SUCCESSFUL STALL REST
Ah, here it is,” the veterinarian says while pressing an ultrasound wand along your horse’s leg. The dark flecks on the computer screen look trivial, like gnats. But his next words make it clear that they aren’t. “Suspensory ligament’s torn. We’re looking at several months of stall rest. We’ll ultrasound once a month to see how it’s doing.” No owner wants to hear those words.
Stall rest of any significant duration is a gamble. Clearly, rest is critical to recovery from trauma, illness or surgery. But prolonged stall confinement carries risks, too. Restricted horses are prone to colic, poor blood circulation, immune system weakness, rapid weight change, skin disease and respiratory dysfunction. Many become anxious at first, then withdrawn and depressed. As if that’s not enough, muscle, bone and soft tissue lose tone without use: The locus of trauma might need months of rest, but the effects of inactivity extend to an animal’s entire body.
Then there’s the balancing act that stall rest represents. Many, if not most, injuries heal best with a combination of rest and moderate exercise---enough to keep the horse moving, but not so much that injuries worsen. “Stalls,” says JeffreyWarren, DVM, “are for our ease, not the horse’s.”
The key component of stall rest is not rest, it’s control. Injuries are healed by managing the degree and amount of a horse’s movement, not by eliminating it.
Risks persist even as recuperating horses can finally become more active. Reuniting with a herd alters the hierarchy, which often cues some kicking and biting. After extensive stall rest, a horse’s attitude under saddle may need adjustment. He’ll be excited to run and play when loose, potentially re-injuring the original site of
