Whats wrong with my horse?

Question

I have just brought a 3yr old 15hh welsh cob ive had her for a week now and she has been broken for 8weeks.The problem that i have got is that she keeps suddenly lifting her back legs up behind her and stretching them out, then its seems as if she gets stuck like it.ive had horses 4 over 15yrs and ive never come across this before!she didnt do anything like it when i tryed her before i brought her.She trots and canters round the field no problem but when i bring her out to ride or just to feed her she starts to do it. I had a saddler come to fit a new saddle and he said young horses stretch all the time until he actually seen it! he seems to think that it might be string halt? but im not convinced as from what ive briefly read about string halt she actually brings her legs backwards behind her not forwards underneath like string halt. If anyone has any ideas of what it could be i would be really gratefull! Lianne

Answer 1

I would consult a veterinarian.  It could be a condition known as upward fixation of the patella where the hock gets "stuck" in one position for a few seconds due to a dysfunction of a tendon or ligament in the hock area.  A vet can explain it better than I can, however, I do know it's a treatable condition with good results.

Answer 2

You are saying that she stretches her hind legs out behind her so you are right. It is not stringhalt. From what you are describing, stretching her hind legs outward to the rear, I think she may be doing that to stretch her stomach muscles because she may have a touch of colic. Stretching stomach muscles is one of the early symptoms at the onset of colic and most horses will do that in an unnatural stance with hind legs extended rearward to stretch their stomach muscles. By stretching her hind legs out toward the rear and holding that position as you describe seems as though stretching her stomach muscles is what she may be trying to do. I think you should allow her to stretch if she wants to and watch her for symptoms of colic.

Roadapple Cider's answer has a lot of merit as well and ulcers is something you might consider as stretching her stomach muscles may be an attempt at relief from ulcer discomfort. I think she has a stomach problem of some sort.

*Edit note to susie j: Yes! That is an excellent thought. She did say that after extending the hind leg it "seems as if she gets stuck." I'm thinking you are right. It's a locking stifle issue (upward fixation of the patella).

Answer 3

well since she is so young, shes probably stretching. one of my horses does that constantly (it sometimes gets very annoying though lol) also, one of my friends has a horse that has hocks that lock, so it stretches out its legs. as soon as they unlock, its good to go and it tucks really well over jumps because its hocks are weird lol. hope this helped!

Answer 4

my horses do it! pick up there back legs one at a time and stretch them out behind them. 1 of mine then walks forwards and bows like a dog, with his belly on the floor. I had never seen anything like it before, but he does it so often iv got used to it now.

Answer 5

This sounds pretty common with youngsters. If it looks almost like a "ballet" move - slow - she is simply stretching.

I bet she does this sometimes when you pick out her hind feet too?

Like any athlete, she is stretching before her excersise. If she is stalled you might want to put her outside more as she is young (still growing inside) and may need to walk about more.

She sounds lovely - Enjoy!

Answer 6

This came to mind as soon as I read your post. Red Alert.

You mentioned this happens when you go to feed or ride.

This is a youngster.   She has just recently been broken to ride, changed homes and buddies so has been under a lot of stress.  .  

I would seriously have her checked for ulcers.  This occurs a lot more often than we realized in the past.

Good luck.

Answer 7

Stringhalt is an over flexion of the hock.  In severe cases the horse actually kicks its belly each time it takes a step.  So you're right, I do not think your horse's problem is stringhalt.  (Be aware that scientists now think most cases of stringhalt are caused by horses ingesting a toxin, such as certain types of plants, and that it is NOT caused by structural problems in the hock!  Weird, heh?)

Anyhow, there is a type of condition called "Locked Patella".  The patella is the knee.  In this problem the horse's back leg where the muscles that lift the stifle actually catch on the bone and stop normal movement.  In severe cases it will catch and the horse won't be able to move the leg out of the 'extended behind it' position unless someone manually assists them by rotating the leg out and forward.  In most cases the horse can unlock the stifle without help, and many times it only catches for part of the stride and not necessarily at every step.

It sounds like this problem is more common in horses with overly straight hind legs.  It also becomes more likely to happen in horses that are underweight, malnourished or not exercised regularily.  Horses that are normally fit and then confined to a stall are more prone to it, too.

It can be resolved sometimes by improving the horse's muscle tone with regular excercise.  And to decide why its happening, sometimes its the horse's conformation and sometimes they have some swelling in the stifle that makes the problem more likely to occur.  There is surgery a good equine vet can do if totally necessary.

I take this info from a great book called "Lameness" by Equine Research by Christine Kin, BVS and Richard Mansmann, VMD.  Great book - I suggest every horse person buy one so you can read about all the awful things that can happen to one's dear horses!

I would keep a close eye on your young horse, and talk to a good equine vet if the problem continues.  I suspect you are seeing something out of the ordinary, and the sooner it gets looked at, the more likely you can nip the problem in the bud.  Good luck.

Answer 8

I have an older mare (25 years old) Every morning when I let her out of her stall she stops and picks up her rear legs one at a time and stretches them out behind her for a few seconds each.  I know my mare is just stretching and she doesn't do it any other time.  Her son, my 6 year old gelding stretches a little differently.  Sometimes when I go to feed him in the morning he will stretch both his front legs out in front of him and "bow" down like a dog.

Answer 9

This sounds like the patella is fixating in the stifle joint...they say the horse is stifled, or call it locking up of the stifle.

If your horse has post legged conformation (verystraight through the stifle and hocks) it is the most likely diagnosis.

This can be dangerous if you are riding her, so I would not ride until you have a vet evaluation done.  Years ago we had a pony with it.  He never locked up out in the field that we ever saw, but did when he was saddled and ridden.  We had to stop riding him, ultimately.  But that was 30 years ago and treatments are better today.

Answer 10

As usual Paintgirl is right on track...the locking patella is not really that uncommon in a young horse, especially a growthy one that is getting high protien feed.  This happened in a two year old I had, and my vet explained part of the problem is that the growth plates somehow make the bones grow faster than the ligaments can keep up with.  So the horse's locking mechanism in their stifle (NOT the hock) catches when they walk, so their leg drags out behind for a step and then pops and usually jerks forward more than a usual step would take them.  It does look a lot different than stringhalt.  My vet had me reduce the colt's rations to just quality grass hay and no grain, and we waited a year.  He got a lot better with the change in diet, but it still happened from time to time.  We opted for the surgery, which she did on the farm.  He walked away sound, and the only problem is that now he has to lie down to sleep.  The surgery consists of cutting the ligament that locks the patella, which is the mechanism that allows a horse to sleep standing up.  The horse is now about 15 and is perfectly fine.

Answer 11

my horse does the same thing and it is the patella  it's almost like her back legs get stuck at a certain point then they jerk back.  she's too young to ride so the vet told me to give her plenty time on the lunge line to keep her back legs worked.  he said she should grow out of it and if she doesn't they will go in and fix the patella, it's a simple procedure

Answer 12

If she is box stalled she is probably just stretching. She may have also been taught to park out . I have an old Morgan mare who used to show who parks out at the hitch rail when we tack up. You are right about the string halt, they bring the leg up. You may want to have a chiropractor out to look at and adjust her as she could be sore or out in the back/loin area from her training as she's a young horse and may still need to build up her back muscles .

Answer 13

could be a pulled tendon? other than that string halt. i dont know but there could be different types of string halt?

i really dont know, sorry.