khall wrote:He did come back to me in his mid 20s, ended up having neck arthritis (he had flipped at some point) that caused him neuro issues, he was PTS at almost 27.
I saw this statement from khall on the training thread and it struck a chord.
My older guy, Wakkidu aka Kuper if anyone remembers him, has neck arthritis. Diagnosed almost 3 years ago now after a period of struggling and NQR-ness. According to x-ray, 4 of his vertebra were almost if not completely fused. I had owned him more than 18 months at this time. He is one of the few horses whose neck I didn't have x-rayed as part of the PPE. Vet said the fusion would have been occurring over a period of many years and likely the surgery he had the prior spring where he had to have general anesthetic and be laid flat on the table allowed the muscles in his neck to relax/reset such that they were no longer holding the vertebra in a comfortable position. Or something like that - if it makes any sense.
He never had any real neuro symptoms outside of that exam, where a fair amount of pressure was put on his neck as part of the diagnostic process. And I would say those symptoms were fairly mild compared to what I experienced with Brio on his later, bad days.
I tried to persevere on after the diagnosis, thinking that Training/First level could be manageable. Neck injections really gave us a boost for a period of time. However, even with a higher than "legal" dose of Previcox on board, the work became a major struggle again. It was that next summer that I decided it was in all of our best interests for Kuper to be eased into retirement. It happened over the course of 5-6 months, as I was looking for what turned out to be Cartier. Kuper has been fully retired now for almost 2 years. He has some additional quirks that make even an occasional light ride just not any fun for either of us, so that means no riding or work at all.
He is 20 years old now, so not so old. And he very much enjoys his life of leisure, sharing turnout with 2 ponies that he seems to think are his babies. Most of the time, he gives the stink eye to anyone who appears to be coming to get him.
He definitely prefers his own company and that of his pasture mates to people.So to my question, I guess. Since he is out of work and therefore the pressure on his neck is minimal, should I expect him to live out a fairly normal life? Or will symptoms present at some point, simply as a matter of progression of the condition? Maybe pointless, unanswerable questions. But khall's comment about the horse flipping made me wonder, in the absence of such trauma, what might be expected.
Pics of the old man and I, lest anyone accuse me of favoring Cartier.
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