Page 583 - The Veterinary Care of the Horse

Horses with chronic injuries are likely to experience a deep, aching pain and may show the

following.
VetBooks.ir • Loss of performance. Some horses will stop in their tracks, kick out and refuse to go

forwards.
• Lack of hind limb engagement and propulsion resulting in a shortened stride.

• Tail held to one side.

• Mild, intermittent, unilateral or bilateral hind limb lameness.

• The lameness occurs on the affected side. It is not usually exacerbated by flexion of the
limb. However, if the horse is forced to stand on the affected limb during a flexion test or

routine shoeing of the opposite limb, it may show resentment and discomfort. The farrier
may be the first to notice this.

• Gait abnormalities, e.g. rolling excessively from side to side, dragging the toes of the
hind feet, an outward swing (circumduction) of the lower limb when the hind limb is

brought forwards.
• Stiffness of the horse’s back.

• Loss of enthusiasm for work and resistance to certain movements, e.g. bucking on

transition from trot to canter.
• Repeatedly changing legs at canter, becoming disunited or ‘bunny hopping’.

• Reluctance to jump.

• The significance of slight asymmetry of the tubera sacrale is the subject of much debate

as it can be an incidental finding in clinically normal horses. In the past it was considered
to be the result of joint subluxation but this is now disputed. It may result from
differences in the thickness of overlying soft tissues as a result of asymmetric muscle or

ligament forces acting on the pelvis from previous injuries (Figure 12.27). Horses with
level tubera sacrale can experience sacroiliac pain. The horse must be standing square on

a firm, level surface when the symmetry of the pelvis is assessed.
• Gluteal muscle wasting may occur on the affected side.

• Loss of muscle along the horses back.

• Restlessness and frequent shifting of position in the stable. The horse may lean back on a

wall or rest the hindquarters on a feed manger.