Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

Could this problem of one shoulder being larger than the other be attributed 
to riding too much on just one side of the diagonal, in the trot?  Kind of 
like it is with a right handed tennis player, who will favor the right 
forehand, running around his backhand, contributing to a very large right 
forearm.  Actually, with a tennis player, it doesn't really matter whether 
he runs around his back hand or not, if he plays a lot of tennis, unless he 
switches hands (my father does this which means he has no backhand), one arm 
will be larger than the other.

I have a former Arabian racehorse and, when I first started riding him, 
making right turns in the trot or canter were quite dangerous.  I could do 
anything going to the left with this horse, but, the right turns were 
tricky.  He tripped or just seemed to be way off balance.  And, he'd do this 
really weird thing with his neck, turning it to the left side as if to tell 
me I was going in the wrong direction by wanting to turn right.

Horses are the coolest, most perfect creatures on this planet; it is us 
(humans) who screw things up.  My guess is if one shoulder is larger than 
the other it was a human who caused it to be that way.  Just a wild guess on 
my part, of course, I could be wrong.  Wouldn't be the first time.  lol.

Sorry for all this posting (call me Sir Heidi) but I've been staying up 
really late watching all that hockey (go Flyers) and this causes me to sleep 
in so by the time I get up it's do darn hot outside (I hate Florida this 
time of year) I try to wait till the late afternoon, early evening, to take 
my daily ride (required, for one's sanity).  By then the thunderstorms start 
to kick in and I ask my horse, "Is today the day which might be our last 
day, or do we feel lucky?"  The horse responds, "I feel lucky; catch me, God 
of Thunder, if you can."

The horse knows best, so, out we go.  "Death, when you take me, please, do 
so when I'm on my horse.  And, if it's not too much to ask, take me alone 
and let the horse live to run another day."

cya,
Howard  (yea, I kind of ramble on when the heat kicks in)


> From: Ridecamp Guest <guest-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> To: <ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Subject: [RC]   Asymmetrical Shoulder
> Date: Fri, 14 May 2004 18:06:42 GMT
>
> Please Reply to: Tess Searcy morabs@xxxxxxxxxxxxx or ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> ==========================================
>
> In response to your message;  I had an ex-racehorse off of the track who's 
> left shoulder was bigger than the right, it was from running down the track 
> to the left, more use of the left lead than the right.  He prefered to 
> canter in the left lead, I spent a couple of years teaching him to bend to 
> the right & to use his right lead more, it then build up the right to match 
> the left, he can counter canter now too.   If the shoulder is built up too 
> much you might need to shim up the smaller side of the saddle to make it 
> fit, mine wasn't that bad, I never had to use shims.  Couldn't hurt to have 
> a Chiro look at it too.
>
> ===========================================================Arabians were 
> bred for years primarily as a war horse and those
> requirements are similar to what we do today with endurance riding.
> ~  Homer Saferwiffle
>
> ridecamp.net information: http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/
>
> ===========================================================

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