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  Discussion on Long Pasterns
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Posted on Wednesday, Jun 28, 2000 - 2:09 pm:

DrO and all,
Hello, I have a question. I'm told my 16 mos. old colt has long pasterns and that may have an adverse effect on him as a performance horse. How will that effect him, is there anything I can do in the way of preventative maintenance to keep him strong once he's under saddle and working? I'm not sure yet what I want to do with him. He's going to be big so I have considered hunter/jumper, dressage, trail classes, english pleasure among other things. I also have friends who have cutting horses and I would like to use him for turnback or hazing. Maybe even a barrel race or two and of course, everyday riding...trails, arena, local showing, etc. I was curious since I don't want to do something that will cause him problems as he grows older, but really want to show him and use him the best way I can. Thanks alot!

Posted on Wednesday, Jun 28, 2000 - 9:17 pm:

Hi there!
First, who told you that he has long pasterns? I would think at his age and the amount of growing he still has that it may be hard to judge. What breed of horse is he? How tall are his parents and how tall is he now?
Do either of his parent have long pasterns?
My training theory for any horse (and myself)is all things in moderation. My jumpers don't jump much, but at a few shows a year. My dressage horse gets ridden bareback 2x a week and little bit of refreshing 2x a week. My point, is even if your horse ends up with long pasterns careful riding and training should preserve him. So long as any conformational flaw is not extreme. Maybe he wont be super competitive but he will be healthy, happy and sound.
if long pasterns is the case I would wait until he is fully grown before doing any strenuous training/riding. You may consider polo wraps or the sports medicine boots for added support.
Good luck!
~barbara

Posted on Thursday, Jun 29, 2000 - 8:49 am:

I think Barbara is exactly right: it is too early to make this judgement as the porportions will change as he gets older to shorten the pasterns with relation to his height.

Once his final growth is achieved, accurate assessment of a conformational flaw will require looking at the whole horse and not just picking out one item for discussion. There is no doubt long pasterns put extra stress on the structures of the lower legs but it is not the only factor. The best way to answer such questions is to take the horse to a professional you respect in the endeavor you want to pursue and get their opinion.

In general I think EVERYONE is a little overly negative about MILD conformational flaws but then again few have been wrong by prediciting: this horse will have some sort of problems at some time in his career.
DrO

Posted on Thursday, Jun 29, 2000 - 11:47 am:

DrO and Barbara-
Thanks for the response. :0) Let me see if I can answer some questions. First of all, he's a registered Paint with ALOT of Quarter and Thoroughbred in him. He's 14.2 hands tall and weighs around 835 lbs.
His parents topped out at 15.2 and 15.3. His sire is a national halter champion, so is his Grand Sire. His pedigree also includes an ROM in Reining and several other champions from different disciplines. My point is, I think they are all big horses and did well in performance classes. He's expected to reach at least 16 hands.
I'm afraid I didn't notice if his parents had long pasterns. He'll never be worked real hard, I'm not tough on my horses. I tend to baby them more and really just like to enjoy them, even though I would love to show him because of his background, it would probably be limited.
He gets his legs wrapped if he goes anywhere. It seems to me I have seen pastern boots someplace? Is that possible? How would they work for him? Thanks so much again! Oh yeah, he stands very correct right now, doesn't sit down on his pasterns at all. He has been shown in halter and placed 5 times in front of 5 different judges so far.

Posted on Thursday, Jun 29, 2000 - 11:51 am:

Oops, I forgot to mention. I'm not sure if this has any factor, but he gets one oz. of Vita Plus from Farnam everyday, will that help or not make any difference, does he really need it?

Posted on Thursday, Jun 29, 2000 - 11:54 am:

Barbara-
Forgot something else...haha I'm at work, can you tell? *grin*
Anyway, the people I have been told this by aren't vets or trainers of any kind, but they have been around alot of horses for awhile. He does appear to be a bit longer than most his age. I don't notice it so much in the adults, though, they look to me to be pretty close. Could it be he just has some catching up to do?
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