Horse Nation How To: Feeling Your Horse’s Digital Pulse
As horse owners, there are a number of skills that we need to have in order to be informed and to help our vets determine how urgently a horse needs to be seen. Being able to check your horse’s digital pulse is one of those skills.
As horse owners, there are a number of skills that we acquire along the way that some of us may not have expected to acquire. Knowing that your horse is uncomfortable because, even from 50 feet away, you can see it is standing in that position is one of them. This is more intuition- and observation-based, but there are other essential skills that every horse owner should have. Being able to check your horse’s digital pulse is one of those skills.
In my time working as an equine veterinary technician, I can’t count the number of times either my boss or I asked our clients over the phone whether or not they had checked their horse’s digital pulse. Here’s a typical scenario:
Me: Good morning, Made Up Veterinary Practice Name. This is DeAnn, how can I help you?
Client: Help!!!! Flicka is LAMMMMMEEEEE. I think she’s dying. I need you to come out NOW.
Me: Okay, can you tell me the nature of the lameness and when it began? Which leg is it in? Is Flicka bearing weight?
Client: I don’t know. I saw her yesterday and I swear she was fine. I came out this morning and she’s limping horribly. She won’t even stand on it!
Me: Which leg is it?
Client: I think it’s her front left, but I’m not positive.
Me: Okay. We will head over when we can, but in the meantime can you tell me if your horse has an elevated temperature, if there’s any heat in the leg, if it’s swollen, or if there is an elevated digital pulse?
Client: …
Obviously I am exaggerating the drama associated with this call, but only slightly. When we see our horses’s come in looking uncomfortable or obviously lame, it’s easy to panic. But the truth is, when we call our vets, it’s incredibly helpful to be able to offer certain pieces of information to help them determine how quickly our horses need to be seen. Being able to provide your horse’s vital signs is one piece of that puzzle (we covered that in a previous piece), but when it comes to limb lameness, knowing how to check for digital pulses is another piece of it. It’s something every horse owner should be able to do.
Why do you need to feel your horse’s digital pulse?
- Lets you know what is considered normal for your horse (so that means it’s worthwhile to do it BEFORE there is a problem, so you have a baseline established).
- Lets you know if there is an elevated (or increased) pulse.
- An elevated digital pulse can indicate soreness or inflammation within the hoof. This can be indicative of anything from an abscess to laminitis.
How to take a digital pulse:
- Identify the landmarks on your horse’s leg. Know where the suspensory ligament and flexor tendon are, and where the digital artery is in relation to those landmarks.
- Feel either side of the leg for the bundle of vessels (it is best to use your fingers and not your thumb, lest you feel your own pulse). It’s worth noting that the vessels can be felt in multiple spots both above and below the fetlock.
- Apply light pressure to the digital artery and assess the strength of the pulse.
If you’re still unsure of how to check your horse’s digital pulse or learn better from videos, this video from the Equine Institute is helpful:
Again, it’s incredibly important to know what’s considered normal for your horse. A normal digital pulse should be harder to palpate, but an elevated one feels like pounding or strumming. This indicates increased blood flow to the area and can be indicative of infection, inflammation, or myriad other issues.
