Tell Me About Ringbone

[ozzy24]

I think my 8 yr old Appy eventing gelding may have ringbone on his hind pasterns. He has large bumpy ankles but has never been lame a day in his life. What signs should I watch out for and what possible negative effects could it have in the future? Are they are any treatments to slow it down? Thanks!

[greeneyelioness]

Hi
I am dealing with Ringbone issues now on my 18 yr old gelding. First there are options and the biggest thing you should do is invest in a good sporthorse vet to assist you along the way. General practice vets are good but specialists are better and will confer with your regular vet.
Second, listen to your vet and don't think you know better than they do. You don't and your barn owner doesn't and neither does your neighbor's cousin who had a horse that may have had Ringbone but she isn't sure because the guy at the feed store said that it sounded like Ringbone. This was an issue for the previous owner of my horse and she really screwed him up so now he will never be sound. Never.
Now the best things that you can do is make sure you take xrays so you know how things are progressing. Xrays are the best way to tell if he is close to fusing or if he still needs more time. Ringbone is not a death sentence if it is properly managed. You may be able to do some joint injections such as betamethasone, Legend (hyalauronic acid) or even ethyl alcohol.
Bute is your friend so use it wisely. Your vet can prescribe your horse's dosage and do whatever you need to to get it in.
Ask your vet about using Surpass which is an expensive topical ointment but does help ease the pain. however, if you are upper level and competing you can't use this as it will show up in tests.
Keep riding your horse as the work will keep the joint flexible and don't stall him if possible. The more he moves the more he works his joints and the better he will feel.
Invest in a good Hyalauronic Acid/Gluscosamine Chondrotin supplement. It helps some and not others but you never know until you try.
Keep his weight lighter than normal until he is fused. More weight means more stress on the joints.
Hope that this helps. Had the previous owners did this for my horse he may be still usable but she didn't and now he is hardly sound to be in the pasture.:mad:

[Proffie]

It matters if it's HIGH ringbone, which is normally around the pastern area, or LOW ringbone, which is in the joints around or inside the hoof structure.

What you're describing sounds like high ringbone, which is much more treatable than low ringbone. Horses with high ringbone can still be fairly sound for light work, if it's managed correctly. A good farrier, decent footing, and a healthy diet can keep the horse happy.

I've had several oldsters with ringbone. One was fine for arena and trail riding with minimal maintenance. Another got progressively uncomfortable, and I finally had him nerved and retired him until he passed away. I still have the third horse, who was sound for many years with high ringbone, thanks to Legend/Adequan and good shoeing. She eventually developed low ringbone as well, and is now a very happy pasture ornament.

So it's not a death sentence... but it will affect the horse's long term athletic ability.

[ozzy24]

Thanks for the great advice. What exactly is the meaning of fusing?

[Ozone]

Large Bumpy Ankels.... are you sure you are not talking about Windpuffs? Ring bone is not a mass of bumps, usually just one hard mass.

You do not have to go for broke with supplements, injections and shoeing - depending on high or low ringbone *if this is what your horse actually has*

Ringbone usually occurs in the front legs, and is usually worse in one leg than the other. Ringbone is most often found in mature horses, especially those in intensive training.

High ringbone: The horse will have a bony growth around the pastern area, and the pastern will have less mobility. The horse will show pain when the pastern joint is moved or rotated. Early cases will have a lameness score of 1-2 out of 5, with little or no bony swelling seen, although possibly felt when compared to the opposite pastern. Lameness will worsen to a grade 2-3 on a scale of 5 as the ringbone worsens.

Low ringbone: The horse will have moderate lameness (grade 2-3), even in early cases, because of the closeness of the ringbone to the other structures in the hoof. When severe or very advanced, the bony growth will be able to be seen on the coronet.


Ringbone can be classified by its location, with "high ringbone" occurring on the lower part of the large pastern bone or the upper part of the small pastern bone. "Low ringbone" occurs on the lower part of the small pastern bone or the upper part of the coffin bone. High ringbone is easier seen than low ringbone, as low ringbone occurs in the hoof of the horse. However, low ringbone may be seen if it becomes serious, as it creates a bony bump on the coronet of the horse.

