Page 1024 - Adams and Stashak's Lameness in Horses, 7th Edition

990 Chapter 9

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Figure 9.41. An event horse landing after a cross‐country jump. Note the hyperextension of the front fetlocks. Source: Courtesy of Dr. Eric
Swinebroad.

The use of studs on both sides of the shoe is less prob­ Palpation of the horse’s joints, tendons, and back is
lematic from a lateral medial point of view but might performed routinely as well as limb flexion tests and
exacerbate hyperextension of the forelimbs by prevent­ finally evaluation of the spinal range of motion. Hoof
ing, upon landing from a jump, the normal minimal slid­ testers are then applied. Horses are evaluated in motion,
ing of the front feet. The addition of a third stud usually at the walk, on straight line, and on short circles and
on the lateral toe side of the shoe is also common in then at the trot and canter, ideally both on hard and soft
front shoes. surfaces. It can be extremely fruitful to evaluate some
Synthetic geotextile footings are becoming increas­ horses under saddle. Many elite barns have horses eval­
ingly prevalent. Although they are rarely too deep or uated on a weekly basis to detect any small changes ena­
slippery, they tend to negate the natural slipping that bling them to address problems early on and modulate
happens upon landing from jumps, increasing the torque workload accordingly.
forces and to some extent the impact at that phase. Barring constraints from the timing of future shows
Typically, a horse will get shod at least 1 week before or regulations at the particular show (FEI vs. USEF vs.
any significant competitions, which will allow correc­ national regulations of other countries, for the limits of
tion and sufficient rest in the case of a shoe set to tight detection of traces of local anesthesia agents) and
or a nail issue. An added constraint on the competition depending on the severity of the gait abnormality, local
horses from a shoeing stand point is that the constant and/or regional blocks could be performed. Perineural
traveling to shows may result in various farriers trim nerve blocks are often combined with synovial blocks as
and shoe them (when the regular one is not set to needed to gain more specificity.
travel). This can result in lack of familiarity of the far­ This process might take several days as it is often
rier to the particular horse’s feet and the loss of subtle needed to let a block wear off before using more specific
fine‐tuning. ones. This is especially true when trying to gain more
information about foot lameness (after a positive PD
nerve block, using intrasynovial distal interphalangeal
LAMENESS DIAGNOSIS (DIP) joint, navicular bursa (NB), or digital flexor ten­
don sheath (DFTS) blocks) or differentiating hindlimb
Lameness evaluation on performance horses should proximal suspensory ligament desmitis from lower hock
be preceded by a good knowledge of the medical/ortho­ joint pain.
pedic history, the current and past performances, and Results of the blocks are evaluated on the horse in
any changes in training, riders, or shoeing. hand or ridden. Having a rider is especially helpful for