My horse has a weaker hind end at the moment, and he is also younger (5 yrs).

A hind leg that mainly steps forward from the center line can step more under the point of weight using bending, with flexible, supple joints.

This sort of twisting action can in itself produce lameness over time and horses with bow hocked conformation are more likely to develop thoroughpin and bog spavin.

What His Hind Legs SayThe hind legs of a nervous or frustrated horse are a danger zone to be heeded: Cocked. the muscles that are between the hind legs.

If a horse has bow hocked conformation or pain in the hock area it will develop a twisting or screwing motion as the foot touches the ground. Below you can see the basic parts of the front legs on a real picture. Trimming the inside heel down if it is higher than the outside heel can solve the problem. Sudden hind leg lameness in horses results in an uneven gait. If the post-legged horse has a stifle angle of about 140 degrees to begin with, it doesnâ t take much of a misstep to move it a few more degrees and hook the patella--which is a serious problem if it happens while he is traveling. If you are interested in more of the structure and function of the front legs, check out this forelimb page, or if you want more detailed information on the hoof go to this page.. Front Leg Anatomy.

When his stifle is sore, usually from overdoing it on the pasture or if I accidentally did too much pole work, he will sort of step under himself like your mare. When the joint is extended (to about 145 degrees) the patella hooks on the femur. Pick up the hoof on the twisting leg and see if the heels are even. It is the authors conviction that horses can cope even less with a single hind leg bearing weight for an extended period of time, than with a single front limb. In a horse with proper hind leg conformation, the stifle angle is about 135 degrees. I have seen a couple horses do that when the hind heels are not balanced. He does not quite twist much, though. Basically, they increase the decelerating phase of the hind legs. The horse adapts the hind legs’ hoof placement to the athletic demand of the performances. The severity and speed of onset of hind limb weight bearing founder, can quite literally send a horse to its end.

Horses that wring their hocks have excess muscle tonus or 'tension' in two areas: the superficial gluteal muscle on the front-top area of the croup, and in the adductor musculature that is on the medial side of the hind limb, i.e.

This may be due to the horse’s natural attitude at rest, of periodic weight shifting between hind limbs. A hind leg that mainly pushes backward from the center line pushes the body forward and pushes against the weight of the horse. A day or two of backing off a bit and he's fine to continue with his "physical therapy" program.

When a horse cocks his leg, he rests the leading edge of the hoof on the ground and drops his hip. Causes of hind leg lameness in horses include cracks or bruises in the sole, swelling in the leg and laminitis. In this article I am going to explain more of the in depth structure and function of the hind leg anatomy. During the stride preceding the flying change, the horses achieving the best performances increase the length of time that both hind hooves remain on support. It is generally the inside heel that is high when the horse is twisting the hoof, if it is hoof related. Her hoof wall is level, though she does tend to wear the medial lateral aspects of the hoof wall more than the outside. It looks like the entire leg from hip to hoof is twisting, as the hock appears stable.