Any crazy ideas why ...

cptrayes

cptrayes

Well-Known Member
Joined
4 March 2008
Messages
14,748
Visit site
This thread is in here not in Vets because I want any crazy ideas that anyone can come up with why my horse does not know where his head is.


The basic facts are as follows:

I have owned him three years and he is eight this year. He has no apparent physical reason for doing this.

He has always hit his head several times a year, causing, until now, minor injuries.

He broke his eye socket on the right in January and has now had a damned good go at breaking the cheek bone on the left. The scale of the injuries has got much, much more serious.

His eyesight was checked in February and is perfect.

The injuries are accidental, he has never been seen to deliberately smack his head on anything.

I don't care how stupid your thoughts are, just give me them. Everyone, please, no criticism of any ideas no matter how daft they may sound, I am at my wits end here and prepared to consider anything at all to find out what is wrong with this horse. The vet is stumped.

Thanks.

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lA7nV0vUhIQ/Uza0-qQe9tI/AAAAAAAABGs/ZCzZG_Y7Kxw/s1600/IMAG0102.jpg
 
Last edited:
What is he hitting his head on? Is it when he's in a confined space like the lorry or a stable, or is it happening in the field?
 
Ear/tooth/sinus pain causing the occasional headshake that makes him bump it? Or possible trigeminal nerve pain? Is it only when stabled? Could he react to dry hay or bedding?
 
Tricky one! I've no idea really but here are some very random thoughts...

How about an inner ear problem affecting balance?

I'm no vet but is there anything else that may impact spatial awareness? E.g. tries to flick off a fly but misjudges how close something is.

I get dizzy if I get up quickly due to low blood pressure...could horses have similar?
 
Silly ideas that popped up first:

1. Some kind of dyspraxia, but no idea if horses can even suffer from this!
2. General poor balance and coordination, clumsiness, could just be a phase like what teenagers sometimes experience

Have you tried completely covering his eyes and walking him to see what happens? He should be able to keep a steady rhythm even if he's nervy. If he walks just fine that'd mean he hasn't got any balance issues at least :) I hope you figure out what's causing it, but he could just be a clumsy lump!
 
Great answers thank you everyone.

He has done it in a stable, in a 90 foot long barn and now in an open field. On what, who knows!

Covering his eyes is a great idea, I will try that later.

Otherwise, he's a dressage horse with a fabulous movement, so no general dyspraxia issues.

Keep them coming!
 
Some sort of transient ischaemic episode? Or something that very briefly affects his sight? But has he ever done it when ridden? As that might be a route to go down when trying to 'exclude' possibilities ......
 
Have you seen him do it? can you be sure it's accidential?

Could he over react to a bot fly or something similar,

Are the injuries incurred at the same time of year? allergy related, something really specific that makes him over itch/ bash, daffodills out at the moment and not around other 10 months of the year.

Some kind of infrequernt epillepse (sp) type episode.

Just some random thoughts that I'm sure your vet will have thought of but you never know

Does he have a headcollar/ muzzle on that he could be trying to get off

Can you quadrupally check eyesight

Do you jump him? is he generally a bit careless where he's throwing himself about. Harder to spot on the flat I'd have thought but maybe trotting poles - does he hit everyone.
 
Or is there anything that can float about in the eye that could effect his eyesight on odd occasions, like a catoract (sp) but not attached? - pretty unlikely but you did ask for crazy!
 
Don't suppose they've happened all in spring summer?

I've seen a couple of horse react oddly Those little black flies that bite inside their ears. Saw one lie down and rub. Himself head first along the floor like a dog does. Other one was inside and was throwing his head violently up and to the side. Stopped when I cleaned the flies and blood out of his ears
 
oh yes.. Soulfull's post has made me think could he maybe have something stuck down in an ear that every now and then moves and makes him chuck his head around? I read a really sad story about a pony that was put down due to severe untreatable head shaking and on PM it was found he had a seed lodged deep in one ear :( Though this would probably cause constant head shaking it does seem to be something that is very hard to identify. Don't know if they can do a scan for it. Poor chap breaking his eye socket! Hope you can get to the bottom of it and that he doesn't do himself any more damage.
 
jojo5 said:
Is this the same horse that had the kissing spine op?
Click to expand...


