Hello all, I tried a few horses a few days ago and fell in love with one thoroughbred gelding, he’s the perfect size and age and has the biggest mind after only having a few rides off the track the only problem is that his current owner says he roars but it’s unknown how badly, she said her trainer on the track noticed it while he was being cantered around the track. I’m trying not to get my hopes up if the roaring would be too dangerous for what I want to do. (I’m a showjumper and do some dressage/cross country but don’t do XC too much as the ground is too hard here) I asked the current owner if we could get him scoped to see how bad it was but as a request I want to know if any of you guys own a horse or have had any experience with a horse that roars but is also a sporthorse and if it affects them in any way.
Thank you!
I own a roarer. I tried doing a tieback surgery and it did not change the noise. But he is fine for lower level eventing and jumping. They key is to keep him fit. When he gets out of shape he has some exercise intolerance. What level do you plan to do with him?
I would try to get a dynamic (or working) scope done before purchasing. There are several conditions that can cause roaring and you really want to know what you are dealing with before you jump into anything.
I agree! The owner has him scheduled for a scope sometime next week and if it’s bad enough I won’t look into him anymore with the purchase, but if it’s okay and can be worked around I’ll move forward. I’d like to see how high he could go before I decide what level I plan to do. Yeah, I want to compete and everything occasionally but if it’s too strenuous I wouldn’t take him any higher than what’s comfortable, I want a horse that can do some things I want to do but also simply a companion for me.
My favorite eventer Knowzy was a pretty loud roarer. It made zero difference in his performance. We showed lower level eventing at the Novice level and schooled some much bigger questions cross country. In fact in the two years we showed consistently we finished on our dressage score both entire show seasons.
Can you please help me, how do you post a new topic?? I can’t find the button and I need to ask a question about my ottb
Thank you so much for the reply! He’s beautiful! It makes me a lot more comfortable, I’ve never been approached with a horse that roars.
Hello! Go to the forums and click on the genre you want to post about and which fits your question and then click on the new topic button!
Bump! Looking for some more opinions
You might be buying a good horse with a cosmetic defect and you might be buying a horse with problem that will generate large vet bills. If you are “flush” and can handle the bills then do it. If not then get a good vet to look at the horse and give you fair SOAP so you can make an informed decision.
Good luck in your project.
G.
Personally I would avoid a horse with a roar, but not because of the roar itself really. One of mine had a roar which did create some exercise intolerance as he got more fit and being asked to go on the bit which showed up as a resistance to go forward. I started working with him after he spent a year in a pasture and of course fell in love after a couple months. As part of my purchase agreement he got tie back surgery and got scoped after healing to make sure everything went well. It went fine and he never roared again and we showed in the hunters.
My reasoning behind avoiding a horse with a roar is that from talking to several vets there seems to be a connection with the roar and other issues in quite a few horses (don’t quote me but I think they say it’s based on an issue with a central nerve if I remember right). My horse suffers from sleep deprivation, kissing spines/arthritis in the thoracic spine, and several other issues that seem possibly immune related. He retired a little over a year ago at 15 after many years of hard work and way too much money spent trying to keep him sound and happy while navigating frequent long spells of time off for one issue or another.
I would avoid stepping into a potential issue especially with a horse that hasn’t proven he can do a job. There are just so many horses out there to choose from why buy a problem? If I did go for a horse like that I would be x-raying the back and neck as part of the PPE.
In the days before the surgery was available, there were a lot of roarers around, competing at the shows, especially in the jumper divisions. In the big divisions.
The limitations are:
If it can not be corrected with surgery (some cases are successfully fixed with surgery, some are not), in the bigger horse shows, the noise made will effect your placing in the hunter divisions. But in smaller shows and schooling shows, it doesn’t matter so much. “Officially”, roaring is an “unsoundness”, but it is an unsoundness that often does not negatively effect performance.
If you are looking for a high level three day eventer, it can be limiting in the amount of air the horse can get. This is why it is limiting in racing too. However, what a race trainer sees as a “problem” roarer at the track may not be limiting in other disciplines, just because other disciplines are less physically demanding.
If you like the horse, and he is perfect in every other way, it is a defect that I would accept.
My horse roars, and he did when I bought him 11 years ago. Vet stated at PPE he didn’t think it would hinder him for what we do (local level everything) and it has not. It is definitely more noticeable when he’s not fit, but at 23, he’s mostly retired from anything but riding around the farm anyway (he’s still sound with fewer issues than many younger horses). He’s done dressage, HUS, ranch riding, English and Western pleasure and has won at them all. It is considered an unsoundness in hunters, but for us at the very local level, it never effected his placings at all. He’s a great horse and I am glad I didn’t pass on him.
Update -
We did a PPE endoscopic exam on him, I’m assuming it’s a level 3, the vet said he would need surgery but afterwards he’d be fine to be a jumper. Don’t want to ask him to do something if he physically can’t. Opinions?
Never had a horse with roars and I’ve never even seen it so I have no idea.
Should I continue looking? Or?
The surgery is pretty common, and grade 3 is significant but not devestating.
Im pretty sure there is a grade 5 doing dressage around here, it sounds like a train in canter.
Anyway I wouldnt turn down a grade 3, unless I was looking at 1* eventing and above.
And the great thing is if you start jumping the big fences later, you already know about it and surgery is an option then.
You would be surprised with A - how many have a grade of roaring in the general population, and B how much they can achieve anyway.
Its pretty easy to feel how obstructions to the airway are affecting a horse as they just cant perform, so unlike say a suspensory strain, you cant really do unexpected damage. Ive had 2 have other restrictions to the airways both related to sinus’s.
I would take him and see how you go.
When my cob was scoped for other issues he was discovered to be a roarer too, its a lot more common than people think.
I think the thoughts that its indicative of other issues in the horse are a bit far fetched, and anecdotally how many horses have no issues. Ive certainly never met one, whose to say they didnt have those issues underlying already?
My boy Petey is a roarer. When he was 3 and the vet determined that his left flap was totally paralyzed, he had tie back surgery. Eventually it failed (either the sutures failed or the flap itself pulled through the sutures … think of a pierced ear which finally opens through the bottom of the lobe). Several years later I had the offending flap lazered off.
He is fine for dressage and jumping, but his BNT refused to ride him above prelim because he made so much noise.
if you buy him and want to have surgery remember these 2 things 1 it is not a perfect solution and, even with the surgery you may not be able to show in hunters. 2. 9 out of 10 vets do not have the experience to do the surgery. I do not know where you are located, but I had one surgery done at Rood and Riddle and the 2nd done by a specialist in throat surgery. Vets near race tracks are going to have experience in throat surgery. Do not let your local vet convince you that he can do it.
I am located in CO, I suppose there may be a vet near the Arapahoe Race track? Horse is from Wyoming. I wasn’t planning on doing hunters/eventing, I wanted to do eventing but the ground is too hard in my state so I was shooting for jumpers… I’d hope to do at least 3’ at the minimum but am currently doing 2’6. I’m just nervous as I’ve never experienced this and from what I’ve heard it sounds pretty scary! But, my biggest mistake was letting my previous horse go by a bad opinion that actually didn’t have any relevance, I was just naive.
My horse just had surgery for this and has returned to work. I know of another who had surgery and is and has been competing at GP. Feel free to PM with a phone number and I would be happy to chat with you.
This article might be worth reading.
https://www.horsetalk.co.nz/2018/04/09/aust-research-roaring-horses/#jikXH6Zm5sCFzPAm.99
