How To Detect Navicular Disease In Horses

March 8, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Perhaps one of the more worrying equine ailments an equestrian can ever encounter is the navicular disease; on any ordinary day a tutor could find her horse brought to her haunches by extraordinary bouts of agony, or may be unpleasantly stunned by a horse undergoing training all of a sudden slowing down in intense agony halfway into the routine. For owners of steeds used primarily for leisurely horse riding, it can be more worrying, what with their horses all of a sudden being totally unable and unwilling to move on, stumbling over thru gaits they’d typically carelessly perform. The agony comes from a powerful burning discomfort owing to increased blood flow in the hooves of the horse and the accompanying shifting of what is commonly known as the coffin bone.

Navicular disease can be triggered by abnormal hoof growth, and this in turn can be promoted by not properly trimming pony hooves regularly. A hoof will grow and wear in accordance to what kind of footing it’s kept on. In poor footing and lack of regular, proper trimming, the coffin bone can be rendered immobile and thus cause blood flow in the hoof to be constrained. Acute conditions see the coffin bone sinking to the bottom of the affected hoof and piercing thru the hoof. The condition is frequently observed in front hooves and typically both feet are afflicted. The danger of acquiring the illness increases when horses are often kept in stalls it is exacerbated by physically demanding tasks or by being fat. Also, horses whose physiques are not correct in proportion or conformation are at higher risk.

Thoroughbreds have smaller feet in contrast to their bodies and are thus susceptible to navicular; quarter horses have the tendency to be subject to it also. Ponies as young as one year old can be diagnosed with navicular, the illness itself is gradual. As navicular gets worse over the course of time it can be hard to detect it in the very early stages. Signs of the disease are:

-Her stride is shortened, and she is averse to lengthen it.

-She stumbles thru gaits.

-She shifts body weight when resting.

-She is uneven while turning.

Horses are Heather Toms’ passion and she enjoys sharing her extensive knowledge through her 100’s of articles with other horse lovers… like all things about cheap horse rugs

Filed Under: Horse Racing Articles Tagged With: , , ,

Managing A Horse That Rears

February 26, 2012 By Leave a Comment

One of the equine failings hardest to set right is rearing. It can be fatal for both rider and horse, and at its very finest, could be a horrifying experience for the rider.

To cure a pony of his rearing habit, you have first got to work out why he does it.

A lot of noise is generated about tie downs being the ideal solutions. Other proposals laud martingales and “popping”. Tie downs and martingales don’t address the main cause, they just touch on the symptoms. They essentially refer to the technique of forcing down your horse’s head if he should rear. Popping involves slapping a rearing horse between his ears, to give him the impression he hit his head on something when he reared. Various ideas about popping advise using rolled up newspapers, although where the rider suddenly is going to get a rolled newspaper is not explained. Some more exotic recommendations advise hitting the pony on the head with a bag full of water, so that the pony gets the mistaken concept he has been hurt and is bleeding. Again, this would suggest that each time you ride, you take along a plastic bag full of water.

In fact horses rarely rear. You can confirm this by watching wild horses, or maybe horses in a paddock. They rear only when at play or in a fight. Horses are fight or flight animals, and prefer to flee from perceived danger. If the pony feels forced to battle, he uses biting and kicking as his weapons. You can well understand that rearing is not an inborn reaction to any kind of circumstance.

Well then, what does make a pony rear? A horse rears in response to a heavy hand, or as a reaction to a bit that’s not fitting well and isn’t comfy or injuring him. If the horse has wounds or other problems in his mouth, that can cause rearing. In such cases, a horse rears as a reaction to agony. A pony also rears out of frustration if he is in a stressful situation and finds no way out of it. Whenever your horse rears, inspect his mouth and his teeth straight away and change his bit to the softest one you have on hand.

Reading and stopping rears

Generally, you can make out if your pony is about to rear. If he is at ease and moving as you need him to while on the bit, he is not going to be rearing. If he does intend to rear, he will telegraph his desire early: he’ll back up and go down in a crouch on his hind legs. When faced with this scenario don’t pull back on the reins; bring the horse’s head round in either direction and give him a leg cue in that direction. He’s going to move that way and forget rearing.

If your horse does rear, what do you do?

At any cost, avoid pulling back on the reins. Maintain your legs in normal position and see if you can lean forward. Put your hands around your horse’s neck and hold on. As he hits ground after his rear, nudge him forward in a new direction to discourage another rear. If you get the impression your pony is going to flip over, get your feet out of the stirrups and get off the horse by sliding down his back. Horses that flip over should be handled by a professional, as they can be deeply dangerous.

Always use soft hands on the bit and keep your pony going forward. Make sure you have a bit that will not chafe unnecessarily, and ensure your horse’s mouth and teeth are in healthy shape. Generally, leave it to the professionals to deal with a pony that has a bias to rear.

Horses are Heather Toms’ passion and she enjoys sharing her extensive knowledge through her 100’s of articles with other horse lovers… like all things about horse blanket

Filed Under: Horse Racing Articles Tagged With: , , ,