Horsey advice needed.

[farthing]

I was wondering if anybody had any experience with hock boots, to help with arthritis. Cirrus , our anglo arab, has bone spavin, she is now 10 and I have noticed on cold and wet days she is a bit stiff and seems to feel the cold in her hock. I was thinking of putting either neoprene hock boots or getting magnetic ones to put on while she is outside to keep her warm. Has anybody tried either of them for arthritis and how long can they stay on. The horses are usually out by 6am and come back in at about 9 pm, somebody said they can only be on for 8 hours, is this true.
We have just started to feed them for the winter, and I tend to give them a basic feed for a couple of weeks, before giving any additives, but she will then get cod liver oil, a mineral supplement(they usually get this) but I will add cortaflex to her feed as well.
I want to try and avoid this getting any worse, added to the fact she is a delicate girl, who seems to be more sensitive than my cobby others.:).

[calismum]

Hi farthing - friend with connemara arab x that is 12 has been using magnetic hock wraps for a couple of years. Says they are great and she firmly believes they work (she bought them convinced it would make no difference)

She uses it in combination with some homeopathic remedies - Rhus Toxicodendron, Bryonia and Ruta depending on how stiff she is and how long, if at all the stiffness takes to wear off.

She also decided to take her back shoes off and this has also helped.

She feeds blue chip now and again and always has some form of oil supplement.

Also has put her on deep litter in the stable as she thinks that puts less strain on the joint and is more comfortable.

Hope that helps a bit. Luckily the worst either of my two have had is a couple of splints.