This is an archived Horseadvice.com Discussion. The parent article and menus are available on the navigation menu below:
HorseAdvice.com » Diseases of Horses » Lameness » Diseases of the Lower Limb » Degenerative Suspensory Ligament Desmitis (DSLD) »
  Discussion on DSLD in the Peruvian Paso horse
Author Message
Member:
Gdiup1

Posted on Thursday, May 8, 2003 - 9:01 pm:

Is DSLD common in all Paso breeds? I have a Paso Fino that I'm not sure what has happened but suspect is Suspensory on RH. I have not had it throughly examined due to the extensive swelling in the fetlock area when first seen. Swelling only lasted 24 hours - has gone down. Horse shows no sign of lameness now and moves nicely. Just concerned on what to do expect as I have no knowledge on suspensory injuries.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Friday, May 9, 2003 - 7:35 am:

No it appears to be a problem in Peruvian Pasos mainly. Your case sounds more like acute injury. There is an article on suspensory lameness in Diagnosis>Lame>Lower Leg. You can also find more information on DSLD in that section.
DrO
Member:
Sueh

Posted on Wednesday, Dec 22, 2004 - 5:55 pm:

Dr O,
Is there anything new on DSLD. I own PPs & I have a gelding whose pasterns are a tad too long. He was not conformationally correct in other ways, hence the reason he is a gelding. He is 9yrs & has had problems with windpuffs on the rear. Usually rest & linaments did the trick.
I do own other PPs. My mare is fairly correct with pasterns that are correct in their length. Her shoulder angle is neither too steep or too straight. She does not have an overly animated gait, just a correct one. Her progeny have had pasterns that were proportionate both in length & angle.
I have been reading all that I can find on this subject. I want to be a resonsible breeder, but as has been alluded to in other posts, this is a very closed mouthed bunch of people. I have breed my mare to a sound stud(26yrs) with no signs of any pastern/DSLD problems. My colt, from that breeding is as close to breed standard as to be almost 100% right on. His angles are all correct & bone lengths are all proportionate
as they should be.
Is there any news as to whether this is a genetic problem or just a problem with pasterns that are too long?
Thanks, Sue
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Thursday, Dec 23, 2004 - 10:13 am:

Not a word Sue. I was disappointed by the lack of response but like you say no one wants to talk about this.
DrO
Member:
Sueh

Posted on Thursday, Dec 23, 2004 - 11:02 am:

Dr O,
Thanks for your usual quick reply. I will get back with you after the Holiday rush & get the lineage of my horses to you. I know it will only be a DrOp in the proverbal bucket, but it will give you some info.
As I mentioned, my 9yr old gelding has pasterns longer than he should. This is what has given him his smooth ride. After reading all that I could find on this disease/affliction I am rethinking putting him back in the show ring. I plan on starting a slow workout routine to see how he does. I think if he shows any sign of windpuffs,as he has in the past, I will probably just make a pasture fixture/fun horse out of him.
Have a very Merry Christmas & a healthy Happy New Year!!!!!!!!!!!
Sue
Member:
Sueh

Posted on Thursday, Jan 6, 2005 - 7:18 pm:

Hi Dr O,
Hope your Holidays went well. I am a member of a group on yahoo that is for pph people. At the bottom of each e-mail that comes in is a site for DSLD research. I know of the vet, I am unsure of her credentials as far as the research end of this goes. Thought you might want to visit & offer your opinion.
I have a friend who has family in Ca. Seems he's heard some of the rumblings about this out there. He is an owner/breeder. He does not show,he doesn't like the politics. None of his horses have this problem. All are sound, no fallen pasterns noted on his herd of approx 45. He feels that there is possibly one or two stallions that are at the root of this problem. I don't want to mention any names until I check with him again so I get the story straight.
Thanks, Sue (DSLD.org)
PS-the owner/breeder I was referring to lives in Tx.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Friday, Jan 7, 2005 - 8:38 am:

Thanks for the help Sue. If instead of posting you will email it to me (address at the top) and I would be interested in what his lines of horses are that do not have problems.
DrO
New Member:
Dslddave

Posted on Monday, Mar 14, 2005 - 11:49 am:

