Holding tail to one side

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EquestrianFairy

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Back and saddle were done 8 weeks ago.. Is it a sign that something else isn't right? He does it when no one is on him, I don't know if he does it when ridden but I'm guessing so.

I've never had a horse that has done it before.
 
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It is very probable that his spine is misaligned and hurting, and it can also be a sign of problems in pelvis. It may be caused by ill fitting saddle, bad riding, an accident in the pastures and other possible causes - I would suggest you get the opinion of a different vet/chiro/saddle fitter.
 
Funny you say that as I've had the saddle changed because I wasn't happy with the original saddle/fitter and they felt the original saddle was far too wide but he was only ridden in it a handful of times.

I will call the physio today and ask if she will come out again and check, is it possible that over the few times he was ridden in the saddle that was too wide that it caused some tension enough for him to display it this way?
 
I knew a horse that did this with his tail, I trained it as a 4/5 year old. He also carried his tail to one side with no saddle, as well as when ridden. No reason found by vet/ saddler/ dentist/ physio.

Once the owner had had the horse for 4 years with no other issues they were approached at a show by a previous owner who had the horse as a 2 year old. apparently back then he had tied the horse to some rails in an internal stabling unit, and it had been startled and reared. At this point the rope travelled up the rail and tightened. When it came back down the rope stayed and the 2 year old was hung up. The old owner said that the horse had broken his neck at this time, and had since fully recovered other than holding his tail to one side.

Obviously this caused panic in the new owner's home, and the horse was duly dispatched to the vet. Xrays did indeed show a healed fracture.

So, if there is damage it does not need to be under the saddle, as this horse was damaged third vertebrae down and held his tail to one side.

It sounds dramatic but was not, the horse worked beautifully, to Elementary, Jumped well, galloped and did all sorts of stuff and lived to a ripe old age with never a lameness problem.
 
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Hiya, my daughters pony does this if his pelvis is out . He slipped on some ice in the field a few years ago and the physio didnt seem to help. We had an osteopath come for a 2nd opinion . She has straightened him out and she does a yearly check and session to help keep him straight. If he puts his tail to one side then we get her out . He performs very well and no other problems otherwise. Never lame etc but perhaps thats because we can easily see if he isnt right and get it sorted asap. I hope you find the answer
 
Mine does this and he is now 16. I have asked every vet, physio, chiropractor, etc. etc. what is causing it, but nothing has been found and it has always been the same. However, he does have a "weaker" hind leg and I suspect an injury of sorts when he was young. He was turned out with a bunch of geldings and colts together, and when I went to see him once he had lots of bite marks! I wonder if he was injured in the field. It hasn't been a problem for my level of riding and competition.
 
This little lad is very weak all over, no muscle whatsoever which is why he is very minimal work to build him up and lots of it is without a rider.

Perhaps a mixture of things then, I'm annoyed with myself now as I paid £70 8 week ago for a physio and it's possible that the saddler has caused a problem that's going to cost another £70. I debated complaining about the saddler initially, if it becomes apparent that it's the saddle that has caused some tension then I will definately be complaining.
 
If no pain is involved, is the same when ridden or not, it could simply be that the muscle fibres are slightly shorter on one side of the tail. So the horse would naturally hold it's tail slightly over. I've had a horse like this, no problem at all. No cures but no problem either.
 
We have a mare that does this, and so did her mother. We bred her ourselves and as far as we can remember she has done this forever. However a possible cause is having been pulled by the tail when loading her as a weanling. Has never caused her any problems tho, so I assume the problem is actually with the tail!
 
I would think that it being caused by a saddle is very unlikely. It is more likely to be a hind leg/pelvis issue (the spine travels all the way from the poll to the dock). If the horse is crooked, the entire spine will be compensating. Again, I would not think this is a back issue - most back issues are actually caused by a hind leg issue. The fact that the horse is weak all over would also suggest this.

I would really be getting a vet to run a lameness evaluation on the hind legs/sacroiliac before anything else. If the vet rules out any lameness issues then I would be lunging the horse and trying to build up topline before getting back on.

Incidentally, a lot of the horses that I have seen which have been "hard to fit" have had some form of hind leg issue causing muscle wastage on their backs which makes the saddle fit vary a lot. This includes one of my own who has sacroiliac damage and PSD. His back changes very rapidly when not in work for even 2 weeks and his saddle needs to be tweaked a lot (he is 15 this yr).
 
My vet is coming out the same day as the physio to give an over all assessment...

I watched him being ridden yesterday and I noticed something very weird. He was holding his tail as if he wanted to poop but didn't actually do it, he's holding it up and to the side rather than just to the side. I made the rider stop incase that was his Intention but then he just put his tail back down again.

He is sound as a pound though both lunged and in a straight line so I hope it's something easily sorted whatever it may be.

So odd!!
 
My horse carries his tail up and over, usually to the right but sometimes to the left and usually when he's excited. He's done it since a foal, quite odd to watch him flip if from left to right. I've had since he was born so gave always watched it with interest. Vet, saddler and Physio have all said no issues at all just his quirk!
 
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