Foreleg stretches after putting saddle on???

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siant2

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Do you do them???

I dont normally do them - but have done recently, although this morning when I pulled my girlys leg forward she put her other leg forward as well - so i let go and she sunk her whole head and neck down with her two front legs outstretched in front of her?????- almost like a cat would do and nearly ended up on the floor??? She also groaned ????


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Any one had a horse do this before???? Do i need to worry...or should I just not pull her leg forward after putting her saddle on??? Argh

I mite speak to my physio???

And ill try again later after she has come in from the field
 
I do them, but only ocassionall. I'm alwasy worried that the fit of the girth will be comromised if too much skin moves forward.

As for the stretching - yes, I've known a lot of horses do that.
 
i would say it is nothing to worry about, as i look after a horse which does this ocasionally and they are just stretching "like a cat would"
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just doesnt feel so good when they do it while your riding them
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Traditionally people used to do foreleg stretches after girthing up with string girths to stop any trapped skin causing irritation. I still do this anyway as I like to think I;ve made my horse as comfy as poss. Don't worry about the stretching its perfectlynormal! When they stretch back legs that never good if you are standing behind them!!
 
i do foreleg stretches normally, especially on older horses who might get a bit stiff. I doubt the fit of the saddle should be compromised, since foreleg movement shouldn't affect a well fitting saddle anyway.
 
I always stretch their front legs and have known Ali to do what you have mentioned and its as if he's taking a whole body stretch lol!
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I always stretch my horse's forelegs after girthing. She has a VERY forward girth groove and stretching her legs forward helps to keep the girth from slipping even further forward. On most horses I don't bother!
 
always when girthing up my boy will offer you his legs as a matter of routine physio also told me its good for him to be streched regularly as he can get quite stiff
 
Always pull Ellies legs forward after girthing just in case there's any skin being pinched. After doing the near side leg she often offers me the other one now
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Always do, I guess its mainly out of habit. As it was always drilled into me. All the riding school horses have there legs pulled before being ridden as well. YO is fairly old school, but never had a horse with a girth gall/rub in the 17 years so they will continue doing this.
 
i dont coz my horse is cold back and i have to leave his girth loose untill i get on so would be pointless lol. if i do it up to tight to quickly he ends up on the floor
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The 'cat stretches' can also be a sign of gastric ulcers, a horse on my yard stretches like that a lot and the vet had him scoped and although no ulcers were found it's useful to know it can sometimes be a symptom.
 
oooh that is interesting about "cat stretches" being a symptom of gastric ulcers - never knew that - well i will keep an eye on it and if she does it alot I will phone my vet for a chat (who already thinks im paranoid about everything and knows me very well!)

Otherwise i can assume she is just enjoying a good old stretch - as long as she actually doesnt fall over doing it! It was very scary when i saw her doing it as I thought there was something wrong with her at first???
 
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"... and she sunk her whole head and neck down with her two front legs outstretched in front of her?????- almost like a cat would do and nearly ended up on the floor??? She also groaned ????"

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My boy does this every morning as soon as I make any move to take his rug off. He groans like a person would when they have a very big stretch first thing
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My older mare stretches like that sometimes, also often stretches her back legs out when she first goes out.

Never pull her legs forwards though, but I don't do up my girth properly until we have walked from stable to school, then tighten it again after I've got on
 
My baby stretches forwards and backwards - often. It doesn't both me. It's always in the morning when I've just woken her up and I assume she needs to stretch just like I like to
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I was always taught to do stretches when girthing. Daughters pony always offers second leg when you've done the first, however once I think she was daydreaming - she forgot I was stretching the left and went to lift her right leg and she nearly fell over. Silly pony!
 
OP, one of my mares does that stretch often in the field. she obv likes how it makes her feel!
i never stretch forelegs, have been told damage can be done if you overdo it. i don't girth up tight at the start though, i walk round for a bit and then tighten the girth, so horse has already stretched out a bit.
 
The cat stretch thing is normal, we've had a few that do it. As for stretching legs before riding, I don't, for the simple reason it is very easy to overstretch and damage a cold muscle. Any stretches (carrot or otherwise) are better done when the horse is warm. If you feel the girth may pinch the horse, run the flat of your hand between the girth and the skin. I never had issues with any of the horses getting pinched skin when this was done.
 
I don't like to think so but I'm afraid I must be 'Old School'.
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I was always taught to do gentle leg stretches after girthing up with string girths to avoid any skin/hair being trapped between the strings and making the horse uncomfortable. I was also taught to tighten girth finally after mounting. For many years I continued to do so when using 'Cottage Craft' (fabric) type girths and now have thankfully gone back to Stubben string girths.
My horse is rarely saddled up with cold muscles, she is usually brought out of the field to be groomed and ridden.
 
If you strap a horse, properly, whisp be all, then that does go some way to warming the muscles up. However, I cannot remember the last time I saw a livery strap a horse. The flat of your hand works with string girths too.
 
In the olden days when we all had nasty nylon string girths yes I always gently stretched my ponies legs before mounting. I haven't done that since I had my childhood ponies. I never use string girths, they are always either leather or gel & sheepskin. My horses stand for a while, are then led around before the girths/cinches are tightened.
 
i always do as use a Stubben string girth so like to make sure skin all stretched nicely. she had rubs a little while ago and i think it may have been where i forgot to do it for a short while so i do it as routine now after girthing up.
 
I do this as a matter of routine although I don't use string girths... so much so that my mare has started to do it for me... what a clever girl!
 
i do with my older TB as he gets a bit stiff when he's been in his stable and this seems to help him (i don't yank- just a gentle stretch forward) but don't on other horses....
 
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