Symptoms And Treatment Of Navicular Syndrome

By Enid Hinton


A horse suffering from navicular confuses the owner leading to neglect because he does not understand the problem. The location of this bone by experts and veterinarians has helped in fixing the navicular syndrome. The problem is likely to worsen if no action is taken. This will reduce the competitiveness of your horse as well as its lifespan.

There are early signs that your horse is headed towards lameness. The severity of the condition in each case will determine the best approach. The position of the navicular bone makes the condition worse especially when quick action is not taken. The surrounding tissues are very soft and therefore the hoof will become very painful.

The distal bone and surrounding tissues wear out because of constant motion. This happens as the horse changes positions while in motion. The forward and backward bending of the hoof during motion eats away the tendons causing extensive damage and a lot of pain.

The pain between the toes results from worn-out tendons and bones. The cause of pain may be other conditions around the hoof and not the navicular disease. This calls for confirmatory tests to be certain when administering treatment. Some horses are injured during training, normal walks or racing. Inflammation and injuries are likely to affect performance horses.

Some horse breeds experience the navicular condition more often than others according to veterinary records. The breeds with the highest number of cases are Thoroughbreds, Quarter Horses and Warm Bloods. This condition emerges between 7 and 14 years.

When the forward or backward axis breaks, your horse will experience caudal heel pain. Under run heels or abnormality in the conformation around the hoof also cause pain. Sheared and contracted heels cause a lot of pain. Horses with disproportionately small hooves or with mismatched hoof angles are likely to be affected.

The signs of lameness are detected on one hoof before spreading to the other. The variation arises because the degree of infection varies. The horse makes shorter strides and is likely to swap legs at a corner or a tight angle. The lame leg will always be on the inside.

The style of landing will also tell you if your horse is sick. The normal landing pattern is from heel to toe. A sick horse will land from toe-to-heel. The best way to spot lameness is to record the horse in motion and later observe the video in slow motion.

There are two common tests for diagnosis. The frog pressure test and the wedge test. In the two cases, pressure is exerted between the toes and the horse trotted for a while. The lame leg will get worse over time. A confirmatory test is required since other conditions may give similar signs.

Treatment is either aggressive or conservative based on the extent of the disease on the hoof. The first aim is to restore balance, which should be gradual. Shoeing helps to achieve certainty when the horse is in motion and thus restore balance. It is common to use anti-inflammation drugs to treat sick hooves. Surgery and laser treatment are the other options.




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