Hello Rhonda, Just guessing here but the other thing it can
be is his feet. Poor shoeing, slight laminitis, contracted under-run
heels, thrush, etc. Google barefoothorses and read up on what a healthy
foot should be like. I'm not pushing you to take your horse barefoot but
some of us have had horses with the same symptoms as yours and have had a
complete turn around in the horse's health after getting the hooves
healthy. You can go back to shoes anytime. I know several others who
routinely pull the shoes and leave the horse barefoot (with frequent
trimming) for 2-3 months every year just to keep more healthy hooves.
Good Luck & Happy New Year, Don Huston
At 04:48 PM
12/27/2006 Wednesday, you wrote: >I have a ten year old gelding who has
had a problem with arthritis >for the last year and a half or so.
Unfortunately, he also has a >back problem and the specialist who saw
him said that a "gait >aberration" would cause his back to go
out. The vet said that I >could ride him while his hocks were
fusing, but I risked throwing >out his back which causes the horse
extreme pain, so I haven't been >riding him. > >Now,
finally, he has stopped being visibly lame, BUT he is much >shorter
strided on both hinds than he used to be. He used to have >this
HUGE swinging stride and now his hind legs move much shorter >and lower
to the ground than he ever moved them before >(daisy-clipping).
Does this still count as "lame?" Is this common >on horses that
have had arthritis? Any advice about whether I >should continue
to wait to ride him or whether it might be okay to >start him back
slowly? > >Rhonda
