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Equine Lameness · Lameness signs & symptoms · Lameness diagnosis · Lameness treatment · Lameness related articles
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Horse lameness shows all manner of symptoms from the most obvious to the most obscure. Lame horses can shift their weight restlessly from one foot to another. They can stand with their legs splayed out widely or tucked in under their bodies. Some hold a foot off the ground. When lame horses move, they accept more weight on the good leg than the bad leg which causes their head to bob up and down. Watching shoulders |
and hips, it’s possible to see the good limb sink a little more than the sore limb because the good limb is accepting the weight of the body. Lame horses often don’t turn circles smoothly and cannot run as far or as fast as sound horses.
Horses that are lame because of hoof problems withdraw their painful hoof when it is squeezed or tapped with a hoof tester. There may be pus draining from an abscess that occurs within the hoof. Hoof abscesses travel upward to drain above the hoof wall at the coronet band. The blood vessels traveling to the hoof may have bounding pulse. Horses lame because of joint problems often have heat and swelling in the lame joint. Comparing the lame leg with a sound leg reveals the difference. Horses lame due to ligament and tendon problems often withdraw their leg if the ligament or tendon is pinched.
Lame horses often don’t lift their hooves off the ground because lifting requires joints to bend, which causes pain. These horses take short steps and may drag the toe rather than swing it upward in a normal arc.
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The articles here were answered by a variety of pharmacists and veterinarians
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