Lameness or poor performance issues can be frustrating and sometimes time consuming to diagnosis and resolve. Therefore utilising experience coupled with a multitude of diagnostic and imaging modalities can help to speed this process up.

Below are a few of the options available to you:

Never underestimate the value of a history! A thorough history is taken before any physical assessment in order to help streamline further diagnostics tests. Even the most subtle change can sometimes indicate what the underlying cause is. Therefore having a diary of events prior to the lameness / poor performance can always help.

After a history is taken and full static exam takes place, looking for changes in musculature to thickening of soft tissue structures and any pain on palpation.

Want to hear more about the static evaluation with regards to conformation?

The visual lameness assessment is based on experience. Alternations in gait, pace and limb flight can change in response to pain, injury or disease. Coupled with the history and static examination the visual assessment is often performed on the straight-line, hard and soft lunge and sometimes under saddle.

Having flat surfaces to conduct this stage of the diagnostic work up is imperative to look for inconsistencies in the various paces.

Our team has a wealth of experience in this field and will often describe what they are seeing at the time – helping owners to understand the next steps in the work up or diagnostic equipment which could help find the cause of the issue.

Although we use this term all the time this can be a critical and sometimes time consuming component of a lameness / poor performance workup.

In order to isolate and eliminate pain from a diagnostic approach we are able to infiltrate local anaesthetic around nerves and within joints – which “blocks” or removes the pain sensation. If a patients gait then improves after this technique is done we know roughly the source of the pain. At this point we often progress onto imaging the area with x-ray or ultrasound to specify the structure which is injured / changed. This then allows us to construct a treatment plan.

Most of us are familiar with the complex of the lameness puzzle and therefore, Sleip® can now be used to provide objective and evidence based data and increase clinical precision. Simply by using an app, a horse’s gait and movement pattern can be recorded, analysed and monitored. That means that even subtle irregularities that can be undetected by the human eye, can now be detected early, preventing minor problems from developing into chronic conditions. 

At Farr and Pursey we have heavily invested in some of the most advanced mobile diagnostic equipment on the market market. As an ambulatory practice we have ensured all of our equipment is portable and battery powered allowing us to perform most of our diagnostic imaging anywhere – no power on your yard…. to a problem for us.

Sometimes it is not possible to diagnose the source of a lameness / poor performance issue.  Therefore we have close relations with various referral practices within the area – offering advanced imaging  ( CT and MRI ) in addition to bone scans ( Scintigraphy ).  We are able to arrange the referrals for you and are often kept up-to-date with their progress, often acting as an intermediary if items need clarifying or treatment needs to be continued back at home.