From: Stephanie
Dear Jessica
I am a recent subscriber to your newsletter, and read with interest the items that come up as subjects from others, hoping that it will stay with me in case I come across such an issue during my horsey life and knowing that your website is here if I cannot remember - I thank you for such a good resource, and I am sure this is appreciated by people (and horses) the world over - I am in the UK, so hello from over the seas!
I was wondering if you could give me some advice on my lovely horse as we could just do with a little assistance, this would be much appreciated.
I have recently bought a lovely 15.3hh 8 year old piebald gelding, who has come from Ireland, and I have purchased him via a dealer here in England. I had him vetted and he was passed with a note 'false curb off hind' on the veterinary examination form.
When I went to look at him I could see some anomaly in his movement, but of course all horses move differently, and could not put my finger on what it was I was seeing - I realise now of course that it was this 'false curb', though as I say he has passed the vetting as all I want to do is hacking, riding on the beach, going for picnics together and having happy fun times - he has a permanent home with me - so I am definitely not looking to exacerbate this problem.
He is lively and happy, eating and other bodily functions all well, he loves to go in the field, walks, trots, canters, gallops, throws himself on the floor for a good roll, gets up with no problem and I have even seen him throw the good old buck now and again - hand on heart, I can see no evidence of pain, but it does seem more pronounced than on my first purchase (two weeks ago!), and I am anxious; I think the pronouncement that I am seeing may be as a result of my becoming more familiar with him, but it is most definitely an odd movement.
However, I have had several people say 'I think there is something wrong with your horse' and I am forced to explain what they are seeing, and indeed, when he walks away from you, say when I let him out in the field for instance, the action caused by this is quite pronounced - his pelvis swings alarmingly and if I did not know differently I would say he had been drinking alcohol!
The vet did say there was some weakness in his pelvis but that could be improved with good food and some good exercise, and right now, I am turning him out all day long with decent grazing and horse company, haylage all night and feed twice a day - he is a good doer so I am watching his tummy; his feet are in A1 condition and he was shod two weeks ago by the dealer, all looks well with him.
I get the feeling that at some point he has been somewhat deprived of grub, but I can honestly say he is well fed, housed, groomed and exceedingly loved - and I am glad he has come to me, I have chronic rheumatoid arthritis and endometriosis and really do realise the reality that 'just because I have something wrong with me does not make me useless' - and in a way, he and I suit each other, neither of us being perfect; I have not been able to ride him since I bought him as I had a slight accident which caused severe bruising to my own pelvis, so I am waiting for that to get better before getting on board, so I cannot tell you how he feels whilst ridden at present, but as a whole he has a broad, rolling action that takes some getting used to; I will be riding him in a treeless and he has a snaffle mouth.
My question is - do you know what the prognosis is for this condition, is there anything I can do to help - I have him on a glucosamine and chondroitin supplement - but I was wondering about a support sock or perhaps some sort of corrective shoeing or anything that you could think of.
I would really appreciate your advice to help my boy and I have many happy years together.
Kind regards Stephanie
Even if I were a vet, it would be difficult for me to offer a prognosis - I would need to see the horse! Therefore, I think that you really should ask your vet to come out and take a long, hard look at your horse. What I can do here is simply to tell you my thoughts based on your description, and suggest some possibilities that you may want to discuss with your vet.
My first thought was that your horse sounds very happy and healthy, and that he is very lucky to have been purchase by you. My second thought was that it seems unlikely that a curb - real or false - would be causing him pain or affecting his movement. Curbs aren't generally associated with lameness of any kind, unless they are real (as opposed to false) curbs AND still in the acute phase.
A curb as such is a form of ligament damage that affects the ligament just below the hock, at the back of the leg. With a "real" or "true" curb, there is swelling as a result of the body laying down fibrous tissue in that area. Because the tissue is permanent, the swelling is generally permanent as well, but it's usually not painful, nor should it interfere with the horse's way of going - especially if it's an old curb (not a recent injury) and the horse is going sound. Incidentally, the treatment for a recently-acquired curb would be the same as for any other damage to a tendon or ligament!
