Newly purchasedhorse sore in front and fallling - need advice!!!

[HeatherZ]

Hi, I need some advice. I just bought a 6 year old mare from someone I trust (a relative with an equine rescue farm). She had a cracked hoof and was supposed to have it looked at before being delivered. That didn’t happen. We only rode her once at a walk for a short distance before purchase. She was purchased for pleasure trail riding with purportedly no health problems, although we knew she would need feet trimming.

After we got her home, and tried to ride, we realized she was unsafe. She stumbles frequently and actually went down in front to the point where the rider was thrown off. She stands with one front hoof or the other in the air.

In addition to the cracked front hoof, her toes look worn short, the sides are wide and flared, the heels seem wide and low, and the soles and frog are rather shallow and low. I’m sensing this is a sore heel issue and she is moving by landing toe first and tripping.

She is a nice horse, but we don’t want to get attached to a new horse that we will not be able to ride. The place we bought her is reluctant to take her back and wants us to try a farrier and vet, trimming, shoeing, etc. for an extended period first. We are willing to try this, but I’m concerned there are no guarantees she will ever be a safe ride.

Suggestions anyone? Prior experience? Should we give up before we throw good money after bad - we are paying board for her!

Thanks to anyone who could help.

Heather

[findeight]

I’d send her back. Horses don’t just fall down and the poor thing is unsafe.

You are talking about hundreds of dollars in frequent farrier work, probably boots to cushion the foot as it grows and some serious time for that hoof to heal and regrow…and possibly a thousand dollars + in diagnostics alone if there is something else wrong causing her to fall down. And it does sound like more then sore heels here, she should be x rayed since she seems to be in considerable pain.

A horse that falls down is not safe or sound. Plus they assured you they would deal with the hoof before sending her to you. Which they did not do. And the horse is in pain. Send her back.

Im not really a hard a*s but this could get really expensive and the horse is not useable, not safe and in pain. I bet they want you to just wait and spend several times what she’s worth trying to fix her over the next 6 or 8 months- she was misrepresented to you, they need to take her back. Remind them they promised to fix the hoof if they balk.

Get anything you have from them in writing, text or e mail together just in case.

[alibi_18]

[QUOTE=HeatherZ;7822078]
Hi, I need some advice. I just bought a 6 year old mare from someone I trust (a relative with an equine rescue farm). She had a cracked hoof and was supposed to have it looked at before being delivered. That didn’t happen. We only rode her once at a walk for a short distance before purchase. She was purchased for pleasure trail riding with purportedly no health problems, although we knew she would need feet trimming.[/QUOTE]

Do yourself a favor and bring your relative back its unsound mare, get your money back and go buy something sound that you can try and ride.

[Come_Shine]

Poor horse. Why not have a reputable farrier come out and have a look at what would be involved before sending her back?

[RockinHorse]

[QUOTE=HeatherZ;7822078]
Hi, I need some advice. I just bought a 6 year old mare from someone I trust (a relative with an equine rescue farm). She had a cracked hoof and was supposed to have it looked at before being delivered. That didn’t happen. We only rode her once at a walk for a short distance before purchase. She was purchased for pleasure trail riding with purportedly no health problems, although we knew she would need feet trimming.

After we got her home, and tried to ride, we realized she was unsafe. She stumbles frequently and actually went down in front to the point where the rider was thrown off. She stands with one front hoof or the other in the air.

In addition to the cracked front hoof, her toes look worn short, the sides are wide and flared, the heels seem wide and low, and the soles and frog are rather shallow and low. I’m sensing this is a sore heel issue and she is moving by landing toe first and tripping.

She is a nice horse, but we don’t want to get attached to a new horse that we will not be able to ride. The place we bought her is reluctant to take her back and wants us to try a farrier and vet, trimming, shoeing, etc. for an extended period first. We are willing to try this, but I’m concerned there are no guarantees she will ever be a safe ride.

Suggestions anyone? Prior experience? Should we give up before we throw good money after bad - we are paying board for her!

Thanks to anyone who could help.

Heather[/QUOTE]

[edit]

You bought a horse you barely rode with no PPE? The horse is now yours. Is there a contract that allows you to return the horse? Absent a contract to the contrary the seller doesn’t have to take the horse back.

Perhaps start with a vet to find out what is wrong with the horse and if it is fixable then go from there.

[CrowneDragon]

[QUOTE=Come Shine;7822149]
Poor horse. Why not have a reputable farrier come out and have a look at what would be involved before sending her back?[/QUOTE]

^^^ Yes, this. It sounds like her feet are in bad shape. You can’t assess if she has a permanent issue if her feet are a mess. If they are in really bad shape, it may be a while before she is comfortable and moving properly and this may involve multiple trims and shoeing to get to that point.
For future reference, I wouldn’t assume that there is a return policy for any horse you buy, from a rescue or not. You have to do your due diligence. If you don’t get a pre-purchase exam done and you buy a lame horse, that was your decision. The horse is yours now. If you find out that she has a permanent lameness problem, you have to deal with that the best that you can.

