Well, there is good and not so good. Here's the scoop:
One of our wonderful boarders offered to haul us up to Athens last Wednesday for the ultrasound. The appointment was scheduled for 10:30, but it was an extremely busy day at the hospital and it was closer to 1:30 when Kwik was seen. My doctor watched him walk and trot out, and he confirmed the severity of Kwik's right hind lameness. The ultrasound revealed "very mild protrusion of the medial meniscus" and "mild effusion and synovitis of the medial femerotibial joint." All in all, there wasn't anything to really go on save the mild protrusion of the medial meniscus which he said could indicate possible cruciate damage. NV was able to attend the ultrasound, and after discussing the findings with her, we decided the best way to proceed would be to leave him overnight for arthroscopic surgery the following day.
I was a nervous wreck at work all day on Thursday waiting for the phone call, and I finally heard back from my student around 6:30 that evening. The arthroscopy revealed trauma to the synovial membrane over the cruciate ligament. While no tear was observed in the visible portion of the ligament, the presentation along with the displacement of the medial meniscus is highly suggestive of a cruciate ligament injury. The surgeon couldn't give me a definite prognosis, but he was encouraged by the appearance of the cartilage and the rest of the joint. Kwik will be on stall rest for two weeks, and once his sutures come out at the end of the two weeks, he can go out in a small medical paddock for another two weeks. At the end of this two weeks, he'll get an HA injection (no steroids at this point) and can go back out with Sky. He will enjoy a nice long 6 month vacation after which we can then reassess whether or not he will be able to return to work.
So, the way I understand it, it could be much worse. Hopefully the injection and rest will be just what the doctor ordered and he'll make a miraculous comeback in the spring. In the meantime, I'll hand walk him, groom him, and love on him, and hopefully I'll be able to pick up some rides here and there. I'm so glad to have a diagnosis and a plan, and 6 months will fly by!
Showing posts with label vet. Show all posts
Showing posts with label vet. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
Monday, August 5, 2013
Crow Hopping Chronicles: Update 2
Today was by far the most educational veterinary experience I've ever had. I tried my best to keep mental note of everything I learned today, but I don't have the notes from the exam yet. Hopefully I remember everything accurately.
When New Vet (NV) arrived, I gave her Kwik's back story, and she asked if I had noticed any inconsistencies in his race record. I pulled his record from equibase, and he kept a fairly consistent 3 week schedule from August 2005-September 2009. Then he had a nine month break (September 2009-June 2010), raced twice more in July, and retired thereafter. It's possible he sustained an injury in September 2009.
I sent NV the notes from his past two lameness evaluations and chiropractic adjustments, and we went straight to flexing the hock/stifle. He flexed extremely sore in his right stifle, and we went out to the round pen to watch him at the trot and canter. Kwik obviously didn't want to leave anything on the table, and he made sure NV got the memo that something wasn't right. The crow hopping, bucking, and kicking out was the worst it has ever been.
We decided to x-ray the stifle next (I got to hold the cassette!), and while NV set up the equipment, she gave me a great overview of the joint's composition and what exactly you can see on a radiograph. I had no idea how complex the stifle joint is, and apparently radiographs are only capable of assessing about 30% of the structure since they do not detect soft tissue. Ultrasound and arthroscopy must be used to assess the soft tissue structures. Surpisingly, Kwik's stifle x-rays did not show anything concerning.
NV decided to block him since the radiographs were clean, and we saw significant improvement after trotting him out. We headed back to the round pen to see what we had at the canter, and in NV's words, "he went from bucking rodeo bronc to children's hunter!" He did not kick out, he did not crow hop, he did not buck, and he picked up the correct lead every time in both directions. The difference was absolutely incredible.
Sooo... it's likely Kwik has some sort of soft tissue injury (worst case scenario) or inflammation in the stifle joint, and ultrasound is the next step. NV has an ultrasound but thinks it would be better to take advantage of the mega fancy equipment at the UGA Veterinary Hospital. The plan is to haul up to Athens in the next couple of days to have the ultrasound, and if necessary, the arthroscopy performed and then go from there.
I'm trying to be optimistic and not worry too too much until we have a diagnosis. Thanks so so so much for all of the well wishes yesterday- it really does make things a little easier having some cheerleaders on the sideline!
When New Vet (NV) arrived, I gave her Kwik's back story, and she asked if I had noticed any inconsistencies in his race record. I pulled his record from equibase, and he kept a fairly consistent 3 week schedule from August 2005-September 2009. Then he had a nine month break (September 2009-June 2010), raced twice more in July, and retired thereafter. It's possible he sustained an injury in September 2009.
