Defective Movements

Defective actions are a fault in the movements of your horse. Whilst these are not always particularly dangerous or harmful to your horse, they are looked down upon, especially when purchasing a horse, as they can cause extra strain on the horse’s legs and body. Animals Friends Equine is here to explain what to look out for.

Dishing

When dishing, you may notice your horse throwing the front foot outwards, especially while trotting, and when the horse is still it will often stand ‘pigeon-toed’. The action appears as though it comes from below, but actually originates at the elbows. While not showing, moderate dishing is of very little consequence, but exaggerated movements will put great strain on the fetlock joints, eventually causing unsoundness.

Plaiting

This occurs when the horse places one foot in front of the other whilst at walk or trot. Applicable to one or both feet, excessive plaiting is likely to make the horse stumble, or even fall. Slight deviation can be acceptable, and the knee needs to be carefully checked for scarring or bruising. This type of movement is often associated with base-narrow, toe-out conformation.

Toes Turned Out

If your horse stands with either the front or hind legs pointing outwards, they may brush their legs with the opposite foot, knocking their inside fetlock joint while moving. Evidence for this is an enlarged, swollen joint from constant bruising and rubbing off of hair over the joint. It is a serious fault and you should use protective riding boots while riding the horse, but this can cause other problems.

Going Wide Behind

Related to stiffness in the back, the hind legs are often bowed outwards which is very unsightly. If you intend to compete in dressage at any level you will need to focus attention on fixing or improving this movement.

Forging

Not usually considered a defect, forging can be corrected i.e. a simple visit from the farrier for overgrown feet may rectify this problem. When in trot, the horses toe on the hind foot catches the underneath surface of the front shoe on the same size. Often found in free-moving young horses, their insufficient balance and being strong under the weight of the rider means they cannot bring weight off of the forehand. When the horse becomes stronger and has a better sense of balance, the problem should cease. Another cause is trotting too fast, however this can be seen as the rider’s fault – if the trot is slowed, the forging will stop. It

Over-reaching

When the hind limb over-extends, the toe of the hind shoe interferes or strikes the forelimb between the knee and the bulbs of the heel. The lower part of the limb is most affected, particularly the bulbs of the heel. A high over-reach can cause severe damage to the tendons to the back of the leg, and usually occurs when galloping or jumping, or through loss of balance.

To spot these problems, try observing your horse being trotted up in a straight line. You will be able to view from the front, back and side how your horse moves, so that you can spot any problematic areas.