“There’s a hitch in my git-along, which is takin’ all the fun out of moseyin’.”
A horse’s joint health is an important aspect of a work regimen, whether the horse is old or young, performing or out trail riding.
Joint injuries involve the tearing or stretching of the joint capsule and its supporting ligaments by forcing movement of the joint beyond its normal range of motion. A joint injury is called a sprain.
A mild sprain occurs when a few fibers of ligament are torn, resulting in stiffness, swelling and often a limp. Because the ligament’s integrity is not compromised, a mild sprain will respond to a support bandage and stall rest.
Moderate sprains involve tearing of the ligament but the ends do not separate. The symptoms are bleeding into the soft tissues and joint, pain over the joint, restriction of motion that causes lameness, and swelling. There may be looseness in the joint to some degree. This type of injury requires prolonged stall rest and a cast.
Severe sprains result in the joint capsule and/or ligament being completely disrupted. If integrity is compromised it may result in dislocation (luxation) of the joint.(1)
The stay apparatus is an apparatus in the horse composed of ligaments, muscles, tendons and connective tissues, whose function is to support the horse while it stands. It also diminishes compression during locomotion and protects the horse from injuries that might occur from over extension of the coffin joints, fetlock and pastern.(2)
The check apparatus refers to ligaments that restrain the knee and hock joints, and also to the deep and superficial flexor tendons in all four legs.
Have you heard of a horse standing while it sleeps? It is the check apparatus that allows a horse to do this by “checking” or locking its lower legs in extension with minimal muscular effort.
The reciprocal apparatus of the hind limb insures that the hock will extend when the stifle extends and that there is reciprocal flexing of the hock joint when the stifle joint is flexed. (3)
The reciprocal apparatus helps prevent fatigue while that horse is standing. Some vocabulary words for structures in the reciprocal apparatus are: superficial digital flexor tendon, peroneus tertius muscle and gastrocnimius tendon.(4)
The peroneus tertius tendon mechanically bends the hock when the stifle joint is flexed; because rupture accours above the hock a diagnosis can be made if the hock is straightened.
Ruptured gastrocnimius tendons occur due to sudden stops with the hocks underneath, or by efforts to keep from slipping when going downhill. This rupture is difficult to treat and usually requires a cast from hoof to stifle and placing the horse in a sling for 2 to 3 months.
The fetlock joint is subjected to the greatest amount of stress. The suspensory apparatus of the fetlock plays an important role in absorbing shock and concussion and in supporting the fetlock. It includes the paired sesamoid bones and their respective ligaments, the suspensory ligament and the deep and superficial flexor tendons.
The suspensory ligament is a thick, elastic, wide, tendon-like band which comes up from the back of the cannon bone above and attaches to the back of the upper third of the long pastern bone below. In running from top to bottom, the ligament splits into two branches that partly encase and surround the two proximal sesamoid bones.(5)
One serious injury common in Thoroughbred horses is sprain or rupture of the fetlock apparatus. It happens under the hard stress of racing when the horse’s weight comes down on the overextended fetlock. All stages of tear of the ligament can occur, ranging from mild sprains to complete ruptures of the suspensory ligament and its two branches. Symptoms are extreme swelling and sudden lameness at the fetlock joint.
The uninjured leg may bear the entire weight of the horse as it often stands on it to relieve pain. The fetlock may sink to the ground when the weight is transferred to the injured leg. Fractures of the sesamoid bone are difficult to tell apart from severe fetlock sprains, which can happen due to fatigue and stress during a long race.
You may have heard of the horse “breaking down on the racetrack.”
Fractures of the fetlock joint and long pastern bone may be difficult to tell apart from sprains of the distal sesamoid ligaments. As a fact, massive injuries can be linked to all of these diagnosis as well as injuries to the digital tendons and arteries.
Always call the Vet for an exam and x-rays for all fetlock injuries, as indicated with sudden lameness.
The Vet will use a variety of healing methods including special shoes to raise the heel, splints, casts, and in more serious cases, fusion of the joint. With massive injury, prognosis is poor.
Three distal sesamoid ligaments run between the back of the short pastern and coffin bones and the proximal sesamoid bones. Injuries occur due to stress, overextension and fatigue.
Lameness is sudden. This may be an indication of sprain of the distal sesamoid ligaments. Swelling occurs over the ligaments as they run along their respective bones. Pressure on the ligaments causes pain.
The Vet will use an ultrasound to diagnose, and this can be used to monitor healing as well.
When trauma is severe enough to disrupt the ligaments, it can also cause fetlock fracture. Severe injuries can lead to late calcification.
Ask the Vet about Sesamoiditis. The horse should be confined to stall rest for at least 6 weeks and use leg support bandages to ease strain. In severe cases, the horse should have a cast put on the leg. Use Bute to reduce pain and swelling. As per the Vets orders, the horse should return to light work slowly as this area is prone to reinjury. (4)
Some barns will use joint supplements to help their achy horses who have arthritis or other joint related problems. Exercise, massage and warming and cooling liniments are also helpful.
It is recommended that glucosamine be used first, and old standby’s like GrandFlex and Corta-Flx are good choices. Check feed mills or tack shops locally to keep costs in check, as to avoid shipping charges.
If basic joint products don’t provide relief, consider adding hyaluronic acid. Hyaluronic acid, or HA may give your horse an extra “umph,” that he needs to really work smoothly.
Continue using your regular product, but buy some HA oral paste to see if it has an effect on the horse. If it does, switch to a daily nutraceutical that already includes HA. Using HA in combination with other joint nutraceuticals enhances arthritis relief at much lower doses that you might expect.
You may also consider adding low-dose HA to your current joint nutraceutical by way of a powdered HA product.(5)
Remember to use the full recommended loading dose for the product for at least two weeks.
The horse needs that initial course of a loading dose because many ingredients will initially be used to tie up destructive enzymes as well as provide raw materials for repair. (6)
The balance will eventually shift to rebuilding rather than break down, and you may be able to drop down to a maintenance dose.
“Loading” the horse with a maintenance dose will take far longer to reach effective results/ dosing levels and also, it is a waste of time.
Talk to your Vet about loading doses for glucosmine, chrondroitin sulfates, MSM and HA.
Herbal Bute alternatives (devil’s claw) can also be used for long-term pain relief. The Vet can also help you choose the right product for specific problems such as young, high-performance horses that have hot joint problems and older horses that get stiff all over.
Speaking of old and stiff, someone help me get up out of this chair. Here’s hoping that neither you nor your horse ever get old.
An interesting point to ponder while listening to the immortal words of Roy Rogers and Dale Evans, “Happy Trails to You.”
The aforementioned article is meant as a guideline and not Veterinary analysis. Always consult a qualified Vet if you suspect your horse has a fetlock or joint injury, or needs a pain management program.
1-4: “Horse Owner’s Veterinary Handbook,” by Drs. Giffin and Gore
5,6: “Horse Journal,” December, 2003, Vol 10, #12