Why does my 17.2 horse keep falling and tripping????

[dottylotty49]

i have a homebred 17.2, 5 year old, irish sport horse. He is always tripping, and slipped yesterday and just fell onto his side and didnt even try to get back up. we have a very highly reccomended farrier, and theres nothing wrong with his feet. just wanted to know your oppinions and if you have had any horses that have done this. we think it is just because he is so big, he is unbalanced.
thanks in advance people
x

 

[TwoStroke]

With the greatest respect, are you sure there is nothing wrong with his feet? Have they been x rayed? Are you able to post photos? When I hear of horses tripping I'd generally look at the feet first... My TB used to trip a lot before I took his shoes off; I think it must have been because he was landing toe first - nothing much else has changed.

 

[AmyMay]

After discussing it with your vet and farrier - what's their opinion?

I've been around some very big youngsters - and their size does not affect the way they move, and they definitely don't randomly fall over.

 

[dottylotty49]

they think the same as us. we have the farrier coming friday. its the fact he falls over and just casually stays on the floor. hes very laid back, but it isnt normal for a horse to just not get back up or fall over, especially as much as he does.

 

[Wagtail]

Have you had the vet? This would be my first port of call with such a horse. It does not sound like typical clumsiness. I do not think it is related to his size either. I hope he is insured.

 

[AmyMay]

they think the same as us. we have the farrier coming friday. its the fact he falls over and just casually stays on the floor. hes very laid back, but it isnt normal for a horse to just not get back up or fall over, especially as much as he does.

What testing has the vet done on him?

 

[alex2]

My horse is a 17:3hh Shire x TB and when he was first backed as 3 year old, he did tend to trip up, however never fell over. Anyway my farrier rolled the toes up slightly on his front shoes also used hind shoes on the front, i.e. 2 toe clips, not just 1. Rolled toes cured the tripping and to this day he still has rolled toes on his front shoes, he is now 18.

 

[Sussexbythesea]

I doubt if it is his feet - falling over like this is not normal.

It could be neurological i.e. problems with the brain or spinal cord and a vet should examine for conditions such as wobblers where horses have problems to do with balance and coordination.

 

[dottylotty49]

he only falls if he trips and struggles to find his feet. or like yesterday, slips and then just falls and just doesnt move and looks confused. hes a cracking young horse, is jumping 1 metre 30 with ease, hes just very clumsy

 

[PandorasJar]

I doubt if it is his feet - falling over like this is not normal.

It could be neurological i.e. problems with the brain or spinal cord and a vet should examine for conditions such as wobblers where horses have problems to do with balance and coordination.

I'd be inclined to think neurological too. Has the vet been or just farrier?

 

[dottylotty49]

our vet specialises in horses and has watch him grow up. he never trips or falls unless someone is on him. he doesnt do it all the time. my mum has had horses for over 40 years and has all her exams etc. and she has never seen one do this. we have the vet coming to listen to his heart this week.

 

[AmyMay]

If the vet is happy there are no issues - and his feet are well maintained, I'd be inclined to turn him away for a year to let him mature. I certainly wouldn't want anyone on his back at this moment in time.

 

[tallyho!]

He is only 5. Big Irish horses mature very late and fill out even later. Are you riding him while he does this? Is it normal for him to do in the field? Maybe he needs more time on a lunge and on long reins to strengthen him up more and give him time. Even let him mature more over the autumn and winter and bring him back next spring.

My friend who produces hunters very often doesn't even back them until 6. Lunge and long rein in 5 th year and even then once or twice a week.

 

[lcharles]

I'd be worried about jumping him 1m 30 if he's tripping, could be horrific if he trips on landing x

 

[dottylotty49]

he tends to do it whilst been ridden. he doesnt do it all the time, trips quite alot but only actually fallen over a few times. he doesnt do it in the field. we dont think hel fully mature till hes about 6 or 7.

 

[dottylotty49]

haha hes never tripped jumping, because he concentrates on what he is doing and is careful where he places his feet x

 

[AmyMay]

We don't think he'll fully mature till hes about 6 or 7.

More like 8 or 9.

 

[dottylotty49]

well he wont be going anywhere so we shall see.

 

[clydesdale]

my motheres 16.3hh gypsy cob x clyde who is now around 12 who we have had since 2 has always tripped and occasionally fallen onto his face if he is not being ridden properly i.e just being aloud to plod around if he is in a contact and working correctly he never trips

 

[tallyho!]

Sounds like you have much experience around you, I think you will have to be patient with him if you have ruled out anything physiological or mechanical.

 

[Sussexbythesea]

I'm curious as to why you asked a question on here and have completely dismissed anything anyone has said based on nothing but your conviction that it is purely clumsiness of a youngster? If you are already convinced of that why bother posting a question?

 

[Arizahn]

How do you know for sure that he doesn't also do this in the field? Do you monitor him constantly? Also, he hasn't tripped jumping yet...I wouldn't risk having him used under saddle until I was sure he wasn't going to fall again, tbh.

Quite the conundrum - welcome to the forum, by the way.

 

[Cuppatea]

The only horses ive known to fall overare ones where they are not being ridden into a contact and are therefore unbalanced. Try collecting him up a bit more so he's using his backend properly and not on the forehand

 

[dottylotty49]

well think weve decided to leave him to mature longer. and yes, we are at our field alot, as we have a small holding so, we are there from 6 in the morning till gone 10 at night. and no i have not dismissed other peoples comments, as i am now looking into the things they have said. but thanks for your concern

 

[dottylotty49]

thank you 'cuppatea' we had a spanish rider on him yesterday who appeared to have no contact which is why we believed he fell. going to turn him away to mature more. but keeping everything everyone is saying in mind ~

 

[hayinamanger]

It sounds like a heart problem to me.

 

[RutlandH2O]

Please have him evaluated for neurological deficits. No one has mentioned the "W" word, yet. Riding and jumping him should be very much on the back burner at this point in time. Horses with mild (Grade I+) wobblers can and do try to compensate for their subtle lack of proprioception. Many times the tripping and falling are the key indicators of their condition.
Good luck with him and welcome to the forum.

 

[Sussexbythesea]

Please have him evaluated for neurological deficits. No one has mentioned the "W" word, yet. Riding and jumping him should be very much on the back burner at this point in time. Horses with mild (Grade I+) wobblers can and do try to compensate for their subtle lack of proprioception. Many times the tripping and falling are the key indicators of their condition.
Good luck with him and welcome to the forum.

I've already mentioned Wobblers or some neuro condition as a possibility.

OP - If you indicate there is a problem now and the vet checks his heart and nothing is wrong then if it turns out to be something else a year from now you won't be able to claim on insurance if you have any because it will be too late. So if you need any investigation done then do it asap mostly the initial exam for neuro consists of tests such as turning the horse, reversing and the sway test. If not insured then maybe it's worth waiting.

 

[RutlandH2O]

Sorry, sussexbythesea, I completely missed your post mentioning wobblers. I guess we're on the same wavelength, though.

 

[Pearlsasinger]

The only horses ive known to fall overare ones where they are not being ridden into a contact and are therefore unbalanced. Try collecting him up a bit more so he's using his backend properly and not on the forehand

This was my first thought.

A big, unbalanced, young horse needs riding very much from the leg into the hand. In fact older big horses will also trip if allowed to mosey along, ime. However I wouldn't be jumping this horse until it is better balanced.
The falling and staying down would worry me though, the only experience of this I've had in over 40 yrs has been with a driver, trained to stay down until the shafts could be removed to avoid injury.