Breeze's Bumpy Week: Swollen Legs, Ice Boots, and Stall Shenanigans

Breeze recently had to switch stalls after discovering how much fun it was to play with the spigot in his old one. While he enjoyed his new water toy, Cheyenne had an absolute blast playing in the resulting spray. Unfortunately, Breeze’s new stall has different footing than the others. A previous boarder had added gravel to improve drainage, but over time, the gravel mixed into the dirt, leaving the ground firmer and less forgiving.

Cheyenne enjoying the water that Breeze turned on, flooding 3 stalls and more

Because I need help moving Breeze’s stall mats, they haven’t been transferred over yet—and it’s become clear how much he needs them. A couple of days ago, I noticed he was covered in little nicks and had some swelling in his left hind fetlock. My best guess? He’s been rolling in the stall and laying directly on all those tiny rocks. The hard footing is also likely aggravating his joints.

So, what do you do when your horse has a swollen leg? Most people would say to cold hose it. But here’s the challenge: it’s July in Tucson, Arizona. There is no such thing as "cold" water coming out of the hose—or even the sink, for that matter.

Thankfully, I still had the ice boot at the barn from when he had a flare-up of tendonitis in his left front. My solution was to hose his leg off with the coldest water I could get from the house, then put the ice boot on for about 15 minutes. We’ll keep doing this for a few days and monitor the swelling.

Breeze standing calmly with an ice boot on his left hind leg to aid in recovery.

As for giving him bute—he’s not a fan. Last time he needed it, he acted like I was trying to poison him. I have the orange-flavored powdered version, but he refuses to eat it willingly. Today I got creative and mixed it with a bit of water, then used a feeding syringe to get it into the back of his mouth. He was not happy about it—but he got his dose.

At the end of the day, he got his swollen fetlock iced and his meds on board. I really hope he starts feeling better soon.

To help speed up his recovery, I’ve now moved him into yet another stall—this one with much softer footing. His mats will be moved in shortly. Fingers crossed this setup works better for him!