I sent NV the notes from his past two lameness evaluations and chiropractic adjustments, and we went straight to flexing the hock/stifle. He flexed extremely sore in his right stifle, and we went out to the round pen to watch him at the trot and canter. Kwik obviously didn't want to leave anything on the table, and he made sure NV got the memo that something wasn't right. The crow hopping, bucking, and kicking out was the worst it has ever been.
We decided to x-ray the stifle next (I got to hold the cassette!), and while NV set up the equipment, she gave me a great overview of the joint's composition and what exactly you can see on a radiograph. I had no idea how complex the stifle joint is, and apparently radiographs are only capable of assessing about 30% of the structure since they do not detect soft tissue. Ultrasound and arthroscopy must be used to assess the soft tissue structures. Surpisingly, Kwik's stifle x-rays did not show anything concerning.
NV decided to block him since the radiographs were clean, and we saw significant improvement after trotting him out. We headed back to the round pen to see what we had at the canter, and in NV's words, "he went from bucking rodeo bronc to children's hunter!" He did not kick out, he did not crow hop, he did not buck, and he picked up the correct lead every time in both directions. The difference was absolutely incredible.
Sooo... it's likely Kwik has some sort of soft tissue injury (worst case scenario) or inflammation in the stifle joint, and ultrasound is the next step. NV has an ultrasound but thinks it would be better to take advantage of the mega fancy equipment at the UGA Veterinary Hospital. The plan is to haul up to Athens in the next couple of days to have the ultrasound, and if necessary, the arthroscopy performed and then go from there.
I'm trying to be optimistic and not worry too too much until we have a diagnosis. Thanks so so so much for all of the well wishes yesterday- it really does make things a little easier having some cheerleaders on the sideline!
Friday, June 14, 2013
Hock Injections and Insurance
After discussing Kwik's crow hopping issue with my vet, I decided to have her come out to do a lameness evaluation. She did flexions and watched him go on concrete and in the round pen. He started up with the crow hopping right on cue when I asked for the canter, and she saw it all (thank goodness- I'm not crazy afterall!). She thinks his hocks are bothering him, but it does not appear to be severe. We decided to go ahead and inject his hocks, and we discussed joint therapies for maintenance. My farrier happened to be out a day early and was present for the evaluation as well, and we decided to put back shoes on this go around. He had to stay in last night, but he can go back out with Skye tonight. We can start walk work and light trotting on Monday, and we can start working back up to regular work after 7 days. Kwik raced for 5 years and just turned 10 so I fully expected him to need some joint maintenance. Hopefully annual/semi-annual hock injections and a good joint supplement/injectable will fix our problem and we'll be back in business very soon!
I also finally pulled the trigger on an insurance policy. After MUCH deliberation, I decided to go with a $2,500 Mortality + $5,000 Basic Medical/Surgical policy from Hartford. It's not the ideal policy, but I think it gives me the most value for the premium price ($103 + $200 = $303).
The Good:
I also finally pulled the trigger on an insurance policy. After MUCH deliberation, I decided to go with a $2,500 Mortality + $5,000 Basic Medical/Surgical policy from Hartford. It's not the ideal policy, but I think it gives me the most value for the premium price ($103 + $200 = $303).
The Good:
- The $5,000 limit for Medical/Surgical is not limited to the value of the horse. I insured Kwik for $2,500 but I will get the full $5,000 if I need it. Some policies restrict Major Medical limits to the value of the horse ($2,500 wouldn't get me far at all if he ever needed surgery...).
- The policy includes a $3,000 emergency colic surgery endorsement. Major Medical is my primary coverage, but basically I have $8,000 available for colic surgery which I think is pretty decent.
- The premium is very reasonable. My main concern for purchasing insurace was being able to afford a major surgery in the event of an injury or illness. I really don't care about being reimbursed if he passes away. If you're not concerned about recovering your loss, insuring your horse under value is a good way to make premiums more affordable.
- There are no copayments for X-rays and ultrasound diagnostics.
- There is a 50% copay for other diagnostic imaging (bone scan, MRI, etc.) and shockwave therapy
- Havested tissue treatment isn't covered
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Recovery Part. 1
It was so wonderful to see Kwik bright-eyed and perky when I went out to the barn Saturday afternoon. I checked his bandages, added a little more Elasticon wrap to his hoof bandage, and then we went for a little hand graze. He was definitely happy to be out of his stall! Adam came out with me on Sunday, and he stuffed Kwik full of carrots and even helped out with the hand grazing!
Dr. P came out on Monday to change his bandage and said the laceration looks really great and is healing nicely. The plan was to put his shoe back on towards the end of the week, allow him to go out for a little while in a small medical paddock on Wednesday, remove the bandage when he comes in on Wednesday evening, and remove the staples on Monday.