[ponyjumper4]

I actually prefer a ringbone horse to be barefoot, but that of course is a case by case basis. I say that because it is very important with a ringbone horse that you stay on top of your trims and don't let the toes get long. My mare gets trimmed every 4 weeks--she also grows a lot of foot, so because of that, plus her ringbone, we keep her on short cycles. She is 22, her ringbone developed from an injury when she was 20. Mare is totally sound, the only joint supplement she gets is MSM and she is very rideable. I am careful with her trims and I am careful with the footing. I don't jump her right now, but I have no problems (nor does she) with jumping over small stuff for fun (she loves to jump, so I don't want to completely take it away from her) but she is basically now a dressage pony for her well being.

[Bluey]

How you manage ringbone depends on how it presents.
You may have high or low ringbone and at any point, front, sides or back.
So, you have to manage it according to what YOUR horse needs, not what others may think.

You need x-rays and a vet's opinion first, before you can even say that what you are seeing is ringbone.
Get your horse looked at and then, when you have more to go by, the answers will make more sense for your particular horse.

[Fharoah]

It may be ringbone it may not be. If your horse shows no sign of discomfort and is not just being stoic then I wouldn't panick. I would have the vet take a look maybe flex and if suspious take radiographs to confirm the diagnoses and find out if it is articular or not. The goal with ringbone is to keep the horse comfortable, if your horse truly shows no discomfort then you may not need any changes, I have heard that it is possible for ringbone to be inconsequential. If your start treatment with no symptoms then you won't really know what is working. If your horse does have ringbone and is becoming sore then there are many things that can help.

recovery EQ HA or cosequin ASU
adequan
legend
steroid HA
IRAP
shockwave
possibly tildren
shoeing changess or possibly barefoot
equioxx
bute
extended time off with lots of turnout can allow inflammation to settle
chemical or surgical fusion

What my friend at the unniversity said was make a least starting from the least expensive, if the horse is doing well keep using it. Say I do a loading dose of adequan, horse is doing well, adequan stops working I might go the steroid injection or IRAP. If the horse becomes lame and can no longer be managed then fuse or retire. Most horses can be managed for many years.

[Tom Stovall]

ozzy24 in gray, stuff deleted

I think my 8 yr old Appy eventing gelding may have ringbone on his hind pasterns. He has large bumpy ankles but has never been lame a day in his life. What signs should I watch out for and what possible negative effects could it have in the future? Are they are any treatments to slow it down?

Ringbone is new bone growth on the last three bones in a horse's leg, the phalanges. Definitive diagnosis is by radiograph. Ringbone is classified as "high" when it involves the distal end of the first phalanx (P1) and/or the proximal end of the second phalanx (P2); or "low" when it involves the distal end of the second phalanx (P2) and the proximal end of the third phalanx (P3), especially at the extensor process.

Ringbone is further classified as "periarticular", meaning the new bone is around a joint, but does not involve a joint surface; and "articular" when the new bone involves a joint surface. Articular ringbone is often accompanied by osteoarthritis in the affected joint.

The joints affected by ringbone are the pastern joint (proximal interphalangeal joint, PIJ) and the coffin joint (distal interphalangeal joint, DIJ).

Ringbone is usually caused by trauma and is often found in horses with poor conformation that causes them to stress one aspect of a joint more than the other. Ringbone can also be caused by any insult that disturbs the periostium of the bone (esp., wire cuts). Ringbone most often affects fronts, but is sometimes found in hinds.

Horses with periarticular ringbone are often asymptomatic; horses with articular ringbone are usually lame to some degree.

All mechanical treatment for articular ringbone consists of trimming methods and/or the application of shoes and/or wedge pads that lessen the movement of the affected joint.

Trimming to lessen the articulation of the affected joints involves leaving as much heel as possible while cutting as much toe as possible without causing a leak. Trimming, by itself, is not as effective as the application of therapeutic shoes and any trimming method that reduces phalangeal angulation is counterproductive as this increases movement of the affected joints.

Typical "ringbone shoes" are aluminum or half rounds set under as far as possible, or rocker toes forged from wide web stock - often with exaggerated wedge or roller calks at the heels, sometimes applied with one or more wedge pads. (An effective quick and dirty ringbone shoe can be made by welding a piece of 3/4" pipe across the heels of a keg shoe.) Most effective ringbone shoes usually cause a choppy, mincing, action at any gait because they can cause the foot to begin turnover prematurely as the fetlock begins to ascend in what would normally be a support phase, before the shoulder passes over the foot.

According to most veterinary texts, the prognosis for articular ringbone in fronts is unfavorable; for periarticular ringbone, guarded.