Yes, I have experienced something similar: I have an 18 yr. old Arab
mare,..., she ends up with edema around the pastern area in the rear. No
sign of lameness, pain, or heat.
The first time I applied DMSO with feracin (sp?) and wrapped it, kept her
quiet and it gradually diminished.
However, since she showed no symptoms, when it happened again
(about 3 times now), I have exercised her normally and it goes away
within a day. Any ideas / advice anyone?
I have a 13 yo mare who shows the (apparent) same symptoms, and in
similar weather conditions. The vet's explanation was age and poor
circulation - the rear hocks are about as far from the heart as you can
get, right? Since the horse shows no lameness associated with the
swelling, the vet was relatively unconcerned.
I imagine that anti-inflamatories would be useful for this kind of situation.
At least, in human terms, I'm familiar with taking ibuprofen for controlling
inflamation and its associated local tissue damage. In fact, the vet also
recomended low doses of bute for controlling the inflamation.
However, I've also been wondering about using boots on the mare to
control the swelling. Any comments, or recomendations on boot types?