Crooked Legs

Only one appointment on the schedule for today with Doc. We headed out to see a foal that belonged to a new client. The client had been having problems with her usual vet and decided to switch to Doc. Driving up, all I could see out front of the two-horse barn was one really short, really fat pygmy goat standing guard- collar included. It baa-ed ferociously at me when I exited the truck.

The foal was perhaps the cutest foal I have ever seen; palomino, curly coat, baby mannerisms to the t, and very sweet. It was the mare's fourth baby- I think she was a small draft breed, very docile. Her foal has contracted tendons, and thus crooked legs. In the case of this cute little fellow, it just appeared to be his front legs that looked badly off, mostly around the knees. Doc informed me that the foal had originally been a possible septic case, and so he has been a bit of a problem child for the owner. His GGT levels (an enzyme associated with the liver) were high, which was attributed to the early infections.

To straighten out a foal's legs, a variety of methods can be tried- one of these is the administration of oxytetracycline. I remember when I rode along with a vet at a large standardbred breeding farm, they surgically put in wires and screws to straighten the horse's legs by focusing on the growth plate. Oxytetracycline is a little bit easier in that it is an injection. It bonds with calcium, allowing the tendons to relax and the legs to stretch and properly align. However, it must be used fairly early in a foal's development or else all it does is to relax the tendons, but not in any significant way to affect the structure of the horse's legs. This foal was at the very far end of that timetable- he had apparently been given one dose early on by the previous vet, but they had decided not to continue with the treatment for some reason (you normally give a small diluted dose once a day over a period of 3 days or so). Doc decided to go ahead and try the three day series and see if any improvement could be made.

So I got the butt end of the foal, my hand gripping the tail, as the owner got the head. We wrestled the baby into a corner and held him still while Doc gave the IV. He was actually quite good for a little guy, though he did get poked a couple times since every jerk of his head pulled the needle out of where it needed to be. It will be very interesting to see if there is improvement, and if so, how much- it amazes me how specific we can be with treatments and the drugs that are available. It is also terrifying to realize how much there is to learn! Doc can specifically tell me how every single drug he gives works within the body- it is an incredible amount of knowledge.

We will go back tomorrow and Saturday to give him another small dose, and we will take blood every day to monitor all of his blood chemistry and make sure everything looks okay. Tomorrow should be a full day- appointments from 10 am till  5 pm, so I am sure I will have lots to report!
 
Went for another ride this morning on Sweets- English-style this time so I could trot the fat out of her without having to worry about posting into the pommel. I did better than I expected after having been out of an English saddle for about 5 months now- but I know I will hurt tomorrow from the posting. No hissy fits today or bucking, though she was full of spunk once I got her going.