# Pulled Stifle-how to treat it?



## Horsiezz (Apr 7, 2010)

Hm...so today we found out my mom's 6 yr old QH riding mare(trail horse) has a pulled stifle. 
We thought it was the new shoes that we had our Amish farrier put on,they are a plastic type colored shoe,but it wasn't the case. 
Our Amish farrier,Aiden,and my mom and her friend checked her leg and found a sore spot on her stifle. We think she pulled it. 
So far we gave her 2 grams of Bute(today and yesterday) and we put some Mineral Ice on the stifle. Yesterday,she could barely walk on it. Today she is still dragging her leg/hoof but is doing better. I took her outside to exercise it a little,and to let her graze(on a leadrope of course). She has been in the stall for 2 days. And still is. Poor girl. Aiden,the farrier,said to give her a couple week rest,and then gradually get her back to riding..like....
1st day-some arena riding
2nd day-see how she is doing,give her a rest
3rd day-1 mile trail ride
4th-see how she is doing,rest
5th-2 mile trail ride
ETC...but we will probably space out the schedule more.

Does this sound like good advice to you? It does to me. Sure,he is no vet,but he knows his ways around horses and hes been around them since he was a kid. And this sounds pretty logical. 

What else should I do/use to treat this? Any medicine you would reccomend? Any advice will do.


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## Horsiezz (Apr 7, 2010)

Okay I just read this..

"When a stifle locks the hind leg will stiffen and drag behind the animal. The best course of treatment with a stifle issue is slow hill work (in hand is best) trotting over poles and raised poles to help condition the muscle. The WORST thing to do is stall rest."

What do you think about this? It sounds pretty acurate in my case.


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## patandchickens (Apr 7, 2010)

There is a big difference between an injured stifle and a locked (or recurrently-locking) stifle. 

With a locked (aka slipped) stifle, the horse cannot bend the hock and move the leg forward properly AT ALL, it is quite unmistakeable. It is possible for a horse to have a slippy stifle that "goes in and out" so that it's locked for a few strides or a little while, then the ligament pops back over and horse moves fine, then the stifle locks again, etc. But it is still distinctively _locked_ when it is locked, except in the case of some (usually young) horses who move funny behind most strides in an attempt to *prevent* a slippy stifle from actually locking. 

A locked stifle may cause the horse consternation but it is not generally painful; and indeed, getting it to move the right way to unlock, and then fitting up the muscles to try to keep the ligaments in place, is the best solution..

Any other kind of stifle injury is a whole different kettle o' fish. Stifle injuries are often hard to categorically recognize, and they may or may not seem overtly painful to the horse; but the big thing is that an injured stifle SHOULD NOT BE EXERCISED (except, once it has begun to heal, in a very limited/progressive/careful physical-therapy kind of way).

Unless you are POSITIVE this is a locking stifle, I would strongly suggest getting a vet out (a good lameness vet, not just Joe The Local Cow Guy) to figure out what exactly's going on. Because the fix for a locking stifle is pretty much the WORST thing to do if it is a stifle *injury*. From your farrier's 'prescription' it sounds to me like he does think it is an INJURY, and I would treat it very, very, cautiously and a vet's insight might be helpful.

Best of luck,

Pat


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## LauraM (Apr 8, 2010)

patandchickens said:
			
		

> There is a big difference between an injured stifle and a locked (or recurrently-locking) stifle.
> 
> With a locked (aka slipped) stifle, the horse cannot bend the hock and move the leg forward properly AT ALL, it is quite unmistakeable. It is possible for a horse to have a slippy stifle that "goes in and out" so that it's locked for a few strides or a little while, then the ligament pops back over and horse moves fine, then the stifle locks again, etc. But it is still distinctively _locked_ when it is locked, except in the case of some (usually young) horses who move funny behind most strides in an attempt to *prevent* a slippy stifle from actually locking.
> 
> ...


I completely agree with Pat, here.  And thanks for typing that all out first so I didn't have to.


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## Countrymom (Apr 25, 2010)

I have had both a locking stifle issue with a horse and then another who actually injuried or pulled the stifle.  Both were not kept in a stall.  I treated the locked stifle with bute and movement.  I treated the pulled stifle with pasture rest.  No bute as I did not want the horse to feel good and go romping in the pasture as that is how he did it in the first place.  Cold weather and older horses don't always mix.  

I have to agree with Pat to get a vet out.  I also have known horses to become lame from poor shoeing and or triming.  Not sure if that is an issue here, but a vet can clarify if it is.  Farriers are not vets ... even the best should know that.  They are wonderful help when they are good and horrible advice when they think they know it all.  Please get a vet out.


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