Today's scan

well the good news there is progress but not enough that I'll be cantering for Christmas :-(

This is partially a bind of my own making; 99.9% of people have stopped scanning at this stage post injury and would now be on a progressive rehab program, but of course me being me, he is being scanned as though he is an Olympic horse (which of course to me he is and as I have an Olympic vet ;~} )

 Like the physio she is really pleased with how he is trotting up so we are making clear, measurable and solid progress.

 I am especially pleased with how he is doing under saddle, the slow leg progress is a shame as it means more pen turn out but I can at least start increasing the trot work. Visually the legs are looking good, I think helped by use of the Equissage boot

 Vet was amused at my disbelief re the magnetic rug and Fred and has suggested I try it on Chorrie too

Scan 7 steady as she goes

So mixed visit more GOOD than BAD and for left leg it is still early days.

Feet x-rayed no rotation GOOD
Right check ligament injured 5th May/ 4th August continues to heal well GOOD
Left check injured 15th September has improved but not good enough for pen turnout so GOOD for improvement BAD for no pen turnout.
Shoes to stay off as vet concerned laminae may have stretched and not yet have tightened BAD
Can go out to hand graze GOOD
Another month in box before next scan BAD

Overall it is improvement so am holding tightly onto that. Realistically left is only a month so no surprise really! But I wish it were different.

1/ Decrease bute to 1.5 daily
2/ If 1/ goes OK then on Sunday reduce Sedalin to 2ml / twice daily

Still using laser daily on coronary bands vet did wonder if it would open AV shunts, seemed happy enough when realised was under physio advice.

Need to get a set of hoof boots now

Scan 6 hope dies 15th September

Not one of the better mornings of my life, picked up wrong house keys so had to turn around and go home to exchange one hour wasted. Janice saying goodbye to her beloved Jade and then bad scan for Chorister.

At the moment life feels like a dark night the sort where looking up at the sky it is jet black with a load of shining stars. The stars are my husband, physio, vet, yard owners and friends who shine in my darkness with their caring and kind words, without them I'd be in the pitch black.

This feels worse than 'the great escape' TGE because I guess it is worse, the right leg which he first injured on 5th May is healing well, the left leg which he injured in TGE is getting worse. The check ligament is now damaged which it wasn't on the 5th August presumably it has gone under the strain of TGE plus uneven loading due to yet more box rest because of TGE.

So we've not got away with it definitely not and whilst TGE wasn't my fault it was my responsibility.

So now have to balance box rest until at least Christmas to allow left check to heal with some prison pen turnout where vet is hoping if he mooches quietly about will give a more even loading of front limbs than stall rest and thus prevent further deterioration of left check ligament.

So plan is to build a Winter prison pen on hard standing around 20ft by 30ft put down straw floor (imperative he has flat surface underfoot) as doing a prison pen on grass is going to be impossible come the wet weather. Fred could go out with him initially.

So that's it two hours turnout/day until Christmas and to think that I started off today assuming we'd be back to starting five minutes hand walking today.

I thought the leg looked bigger this am but just assumed because I'd not ice'd it and was being paranoid, took a while for me to twig what Liz (vet) was saying as for me it came out of a clear blue sky. Just not been on my radar him doing the other check well not whilst on box rest.

Life f'ing well sucks!

Scans 5th August 2011

Chorister 1st August 2011