deep digital flexor strain

["guest@endurance.net" <guest@endurance.net>]

Lucy Bagot bagot@fgi.net
Early in March my 17 yr mare strained her deep digital flexor 
tendon.  There was swelling and pain upon palpating the 
leg.  This was confirmed by an ultrasound done by my vet.
He had said it would take somewhere between 4 to 6 
weeks before she could return to work.  It has now been 5 
weeks and all swelling and pain is gone.  The exception 
being when she is kept in her stall, there is a slight 
'stocking up' in the leg.  A walk down the aisle clears it up 
but it still has me concerned.  The vet is scheduled to come
back out May 1st for a re-evaluation but I am looking for
any input from those on ridecamp to be able to discuss with
him before putting her  back to work.  Can I start her 
conditioning now or do I need to wait until her leg no longer 
swells after she has been stalled?   Will this be something 
that will always be there, like windpuffs?  I am anxious to put
her back to work but I don't want to rush it and end up with a
worse injury or back to square one.  Any and all suggestions
would be appreciated.