Crooked Legs?

Question

Lindsey M: No she's a paint cross (i think she has appy in her). Shes small can't be more than a large pony or small horse.

Answer 1

I would take the cautious route and pass this offer up. The crooked legs are NOT good. You want a horse as structurally correct as you can find. and who knows this may be an awesome horse but I would definatly call the vet BEFORE buying

Answer 2

There are a million other horses out there that are built better.  And in this market you can get a pretty decent horse for cheap.  I'd pass and find something better.  She might not be lame now but that's because she's young.  Time will only put more stress on her joints and tendons and then you have real problems.

Answer 3

Depends on what you're going to do with her.

Her legs are pretty twisted - she wouldn't make a speed horse and she wouldn't do well in a show pen.  She wouldn't make an endurance mount, but she'd possibly be a good started horse for leisurely rides together for a few hours.

Highly suggest a vet check - might cost ya $100 but that's cheaper than buying her and finding it'll take hundreds to maintain her later on.

However, when she's older, she might need some extra care or supplements or even drugs as she may be developing arthritis in those knees.

Try to find out from the seller what has caused this, was she born that way?  Also - get your own vet - preferably one who specializes in horses rather than just seeing the horse's regular vet - or even if you have a call with the horse's regular vet, stick check her out with another vet.  

If the owner is focused on getting the horse a good home, they won't be averse to such things to ensure you know what you have there and how to care for it and what to expect.  The seller SHOULD be very open about any limitations she has due to the condition - and I'd be a bit worried if they told me she was fine to do anything you want.

It would help to help you with a good opinion if you told us of what you wish to do with her and why it's this horse you want - you know horses are plentiful right now.  It should be easy to find as good a one that's more sound than this one - but perhaps you have good reasons for being set on this one.

She IS pretty and does seem to have a kind eye.

Good luck

Answer 4

It depends what you want to do with this horse, how much are they asking? Myself I wouldn't go through with it, although she is very cute. But her conformation isn't very good, and i've never seen a horse with crooked legs before but I'm sure it could lead to other problems. She probably would be sound for light trail rides and hacking however but I think she would probably end up unbalanced as one knee joint is farther down than the other. A vet check is probably going to cost you around 100-200 dolllars but I would deffinately get one even if she didn't have crooked legs there could be something else. Good Luck With Her but i think i'd keep looking

Answer 5

She is a nice looking girl! I'm not certain I see what you are talking about. In the straight on photo, it looks like she could possibly be pigeon-toed, but other than that, I do not see anything.

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=h...

http://www.boblangrish.com/images/galler...

Here are a couple of pictures of pigeon-toed horses. Is this what you are seeing? She is a muscular horse, so I don't know if that could be changing something. Definitely have her checked over and make sure she is sound. Have you ridden her? She's nice and hopefully everything you're looking for.

Best of luck purchasing her!

Answer 6

Her legs are indeed strange.  (But let me comment right now on her shoulder is.  Love it!)  I'm not sure about her...  She looks like she toes in, and yet there appears to be more going on.  Aside from her legs, I have to say that the rest of her looks pretty good.  Of course...legs are pretty important!  What do you plan on doing with her, and how old is she?  Photos of her standing on level ground (like pavement) would be ideal, so you can get a really good idea of the problem.  Also, pick the vet's brain about her legs; don't be afraid to ask questions, because the vet will know more about possible medical problems due to conformation than we do.   She has a lovely, kind face.  And I am a sucker for nice shoulders...it's the first thing I check out on a horse, lol.  Good luck.

Answer 7

Hi Sarah,

This horse has lovely hindquarters, strong well muscled she looks to have adequate hocks, difficult to see. She has a nicely set on tail. I like her pasterns, they look strong. She has a nice length of barrel, her neck is a good length. She has a  lovely shoulder with nice well muscled front legs. Her head suits her type, and is suprisingly nicely set on - which should give her the ability to round up nicely.

This horse would compete in the 'Hunter Section'. I don't necesarily mean jumping, they have flat classes as well. She is well enough boned for this section, and her neck, barrel and hindquarters have the look of this type of horse.

She may do well in her paced, mannered and rider classes, it would only be her novice/open show class where her front leg would become an issue.

All said and done, I come from a family where we have always had fine show horses. Once my Dad went and chose a horse who looked just like this one with the same front leg. When my sister competed at one show and got Reserve Champion on her, the judge said well done - to which my sister replied "my mother didn't even think it was worth bringing her". So different judges look for different things.

We sure had fun on her for many years and later when three in our family had finished riding her for 18 years - showing, dressage and jumping her she went on to work for the Riding for the disabled as a much treasured horse. So funny front legs aren't everything. She was a top jumper and had a rocking horse canter......simply beautiful mare.

Good luck with the decision. Hope this has helped in some way. She would also do well at Pony Club shows in Pony Club sections.

Answer 8

no no no no no. VET CHECK BEFORE YOU BUY HER!!!!!!! <3

that would be silly to vet check her after. what happens if you find out she's deaf, or blind after you buy her? you're stuck.

they cost around $150 for a full vet check. but hey, it's worth it.

as far as her crooked legs- maybe i'm blind, but i just didn't see.

but deffinetly get a vet check.

do it do it do it do it.

Answer 9

If you plan on showing her in halter classes the crooked legs WILL be a problem. If not, she seems like a good horse. Vet checks can range from $40 to $140 maybe more. It all depends on the vet and what you want. If you want full x-rays of all joints in the leg, etc then it will cost a good bit. If you just want to check for soundness it'll be fairly cheap. However, if you decide to buy her, I wouldn't pay full price because you might run into problems as she ages.

Answer 10

this horse looks FREAKILY similar to my best friend's horse

her name's Blonde Ambition a.k.a. Thierry.

is she a belgian cross?

Answer 11

If i were you i would NOT buy the horse. the horse has really bad legs. You need to go and find a different horse. the horse will not be good for anything but messing around the house. If you do halter it will have BAD conformation. i would just go look at another horse that has straight legs dont waste your time and money on a horse like that.

Answer 12

She appears to be back at the knee (calf kneed), toed in and sickle hocked ....it's hard to tell some things from the pics.

She has a steeper angle to her croup, but both sickle hocks and steep croup can work to your advantage in some western pursuits.  The front legs bother me more...calf knees are weak and break down more easily, but again, if she is going to be light on the front in her work, it may be okay...I wouldn't jump her.

the toeing in is very limiting.  She is prone to sidebone and ringbone, and bruising of the soles.  Her gait will be paddling which makes her fatigue faster.  If she were young enough, corrective trimming could help, but it's too late for that now.

Sorry if this is harsh...I'd leave it alone if you'd already bought her...but you should know what you're getting.  she would be a nice trail horse for short distances, and not much more in my opinion.  

EDIT....How old is she?

             I paid about $550 for the most recent pre-purchase

             exam I had done...I do blood, xray, etc when I am at

             the point of vet check to rule out purchase.  That was a

             few years ago  It's less than one vet bill for

             dealing with an unsound horse later on...far less than

             what it will cost you overall.

EDIT...at 3, you might be able to correct it.....have a good

            evaluation...complete with estimated cost...done by

            an experienced farrier and ask the vet if jumping is a good idea.

I just looked at another pic I missed before...she has a bowed tendon on the left front.  You can't jump this horse.