Horse prefers to put weight on one side

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    • #18333
      nader
      Member

      Sorry I forgot to mention that his farrier says he has no issues with his feet except that he loads the outside of the right hind foot a bit which I don’t know if related to this issue or not. Thanks

    • #18450

      Hello nader,
      I have had several horses that came to me with a tendency to be reluctant picking up a particular foot but did not have current pain issues. I have always thought it likely the horse had some problem with that leg/foot in the past and became adverse to having it messed with. Even the reverse is possible where the opposite foot was painful therefore the horse became reluctant picking up the good foot as it hurt.

      Past lameness problems or congenital digital flexor issues cause changes in foot shape and hoof angle to be asymmetrical. If this is the case the hoof with the more narrow heel and steeper sloping hoof has a tighter digital flexor causing a relatively lighter loading of the heel on that side. Perhaps this asymmetry is the cause of the changes in way of going.

      Assuming there are no lameness issues (have a veterinarian examine him) the sidedness you describe is a frequent issue with young horses in training and once lameness is eliminated designing workouts that deal with such issues will overtime help control these tendencies.
      DrO

    • #18651
      nader
      Member

      Thank you DrO for the elaborate response I’ll try to find an experienced vet in my area for a lameness evaluation.
      Thanks again
      Nader

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