Horse Stocked Up (swollen on all 4 legs), Can't Walk, Blood Results Normal - what's wrong?

My horse is stocked up big time. I found him this morning when I went out to ride. He couldn%26#039;t walk, we had to force him to hop up to the hose. We hosed, hosed, and hosed more. We did blood work, and all of his values are normal - we also tested for Ehlichia/Anaplasmosis and was negative. We are treating him for laminitis - although it usually doens%26#039;t cause stocking up (hosing, standing wraps, bute, styrofoam shoes). I am stumped and so is the vets that I%26#039;m working with. He is eating lots, drinking, and having BM%26#039;s. Any ideas out there?

Horse Stocked Up (swollen on all 4 legs), Can%26#039;t Walk, Blood Results Normal - what%26#039;s wrong?
Stocking up in all four legs general refers to a lymphatic reaction to either bacterial, viral, or toxin. The swollen limbs are a symptom of an underlying cause. I assume that your vet took your horses temperature and since you didn%26#039;t mention a fever we can assume he didn%26#039;t have one. Since his bowel movements are normal and there is no mentioned drainage or swellings located elsewhere my money is on a reaction to something toxic in his hay or pasture.
Reply:Has he had strangles recently? If yes-- pur pura hemorrhagia





If no...





Then an allergy, is he on pasture?





My friend went through this with his yearling mule last year, same thing, traced to something in the pasture, she ate it, she reacted, treated with DMSO IV and something else and she hasn%26#039;t had a problem since.
Reply:First thing I always think of when they stock up like that is Rhino, that can really fill the legs and can even be a reaction to the vaccine. Personally I%26#039;d cold hose during the day and then sweat at night with a Dex, DMSO, Furasin mix and that can significantly take them down
Reply:Toxic plants in the pasture? Browsed on something at the show? Lantana or wilted red maple leaves?
Reply:First thing that comes to mind is Lymphangitis and it can affect all four, not one at a time. I had a horse with all four stocked up and took forever to treat. You really can%26#039;t miss that though. Legs usually get 3-4x%26#039;s the normal size and fluid will begin to ooze thru the skin. Yucky when it gets that bad!





I have had a diagnosed Lymphangitis on a seperate case with no fever and blood work normal. Simple Tribrissen oral anitbotics got rid of it in two weeks. Only speak from experience.
Reply:Some horses stock up when they have been ridden extensively on hard surfaces. Another main reason is that if the horse is kept in a stall all of the time it does not get excersize and then you ride it and then it starts to hurt and eventually it will stock up. Horses also stock up if they are young and introduced into something complecated such as cutting or reining. I would put your horse in a pen where it can excersize freely and not ride it for about a week and see what happens if nothing changes call the vet back and take x-rays
Reply:Possible fluid retention?? I had a gelding who was pastured his whole life and if you put him in the stall for more than a day or two he would swell up really bad. As Long as there is no heat in his legs, hosing really won%26#039;t help. He may be one of those horses who has to stay out side in order to get enough circulation to keep his legs from swelling...


My horse was.


Hope this proves helpful..
Reply:stick with the vet. The only thing that come to mind, did you use him hard the days before. Did you use a different beading. Is the vet having you rub down his leg with a light brace. I am confuse why you are treating the horse for founder, unless you have riding him hard, gave him a lot of water when he was hot, or over feed him a hot grain. If you work him to much that might be a cause. But the vet is there, go with the flow. Good luck to you and your horse. What with the Styrofoam shoes? If some body shod the horse with bad legs,maybe you need a different Vet.



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