My farrier was in the area last night (Tuesday), and Dr. P ok'd putting the shoe back on. When I got out to the barn last night, Kwik looked like he was in a daze. I pulled him out of his stall for a hand graze, and he was definitely off, wasn't interested in eating grass, and just looked like he wasn't all there. Something wasn't quite right, so I texted L, and she came right out. She agreed that he looked lethargic, and we took his temperature. He was on the borderline of running a low temperature, so we called Dr. P for her opinion. He ate all of his dinner, ate some hay, pooped, and drank water while we waited for the call-back, so I wasn't terribly worried. My first thought was that he was having a reaction to the second dose of antibiotics he received on Monday or he picked up a cold at the hospital. Dr. P called back, and she seemed to think it was an adverse reaction to the second dose of Excede as well.
L says he is walking better and is a little perkier this morning. He's outside in the mini paddock enjoying the sunshine, and his bandage comes off this evening. I really hope I'm greeted by my bright-eyed, happy go lucky Kwik this evening- we're so close to reaching the end of this whole ordeal (knock on wood!).
My farrier was in the area last night (Tuesday), and Dr. P ok'd putting the shoe back on. When I got out to the barn last night, Kwik looked like he was in a daze. I pulled him out of his stall for a hand graze, and he was definitely off, wasn't interested in eating grass, and just looked like he wasn't all there. Something wasn't quite right, so I texted L, and she came right out. She agreed that he looked lethargic, and we took his temperature. He was on the borderline of running a low temperature, so we called Dr. P for her opinion. He ate all of his dinner, ate some hay, pooped, and drank water while we waited for the call-back, so I wasn't terribly worried. My first thought was that he was having a reaction to the second dose of antibiotics he received on Monday or he picked up a cold at the hospital. Dr. P called back, and she seemed to think it was an adverse reaction to the second dose of Excede as well.
L says he is walking better and is a little perkier this morning. He's outside in the mini paddock enjoying the sunshine, and his bandage comes off this evening. I really hope I'm greeted by my bright-eyed, happy go lucky Kwik this evening- we're so close to reaching the end of this whole ordeal (knock on wood!).
Saturday, March 9, 2013
In Which Kwik Dodges a Bullet
This Wednesday night found me heading up to Athens, not for a football game or a visit with friends, but for emergency care at the UGA Veterinary Teaching Hospital.
I was heading home from work on Wednesday afternoon when L called to let me know that Kwik had cut himself in the fetlock area, and she suggested having Dr. P come out and take a look. I immediately drove out to the barn, and when I arrived, Dr. P and her assistant were cleaning up a wound that didn't really look all that bad. After she got a good look at everything, Dr. P explained that because of the location of the puncture, the tendon sheath may potentially be damaged. She used a probe to determine the length and width of the puncture and then distended the joint with sterile saline and inspected the wound for fluid leakage. Thankfully we didn't see any leakage, but Dr. P explained that a damaged tendon sheath is a life threatening condition, and she recommended transferring him to UGA to be certain.
My heart fell out of my chest as I looked at Kwik's semi drunk face still begging for cookies. I knew I'd never forgive myself if I didn't do all I could for him. I don't own a truck or trailer so I spent the next ten minutes calling everyone I knew that owned a rig and lived relatively close. I don't know how I'll ever repay them, but the JKs came to the rescue as soon as I called. They pulled up about thirty minutes later, Kwik hopped right onto their massive, fancy rig, and we were on our way to Athens. The trip only took about 40 minutes, but it felt like eternity. I just couldn't wrap my head around the fact that Kwik might not make it through this, and to be honest, my brain was racing trying to figure out how I was going to pay for all of this if he ended up needing surgery. I had already decided to use a portion of my tax return to purchase insurance, but I was waiting for the return to come to make the purchase. I'm sure I'll see the direct deposit in my account in the next few days. Go figure.
Once we arrived, Kwik politely walked off the trailer and into the hospital. He walked over the scale and stood for blood draws like a perfect gentleman. After the initial evaluation, the lead emergency veterinarian talked me through each tier of diagnostics that may be necessary and what each tier would cost and explained that they would work within my budget. Then they began the process of probing the laceration and distending the joint, and I watched that wound like a hawk for fluid leakage. Nothing! The crippling panic began to subside as they pumped him full of antibiotics, stapled him up, and bandaged his leg. Kwik also managed to pull his left front shoe during his pasture shenanigans, and the clip punctured the white line. His hoof got bandaged as well, and the team lead explained that they would probably keep him in the hospital for a few days to monitor the laceration. She didn't see any reason why he wouldn't make a full recovery!
