Is my new horse lame?

I agree you can't see much from the video but what you can see is not great. Horse seems very guarded and reluctant to move, very stiff behind and in generally poor condition. I think there are too many red flags, and too many potential reasons for those red flags not to get a vet out for a full MOT and management plan.
 
gallopingby said:
Hi it’s difficult to tell much from a video so l wouldn’t get too stressed. I agree he needs more condition and l would be giving two short conditioning feeds a day after checking that his worm count was ok. If he’s not been wormed if May be worth doing this and then having a FEC afterwards. If you had a 2 stage vet check it should have picked up if he was lame. Some horses react badly to being moved and it may take a while for him to settle. Is he rugged / warm enough given the cold wet windy weather. I agree your farrier may be a better first call followed by the vet if there are concerns. It can take a year for horses to feel settled in a new environment. Good luck l hope things work out. Beware asking too many people for advice! You’ll end up totally confused with lots of conflicting info.
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I agree with the comment about not asking for too many opinions as you will just get a lot of potentially conflicting advice. But that is why I think OP needs a vet who can actually see the horse and advise accordingly.

Plus if my horse took a year to be settled in a new home I'd be pretty worried. That is NOT my experience. How do you define 'settled'? I agree it takes a year or more to really get to know a horse through all seasons, but that is not a reason to ignore obvious red flags as 'settling in issues'. What even are settling in issues anyway? Tucked up, tired after a long journey, behaviourally unsettled etc makes sense. But not what OP is describing, and not for prolonged periods.
 
Sounds like you're a bit on your own with this - first horse in a while and on a new yard.
I'd pick a very good, well thought of Equine vet & then put yourself in his/her hands. Ask them for a program of investigations, worming, conditioning etc & then write it down & work through it.
Regard us, on here, and your new yard friends as emotional support but get your medical advice all from one place otherwise your head will spin with different ideas.
Your horse looks like he has a nice personality & gets on well with you. I can see why you fell for him. If he does have physical issues then he is a very lucky boy to have found an owner who will do their best for him.
Please come back & tell us what the vet thinks, we will be thinking of you.
 
Goldie's mum said:
Sounds like you're a bit on your own with this - first horse in a while and on a new yard.
I'd pick a very good, well thought of Equine vet & then put yourself in his/her hands. Ask them for a program of investigations, worming, conditioning etc & then write it down & work through it.
Regard us, on here, and your new yard friends as emotional support but get your medical advice all from one place otherwise your head will spin with different ideas.
Your horse looks like he has a nice personality & gets on well with you. I can see why you fell for him. If he does have physical issues then he is a very lucky boy to have found an owner who will do their best for him.
Please come back & tell us what the vet thinks, we will be thinking of you.
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Thank you for the kind words. It is a bit overwhelming at the moment so I will try to keep my head up and work through it with a vet. I had also taken some photos of him same day I filmed the video (yesterday) and wanted to see if you think he is looking a bit better, but was a bit nervous to post after hearing he is possibly doing so poorly. I'll admit in the video his condition looks absolutely terrible, but in person and in pictures it seems slightlyyy better. These were taken in daylight while the video was in the hall without the lights on. I definitely know he needs to gain weight and buidl muscle and I've already ordered the conditioning feed so I am hoping that comes in soon so I can start him on it asap. Please ignore the saddle, I know it doesnt fit and will be either getting it adjusted/replaced once we get his health sorted out.

Thanks to everyone for being kind and giving advice.
 

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Photos don’t make him look any better. Don’t stress about trying to make him look better today focus on making him look better in a month, 2 months etc. this is something that will take time.

You’ve already said he always has hay when you arrive, is this because he is given a lot of hay or because you make it known you are on your way to the yard?

For feed, I’d be looking into micronised linseed and a conditioning mash & cube. But also spring is around the corner and grass is the best conditioner.
 
Equi said:
Photos don’t make him look any better. Don’t stress about trying to make him look better today focus on making him look better in a month, 2 months etc. this is something that will take time.

You’ve already said he always has hay when you arrive, is this because he is given a lot of hay or because you make it known you are on your way to the yard?

For feed, I’d be looking into micronised linseed and a conditioning mash & cube. But also spring is around the corner and grass is the best conditioner.
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I understand. Thanks for the help and will keep you all updated.
 
What a sweet horse. In a year's time with some weight and muscle he's going to look absolutely cracking. It's also commendable (and brave!) to have come on to ask for advice.

I'd up the feed slowly - don't pump him suddenly with a lot of conditioning mix. He'll crap most of it out and you might also have a loopy TB on your hands quite quickly! If you can get it, my go to for adding weight is Alfa A Oil and linseed. Both are very nutritionally dense and fatty. Alfalfa can make some horses react but I've never had an issue with it.
 
Agree with IrishMilo.

It's worth calling the feed lines for advice on how to get him the right nutrients to help him develop the muscle he needs. That will also need good ground work (again, let the vet give guidance on when and how much work) like leading in hand, long reining and including poles to the in hand and long reining work, to help him build his back end muscles.

You may want to look for good trainers in your area to help with teaching you how to do the ground work if it's been a while.
 
I think he will prove to be very lame behind on flexion .
OP he looks awful you need to get some good help on the ground to advise you .
Get his teeth checked when the vet comes out you need to make sure you get the right vet for this job ask experienced people you know who would best .Has he recently had a worm egg count and a test for tape worm ?
You need an experienced vet who will advise you holistically on getting horse in better health.
Getting the food right for a Tb can be tricky are you in charge of buying food or is he on Livery ?
 
