What are the downsides of having a horse with shivers ?

There is little known about Shivers in this country. I researched it for someone asking for help. If you can pm me i can send you lots of info - probably tommorrow - have to find it out!
I can also give you the email of the vet in America which has researched this.
Trying to do 3 things at mo, i realy should stop looking on here!
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One of my youngsters was a shiverer. At the same time, there was another on the yard with the same condition.

Basically, the problem with shivers is that you never know when or how fast the horse will go down hill.

Typical signs are snatching hind legs away when you try to pick out feet. They'll then hold the leg, shiver and release. This is usually repeated until you let the leg go. Some may have difficulties in walking backwards, although mind never did. The shivering of the hind legs can make them difficult to shoe and thats something to be aware of.

The condition is considered degenerative. However, theres no real way of predicting how fast or at what age they will degenerate. I sold my horse on at around 9 years old and he was sound, fit and healthy. Hes now 14 and im lucky to have kept in touch with the new owner. Hes lame and has been considered unrideable for a few years. The primary cause of the lameness isnt thought to be related however the shivering in his hind legs started to appear during work so he was deemed dangerous by the vets.

The other horse that was on the yard at the same time I had Joe was sadly PTS a few years ago. Again, he degenerated very, very fast and went from being an affiliated SJer to being a danger to himself in the course of one year :*(

Basically, its a risky condition. The horses can seem 100% but, as i said, vets consider it to be dejenerative and their working life and even life expectancy cant be guarentee'd. They wont pass a vetting with this condition either.

Peter Schofield at Halifax knows quite a lot about shivers and worked a fair bit on my old horse. Could be worth trying to speak with him.
 
Thats what I had thought
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He's currently unshod behind and it is noticiable in his back leg. currently happy as larry to everything you ask (move backwards , sidewards)but he's only 6 and as you said you can't predict how quickly they can get worse
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Oh well back to the horse search
Thanks for the info
 
http://www.cvm.umn.edu/umec/lab/shivers.html This is Dr Valberg's take on it.... and ths is Dr Valentine's... http://www.draftresource.com/EPSM/Draft_EPSM_Report.html

I looked in to it because I had a horse with shivers (who dropped down dead from a completely unrelated condition)

As has been said... it is degenerative and there is no cure. Some horses who are put on the EPSM diet recover to some extent. The diet and exercise therapy has no effect on others. When they will go down hill no one knows. It could be a matter of weeks... some go on for years till the condition means they become dangerous or can not get up so they are destroyed.

There is a hereditry factor, so it is unwise to breed from a shiverer.

The old wisdom was that a shiverer was ok at flat work but could not be safely jumped.

It is a very depressing condition and the prognosis is ultimately very poor.
 
Hi, If you find out anymore info, I'd be really grateful if you could pass it on.
I have an super event horse who i believe suffers from shivers. His jump is amazing and his back end is extremely powerful. I am always interested to find out more info on the condition. Didn't one of Pippa Funnells best horses suffer from shivers and evented happily at 4* level?
 
I have a horse by Luidam that is a shiverer. He is quite bad in both back legs, but boy does this chap jump.

I advertised him with his fault, saying he was a shiverer for £1500. (This horse comes down to 1.60M!)

You wouldn't believe the muppets that phoned asking did he need an extra rug, did he suffer from the cold etc etc.

Needless to say hubby said where can you get a horse with that kind of jump for £1500!, hence he stayed.

In actual fact he has got so much better with my farrier. My farrier now has the nack of shoeing him behind.

This horse was bred by Helen, Van Heniygen and Mennel Watson by LUIDAM (Billy Twomey) out of graded Flemmingh mare that Derek Moreton jumped, and I am quite sure if he hadn't developed this after being gelded there is no way on this earth I could of afforded to buy him.

Personally I count myself lucky this chap shivers, he's a star, just got an unfortunate name "IGUANO", as in lizard. Keep an eye out this year BSJA for this chap.
 
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