whatever the plan is, it sits comfortable with me.

I'm anti-shoeing him although she assured me NO SHOES and in his soft foot case, she said, no shoe would help anyway.

I'm anti-stalling him to dry out his feet...

I'd rather boot him in a duct taped boot than stall him....I don't know if that will be discussed so I'm jumping the gun here.

Ultimately I decide what is best for him, after collecting my information.

Before our xrays, she did a general lameness analysis on him.

Walk-strides evenly, left shoulder inward towards me.  She had me switch side leading him to see.  She thought shoulder was still wonky.

Trot-Very lame. :(   But I know this

RH rolls hip and hock, both hinds paddle out, left shoulder out. RH stifle weak

LH stifle over working, LH hoof good shape, stronger but overall all hooves too moist.

Not great news...but nothing I didn't know.

Neck flexation-stiff. 

This I know. 

I do a ton of Masterson Massage on him and he really struggles with the neck bends. She said his whole body is off due to compensating for his RH.

That's obvious...so she recommended a Chiro whom I will contact to help him out as we resolved his hoof problem.

Recommended putting him on MSM immediately to help with overall joint health. 

(already ordered)  actually need to talk to Vet about MSM and it's issues with effecting mineral balancing and selenium.

Recommended using a daily cleaner on his hooves of 1:1 ratio alcohol and 7-10% iodine to help dry out hoof and keep clean.

She blocked his RH (right hind in case you don't know what I'm referring too) for the xray and to test his lameness again once he was blocked. 

Not a huge difference, but she was able to tell what parts of him are sore due to his RH being compromised.

She thought his weight looked good. He has a hay/fiber belly but he needs more rib coverage and she thought his neck did look thin. She told me to up his Triple Crown L/S to see if that helps.

As we get to the bottom of fixing him (hopeful still) his muscle and balance should work itself out, slowly.

She commented on how shiny and soft his fur was..BONUS!

I asked "For a 10 yr old OTTB in post laminitic phase, does he look good??" 

She laughed and said yes.

Regarding Laz during the exam;

Angle boy.

A.N.G.E.L.B.O.Y.

Stood stoically still during blocking, for xrays, for general exam, was perfect for the 2 hours we fussed with him.  Trotted when he asked and even gave a few bucks and playful "I'm not lame" performances. 

Nice try pal but it's too obvious.

After Vet left, he seemed to just want some cuddle rub time, so he got plenty of it.  

No more road walking for a while...Vet said his RH is just too soft and that will continue to bruise the hoof and set us back.  No problem, it's now off our to do list.

I hope we get decent results with the xrays and a plan of "To Do's" that we are all happy with to get this boy back to sound.

He deserves it.

In non related Vet news; I hung Laz (and the others) our new Busy Horse hay net

It's a GREAT product and seems really durable

This is the large size that fits about 4-6 flakes of hay in it.

Perfect for colder days/nights. 

The BO's are cool with me stuffing it full in addition to his daily hay. Sweet!!!!

Here's how I hung it..pretty good for $6 and free labor via Husband

I hung one spot here, under stable lean to, so horses could nibble in wet conditions and I have a second hanging out in the field, in the open for nice days or to just switch it up location wise.

Just a BIG general thank you, to my readers...which many of you have become my friends.  Without your constant support, encouragement and knowledge, Laz and I surely wouldn't be here today.  

Thanks to Kate  for her 'how to hang' suggestions for the hay bag.

Thanks to J9 and Frizzle for their constant emails, phone calls of support, exchanging ideas, hoof thoughts, diet plans, on sale items, general listening with words of encouragement and compassion.

It's SO appreciated!!!