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Bone Spavin in Horses

Seek veterinary advice if you suspect this disease.

Bone spavin is osteoarthritis, or the final phase of degenerative joint disease (DJD), in
the lower three hock joints. It usually affects the two lowest joints of the hock (the
tarsometatarsal and the distal intertarsal joints), with the third joint, the proximal
intertarsal, being the least likely to develop bone spavin.

Symptoms of Bone Spavin in Horses

  • Lameness
  • Joint swelling
  • Stiffness
  • Hot legs
  • Popping sound
  • Reduced performance

Common in

  • Middle-aged horses
  • Old horses
  • Overweight
  • Draft horses

Treatment of Bone Spavin in Horses

  • Corrective shoeing – balancing the hind feet correctly will reduce stress on the hock joints.
  • Pain relief – Non-steroidal anti-inflammatories can be given to decrease pain associated with the hocks and allow continued controlled exercise. This movement may stimulate the joints to fuse naturally.
    Joint injections can be used in two ways: To relieve pain and swelling or to dissolve cartilage to promote bone fusion.
  • Bisphosphonates – aims to prevent excessive loss of bone at the small tarsal joints, which can reduce pain and promote joint fusion.
  • Surgical fusion of the small tarsal joints – This is done as a last resort when other treatments are no longer working.

Prevention of Bone Spavin in Horses

  • Don’t overwork young, growing horses
  • Don’t use a horse with poor conformation for high joint-stress type sports
  • Treat all hock sprain injuries promptly and allow proper healing time
  • Keep the feet properly balanced by a skilled farrier

How Happie can help you manage your horse's health

Happie Horse App digitale Gesundheitsakte

Digital health management offers numerous benefits in modern equine healthcare.

With the Happie Horse App, you can track symptom patterns and body values, such as Temperature, Pulse and Respiration. Allowing you to notice abnormal changes in body and behaviour early on, leading to more successful treatments.

The Happie symptom checker allows you to add all of your horse’s abnormal symptoms in order to present potential causes and diseases.

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