ridecamp@endurance.net: Re: my horse's visit to the dentist

Re: my horse's visit to the dentist

Truman Prevatt (truman.prevatt@netsrq.com)
Tue, 15 Apr 1997 10:44:35 -0400

>Well, now we're into the anecdotal, but, hey, I'm game. How did this top
>notch endurance vet realign the left knee, pray tell. Some kind of surgery or
>just a laying on of the hands? I've never seen a knee realigned.
>

There is nothing wrong with anecdotal. It is fairly key to building and
testing intutition - good abstract intutition being key to good science.
Anyway knee realignment seems to be a fairly standard in veterinary
chiropractics. I had never heard of it before but this was one of the best
in the country working on my horse - so I just listened and observed.
Hell, I thought that I might even learn something!

>
>What's amazing is that the mouth problem was neglected so long that it caused
>hind leg problems.
>

Very true. Especially since this horse supposedly had its teeth floated on
a regular basis.

>In any athlete, human or equine, if you don't diagnose the problem
>accurately, then discover the etiology, then eliminate the, sometimes
>multiple, causes, you're just playing games. It is very rare that today's
>right fore lameness does not originate in the right fore. At least to the
>extent that when you see the horse nodding at the trot, the first, second,
>third and fourth examination areas do not include the mouth.
>
Humans can talk - horses can't so diagnosis of in equines is a little more
problematical.

For acute problems I would agree. For chronic subtile problems you usually
have to look farther. A tight abductor in the right rear can show up after
40 miles as a lameness in the left front. Where is the lameness and where
is the problem? I watched a rider for two years either win a ride or get
pulled at 40 miles for lameness "in the left front". At the OD one year he
didn't even start. Out of frustration he asked the vet checking him if he
had any idea of what the problem could be. The vet said easy it is
lameness is in the left front. Then he proceeded to reach in between the
horses hind legs and grabed the abductor and the horse let everyone know
where the problem was. Some rest and quite a bit of massage - yes laying
on of hands - and the horse didn't come up lame again. Did the massage do
any good? I don't think anyone cared in this case since he was back riding
a sound horse again.

Truman

Truman Prevatt
Sarasota, FL

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