Everything Horse UK Everything Horse Magazine, October 2018 issue 38 | Page 22

PRODUCT TESTIMONIAL At times. where products used make a valued difference to a horse’s recovery, we believe stories should be shared to potentially help other owners and their horses in future efforts; whether it be to heal, help or ease a situation. Here, we learn of an injury to dressage horse Cleo, and discover his road to recovery which included the use of products from the Robinson Animal Healthcare range. CLEO IS NOW FIGHTING FIT WITH HELP FROM ROBINSON ANIMAL HEALTH CARE When promising home-bred dressage horse, Cleo, came in from the field injured, owner Lara Edwards initially thought the injury wasn’t too serious. The four-year-old had been turned out with a few other horses of a similar age at Lara’s base in Lincolnshire and some high jinks had resulted in Cleo suffering a kick to her hind leg. Lara treated the wound as she would normally do and hoped that it would heal up quickly and Cleo would soon be back training, in preparation for her first British Dressage competition. Unfortunately the wound didn’t seem to be healing as Lara had hoped so Cleo was taken to the vets to be scanned, which showed a large section of hoof embedded in her leg. All the horses turned out with her were bare foot and unbelievably a section of hoof had broken off the horse that kicked out and become lodged in the wound on Cleo’s leg. What first appeared to be a minor injury had now resulted in a trip to the operating theatre. The mare was given a general anesthetic to remove the piece of hoof wedged under the skin. The wound was then thoroughly cleaned out and then stitched up. Once the stitches had been removed, Lara continued to treat the wound using Vetalinex ® wound gel, to maintain a moist environment to promote healing, before applying Skintact ® low adherent dressing. Veterinary Gamgee ® was then applied to provide padding and help protect the wound from further trauma. The dressing was held in place with Equiwrap. Said Lara of the unfortunate incident: “I don’t usually turn horses out together once they reach four years of age and are in full work, due to the risk of injury. However, circumstances meant I had no choice but to do so. The result reinforced my belief that it is not a good idea! “When Cleo came in lame I wasn’t quite sure what had happened but I could see a visible cut just on the outside of her hock, but it didn’t look too serious. It just goes to show how bad puncture type wounds are, as it can be difficult to see with the naked eye if anything is still inside the wound. “Thanks to the fantastic care by the vets and the wonderful products from Robinson Animal Healthcare, the recovery from a dreadful injury was made so much quicker and Cleo is now fully sound and fighting fit for her first outing.” 22 EVERYTHING HORSE MAGAZINE • OCTOBER 2018 • ISSUE 38