Locking stifle/hock

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Nannon

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Have noticed my little welsh A has had a locking nearside hindleg recently - have noticed this is the stable and mentioned it to farrier but he didnt seem to see it as a problem. But today when I got him in from the field he was locking up every step and I went to pick up his back leg and I literally felt it snap up when it finally bent :confused:.
Just wondering if anyone has experience of this - I havent had it in any of my horses before, initially thought it was just stiffness from being in but doesnt seem to make any difference if he is turned out or not.
Hes 11 years old and has sugar beet, alfa a and just a little coarse mix at the moment due to lack of grass - dont know if this makes any difference or not?
Any advice much appreciated! Thanks :)
 
Yes, my sec A has always done it occasionally (if that makes sense!). Usually when he's not done much work recently. I try to lunge him regularly just to keep him ticking over and the muscles built up. It's never been so regular that it's a problem. He did it the other day. We had a power cut and my son did the front of his rug up, but can't have done it properly. He managed to undress himself in the night (pony, not son!), and the next day his stifle was a bit clicky. I wonder if he strained himself getting out of his rug. He was fine the next day after that and happily did a PC rally at the weekend.

ETA reading that through makes me sound like an awful owner, I promise I'm not, it was just one of those things and not the first time pony has got out of his rug even with the front done up. They are wriggly things these Sec As. ;)
 
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Lol no you dont sound bad at all - hes actually my older sisters pony (for my nephew who is 3 this year!) but she doesnt live with us and has 2 kids so she doesnt come out and look after him so muggins here gained one! :rolleyes:
Of course Im way too big to ride him (5ft10 and hes barely 11h!) so will try lunging to see if that helps loosen him up a bit seeing as all he does is mooch about the field :o
 
Nannon said:
Lol no you dont sound bad at all - hes actually my older sisters pony (for my nephew who is 3 this year!) but she doesnt live with us and has 2 kids so she doesnt come out and look after him so muggins here gained one! :rolleyes:
Of course Im way too big to ride him (5ft10 and hes barely 11h!) so will try lunging to see if that helps loosen him up a bit seeing as all he does is mooch about the field :o
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Thanks. :o

From what I understand it's a lack of muscle which allows the slipping of the stifle. So you need to aim to build it up. Start off gently if he's not done much and gradually increase, also start with big circles so you don't put too much strain on him. Also you could long rein. I can't ride our sec A either and he's too naughty off the LR with the kids, so I just have to do what I can with him. Good luck. :)
 
best thing to do is live out 24/7 it really helps ,or if they have to come in make a very large bed to encourage lying down to sleep rather than standing up. it doesnt hurt them and nothing you feed will make a difference. its just a conformational fault. :)
 
My cob had a locking stifle. I found that it improved with as much turnout as possible and regular exercise - no big increases or decreases in the rate. I found that making him walk backwards would unlock him. It didn't happen too often and he was never lame.
 
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