I know he's a bit young, but has he been tested for Cushings? He looks like an old horse, which is how mine went when he developed it, before starting the Prascend (mine was only 9 when he was diagnosed).
 
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Has he got hay left because he can't eat it.? Hopefully by now, you have a date for the vet and the road to recovery.
In 6 months you will see a happier, fatter horse and be able to compare all your good work from these photos.
As an aside, if your horse is on full livery I would consider looking for another yard if they haven't mentioned his condition.
 
Tiddlypom said:
OP, you’ve posted before that you are based in S.Germany. Are you a native/fluent German speaker, including veterinary language?

Just thinking that, if not, it might be helpful to have a native speaker present when the vet is there to help you out.

Pls ignore that if you are fully fluent 🙂.
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I can speak decently, but I will try to have someone there that is fluent.
 
cdunc09 said:
Thank you for the kind words. It is a bit overwhelming at the moment so I will try to keep my head up and work through it with a vet. I had also taken some photos of him same day I filmed the video (yesterday) and wanted to see if you think he is looking a bit better, but was a bit nervous to post after hearing he is possibly doing so poorly. I'll admit in the video his condition looks absolutely terrible, but in person and in pictures it seems slightlyyy better. These were taken in daylight while the video was in the hall without the lights on. I definitely know he needs to gain weight and buidl muscle and I've already ordered the conditioning feed so I am hoping that comes in soon so I can start him on it asap. Please ignore the saddle, I know it doesnt fit and will be either getting it adjusted/replaced once we get his health sorted out.

Thanks to everyone for being kind and giving advice.
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I would not waste time/money trying saddles at this stage, your chap looks a lovely sort but he needs a vet to establish what the issues are.
 
He looks poor I would get a good vet and get him on a good diet to gain weight, saracen Equijewel is very good I've known a few vets recommend it here in the UK for weight gain.

I'm sure they would stock it over there.

Please keep us updated on his progress and there are some very knowledgeable people on here to help you so you did the right thing coming on here.
 
OP, I agree with others that he looks very poor currently. I think he looks a very sweet boy. I’m wondering if Hartog have a rep that would cover where you are, they’re based in the Netherlands and I’m sure they would help you massively with getting him on the correct feeds.

Please keep us updated, I personally would love to see how he progresses.
 
cdunc09 said:
Just a 2 stage vetting unfortunately. I really messed up not doing a full vetting now... And his teeth were done right before I got him.
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Re the teeth. Always worth getting teeth re checked by your own dentist. My new horse had supposedly been done before I bought her. When my dentist came, there was a lot to do. Re 2 stage vetting, no probably not the best plan but would have expected lameness/lack of muscle to be noted.
 
Wizpop said:
Re the teeth. Always worth getting teeth re checked by your own dentist. My new horse had supposedly been done before I bought her. When my dentist came, there was a lot to do. Re 2 stage vetting, no probably not the best plan but would have expected lameness/lack of muscle to be noted.
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I was thinking that. I’m surprised that he passed a vetting as a riding horse. OP what did the vetting say? Did the vet not make any comments at all?

I’ve seen way worse so don’t be too disheartened or upset. You’ve had some great advice. Vet, check teeth, wormer etc.

For what it’s worth I’d maybe be taking more of a front seat at your livery yard. If you own a horse that needs extra help, well any horse really IMO you should know exactly what he is being given and when hay wise. I’d be asking why the livery yard hasn’t been feeding him hard feed when he so obviously needs it. I find that a little bit odd and think it needs discussing.
Good luck with him 🥰
 
Sounds like you have a plan in place to get the vet out which is great.

When he’s out during the day, does he get hay in the field or is there grass?

I would make sure he always has lots of forage but hold off adding anything other than a balancer until you have an idea what the issue is. Conditioning feed can have an effect on behaviour, especially if they’re not being exercised enough to burn it off.

Can you get something like “Calm and Condition”
 
Caski said:
I would not waste time/money trying saddles at this stage, your chap looks a lovely sort but he needs a vet to establish what the issues are.
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Seconded. I would want a lot more condition on him before riding, and there isn't much point fitting a saddle to him now as by the time he's up to weight it may well not fit.

Such a sweet boy, I hope the vet can give you answers. Personally I would want to check the following (not necessarily all at once!):
- cushings
- ulcers
- teeth (and ask for an opinion on age, I'm not convinced that horse is 10, but it may be just that he's unwell)
- lameness. He's definitely lame behind but there's something about the way he places his front feet down that makes me think he's bilaterally lame up front too
- worm count
- blood screen

You've had lots of good advice about upping his feed gradually. Luckily, spring is round the corner and good old dr green will be helping you out soon. In the meantime, would haylage be a possibility? I don't feed it myself so hopefully someone with more knowledge of haylage can advise whether that is a good suggestion or not!
 
How did it go with the vet? I wouldn’t get a saddle fitted yet as ideally he needs more weight and muscle so will only be getting it redone. If I were you I’d work hard on his diet and follow vets advice. He does look quite stiff behind but looks better off the lunge , please don’t be disheartened as I’m sure with some good grass, more turn out feeds etc he’ll blossom. Some of them do get very stiff in the cold /wet weather.
 
@Mrs. Jingle that's OK. I was unsure whether to say anything or not but equally didn't want people thinking bad of her. Some of us have been there, done that, we follow our gut and just do stuff, and some of us have a fair few miles on the clock too. It's easy for us all to forget that not everyone is the same. That isn't a critism btw it's just fact.
 
Ditchjumper2 said:
Without going into detail OP was a little overwhelmed. However she has taken on board the advice and is following it.
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That's understandable, great that she has support and is following advice, it would be lovely to get another update in a month or so if she feels able
 
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