Depressing

So, so, so bummed. I cannot express how bummed I am right now.

Jetta is lame. Quite lame. Not just slightly off at the trot, but hobbling around at the walk lame. Doesn't even want to try and walk, lame.

I went out to the barn yesterday evening all happy and when I went to fetch my pony I thought I saw her limp. I rushed over to her, hoping my eyes were playing tricks on me, but nope. Definitely, absolutely lame.

I brought her in and called the BO to see if she had noticed anything but she said that Jetta was 100% this morning when she went outside. After hosing off all the mud on her legs I found some limited swelling on the right front leg around the fetlock on either side, meaning that she could have done something either to her suspensory or digital flexor tendon. Agh!

We went outside and hosed her leg with cold water for 20 minutes till it didn't feel so hot, then brought her back inside, gave her a huge armful of hay and gave her a good grooming. I was being quite optimistic that she just bonked it and that she'd be back to normal in a couple days. I think I've been kind of expecting something like this. Take one young, hyper, accident-prone thoroughbred, add in minimal work and a really muddy pasture and you have a recipe for an injury.


I talked to the BO later and she iced it for me. She walked Jetta around a bit and said that it seemed more like an abscess than a tendon injury because she didn't want to put pressure on her heel. The weird thing is that Jetta was indisputably lame when walking in mud or uneven ground, but much better when on flat solid ground when I went out to see her. But when the BO walked her a couple hours later, she was having a hard time walking on the gravel, which is not normal for her.

Sigh. Today was not an improvement, in fact she was much worse. I led her out of the stall and she struggled to walk down the aisle. Her tendon where it was swollen yesterday was still a tiny bit puffy today but not hot in the slightest. I ended up soaking her hoof in water with Epsom salt in case it is an abcess to see if we can draw it out. No one at the barn has hoof testers but I couldn't find any sensitivity with my hoof pick. I also put standing wraps on in case it is the tendon or just to support her legs if it's just an abscess. She also got some bute which will help with the pain and any inflammation.

Soaking her hoof while waiting to put her other wrap on.

Needless to say, I'm just depressed right now. I have a very limited experience with lamenesses, in fact I can count three times in the last 10 years of owning horses. 1) Grady and I went to a show and warmed up. The footing was really deep and he came up lame. He must have strained a muscle because 2 days later he was fine. 2) Grady over the summer had a slightly swollen knee and pronounced limp at the walk. After cold hosing it and applying liniment, the next day it was almost back to normal. And 3) When I first got Jetta with her awful feet she had quite a few abscesses going on, and once was hobbling lame. Next day, 100% sound. Her hooves were pretty much riddled with holes and cracks where abscesses came up. Four years later - hasn't been unsound once.

The vet and farrier are both scheduled to come out so we'll see what this is... Might sound a little weird but I'm crossing my fingers that it's "just" an abscess.