Awareness of the outside world. Flu shot yesterday.
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Weekly lunging check-in on Saturday. Rodney NQR. No bad steps. No outright lameness. The occasional trip with the left hind hoof. Walking directly behind him as he sauntered back to the barn showed a disinclination to fully bend his left hock. Found a small swelling high up on the inseam of his left leg.
First thought was a muscle sprain. Perhaps a groin pull from getting up, or slipping, or shenanigans. Never rule out shenanigans.
Ice and gentle walks to stretch leg & stimulate circulation.
Second thought was a bug bite. Large and in a location to make him reluctant to lift his leg. We have had horses with big reactions to bug bites in the past. I won’t call them overreactions because a) not our call to make & b) I have been bitten by some of those bugs. The horses are not wrong about the ferocity level.
Same treatment. Ice and walks.
The swelling is behaving like a bug bite. Growing quickly but also sliding down the leg. OTOH, his attitude says muscle. Actually, his attitude says Fear! Fire! Foes! must Flee! He gets spooky when he is in pain. Bute settles the panic. That would be weird for a bug bite.
It’s always something.
The above is not completely true. My first thought was degenerative arthritis to his hock that would eventually cripple him, leaving him three-legged and unable to accomplish the tasks of daily living. Other barn minion thought neurologic. That horror didn’t even occur to me. Nice to see we are keeping it on the positive.
Milton is doing well. Took a bad step in a tight turn at a trot. Otherwise, fine. He is back to marching off lead during morning walks, including taking point if the rest of us are too slow.
Onwards!
Katherine
Virtual Brush Box 
Whatever the cause, I hope Rodney is getting better fast.
Same here as debandtoby — “Whatever the cause, I hope Rodney is getting better fast.” For me, I’m surprised that a simple “bug bite” could cause such problems, which tells me what I don’t know about bug bites. But a muscle sprain that is more than that, based on my own “ow-ies” in my lifetime. Good luck to all.
Thanks to all. He seems to be improving.