I helped tuck him into a stall in the hospital for the night and drove to a friend's house to spend the night. The hospital called in the morning to give me an update (everything looked good!), and I went to visit Kwik. He was happily munching his hay when I arrived and definitely had a fan club- all of the students taking care of him were excited to meet "Kwik's mom!" Dr. Shearer came out to talk with me, and I was on cloud 9 on my way back to Atlanta. Kwik could come home the next day!
I took a half day from work on Friday afternoon, and one of the boarder's, LV, graciously offered to haul Kwik home. The trip home to Ashland was uneventful, and Kwik immediately rolled in his stall when he got home. It was such a wonderful feeling to have him safe and sound at home! He gets 1 bute tab today and tomorrow, his bandage and hoof padding will get changed by Dr. P on Monday, he will need to be on stall rest for two weeks until his staples can be removed, but Dr. Shearer cleared him to return to regular work if all looks good after that!!!! Big smile!
I'm so grateful to so many people for their support during this whole ordeal: L for recognizing the laceration warranted an after-hours visit, Dr. P for making all of the right calls, the JKs for dropping everything at 8 o'clock at night to haul Kwik 40 minutes to Athens, Jen for packing Kwik's feed and supplements, the UGA emergency team for their great work and upfrontness (not sure if that's a word) about procedures and cost, Kwik's team of vets and students (he got so much attention- he probably didn't want to leave!), Mrs. Great Indoors for letting me crash at her house, LV for giving us a ride home, and all of my friends and family for their concern and well wishes. I'm so glad this turned out the way it did- it could have been much MUCH worse. Here's hoping for a speedy recovery!
I helped tuck him into a stall in the hospital for the night and drove to a friend's house to spend the night. The hospital called in the morning to give me an update (everything looked good!), and I went to visit Kwik. He was happily munching his hay when I arrived and definitely had a fan club- all of the students taking care of him were excited to meet "Kwik's mom!" Dr. Shearer came out to talk with me, and I was on cloud 9 on my way back to Atlanta. Kwik could come home the next day!
I took a half day from work on Friday afternoon, and one of the boarder's, LV, graciously offered to haul Kwik home. The trip home to Ashland was uneventful, and Kwik immediately rolled in his stall when he got home. It was such a wonderful feeling to have him safe and sound at home! He gets 1 bute tab today and tomorrow, his bandage and hoof padding will get changed by Dr. P on Monday, he will need to be on stall rest for two weeks until his staples can be removed, but Dr. Shearer cleared him to return to regular work if all looks good after that!!!! Big smile!
I'm so grateful to so many people for their support during this whole ordeal: L for recognizing the laceration warranted an after-hours visit, Dr. P for making all of the right calls, the JKs for dropping everything at 8 o'clock at night to haul Kwik 40 minutes to Athens, Jen for packing Kwik's feed and supplements, the UGA emergency team for their great work and upfrontness (not sure if that's a word) about procedures and cost, Kwik's team of vets and students (he got so much attention- he probably didn't want to leave!), Mrs. Great Indoors for letting me crash at her house, LV for giving us a ride home, and all of my friends and family for their concern and well wishes. I'm so glad this turned out the way it did- it could have been much MUCH worse. Here's hoping for a speedy recovery!
 |
| Sleepy boy ready to go to UGA |
 |
| All bandaged up |
 |
| Happy to be home! |
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Cooking With Crisco!
It's been quite some time since my last post, and a lot has happened since then! Dr. B came out to assess Finn's locking stifle situation. After taking some X-rays (which didn't show anything concerning!), it was determined that he is probably suffering from luxation of the patella. From what I can gather and now understand from tons of online research, that basically means his knee cap doesn't work correctly. Dr. B decided to perform a procedure called blistering. She injected a solution of 2% iodine in an almond oil base within and around the middle patellar ligament to create an inflammatory reaction. Normally we horse owners never EVER want inflammation, but in this case, the inflammation creates scarring of the ligaments which in turn shortens them and helps pull the patella back into its normal position. Which mostly means his knee cap will hopefully work properly and his stifles won't lock. I wasn't too excited to have this procedure done because I didn't love the idea of creating scar tissue in his stifle and causing soreness/pain, but I was running low on options at this point. So Dr. B drugged up the Finn man (which was horrific and hilarious at the same time) and the procedure took all of 10 minutes.
I gave him the rest of the day off, and as per Dr. B's instructions, started him back in work the next day. Finn's been in training with JK 5 days/week, and I ride on Saturday and Sunday, and let me tell you, HE IS DOING SO MUCH BETTER! We are cookin with Crisco now, baby!
I gave him the rest of the day off, and as per Dr. B's instructions, started him back in work the next day. Finn's been in training with JK 5 days/week, and I ride on Saturday and Sunday, and let me tell you, HE IS DOING SO MUCH BETTER! We are cookin with Crisco now, baby!
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