rabbitsfizz said:
Surgery in his case should not be expensive as he will quite probably only need the ligaments "shaved" and not cut, and it can be done standing, a very small incision.
I've never heard it referred to as "shaving;" at least here in the States small incisions are made in the ligament to cause scarring. And frankly (if I may be as black and white in my reply as you were
): this surgery is crap. I've talked to a lot of people who have had this done and it didn't work for a single one of them. The minute you stop super-exercising your horse they go right back to locking up, which to me is no solution at all. Kody had a long and miserable recovery from the procedure and ended up worse than before.
rabbitsfizz said:
Yes, in some cases I would agree with not all needing surgery, although supplements don't really help at all.(Neither does exercise, all it does is delay the inevitable, and yet it is always what Vets will advise, I sometimes wonder if some of them bother to do any research into these things themselves or just repeat what someone else has told them!!!)
Supplements help keep the joint functioning, they don't do much for preventing locking in my experience. Given how hard chronic patellar fixation is on the stifle area, I would not hesitate to put my horse on a supplement to keep the joint lubricated and protected. Early-onset arthritis is a real issue with this condition.
Exercise will help with the condition if it is due to mild tendon laxity but I feel for most minis it has more to do with the angle of the joint and the length of the femur and tibia. Exercise, in that case, will not resolve the problem.
Annabellarose, selenium deficiency can in fact cause this problem. It's more a big horse thing but it does happen, especially in drafts if I recall correctly. The vet can do a blood test and if levels are extremely low then selenium supplementation may resolve the issue. Again, this is rarely the cause in the kind of cases we're discussing! I did have my horse tested back when I first got him and his levels were normal.
Obviously I do not know this horse and it sounds like maybe Rabbitsfizz does, but generally speaking you can drive a horse with the condition. I certainly did, since standing around just makes it worse and under harness was the only time Kody moved correctly and therefore stopped locking for the most part. I did a lot of dressage to address the problem and used work on the long lines as physical therapy after his splitting procedure. Things like backing up, pivoting, and holding the cart back down hills may be difficult for your horse so be aware of his limits and strengthen him slowly. Kody is SO much happier in his work now that he's had the ligaments cut.
I hadn't realized just how much it was holding him back until it wasn't a problem anymore.
Leia