[findeight]

[QUOTE=HeatherZ;7822078]
Hi, I need some advice. I just bought a 6 year old mare from someone I trust (a relative with an equine rescue farm). She had a cracked hoof and was supposed to have it looked at before being delivered. That didn’t happen. We only rode her once at a walk for a short distance before purchase. She was purchased for pleasure trail riding with purportedly no health problems, although we knew she would need feet trimming.

After we got her home, and tried to ride, we realized she was unsafe. She stumbles frequently and actually went down in front to the point where the rider was thrown off. She stands with one front hoof or the other in the air.

In addition to the cracked front hoof, her toes look worn short, the sides are wide and flared, the heels seem wide and low, and the soles and frog are rather shallow and low. I’m sensing this is a sore heel issue and she is moving by landing toe first and tripping.

She is a nice horse, but we don’t want to get attached to a new horse that we will not be able to ride. The place we bought her is reluctant to take her back and wants us to try a farrier and vet, trimming, shoeing, etc. for an extended period first. We are willing to try this, but I’m concerned there are no guarantees she will ever be a safe ride.

Suggestions anyone? Prior experience? Should we give up before we throw good money after bad - we are paying board for her!

Thanks to anyone who could help.

Heather[/QUOTE]

Just in case…

[merrygoround]

Seems to me we’ve heard this or a similar song before. Begorra!

[californianinkansas]

If this is a for real situation, then either call the vet and farrier, or euth her, or see if her previous owners will take her back. She sounds like she is in terrible pain. The tone of your post appeared to be focused on the main concern of you not having a ridable horse versus concern about any pain your horse might be in.

[Foxtrot_s]

It is a pro-D day here in BC.

[findeight]

[QUOTE=Foxtrot’s;7822607]
It is a pro-D day here in BC.[/QUOTE]

And what might that be? School holiday?

[Ambitious_Kate]

Oh, thanks, findeight.

Wow, OP. Get the vet and the farrier out and see what’s wrong with your horse - besides the fact that the horse isn’t shod. I can’t imagine how young you are getting on a horse with feet in that condition, whether she was showing signs of being sore or not, riding a horse like that is a receipie for lameness.

The horse could just be in need of a 6 month rehab and be fine, or there could be big problems on board. You don’t know until you take care of her. Any horse pointing or lifting a foot is in alot of pain and this needs to be adressed instantly. There’s no excuse for letting her continue in pain or be undiagnosed.

Either

Send her back to the owner, or
Get the vet and farrier out and treat her correctly, or
euth her.

Those are your three options.

And don’t plan on riding the horse for a long while yet, until she is healed and her feet are healthy and well shod. She’s been neglected, first by her owner and now by you.

Good luck.

[Crockpot]

Lost me here :eek:

She stands with one front hoof or the other in the air

[findeight]

OP has left like most if the rest of these. I’ll keep the popcorn on the other thread here.

[Foxtrot_s]

Professional Development Day - when all the teachers say ‘yipee’ and go riding, or shopping, etc., while parents have to find extra daycare…and they have just come off strike for better conditions. I’m pro teacher, and in this case was supportive of them, but they don’t have life as hard as they like us to think.

[alto]

[QUOTE=Foxtrot’s;7823267]
Professional Development Day - when all the teachers say ‘yipee’ and go riding, or shopping, etc., while parents have to find extra daycare…and they have just come off strike for better conditions. I’m pro teacher, and in this case was supportive of them, but they don’t have life as hard as they like us to think.[/QUOTE]

I don’t know what district you’re in … but through elementary & high school, my kid’s teachers were almost all involved in further education workshops on the pro-D-days, in-school meetings often consumed at least half the day, or they worked on getting caught up on their classrooms …
There were a few teachers that did as little as possible (in all aspects of their job), but these were very much the minority.

My kid had some awesome young teachers that worked over 10 years in the system without ever having a “job” , each year they work contract to contract, they are “fired” every spring & anxiously wait to hear if they will be re-hired for the fall semester (or hopefully both terms), the lucky ones get their new contracts in June, but many do not receive the paperwork until August … many of these outstanding young teachers just leave BC or find alternate careers

oops :o Apologies for my school system rage :o

ETA another poor mare fan here, please get a vet out! :yes:
Just sending her back does nothing to improve this mare’s quality of life, if she’s as bad as she seems, I’d euthanize before returning her to her previous existence

[DJohn]

The poor thing definitely shouldn’t be ridden. She is tripping because her feet hurt, badly. She places one hoof down, it hurts, she quickly pulls it up. Sometimes she steps on a rock or hard spot and her body probably drops to compensate. She probably isn’t tripping because she wants to, she’s tripping because it hurts so badly to put either foot down.

I would get the farrier out asap to assess the probably bruising of the sole and maybe slap some shoes on if she isn’t already full of abscesses! Otherwise, send her back if you aren’t willing to deal with it.

[Ambitious_Kate]

The last time the OP was on the board was five minutes after she posted her post.