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RE: [RC] A questionWhat is the most common cause of horses going lame at - Kathy RamspottA clinic that addresses these issues and others regarding confirmation/compensation etc would be awesome. Anyone know of a region that puts one on? Specifically for the endurance horse? Kathy R -----Original Message----- From: ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:ridecamp-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of heidi@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Sent: Sunday, May 16, 2004 7:40 PM To: tprevatt@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx Cc: anyone@xxxxxxxxxxxxx; cstiles@xxxxxxxxxx; ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: Re: [RC] A questionWhat is the most common cause of horses going lame at At the SERA convention this past year this was the subject of the main speaker. He came loaded with lots of photos both optical and IR. There seems to be a couple issues, first is poor shoeing as Karen points out. This is a biggie--and indeed, rocks caught in shoes are very rare when the foot is properly shod with the heels left wide enough to support the foot in maximum expansion, as they should be, unless the horse has REALLY narrow and contracted feet. Which goes to Truman's next comment... Another is conformation - not built to do what they are being asked. I am SO glad to hear that that is being identified as a reason! And it isn't primarily leg conformation--it is body conformation that causes the horse to literally trash his legs. Horses with long backs, poor angles, etc. are really hard on legs--add a rider and a lot of concussive miles and you have a recipe for lameness. The third the most likely cause is compensation. They are compensating for a minor stone bruise or maybe unbalanced shoeing in one leg and end up lame on another. The are compensating for a minor stone bruise on one foot and end up muscle tired (and hence stiff and lame ) on another. He had some great IR photos of stone bruises that probably wouldn't show up with hoof testers but would surely cause compensation. Not sure compensation is a "cause" as much as it is an effect--unless we are talking about compensation for poor conformation. What you get here is a domino effect--one thing is a little bit lame, so the horse compensates, and makes something else even more lame. But definitely something to be aware of. All of these things boil down to rider judgment--as does being properly conditioned. And the bottom line is still frequently speed--a horse going faster than what his conformation/conditioning/capability can handle. Heidi ============================================================ ...but then, I do ride my horses a lot more than most people ~ Karen Chaton ridecamp.net information: http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/ ============================================================ ============================================================ ...but then, I do ride my horses a lot more than most people ~ Karen Chaton ridecamp.net information: http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/ ============================================================
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