High Low, and angles

I have a 4 year old horse that has high heel low heel syndrome. Over the course of a year he went from sound to unsound, had xrays, ultrssounds and MRI with no clinical abnormalities.
Upon checking his angles recently discovered he has gotten even more upright (64 degrees) on high heel foot which was 56 degrees 11 months ago.

Asked shoer to drop his heels gradually to return to an angle closer to where he was when he was sound.

He dropped him 8 degrees today. That seems like a huge drop to me in one shoeing. Do I need to do something to prevent tendon or ligament injury/strain such as have a 4 degree wedge pad put in to make the drop not as extreme?

I am including radiographs showing angle change.

Your xrays are not the same foot. One of them is backwards.

Not sure how that happened

Here is more with links to photos



First to clarify, he dropped heel, and hoof angle changed 8 degrees, from 64 to 56. He did not remove 8 degrees from heel ;-)

Injected fetlock because upon blocking fetlock (moving up from foot) he went 100% sound.
Yes he was lame at vet check and again now.
Yes, I see that hind tracking. He does have shoulder assymetry resulting from high low.

David:
Thanks for the insight.
Interesting to think about for sure.
Do you have any thought on how to proceed with his feet in terms of angles, heel heights, rockers, etc?
I do find it interesting that he was sound last year, and when fetlock was blocked he went completely sound, makes me think the limb disparity is not the cause of his lameness?

I would be interested to see pictures of the sole.

So would I


Cody Gilreath, CF

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To address your question of dropping him 8 degrees. Is the horse comfortable? Are his heels on the ground? Is he digging holes in the stall to raised the angle of the foot?

You need a definitive diagnosis first and foremost. It is great that you are keeping the records of angles and using them as guidelines, but realize that just because he was sound last year, or last month for that matter, at "X" angle does not mean that the present situation is comparable. Lameness does not depend on angles, heel heights, shoe fit, positions, etc. it is dependent on pathology. Until you diagnose the pathology, the rest is hypothesis. When you get a diagnosis, then you can start building a plan for alleviation.

Not necessarily. The limb length disparity could certainly cause a gradual deterioration of tissue which could result in your present condition. Not necessarily pointing in that direction, but conformation anomalies are never 'off the table' for underlying causative factors in pathology.

At 4yrs of age Really. get off the horse turn him out for 6-8 months and let him grow up. seen it to many times that eager owners want babies going asap. Did you know that WBs do not fully physically mature until about 9 years old........ the so called increased foot agle over the short period is a "Pain Response". One will chase an undiagnosed lameness with needles and monies until the baby grows up or is totally broken. the pony looks like a keeper put your eagerness to rest for a while; you both have a lifetime......BTW, next time you upload rads leave the garbage off them and make 'e m a bit smaller so they fit on most screens....

Comparing the xrays from 2011 - 2012 for purposes of measuring angles is comparing an apple to oranges. The toe is farther forward in 2011 which give a lower angle. The toe is farther back in 2012 which will measure a higher angle. Although there is a clear difference in the palmar angle between the two.

Does that look like a broken wing on the coffin bone or is it some anomaly/artifact?

Hard to see the heels in the corresponding photo, but almost looks like they had abscessed?

Looks like the joint is under stress in the 2012 right fore compared to 2011 right fore? but could just be the stance when the horse was radiographed.

Yep. If not communicated to the palmar process no problem. See a 4 years old just shipped from the "old Conytry" with 8 broken processes. Sound..... Thus the rads of just lateral shots are worthless to make an informed opine in the OP's questions. a series of 5 per foot is usual and customary in any foot lameness situation where i am from......

Horse not sound on either fore: More radiographs then?