Cantering was off limits, now trot is apparently :(

Eriskayowner

Eriskayowner

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Took Jazzy out for a nice ride across the moor with a friend on her steady old boy, and were having a nice trot (admittedly slightly down hill), but saw a dog walker up ahead so steadied Jazzy and was heading for walk when he dropped like a stone, throwing me over his shoulder. I've landed on my well-padded backside, which is now causing a considerable amount of pain whilst sitting on a nice equally padded sofa :(

The last time Jazzy stumbled badly was on a brand new piece of Tarmac, going from walk to halt, as I was stopping for a car to overtake. Luckily, as Jazzy was spread all over the road the car was going slowly.

About 30 seconds (literally) to me hitting the very hard ground of Sampford Moor, I had him on a nice loose rein as I was showing my friend that Jazzy doesn't take off, and his "lack of brakes" is a myth and he's a reformed character!! Surely if he was going to trip, he'd have done it then, when it was actually even more downhill!

Why does Jazzy trip more when being collected and slowed down? I don't think he's any more on his forehand, and I made sure that my shoulders were back but I was just catapaulted out of the saddle.

Ginger ice cream to all that have bothered to read my painful ramblings!
 
Oh no, poor you.
As for Jazzy, does he show any other symptoms of anything unusual?
What about his feet? Do they need re-shoeing? Maybe something suddenly pinches him causing a trapped nerve?
Hope your ok, why don't you chat to your vet to see if you can come up with anything cos a big horse is no joke when they fall like that.
Hugs x
 
Thanks m'dear. Gentle hugs are appreciated :)

He's had a tripping thing ever since I've been riding him, and I think before that as a girl I met recently said that many people at where he was before wouldn't ride him because of it.

He doesn't do it all the time, but often enough for me to have that niggling voice in my head "am I going to end up on the floor if I do this?" which is annoying. I'm not nervous of riding him, but would like to have a bloody good gallop (and so would he!) around the moor without eating the heather!

My instructor seems to think that he has nerve damage down a front leg. The chiropractor has been out and given him the all clear for his back. It might be worth seeing if the vet can find anything in the front end.

Jazzy was shod 2 weeks ago, but does go through his shoes quickly but his feet seemed fine this morning when I picked them out.

Saddle fitted to him 6 months ago, and I don't think he's changed shape much (a bit more topline :) ) but the tripping hasn't got better/worse through this.

Logically, I thought a horse should trip more often when slopping along on a loose rein, not when they are being gathered and collected to slow down?!
 
Poor you - bruised backsides are not good! (I speak from experience & can vouch that coccyx injures take forever to repair!!)

I'd have the vet out - my old TB used to trip on totally flat surfaces, usually in trot. Vet ascertained that it was related to his pedal osteitis and possible an old tendon injury.

Put him on anti-inflammatories he was much better - not cured but much less severe & less frequent.
 
That sounds similar to Jazzy. His jab is due before the 24th August, so I know the vet is coming up sometime before that. It's not urgent (as I've been riding him for 2 years!) but it would be nice if the vet could come up with something.

I don't mind him being a happy hacker (that's what we've been doing for the last 2 years) but I think he'd prefer to have a bit of something else thrown in as well to keep him a bit saner.

I'm wondering if it's worth having a word with the farrier to see if he can roll his toes, or change his shoeing as well? But he seems happy and sound at the moment, just drops like a stone when changing down a gear :(
 
There are lots of reasons for tripping, many of them medical, I'm afraid. BUT, like people, some horses are just less bothered about where they put their feet. I've known very athletic horses that showed no other signs of having a problem - quite the opposite - but just didn't seem to be too bothered when they were relaxed. Of course, the weight of the rider changes the equation and can turn a stumble that would have been a blip to an unridden horse into a much larger issue.

On the "loose rein" front, horses balance with their necks. It has to do with the way they're designed, with not having collar bones and all that, so a horse with a free/soft neck has a much better chance of smoothing out small adjustments in balance. By the same token, a horse with a "held" neck is more likely to trip in the first place and less likely to be able to save itself.

Also, the hand acts on the feet. So a horse coming "hard" against the hand, perhaps through having a tight neck or by spooking, with often trip with the affected leg. It's quite easy to make a horse trip intentionally - not to say you should, but riders who are aware of their affect on the horse can do this easily to demonstrate the connection of the hand and the leg.

Which isn't to say what's causing it in this instant - I'm not there, I can't see - just to address the question.
 
Sounds sensible. A lot of the time, I control Jazzy's speed using my seat and my inner thighs though to try to stop him coming against the hand. He's getting better at listening to more subtle aids, but maybe he was stiff against the hand (it all happened kinda quick!)

I'm thinking the vet might be the way to go :(
 
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