Yes. Talk about problem horse! He also has a dodgy digestion and gets laminitic very easily.


Thanks everyone, great ideas.

Yes, we've seen him run slap bang into a wall and split an eyebrow.
No, it's not seasonal.
No, he doesn't head shake.
Yes, he has a superb jump and doesn't clatter poles.


More thoughts, however crazy, go wild!
 
Might be worth trying equine shiatsu? I wouldn't have considered it but a lady I know's a practitioner, she saw my old horse and she's brilliant; they can tell physical and mental issues...
 
Erin said:
Has he got all his whiskers?
Click to expand...


He is completely untrimmed but he was bred with almost no guard hairs. I'm sure it doesn't help, but I've had finely bred tbs with just as few guard hairs in the past and they haven't done this.
 
I've done the blindfold test and he was anxious but can walk absolutely fine. There don't appear to be any balance issues going on.
 
If you extrapolate the symptoms to other species (not scientific I know), a sudden, involuntary movement usually initiates in the brain, wonky pathology perhaps. Sorry.
 
Regandal said:
If you extrapolate the symptoms to other species (not scientific I know), a sudden, involuntary movement usually initiates in the brain, wonky pathology perhaps. Sorry.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure it's sudden or involuntary. He's been seen to do it a few times, once badly. The bad time he was running round in a barn and just hit his head on the wall instead of turning his neck away. In the stable I've seen him turn his body and almost , or only just, hit his head and then seem surprised that the wall was so close.
 
Near sighted -ness. I am short sighted and have been all my life and wear glasses/contact lenses to compensate, but approaching middle age, I am now becoming a bit near-sighted too- before I got my varifocals, I was prone to turning suddenly and getting injuries to eyebrow, head and face generally as I could see distance brilliantly but close up I just didn't see those branches/gates etc coming? Whilst vets can check general vision ie horse can see/not see, and for bodies and differences in the eye, can they actually test for short/long sightedness (does it even exist in horses?) You said crazy- not that I can imagine specs for horses?!!
 
I wonder if he has trouble with depth perception. My husband has weaker eyesight in one eye and apparently (according to the optician) it compromises his 3D vision. He's never noticed and he doesn't get surprised by walls :D Mind you he can't fathom the magic eye pictures.
 
Dorian grey could be right- my OH has same problem- focusses with each eye independantly so no depth /3D vision- he doesn't walk into things, but is really clumsy with his feet!
 
I too have one long sighted eye and one short and no depth of vision. I can't see 3D in the cinema or the magic pictures and night driving is very difficult.

Guys, this is a BRILLIANT suggestion. Why on earth would there not be horses who can't perceive depth????

Can anyone think of any test I can do????
 
You guys are absolute stars!!!!!

I have just been outside and tested him with pony cubes. Normally I'd just stick them under his nose. But if I hold my hand some way away from his head, he butts the bottom/side of my hand with his nose, then the top/side, then focusses in on the cubes. It's not a one off, he does it every time.

So, it looks like he doesn't have three D vision. That would explain an awful lot, including why he is such a spooky hack and why he acts as if dressage letters are going to eat him. He is frightened of patches of different colour road surface, which would probably be because without depth of vision, he can't tell the difference between a shadow and a hole. I have always wondered why he is so much less spooky if he is allowed to hack with his head down by his knees. Perhaps down there, he gets some sort of sense of perspective.

Thankyou thankyou thank you oh great and wise HHO members, I knew you'd get it!


PS I have only ever jumped him on the lunge, when he seemed fine. I certainly wouldn't want to try and.make a showjumper out of him.
 
Last edited:
Bizarrely my horse is the same - scared of everything on the ground, and bangs his head a lot... What breed is yours?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top