So, it looks like I bought a horse with fairly straight hind legs and am beginning to have some issues with a collapsing hind leg. Vet has not diagnosed the problem yet because, of course, the horse does not do it when vet is watching. Xrays of hock and stifle are clean. We will do ultrasound next week. If it turns out that stifle is catching, what are the chances he will ever be able to do dressage? He is very green now: walk, trot and very strung out canter. I know there are things to do that can help a sticky stifle, but just wondering if there is any chance the horse will go on to a dressage career with this issue.
As with most things horse related; it depends.
How old is the horse?
I have a horse that has a catchy stifle but after some growth (coming 5 year old) and more fitness, it’s not an issue. He isn’t so straight in the hind end though.
He should be capable of at least lower levels with proper fitness. I am assuming he’s not very fit, so that doesn’t help. Get him fitter and do strength exercises for the stifle and see where that gets you.
I agree with this - if the horse is still young I think he could grow out of it. Lots of walking up hills and stepping over poles will help. Also lots of turnout.
He is 7 yrs old, half Percheron, has been in training under saddle for almost a year–ridden 4 or 5 times weekly. Prior to that, he was a driving horse. He has only started collapsing in the last couple of months, so I’m not positive that the problem is a catchy stifle. Seems like we may have seen it before if that was the issue, but who knows! He seems fairly fit, but no work has ever been done on hills or over cavaletti, i.e. no specific stifle strengthening. He is currently turned out 12 hrs per day, but that’s just in the last couple weeks. Prior to that his turnout was 8 hrs per day.
Get someone to video you for a whole ride so you have documentation of what the “collapse” looks like. Take some good stood up conformation shots for us.
I hadn’t heard that straight legs predispose to sticky stifle, more that they cause hock problems in post legged jumpers.
Your horse sounds green and not very fit. I think draft horses take longer to mature, and possibly longer to get fit for speed work as that isn’t their forte. What is his other half?
For instance, I have seen TB/Percheron crosses come out looking anywhere from plow horse to Iberian to cob to nice grade horse to AngloArab (I don’t know if they were all 50/50 or some were 25/75).
I’m guessing if your boy was driven early he looks draft horse. They don’t necessarily have the most balanced canter. I think the question at the moment isn’t can he do upper level dressage? But rather can he get fit to do a correct walk trot canter under saddle? Working on trot and working on lateral at the walk really does build strength towards the canter. Hill work would be fantastic. Maybe just take him out of the arena and trail ride on moderate slopes for the summer.
I agree that drafts can take longer to mature. They also require more exercise to stay fit. I feel like some breeds are like this. My TB naturally stays more fit than my PRE it seems. The PRE requires much more conditioning to be at the same level as the TB. That’s just my personal experience. Well, the TB is genetically more inclined to be fit for endurance sports.
A video would he helpful. Then we can see where the collapse happens.
I know some OTTB who live on pasture. They take it upon themselves to run laps every day. They get going and just won’t quit. I like sending my Paint out with them every year because they keep her in shape.
Paint can sometimes beat an OTTB at the start but she is done after 10 minutes while the tb can go for half an hour.
There’s an Iberian TB cross out there now with them and the poor dear tries to catch up but she is always at the back of the little herd.
I think that if the riding market wasn’t flooded with cheap or free OTTB, we would still think of them as athletic wonder horses.
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Your boy looks lovely! As you say, he does have a straight hind leg. I would try hard to get video of the collapse you are feeling. While this is often stifle, it isn’t always.
I understand the x-rays are clean. Have you done a lameness exam? Straight lines and small circles on hard and soft ground, and flexions?
I have absolutely heard this.
Vet did lameness exam including straight lines, small circles and flexions. He thought he got a bit worse when right stifle/hock were flexed, thus the xrays. He did not do hard vs soft ground. We were in my riding ring which is fairly soft. He thought he palpated some soreness in sacroiliac, but was equivocal. Horse reacted to the first palpation, but did not react to a second palpation. We will ultrasound stifle and sacroiliac next week. Horse was definitely having trouble cantering on lunge line when vet looked at him. To the left he clearly was stiffening and hiking right hind during down transition. Also some toe dragging on right hind when going left at trot. To the right, the horse would not canter at all on right lead. Immediately started cross firing and then switched to left lead.
He is a pretty boy for sure. Has he been DNA tested for PSSM? That could be an issue with his Percheron heritage (TBs can have it too, but def in Perch). I board a TB/Perch mare and she has tested n/P1. She tied up not long after she got here as a 6 yr old and vet suggested PSSM. Owner just tested for PSSM1 not all the other variants. Mare has been on diet now since the tie up and has not had any issues except a couple of close calls in cold weather, which is her trigger.
I can’t contribute anything to this discussion but to say you have a LOVELY boy there!
The PSSM idea is a smart one to check out. That type of hind leg conformation absolutely can lead to stifle problems, and helping strengthen them helps prevent problems.
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I have thought of the PSSM issue and will talk to vet about checking that out. I am very familiar with that issue because I have another 1/2 Percheron that has it and has been on the diet for years.
Ok, good to know. I’ve never been around a horse with back legs as straight as this one.
Beautiful horse but yes, very straight behind. Have a good lameness expert check his hind suspensories. Toe dragging, SI pain, and trouble holding leads are symptoms. Proximal suspensory desmitis can block to the hock. And I’ve posted this link a lot lately but straight hind legs are very strongly correlated with hind suspensory issues: https://thehorse.com/148171/research…traight-hocks/
I’ve learned all this the hard way in the last year with my 5-year-old Hanoverian. Hope you have better luck than me.
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I have never heard of a horse with straight hind legs having stifle issues, but it may happen. Straight hind legs actually make it easier for horses to piaffe and passage. Michael Holmstrom’s conformation studies showed this.
I have a mare with legs just as straight as yours behind. I have never had any issues with collapsing (and I’m not quite sure what you mean by this) or lameness and she does piaffe and passage very easily. I bought her greenbroke and out of shape and have done a lot of conditioning on her and hills and trails and living in pasture have been part of her life since I’ve had her. She’s 20 and far sounder than when I bought her, still doing all of the work.
Whatever you find, I think working on conditioning and strengthening the weak areas is always a good thing to do.
I like the neck and shoulder on this horse, but the hind end seems proportionately small and the croup rather sloped, in addition to the straight hind legs. I wouldn’t expect a lot of push and power behind, and perhaps he needs extra conditioning.
