Horse getting up cow style?

Nudibranch

Nudibranch

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Mine has started doing this - hind end first. He used to get up the normal way although did sometimes struggle a bit. He's 5 and currently in between (so far inconclusive) investigations for vague, intermittent hind end issues so we are trying to identify or rule out a whole plethora of causes..pssm, ks, si, hocks, neuro, etc, etc, etc.
Just wondered if anyone else had seen this in a horse and whether it had a specific link to anything?
 
I have a sec D that will sometimes do this. If it's very occasional I write it off as a quirk but if it starts happening on a more regular basis it's often an early warning that his front feet are starting to niggle (he's a chronic laminitic) & something needs to be done.
 
Yes, I've seen it in a horse with DSLD/ESPA, undiagnosed but had all the symptoms going. I'm sorry to say he was PTS at seven.

Equine systemic proteoglycan accumulation. Where proteoglycans, whatever they are when they are at home, accumulate in the soft tissues all over the horse, but it mostly shows up in the suspensory ligaments, which is why it was first called degenerative suspensory ligament disease.

Look for either rock hard or stretched suspensory ligaments. Mineralization in the ligaments. Random lameness in more than one leg. Failure to heal little injuries like fly bites in a normal time frame. Choosing to stand downhill. Leaning on walls. Straightening of the hind legs so the horse goes bum high when it's not growing. Lack of stamina and excessive fatigue after exercise.

It's a disease most vets know absolutely zero about if they have even heard of it. Leahurst will do a nuchal ligament biopsy to rule it out.
 
Hmm, interesting but he doesn't have any of the symptoms above. He's never gone bum high, and never really did from a foal. One recent change is he is also starting to stand slightly camped under at times. He's not laminitic, or even sub clinical, either....I suspect he is going to be a diagnostic nightmare until something breaks properly :(
 
My little hunter Sam started this it was the first sign he had KS he also would roll the get half up like a dog sitting and swivel round to roll on the other side.
 
Goldenstar said:
My little hunter Sam started this it was the first sign he had KS he also would roll the get half up like a dog sitting and swivel round to roll on the other side.
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This

I had one slightly different, would stick his bottom in the air and stay their for a while whilst going down to roll. This was one of the first signs and he was later diagnosed with kissing spines and hock issues
 
I had one that never put her front legs forward when laid down from the day I got her. She allways knealt on her knees then threw her front end up to stand. She got so that she dithered on going down but after a session with the chiropractor she started folding and going down properly. We never did get to the bottom of why. She was also very reluctant to go downhill when ridden.
 
I've a 15 yr old who has always done, but I put it down to the fact that he was kept exclusively with cows from weaning until 4, so just copied them.
Having said that we have another who was also kept with cows from weaning to 4 and has never done it :)
 
Nudibranch said:
Hmm, interesting but he doesn't have any of the symptoms above. He's never gone bum high, and never really did from a foal. One recent change is he is also starting to stand slightly camped under at times. He's not laminitic, or even sub clinical, either....I suspect he is going to be a diagnostic nightmare until something breaks properly :(
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They don't all have the same symptoms, it's just a menu. Standing camped under is another, so is sitting like a dog when getting up. It is a fairly rare disease, but I would test for it if you draw a blank on the more obvious stuff.
 
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