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  Discussion on BRA Frustrations with Hocks injections
Author Message
New Member:
Ashl

Posted on Monday, Feb 13, 2006 - 11:25 pm:

Hi,
I'm new to equine care and am the president of Baylor Riding Association. Our horses have had sore hocks for a while, so we got their hocks injected. Several members have told me that this is harmful to the horse and can eventually be fatal if we inject them when it isn't needed. Also, some have been getting angry with me for not getting x-rays done before we get their hocks injected. But with the low low budget that we have, we can't afford much, and well, when the horses can't walk, I needed to take some kind of action. Is any of what they say true? I heard that sometimes people get their horses hocks injected just in case, and routinely, is it true that the causes of hocks injections are fatal especially if their hocks wasn't thee problem that was bothering them in the first place?
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Tuesday, Feb 14, 2006 - 6:18 am:

Hello Ashley,
It is not true that hock injections can be fatal. You can have rare reactions just like any injection and some can be serious resulting in permanent lameness. These are discussed in the article. For that reason you should not do the injections without a thorough exam that leads to the conclusion that you are treating the joint appropriately. That will usually but not always include radiographs.
DrO
Member:
Vickiann

Posted on Tuesday, Feb 14, 2006 - 1:07 pm:

Tomorrow morning I have an appointment to get a horse's hocks injected. He became lame during a trail ride but quickly became sound with rest. Flexion tests, however, created hock and fetlock soreness. X-rays showed "moderate" degeneration to the lower hocks and "mild to moderate" to the fetlock. I had been using this horse successfully and regularly prior to an eight week lay off due to an illness and death in my family. I had the horses boarded in a good facility with a paddock where they could walk around, but not like my farm, which has rolling hills, etc., in the pastures. He wasn't ridden at all in my absence. I now have started him on Adequan, and based on the X-rays decided to additionally get the hocks (and MAYBE 1 fetlock) injected to give him a nudge toward improvement. In addition to trail riding, he is used on a drill team, which has four engagements coming up during the next 2 months. After the stress and sadness I was desperate to ride -- and he was too, but putting in 9 hours (some of it strenuous) the first week back was probably a bad idea, especially since he seemed "off" at team practices. The 16th hour of riding after my return (6th time out) he got lame out on the trail, though at the beginning of the ride he was happy and rarin' to go. Since my knees and old injuries became painful during my lay-off, I should have been more considerate of him, but he was having fun too. Does it sound proper to get him injected? Do you think he will be able to return to a level of work he did before or will I have to back down on the amount of use? This horse has been my favorite equine partner in fun for many years and I would not want to do anything else to hurt or endanger him.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Wednesday, Feb 15, 2006 - 6:55 am:

Vicki there is not enough information above for me to know. Unless the results of the exam and radiographs are absolutely conclusive as to location of the pain I block the joint to establish a diagnosis. If you are asking, "am I pushing to hard?" this again is a judgement that must be make looking at the horse, but it sounds like you are pushing. It is not the injections, assuming they are treating the actual cause of lameness, it is the amount of work you are expecting shortly following the injections that concerns me. Our article on DJD and DJD treatment deals with this issue.
DrO
Member:
Vickiann

Posted on Wednesday, Feb 15, 2006 - 3:59 pm:

The articles are good and I've read them but will do so again. The Vets at a very excellent equine hospital (the only one in Florida besides UF that can do everything) are the ones who did the flexion tests and the X-rays, and they felt the X-rays indicated benefits would be gained by injecting the joints in addition to the Adequan. In the hocks, it is the lower two joints that are effected, which I think I understand will eventually fuse? The joint fluid was ample but thin and watery. They injected the hocks with steroids and put HA in the fetlock. They seem to feel he CAN be returned to a heavy workload after a few easier times out, but I will try to be sensible and sensitive to how he is doing. He just has so much heart and wants to go, making it easy to overlook something being slightly off, which I will not do again. I will let you know how this turns out in the year ahead. Thank you Dr. O.
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