Spotting Lameness: The Game Plan

HorseNetwork.com - Full Article

REBECCA DIDIER

Every horse person with a couple of years under her belt has some sense of when a horse looks “off” or “not quite right,” but even when your eye can spy the hitch or hesitation, determining the source of the problem is a challenge few can conquer. Acknowledging that even veterinarians tend to rely more on expensive (and often inconclusive) diagnostic tests rather than well-trained perception to identify lameness and trace it to its origin, Dr. Bob Grisel has written a guide intended to simplify the process. His book Equine Lameness for the Layman instructs all in the fundamental knowledge that can make “seeing” what’s wrong, and what the likely cause is, second nature, ensuring happier, healthier horses. Here he outlines his basic game plan.

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We visually assess our horses with the intention of recognizing potential lameness and surmising the likely source(s) of the problem. Satisfying our ambition is relatively painless when the horse is noticeably “off”; it can be considerably more difficult when gait abnormalities are visibly faint. Fortunately, we can make lameness more conspicuous by:

• Improving our ability to see it.
• Maximizing the horse’s expression of it.

Choosing the best approach, gait, and setting for our assessment will decidedly support our efforts...

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https://horsenetwork.com/2018/10/spotting-lameness-game-plan/?fbclid=IwAR1ACSxyLx6lN_9UPeVAuQ37j7iNi4TvDkSd6DP1FAtsQ-ixjHjdPIQPPoI