Ridecamp: [RC] Navicular Horse

> I had heard that like Dr. Strasser, Dr. Robert Bowker
> also believed that Navicular was not a disease, but
> rather a condition of the hoof when it becomes very
> contracted. 

I hate to have too many posts about this horse since it's not *that*
endurance related...though I have known 2 endurance horses this year
diagnosed with navicular, I think this horse's case would be a very
extreme one.  But, I'll give a little more info just for those who are
genuinely wanting to help.

The horse has beautiful feet.  No sign of any previous founder. Nice
angles. Plenty of heel. No sign of contracted heels.  Nice looking legs. 
Maybe some seedy toe or whiteline, difficult using a hoof knife with a
very large hurting horse demanding his foot back.

He is not in the founder stance.  He's got his rear feet stretched out
behind him. Looks like he's parked out.  At first I thought that was
strange since navicular should be heel pain, but then I remembered that
the navicular bone is a pully.  By putting his front feet out in front of
him he's decreasing the pressure across that pully. When he pulls his
feet back under him he banks the sawdust so that his toe is again
pointing down to relieve the pressure.

I probably shouldn't have called the field "lush".  It's about 5 acres,
fescue, no sign of weeds, good coverage.  He gets no grain ever, hay in
the winter. He shares it with one other horse who does not have a weight
problem.  Bekki kept the sore horse up a lot this spring to get him to
lose weight.  He's just massive...in a Clydesdale looking sort of way.  I
genuinely believe he'd have to be very hungry to lose down to the "svelt"
look we're used to.  He was not diagnosed with x-rays only... they did
the radioactive dye injection at the University of TN.  He will probably
never be ridden again regardless of whether he is nerved.  She's moving
away and leaving him in the care of her retired parents.

She has an appointment at the vet tomorrow at 1:00.  We'll see what he
has to say.  I shouldn't waste a whole day going up just to solve my
curiosity...but probably will. >g<

Angie

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