I want to start riding my mare in Dressage, but she’s 21 with some arthritis in her hocks and her stride is a little too short… her hind foot falls about 5 inches behind her front in the walk. Is there anything I can do to help her reach under herself? Is it unfair to expect a horse with her bad joints to move that way? And if so, can I still do Dressage?
Thanks!
First, you’ll need to give her something to ease her pain. Talk to your vet about possible solution and what can be improved and to what extend.
Then you can work on strenghtening her muscles and lenthening her stride. That is what good dressage work do.
Have lower expectations and be surprise at the results you’ll get! 
Ok, thanks. She gets injections for it and I just started her on a joint supplement… but we still aren’t clear on how effective they are.
Polework.
Is her stride that short because she’s in pain, or because she has a terrible walk? Either way, dressage will be an uphill and potentially unfair challenge for your mare. That said, appropriate wtc that doesn’t worsen her condition may help maintain her strength and flexibility. So, “dressage” at the lowest levels and in moderation could be of benefit.
I would not do pole work on a horse that may be in pain. Definitely have the vet out and discuss options. My older guy doesn’t have anything major going on but I have him on Previcox and it does make quite a difference even in him.
I would not worry about overtrack personally with this horse. Have her checked out and get a recommendation from the vet on ways to help her stay comfortable and talk about how much work is ok. When you ride just ask her to be nice and forward into your hand, don’t focus on that one thing. As she develops the strength she may start to come under more, if it’s not physically comfortable she won’t. Throw in plenty of days of very light riding or hacking out. Lower level dressage will certainly benefit her, but you have to make sure she’s comfortable above all else.
I will just add that even with horses without diagnosable physical issues we have to make compromises here and there. Mine will be 21 next month and while he’s very sound and doing PSG there are things I don’t ask him to do in the same way I would a 10 or 11 year old doing the same level. I don’t ask for the same kind of sitting on the haunches in pirouettes or piaffe for example. In competition we aren’t going to get the same kind of scores on our pirouettes because of that, but it’s unfair to ask him for that level of collection when physically it is a bit of a struggle. That applies to any horse, regardless of level.
Thank you for that! I have had several vets look at her and besides the injections (which she gets - her last one was last week), they haven’t been able to give me any further insight. I’m starting her on Cosequin and I’m hoping that a more regular workload will help get more circulation through that leg.
She’s been pretty sour under saddle so I’m only just starting to ride her again after about four months off - and I’m going very slowly - only ~10 minutes under saddle at a time for now with lots of groundwork.
I guess I’ll just see what she’s willing to give me and aim for a few schooling shows at training level this summer.
That sounds like a great plan and it sounds like you’re taking your time with her and paying attention to how she’s feeling. If you bring her back slowly and help her build strength over time I think you will be surprised how much improvement you see.
OP, what injections are you doing? Have you tried Pentosan? A lot of us with horses with arthritis have had a lot of luck with it and it is reasonably priced also! I would say lower level dressage actually helps these horses stay sound and more flexible in the long run. I wouldn’t worry about how much overtrack you have at this point as other posters have mentioned. Just worry about trying to keep her comfortable. If she’s comfortable, it will probably come over time.
Babecakes, she’s exploring different options. Not a big deal.
Is this the same horse that you want to use in longe lessons?
In order to encourage overstride, or a facsimile of it, you need to allow time between strides for the hind leg to reach forward. If you are just pushing the walk, it will stay short strided.
While you add energy with your legs, first L and then R, to “pick up the stride”, you need to keep your hips slow. It is a balance to not let the walk get too slow, and to maintain the energy for an active walk without allowing it to get rushed.
[QUOTE=zaparaquah;7471592]
Thank you for that! I have had several vets look at her and besides the injections (which she gets - her last one was last week), they haven’t been able to give me any further insight.[/QUOTE]
Have you had leg & back X-rays done? imaging of the SI joint?
I don’t think many vets will be able to offer much insight without imaging techniques to have some idea of what is actually going on.
Have vets recommended additional pain management?
(eg, Bute or non-bute alternatives that will provide immediate relief)
I suspect she’ll need injections such as adequan, but also joint injections (except I’d not go this road without X-rays as she may be past the point where they’ll do much besides offer some degree of comfort ie even with joint injections, her soundness may not really change) - definitely have a good body worker out … this may benefit her more than some of the other interventions.
When putting her back into work, just start with walking, especially if you have gentle hills - you want to develop her muscles, get her (gently) stretching etc (I’d give this a month before asking even for a trot u/s).
Is she turned out 24/7? that will help a lot with stiffness.
[QUOTE=serendipityhunter;7471630]
OP, what injections are you doing? Have you tried Pentosan? A lot of us with horses with arthritis have had a lot of luck with it and it is reasonably priced also! I would say lower level dressage actually helps these horses stay sound and more flexible in the long run. I wouldn’t worry about how much overtrack you have at this point as other posters have mentioned. Just worry about trying to keep her comfortable. If she’s comfortable, it will probably come over time.[/QUOTE]
I second the Pentosan
[QUOTE=alto;7473222]
Have you had leg & back X-rays done? imaging of the SI joint?
I don’t think many vets will be able to offer much insight without imaging techniques to have some idea of what is actually going on.
Have vets recommended additional pain management?
