Looking my gift horse in the mouth

[grandprixer]

Hi all. I need some advice about a catch ride I’ve been lucky enough to work with while my horse is lame (again lol).

He’s a 19 y/o OTTB with tons of miles at prelim and intermediate. He spent the last 4 years being leased to a rider at a top riding college, who ended up taking him to a 2* this spring - he finished 10th! He’s really excellent with a very solid dressage base, so he’s overall just fun to ride. Literally the most honest horse ever with a great work ethic.

But the first time I rode him, I noticed 2 things - he drags his hind feet very consistently, and his trot feels very different in each direction.

His owner was raving to me about how sound he was for his age and usage, and he looks sound to me on the ground, but I’ve never felt such an unsymmetrical trot. It’s SO different when I post on the opposite diagonal, even on a straight line.

What do y’all think? I have only ridden him a few times, and he’s had a few months off since his last lease ended. I don’t want to offend his owner by saying something because he’s really so fun to ride and definitely the nicest horse I’ve gotten to ride in a while. We could have so much fun together, I even have the chance to event him this spring if we continue to get along. At the same time, I want to be fair to the horse! If he’s got some underlying pain I want to make sure it’s addressed.

[endlessclimb]

If he looks sound but feels crooked, it’s up to you as the rider to help him straighten out.

Dragging feet can be a host of things, and wouldn’t be something I’d flag right now in a new relationship as something to focus on.

[Scribbler]

@grandprixer

Hi all. I need some advice about a catch ride I’ve been lucky enough to work with while my horse is lame (again lol).

He’s a 19 y/o OTTB with tons of miles at prelim and intermediate. He spent the last 4 years being leased to a rider at a top riding college, who ended up taking him to a 2* this spring - he finished 10th! He’s really excellent with a very solid dressage base, so he’s overall just fun to ride. Literally the most honest horse ever with a great work ethic.

But the first time I rode him, I noticed 2 things - he drags his hind feet very consistently, and his trot feels very different in each direction.

His owner was raving to me about how sound he was for his age and usage, and he looks sound to me on the ground, but I’ve never felt such an unsymmetrical trot. It’s SO different when I post on the opposite diagonal, even on a straight line.

What do y’all think? I have only ridden him a few times, and he’s had a few months off since his last lease ended. I don’t want to offend his owner by saying something because he’s really so fun to ride and definitely the nicest horse I’ve gotten to ride in a while. We could have so much fun together, I even have the chance to event him this spring if we continue to get along. At the same time, I want to be fair to the horse! If he’s got some underlying pain I want to make sure it’s addressed.

I would ask the owner nicely. Have her watch you ride or watch her ride. Ask if she can see what you are feeling when she watches you. Or do you have a quality coach with a good eye? You could frame the question as what to do to get him to use his hind end.

Is this your first older horse? Often with older horses there will be a stiffness that needs working out.

If this was my personal horse developing issues I would be getting the vet out but it’s possible owner knows exactly what’s wrong, knows it’s not a problem and hopes you won’t notice. Or owner has not ridden since he returned from lease.

[grandprixer]

I’m definitely not used to riding older horses - I mostly ride babies or green horses. That’s why I appreciate him so much! He has ALL the buttons already!

His owner is also older and unable to safely ride him anymore, which is why he’s been leased out and now offered to me. She’s watched us ride and has commented he looks really good.

I do have an excellent trainer and once I’m a little fitter/more familiar with him, I’ll be hauling to her for lessons.

Maybe I can ask my trainer about it, without mentioning which horse I’m talking about? I ride a lot of horses so I can frame it as a general question.

[Pico_Banana]

I have an older (22) schoolmaster who is new to me. When he trots, if he is not perfectly straight, he feels lame. It’s not noticeable crookedness, but it’s enough to matter to him. It’s worse in one direction than the other. We’ve been working on it for a few months now and his straightness in general has vastly improved, but if he comes out stiff and I don’t ride him super duper straight, the lame feeling comes back. Maybe play around with that and see if things improve?

[Willesdon]

The previous rider trotting mainly on one diagonal? I assure everyone that it perfectly possible to stay on the same diagonal on either rein. How do I know? Because after 60 years of riding I still have to look down to check, lol!

[beowulf]

For the age, mileage/use, and prior racing history, I would say this is to be expected. Every horse has a side preference. Some are minute and may not be picked up by every rider, but some are distinct enough any rider can feel them.

I’ve never ridden a horse that was identical in both directions, even horses I’ve started from foals with no prior injury history. The likelihood of one-sidedness increases as the horse gets older and/or has pre-existing injuries that resulted in compensational one-sidedness.

