Posted by Alexandra Wikner on July 17, 2003 at 03:05:05:
In Reply to: Re: The farrier has been here now posted by Anne (Tree) Coley on July 16, 2003 at 23:07:58:
Tree,
Thank you so much for taking time to explain and help me with this, i really apprichiate it.
Just a note - it was my farrier and not vet that was out yesterday.
My farrier DID mention that he didnīt quite "buy" the concept that it was ONLY the DDFT involved, and that muscle and tendons interact. He also said that DDFT attach to the muckles near the elbow, and he adviced med to massage thos muscles. They did feel soft and fine though, but as my farrier said "It cannot hur massaging them, and then you immediatley will notice if she starts to tightened up in the muscles".
According to x-rays, it is no problems taking thos, BUT I would like to wait until early aygysto to do that (if condidition doesnīt worsen of coure). The horse clinic that is best with those kind of questions, and that have good farriers on-site is closed down due to vacations. They reopen for appointment makings at July 28th again, ie in 1― week.
I can have the x-rays taken at another clinic, but it would involve of a longer trip (I have 80 kilometres to the big clinic, and other, smaller clinics are about 120 kilometres away. And it is a tremendous heat her with degrees peaking at 50 degress celsius in the sun, så I want to transport the foal and mare as short distance as possible too)and they donīt have any experince about those problems.
Do you think its is OK to wait two weeks with the X-rays if the condition doesnīt worse?
It is possible she has pain in her heels, but there is no evidence of that that can bee sen at this stage anyway, she stand level and bears her weight even, she walks, trots and galopps sound and she stands on the complete hoof (ie heels down the ground). She actually likes the stretch though, and shifts more weight on to increase the stretching when I do it. But she could be ont of those with HIGH tolerance of pain, ie it should be atremendous pain before they show it. (My 8-y-0 gelding is like that, he was safe and sound even with a puncture wound that penetreated the bursa and created an infection all the way up in the bone.)
About the ground. I can only speak for my foal (i only have one), and she developed this when out on very hard ground. This summer has been very dry and hot, and the ground is very dry and hard. And that is the fact all over this part of the country. But I have no idea of what ground others foal has been on before. But the grazing her has been exceptionallt good this year. Even my 8-y-0 gelding that never before has showed any signs of putting on excessive weight even when out grazing, he has putted on a lot of extra weight. So its very good nutrional value of the grazing this year (but it has peaked now and will sink by time now), and maybe that could be the factor that gives a link to one of the answers wy so many foals her shows this condition. I donīt know. My filly was big at birth and have since birth been growing very fast. But in a steady rythm, but way too fast. And my amateur-theory is that the fastgrowing is the key to why she has got DDFT. But of course I can bee wrong, but I thought my farrier or me should have noticed anything else, as she is handled daily, and has met the farrier frequently since 8 days old. Well, maybe I never get an answer that is SURE, but as you say, a set of X-rays could be real helpful.
But I am sorry to say, that when I have noticed some foalowners that they might check their foals feet because they show the same signs as my foal does, they just have replied that "It isnīt anything wrong with either mine or your foal, thay are just growing" *sigh*