My horse has a slightly crooked leg, is there a way to fix that?

Question

the crooked leg causes him pain and prevents us from riding or training him.

Answer 1

Find a good Ferrier. A lot can be done for horses with misaligned legs, bolegs, knock-kneed, etc by creating a special horse shoe that realigns the knee and/or hock. Basically, they can take the end of one of the sides of the shoe and bend it such to align the knee. It is kinda like putting a bigger heel on a shoe.

Find a good ferrier.

Answer 2

I think you should show him/her greener pasture, and spend some time nurturing him/her. Outside of what the Veternarian would recommend, I would suggest massage of the leg and hind quarters. This will relieve some of the tension that is causing pain., and give a little length to the muscles.

Hot packs to the hips will also help. My daughter has raised horses for many years, and has seen improvement with massage treatments. You could wear latex gloves, and use your knuckles across the fibre of the muscle to relax the tissue for more blood flow.
Begin the massage on a non irritated area so your horse knows it should feel good, and that you are not trying to create pain. Tissues that are bound together must be separated. Hot packs first, then massage. If it is a physical defect from birth, that has just begun to manifest itself, you will just have a big pet. Not for riding. Imagine 100# or more weight added to an already ailing horse. Carrots and apples are a sign of affection. :)

A bed of fresh straw for resting is also good.

Answer 3

this is a conformation issues, it is because of breeding.
There is no way to fix it. He sounds like he's bound to be a pasture pet the rest of his life, don't work him if it hurts him.
You can nerve his leg, this would be expensive and I don't think it's a nice thing to do, but it woudl make the pain go away for him, but he still would have a crooked leg, which would look wrong and will prevent him from moving correctly which will eventually cause other problems.
I would say doint even try riding him and just let him rest for the rest of his life, thats sad, but its whats goota happen.

Answer 4

Contact your farrier right away. He/she possibly could put corrective shoes on that foot and if it is slightly crooked, it may help straighten the leg....that is, if this is a very young horse.
If it is an older horse, over 5 yrs. old, it may be too late for this fix. Good luck!

Answer 5

Slightly crooked legs are quite common in appaloosas, it rarely effects riding ability, especially being so mild, but it can and should be corrected by a good farrier. Corrective trimming can be done over time to mostly or completely straighten out the leg, so you might want to avoid major competitions until that can be done. Congrats you onr you boy!

Answer 6

You need to talk to a veterinarian immediately. A crooked leg is not normal in a horse, but it is very difficult to diagnose the problem from your description.

Answer 7

Depends on why it's crooked. This is absolutely a vet question. They'll probably have to do radiographys (xrays) to see what the joints look like. Minor rotation in a joint sometimes can be addressed with proper farrier/trimming, but depending on how bad it is, your horse may remain unsound.

Answer 8

It will have to be re-broke and fixed, this is a hard thing for you to decide, but untill a vet can set it properly your horse is just a waste of animal not good for nothing...

Answer 9

WAs he that way when you bought him? if so I say contact the people who sold him to you for he could have been born wind swept, I know a mare who only throws wind swept foals but they usually straighten out if treated proberly...If your horse is permently wind swept you should jus tlet him live at pasture and make sure you give him some loving...if its not wind swept you should call the vet to make sure nothing is extremely wrong.

Answer 10

Do you have a vet??? Talk to them and get suggestions before this gets worse and the horse becomes permanently unsound.

-a veterinarian