There’s been a bit of a quiet patch on the site with no new articles for a while. The Mighty Hobo came temporarily out of retirement and I pared down all other activities to spend as much time with him as I had, and we loved every minute that we got to spend doing our favourite thing. Below is the last jumping round we ever did, two months ago now. If you look carefully you can see he has too much extension in his fetlocks, indicating too much ligament laxity – subsequently confirmed as Equine Systemic Proteoglycan Acculumation (ESPA, also known as Degenerative Suspensory Ligament Desmitis). He is also losing his jump a little but this is hard to spot if you’re unfamiliar as he tries so very hard. He was immediately re-retired and is currently enjoying (OK hating) some time with his pony in the field where we hope to keep him comfortable enough for a little while longer.
The little buck through the finish isn’t resistance or pain, it’s because I allowed him to lock on to the wrong final fence – he’s a professional so he only bickers with me once he’s got us over the jump. Hobo pretty much only jumped clear rounds and I never carried a whip. The freeze frames below make the hyperflexion issue a little easier to see as his fetlocks hit the deck even in canter (as opposed to take off or landing, where it is not so abnormal). Apologies that the video is not great quality due to it’s circumstantial nature.
Below is a video of a comparative, unridden canter & trot in the field over a year ago but with hindsight already a little suspect.
Ultrasonic evaluation of suspensory ligaments can confirm or rule out lesions or degeneration,
and it is usually the suspensory ligaments that fail first. The main reason, though, for the change of name to ESPA is that it is a systemic disorder so all connective tissues may be affected, including the ligaments, tendons, heart and eyes (e.g. Halper et al., 2006). These horses will not improve, we do not currently have a way to stop or reverse proteoglycan accumulation, they can only be managed in their deterioration until the time comes for euthanasia. It appears to be hereditary, so breeding must be avoided, although it is no longer thought to be restricted to certain breeds. Symptoms may become apparent from birth and Hobo was lucky to manage his condition for as long as he did, given that we didn’t even realise what we were up against.
With my boy on his way out I’m planning to throw myself into some more articles, videos and demos and would be very happy to hear your requests. We currently have a few series to continue including rider exercises, the equine back, and horse gear and gadgets. There may also be the odd mention of the glamorous Mr Remus (below) who is doing his best to step up, but they’ll never be another Hobo, and the Hobo updates end here.