A "false curb" is something else entirely - there's no soft-tissue swelling, fibrous or otherwise; it's nothing more than an enlargement of the head of the splint bone (and this is not due to injury - it's conformational and, more often than not, hereditary). Some vets see this as a sign of weakness, but again, if the enlargement isn't recent and the horse isn't a youngster, it's generally not a problem - and isn't even considered to be particularly abnormal.
Sometimes it can be difficult for a horse-owner to know a curb from a false curb - as all you can know is that when you stand looking at your horse in profile, there is SOME sort of bulge spoiling the clean line from the point of the hock down. That's where, if your horse's skin were transparent, you could see the short plantar tarsal ligament. It runs from just under the point of the hock, to the head of the cannon bone.
Curbs can be caused by any number of events - if you see matching curbs on both hocks, and the horse has weak hocks (cow hocks or sickle hocks), it's likely that the horse's conformation had a great deal to do with the curbs. If the hock conformation seems normal and the horse has a curb on only ONE hock, the cause is more likely to have been too much exertion (jumping too large a jump, or jumping too many jumps), a bad slip, a fall, or perhaps a kick - not necessarily from another animal, but from the horse itself kicking at the stall wall or the back of the trailer.
So do, please, consult with your veterinarian and determine, first of all, whether there is a real problem (which may not be the case, more about this in a moment); secondly, IF this is a curb at all, whether it is a false curb or a real one, and if it IS a curb, whether it is still in the acute stage. If it is, the vet will probably suggest ice and a month of rest, and possibly some steroids to reduce the inflammation. But don't automatically assume that it IS a curb, or that the curb, if it exists, is the cause of the gait abnormality.
Remember, also, that even if your vet confirms the existence of a curb, you'll still want a diagnosis of your horse's gait abnormality, which may be utterly unrelated to the curb! Sometimes, when we know that a horse has an identifiable injury, blemish, or weakness, we are quick to assign any problems to that "cause" - and sometimes, the problems stem from a completely different cause. Whatever is affecting your horse should be dealt with as soon as possible, and your veterinarian is the best person to provide you with a diagnosis and advice.
There's another possibility to consider: Your horse may simply have insufficient muscling, which is a temporary condition, plus a bit of stiffness or soreness somewhere that works off as he moves about and warms up. If his movement is at its worst when you are just letting him out into the field (and he has been standing in the stables for an hour or so?), then it may be no more of a concern than your own (and my own, come to that!) stiffness and awkward gait during those few minutes after you first get out of bed in the morning! Ask your vet to watch your horse when you first turn him out, and then again a little later. He may feel that whatever he sees at first is not actually cause for concern, provided that the horse's movement improves as he warms up. I should worry much more about an abnormality of movement that became WORSE with exercise. Odd, peculiar, or abnormal movement that improves with exercise is often just part of ordinary, everyday life for horses and humans that have been injured at some point, and/or that are no longer very young. Many older horses that have some degree of arthritis, and even younger horses that have suffered a few knocks and bruises in their time, will come out of their stalls walking very stiffly and awkwardly, then half an hour later you can see them running happily in the field, sound and apparently rejuvenated. Then a sudden change in the weather - temperature and atmospheric pressure - can cause them to look lame again - and another change to sunny and dry weather can appear to "cure" them. This is true of many humans as well. ;-)
Not every horse has perfect movement, as you know, and most horses move much better when they're fit and well-muscled. It's possible (ask your vet about this, too!) that your horse may have a slight, permanent gait anomaly that will never be a real problem for either of you - what old-timer grooms here would call "a little hitch in his get-along". ;-) The idea that he needs more muscle and strength sounds very sensible to me. If your horse is turned out 24/7, he's probably exercising himself adequately to build up his muscles over time. Two weeks is not very much time - I wouldn't come to any conclusions about the effects of turnout and free exercise for at least another eight or ten weeks. Do have the vet see him soon, though, because if there IS a recent injury and some reason that he ought NOT to be turned out for a few weeks or longer, it would be best to know this so that you can limit his exercise (and his feed!) accordingly.
I hope that the vet will be able to reassure you that there's nothing really wrong with your horse, and that you and your horse will go on to enjoy one another's company for many years to come. It certainly sounds as though your gelding has found the ideal home and the ideal owner. And whatever you find out, I hope that you will let me know.
Jessica
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