Since this is an experienced horse and it is a privilege for you to ride him, I’d be careful pushing the owner for diagnostics. However, you can mention you noticed he feels different than your other horse and ask owner if they’ve seen him go recently and check if that is normal for him. If it is normal for him, it’s really the owner’s call.

It is likely he could benefit from some body work at the very least. You could suggest it, but don’t expect owner to pay for it.

[SuzieQNutter]

We had an advanced eventer come into the riding school.

He must have been ridden by rider/s who did not know their diagonals even at that level.

If you do not change diagonals deliberately the horse will choose for you and swap you onto their preferred diagonal.

The feeling from left to right felt very different. You have to ride on both diagonals to even him out. It will take time.

The dragging feet can be from not being ridden correctly. If they were not riding the correct diagonals they were probably not collecting properly.

If you start riding correctly and changing diagonals and ride every day, you will have a different horse in a few weeks.

[Annie10]

I woujd just casually mention it to owner/trainer/whoever in such a way like “hey I noticed something felt weird the other day when I was riding (like it’s recent and you’re concerned) and can you watch him while ride./ watch him jog/ longe whatever?” Sort of implying maybe he tweaked himself rolling or getting up
Etc.
At his age and with all he’s done it’s not entirely unexpected there would be a hitch in his get along

[NoSuchPerson]

@grandprixer

he drags his hind feet very consistently, and his trot feels very different in each direction.

These two symptoms plus being tail-swishing-ear-pinning bitchy over lead changes led me to have some diagnostic work done on my horse this summer. We fixed it by injecting the hocks and SI. Vet said he thought the primary problem was the hocks, SI was likely secondary and said that if we keep the hocks injected, probably won’t need to do the SI injections again. Knock on wood, horse has been great since then; we’ll likely start injecting the hocks every 6 months.

[quietann]

@Willesdon

The previous rider trotting mainly on one diagonal? I assure everyone that it perfectly possible to stay on the same diagonal on either rein. How do I know? Because after 60 years of riding I still have to look down to check, lol!

Same here, but I have far fewer years of riding. I’m probably around 2 decades of regular riding, but there was a 25 year break in there.

Regarding another comment about some horses feeling lame if not ridden very tactfully, several years ago, my then-trainer put me on her horse so I could feel something I was missing in riding Feronia. I’d watched her ride this horse many times, and he never ever looked lame. But me riding him? He felt awfully lame.

[Impractical_Horsewoman]

I would bring it up, but not phrase it in terms of needing diagnostics or concerns about pain. Just say, “his trot feels unbalanced going to the left/right and I notice he drags his hind legs when I ride him, do you have any suggestions for me as a rider to put him together a bit better?”

Older horses, especially if they’ve only had a few riders in their careers, can sometimes be a little bit quirky about what they expect from the rider.

[paw]

And some older horses really need to be encouraged to use themselves on their weak side.

I’d mention it to the owner, but as IH says above, just in a “is this his normal way of going” sort of way. It may be that he’s compensating for something, or that he just never learned how to use himself correctly and that’s now catching up to him.

[Impractical_Horsewoman]

Yes, very well said! In my experience, most owners are happy to provide feedback to help a rider “figure out” a horse they know well.

[Marigold]

@grandprixer

He’s really excellent with a very solid dressage base, so he’s overall just fun to ride. Literally the most honest horse ever with a great work ethic.

But the first time I rode him, I noticed 2 things - he drags his hind feet very consistently, and his trot feels very different in each direction.

I read this and thought “lack of strength”. Well-trained means a horse is conditioned and taught to carry himself well when asked - but just like with humans, it doesn’t mean that he doesn’t have a dominant side, or that he carries himself that well when he’s not being asked.

Then I saw this:

@grandprixer

He’s a 19 y/o

@grandprixer

he’s had a few months off since his last lease ended.

Horses at that age lose muscling and condition much more quickly than younger horses. Just because this horse is educated on how to carry himself well doesn’t mean that he does so out in the field, nor does it mean that he’s strong enough to carry himself that well after some time off. I would assume you are looking at a strength issue. With thoughtful conditioning in a good program (consistent work, but don’t expect him to do a 2* test tomorrow) and maybe some supportive care along the way (bodywork, if you are suddenly increasing his workload), I’d expect him to level out and recover that impulsion reasonably quickly.

The other thing to ask would be if the horse is used to any form of maintenance, and if that has been kept up to date. It may just be that he’s due for a check in with his regular treating veterinarian.

Congratulations on the opportunity! It sounds like you two may have a lot to offer each other.

[Larbear]

@grandprixer

I do have an excellent trainer and once I’m a little fitter/more familiar with him, I’ll be hauling to her for lessons.

Do you have something like a Pivo? If so record your ride and that way you can watch it back and watch it in slow-mo and maybe you might see something? You could also see if your trainer might be able to watch the video