(eg, Bute or non-bute alternatives that will provide immediate relief)
I suspect she’ll need injections such as adequan, but also joint injections (except I’d not go this road without X-rays as she may be past the point where they’ll do much besides offer some degree of comfort ie even with joint injections, her soundness may not really change) - definitely have a good body worker out … this may benefit her more than some of the other interventions.
Is she turned out 24/7? that will help a lot with stiffness.[/QUOTE]
She did recently have an x-ray, as the calcification around the joint is making it hard to get the needle in. The vet didn’t tell me anything else regarding pain management though. I will have to consider the adequan if she doesn’t improve (as my vet did casually say that it might help if I wanted to try it), but she is HORRIBLE with needles (took us several hours, a twitch, and 3-4 different sedatives to get the last injection in) so I’d prefer to stick to other solutions if possible, to keep her stress to a minimum.
I wish I could have her turned out, but there’s really no pasture available where I live – believe me, I’ve looked. She’s in a decent sized pen though, and I get her out to walk/ lunge for an hour at least 5 days each week.
I am doing mostly W/T with a bit of canter on the ground right now, and she’s certainly capable of more (she gallops and bucks and rears and spins when I let her run loose), and we’re just walking under saddle for the moment, as she actually refuses to trot.
So… what kind of bodywork would likely help her the most?
[QUOTE=zaparaquah;7475041]
She did recently have an x-ray, as the calcification around the joint is making it hard to get the needle in. The vet didn’t tell me anything else regarding pain management though. I will have to consider the adequan if she doesn’t improve (as my vet did casually say that it might help if I wanted to try it), but she is HORRIBLE with needles (took us several hours, a twitch, and 3-4 different sedatives to get the last injection in) so I’d prefer to stick to other solutions if possible, to keep her stress to a minimum.
I wish I could have her turned out, but there’s really no pasture available where I live – believe me, I’ve looked. She’s in a decent sized pen though, and I get her out to walk/ lunge for an hour at least 5 days each week.
I am doing mostly W/T with a bit of canter on the ground right now, and she’s certainly capable of more (she gallops and bucks and rears and spins when I let her run loose), and we’re just walking under saddle for the moment, as she actually refuses to trot.
So… what kind of bodywork would likely help her the most?[/QUOTE]
If she WTCs on the ground but not under saddle that suggests to me a back issue and/or a saddle fit issue
I would start with massage from a good practitioner - they can often give you a good idea of the cause - especially saddle fit issues. From there I’d look at chiro and a saddle fitter.
Have you tried a chiropractic work-up? A friend that boarded with me this summer had a chiropractor work on her older, very short-strided mare, and the difference in her stride length and attitude was remarkable.
[QUOTE=zaparaquah;7475041]
but she is HORRIBLE with needles (took us several hours, a twitch, and 3-4 different sedatives to get the last injection in) so I’d prefer to stick to other solutions if possible, to keep her stress to a minimum.[/QUOTE]
You might give this product a try - it’s not cheap but picky horse found it very palatable & it did sort out whatever was bothering him (vet & bodyworker found nothing conclusive … but we know this horse is ridiculously sensitive …).
If you see improvement with this sort of product, then you can look for less $$ ways to get there (initial outlay for the components cost more, than for me to just try the combination, & I was looking for acute rather than chronic relief - I also found a shop that sold it for 10 - 20% less).
I wish I could have her turned out, but there’s really no pasture available where I live – believe me, I’ve looked. She’s in a decent sized pen though, and I get her out to walk/ lunge for an hour at least 5 days each week.
Place her food & water & salt block at farthest distance from each other as that will also encourage movement, same if her hay is just scattered about (& she’ll eat it that way).
I am doing mostly W/T with a bit of canter on the ground right now, and she’s certainly capable of more (she gallops and bucks and rears and spins when I let her run loose), and we’re just walking under saddle for the moment, as she actually refuses to trot.
I agree that if she’s much more expressive at liberty than u/s, look at her back comfort - this includes saddle fit but also strength/development of those back muscle: fortunately you can really build up topline on the lunge, so you might walk in hand & lunge rather than ride, for 4-6 weeks, then reassess her u/s.
Obviously ensure that she has a suitable diet as well (protein, fats, vitamins, minerals).
I’d also have her on at least MSM & preferably a supplement such as Recovery EQ HA - again for me, this particular product works out cheaper than similar versions, but shop around & look at active ingredient/dose … obviously don’t use MSM and a product such as Recovery.
Note that that First Response offers “non-bute” pain relief, in addition to the similar joint supplements.
So… what kind of bodywork would likely help her the most?
Look at who’s in your area, observe each at “work” if possible, then make an appointment 
We “tried” 4, I observed another 6, & now just alway call our favourite (very much the horse’s choice as well) who does a combination of massage/acupressure/chiro.
Generally you should see an improvement in the horse after each session, though it may take several (many) months work to sort out issues where there is muscle atrophy.
There is an older horse that came out of a not very nice lesson program (lucky for him, his leaser fell in love) & his recovery has been amazing - from sway backed & very much “not sound” to quite a nice topline & moving out freely (she also stopped jumping him & intends to only do flatwork, though he may surprise her )
Sorry not clear, but his bodyworker has made a huge difference in this horse’s recovery.
By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. You may also receive promotional emails from The Chronicle of the Horse. You can opt out at any time.
For Customers
Company
Terms of Use
