Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
Additionally, swimming encourages the horse to maintain a hollow, inverted position with the head up, back dropped, and legs kicking out behind it. It is therefore less suitable for riding horses that are expected to develop the strength to carry the back up with an engaged hind end, and may also be associated with back or stifle problems. [106]
Placing horses on pasture and the presence of companion animals may both help to reduce stable vices. Stable vices are stereotypies of equines, especially horses.They are usually undesirable habits that often develop as a result of being confined in a stable with boredom, hunger, isolation, excess energy, or insufficient exercise.
The horse is evaluated in motion, usually at the walk and trot, but occasionally also in the canter. The walk is often the best gait to evaluate foot placement. [10] The trot is generally the best gait to localize the lameness to a particular leg, because it is a symmetrical gait where the front half of the horse and the back half move in ...
It can involve one or both hind legs of the horse. It is a spasmodic contraction of the lateral extensor tendons of the hind legs. An example of bilateral stringhalt in a horse: the hocks are spasmodically and rapidly flexed with the feet held high before quick placement back on the ground. The condition is more evident during turning and backing.
The front and hind legs on one side of the horse appear to land in front of the other set of front and hind legs when the horse travels. On a curve, a horse is generally asked to lead with the inside legs, though there are exceptions to the general rule, such as the counter canter. [1]: 126 See also lead change. 2.
Generally a rider can feel if a horse is about to rear, as the horse shifts its weight strongly to its hindquarters and begins to feel "light in the front end." When this occurs, rearing can still be prevented by a number of methods, the simplest of which is to either encourage the horse to move, either forward or to turn the horse in tight ...
The prognosis for a horse with navicular syndrome is guarded. Many times the horse does not return to its former level of competition. Others are retired. Eventually all horses with the syndrome will need to lessen the strenuousness of their work, but with proper management, a horse with navicular syndrome can remain useful for some time.
With this conformation, the horse can pull the hind legs further under the body, so there is a longer hind end stride, but the animal may not move in synchrony with the front. This will create an inefficient gait, as the hind end is forced to slow down to let the front end catch up, or the horse may take high steps behind, giving a flashy ...