Could it be wobble syndrome??

[Depp_by_Chocolate]

I recently posted about my pony's stiffness on the left rein http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/forums/showflat.php/Cat/0/Number/4076265/an/0/page/1#4076265
and for those that responed I am still waiting for the insurance company to agree to the scintigraphy.

However when I mentioned he sometimes lost his hind feet when he was ridden and appeared a bit 'drunk' with his hind quarters I've just realised could this be wobbler syndrome? I don't know much about it.

It only appeared in walk when ridden and then only occasionally and was absolutely fine with his front end walking and trotting in hand and trotting and cantering under saddle.

 

[JLav]

It could be alot of things.

I sincerely hope that any vet doing a hind end lameness exam would spot a wobbler but have seen many that seem to miss it!!

Ask your vet if it is a possibility and next time he sees him he can carry out some of the specific tests they do to test for any form of ataxia or proprioception issues with the back end.

 

[lucretia]

Back him up a few steps. wobbling is graded in severity but no matter how severe a horse with true wobbler syndrome finds reversing at best very difficult and most cant manage it all to the point of falling over.
but as jlav says it could be alot of things.

 

[Depp_by_Chocolate]

Well he did have a lameness test and wobbler syndrome was never mentioned and he backs up ok. This is what happens when I have too much time to think waiting for his referral to to ahead.

 

[Birker2020]

My horse had late onset wobblers aged 10. Does your horse swing his outside leg out to the side when circled tightly. On a soft surface get someone to lead him in a straight line and you follow behind and pull his tail to one side at a right angle to his body in an attempt to pull him over. Unaffected horses will have a little wobble but then maintain their forward course no matter how hard you pull the tail but a wobblers horse is not able to counterbalance against this and you can practically drag the horse over. This test is called a sway test. Backing a horse is not always a good indicator. Stand the horse square. Lift a front foot and try to place it as near to the other foot as possible. An unaffected horse will replace his foot where he thinks it should be whereas a Wobblers horse will not have this 'conception' of foot placement. Could the horse have had a fall onto his neck in the field or had a fall out hunting? Is the horses canter normal or does his stride feel like he is disunited so that it gives the feel that he is throwing you vertically up and out of the saddle? Does his stride look normal in canter from the ground? Is he very strong to ride or leading in hand? Has he ever jumped but not made the effort to pick his back legs up but you have put it down to him being lazy? Does his front leg shake when stood still as if the knee is incapable of locking correctly? Some or all of these symptoms are indicative of Wobblers Syndrome. My horse had three ataxic episodes where he very much lost co-ordination of his hind legs and lack of realisation where his front feet should go at times. After the third time when the vets had finally agreed to listen to my request for referral to a hospital for tests (he was misdiagnosed by the vets as having EHV) he went to see a consultant specialist at Philip Leverhulme Hospital, Liverpool university where comprehensive xrays revealed Wobblers Syndrome as he was humanely destroyed there and then upon reaching the diagnosis as he was too badly affected to be able to have anything done....RIP Rommy.....

Please do not ever rely on xrays from your vet to determine whether your horse has wobblers or not unless they are done from a large xray machine. A portable xray machine is not strong enough to give an accurate reading and penetrate the neck muscles sufficiently and this gave a false reading to my horse when the portable xray machine was used at our yard.

I did a lot of research into my horses condition and ataxia (loss of coordination of the limbs) can be caused by a number of things, the most common being cyanide (from too much clover in the field as clover contains cyanide), crop spraying chemicals, certain medication, amongst other things so please do not be all doom and gloom and get worried but do these tests tonight so that you can build up an accurate picture to be able to present to the vets if your horse does go for a scintigraphy.

Good luck and if you have any questions please PM me. xx