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  Discussion on Vet say's he seems "neurological"
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Member:
spinosa

Posted on Friday, Oct 3, 2008 - 12:37 am:

I have had my 7 yr old, off the track TB gelding for 2.5 yrs. He has been clumsy since I bought him. He has tripped to his knees probably 5 or 6 times since I have owned him. He also is likely to fall down when turned lose to play and buck like crazy. He often takes a funny step during a ride.

He had a sesmoidean ligament tear a year ago, and 6 months into rehab has had other intermittent lameness(mostly explicable farrier issues).

So the ligament is healed on ultrasound, but now a new vet says, she thinks I need to send him to UC Davis for a neurological exam because the stumbling and calm disposition are uncharacteristic for a TB.

I am moving him out to pasture this month, but I am wondering, how likely is it that this front end stumbling is a neurological problem?
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Friday, Oct 3, 2008 - 9:49 am:

Hello Michelle,
Hmmmm it is possible. Are there other possible explanations like a long toe low heel conformation? Why can't the veterinarian do a neurological exam at your place for a start and if questionable findings then consider a referral?
DrO
Member:
spinosa

Posted on Friday, Oct 3, 2008 - 11:45 am:

Well, she did a little. She pulled his tail which didn't show much. But the biggest thing was that during a lameness exam(that resulted in weird intermittent foot pain) she thought he tripped over his own feet too much. THen on the lunge line (on hard ground and uneven surface), he stumbled to is knees when trotting. He has been in a pretty rigid rehab and hasn't lunged in a 1yr now because of this injury. Also, for what it's worth, the new farrier did not square his toe this time.

I am just financially exhausted from rehabbing and so I am daunted by spending another thousand dollars on a Neuro exam, xrays and blood work. I know I will take him to Davis and spend the time and $, that is not my question, just a complaint. Sigh.
My question is, is stumbling and tripping ever normal(his tripping hasn't changed really in 2.5 yrs).

Could this be EPM? If so, have I just let him be infected for all this time and now he has real damage? Nothing about EPM sounds like him to me, but my vet thought he should be tested for everything.

She also mentioned that most all horses off the track have some arthritis in their neck. He did race three times and won twice. I am sure he was worked hard and long in that environment.

Could I really be facing a wobbler or EPM? It is so hard to believe.
Member:
spinosa

Posted on Friday, Oct 3, 2008 - 7:41 pm:

Dr O, can we remove the apostrophe from the word 'say's' in the title? I don't know what I was thinking...Blonde.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Saturday, Oct 4, 2008 - 9:33 am:

While we should not call frequent tripping normal but yes there are many horses who do so despite there being no obvious lameness nor neurological deficit. I think such horses do need careful inspection for low grade bilateral lameness and neurological problems but often you come to the conclusion that they seem to be a bit lazy picking up their feet and catch the toe as it moves forward. Getting the feet as short as possible and the squaring off the toe is the best treatment is such cases.

When you ask "could it be" very little is not possible. However in a stable horse with signs of 2 and 1/2 years duration I am not sure what actionable information will be obtained. Concerning the arthritis you could try therapies as described in our article Overview of Arthritis. The EPM article also describes treatment and prognosis.
DrO
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