Dear DR. O. I am a Peruvian Paso Owner,with a 5 year old gelding. Not aware of any problems ,however we are trying to establish a data base for our club membership dealing with DSLD. To date we've downloaded many articles from various pubs. and they are all over the place on the subject. Can you point us to the best spot to get the "latest" info on DSLd Thanks Dave Ryan
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Wednesday, Mar 16, 2005 - 7:30 pm:

David, I am not ignoring your post. We have been very busy the past few days and I have had trouble keeping up. I think the best I can do is put together what is available in an article but I still don't have clear ideas what lines are prone to the problem.
DrO
Member:
Dslddave

Posted on Thursday, Mar 17, 2005 - 3:13 pm:

Dr.O, Thanks for the reply. There was a study done by Dr.Alice M. Wolf for the period 1987 thru 1997,which covered examinations on 147,000 horses of 26 breeds. This study looked at the incidence of Suspensory LigamentDesmitis,Rupture,Sprain,and Laxity.in Veterinary Institutions throughout North america. It is titled "Veterinarian Database Search" and was carried in Horseshoes.com under "The Equine Suspensory Apparatus Dysfunction" homepage.Hope this helps
Dr. wolf is affiliated with the Texas A & M Small Animal facility.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Thursday, Mar 17, 2005 - 4:52 pm:

I have looked at those results David and unfortunately it did not look at DSLD as a specific diagnosis. The main problem was this was a search of computerized records and DSLD was not a diagnostic code in the computers.
DrO
Member:
Dslddave

Posted on Thursday, Mar 31, 2005 - 12:56 pm:

Dr.O, Thanks for the reply. In my continuing search for The Facts", I've come across 2 sites on Yahoo groups that you might find of interest.The first DSLD-equine, 90+ ,members is focusing on Dsld. they have set up a site to report actual cases where their horses have been diagnosed with the problem. The second PasoAficion2 is more widespread has all the politics as well as the latest inputs on dsld,
approx.400 members 20,000 posts 30-50 a day .Sites are about 2 years old. David
Member:
Dslddave

Posted on Tuesday, May 3, 2005 - 2:21 pm:

DR.o, i posted a message on March 3rd. re. a couple of interesting DSLD web-sites. to date I haven't seen a response. did you receive the original post?? david
Member:
Skeller

Posted on Tuesday, May 3, 2005 - 4:18 pm:

In case you are interested, I saw on another website that they've identified a case of DSLD in a Thoroughbred. This is attracting attention and initiating more research. Here's an excerpt:

Is there unexplained lameness and/or illness in a horse?

Could it be DSLD aka Connective Tissue Disorder?

As of this date (April 2, 2005) research is being conducted at the University of Georgia and the University of Kentucky studying a long known, but poorly understood condition currently known as Degenerative Suspensory Ligament Desmitis.

Many diverse breeds of horses are afflicted with DSLD/ESAD. DSLD is a chronic severely debilitating synDrOme that affects the collagen in equine tendons and ligaments, primarily the collagen in the suspensory ligaments. DSLD is an incurable disease, causing the eventual humane euthanasia of the vast majority of afflicted animals. Much research is needed if we hope to eradicate this disease from our beloved equine companions.
In addition...there is another problem with DSLD....as we know it. Everyone is thinking of the swelled fetlocks and the DrOpped pasterns. Well, it just so happens that 50% of the horses don't DrOp, they contract upward. They start to look like a club foot and a very extreme straight leg. This is dsld, too, in another form. This is mentioned in Jay Mero's paper and is posted on the web at
https://www.dsld.org/ along with flex test diagnostic protocols, photos, and ultrasound images.
If your horse is lame, bilaterally...get an ultrasound, it could be DSLD
This problem is throughout the connective tissue of the entire horse, often preceded by immune/metabolic/allergy problems, false colic, heat & swelling in the lower legs....

FYI, the website (which was posting announcements and info) is www.trot.org look under Discussion Forum - Equine Health - DSLD Awareness.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Tuesday, May 3, 2005 - 6:18 pm:

I saw them David and that post remains in my to-do pile but this time of year is very busy for me. I hope when things slow down to get the time to review them.
DrO
Home Page | Top of Page | Join Us!
Horseadvice.com is a BBB Accredited Business. Click for the BBB Business Review of this Horse Training in Stokesdale NC