My horse won't move

[Zingy]

My horse has started bucking when I ride him - I've had his teeth and saddle checked, both are okay. I've tried vets, osteopaths, physiotherapy and acupuncture and was told that he had a trapped nerve in his neck which was treated twice by an osteopath but it hasn't stopped the bucking. He just won't move forwards (but does a lovely sideways spanish walk). Can anyone suggest anything else to try? I've heard about radionics but I'm not sure where I can get this done.

 

[ros]

A little bit more background might be helpful - how old is your horse, how long have you had him, have you always used the same saddle? Anything you can think of.

 

[Dizzy]

It may be that though the trapped nerve has been released, he hasn't yet realised that he's cured - meaning the pain he had is still fresh in his memory and he's expecting it to hurt again,so is avoiding what caused the pain, hope that makes sense.

Have you tried long reining and lunging him with the saddle on? This should reassure you and him that he's ok, if he is. Though before tacking up I would put gentle pressure with my hand (not poking) down his spine from the very top of his poll down to the end of his dock, to see if he flinches. I would also check how he carries his tail, a tight clamped tail is a sign of discomfort and insecurity.

If all is well and he lunges/long lines with no problem, I would ask someone to lead you out on him. Sit really relaxed, give him a nice rein, lots of praise and encouragement and just reassure him. Keep it short, get off and give loads of praise. Don't rush things, you might find you have to do this for a few days until he feels he can relax.

If he doesn't, I would go through all the checks again, a pain in the pocket as well as the bum I know. But discomfort and pain has to be totally eliminated, before its considered a schooling issue.

Was he a willing horse before the trapped nerve? How old is he? Is he well schooled? and lastly how long have you had him?

 

[ponyvet]

Sorry guys but trapped nerve is usually something people use to describe a condition they can't explain. It is possible (in a pigs might fly only if they're in an aeroplane kind of way), but unlikely.

In my medical family background osteopath was a swearword and I still think so generally (some nice ones I know) and think you've been misled.

If however, he really did have a trapped nerve he wouldn't be bucking. This is because, if you can imagine, the pain is in his neck, and when he bucks he flexes his neck and that would hurt like buggery.

I think you should follow dizzys advice. I don't know why but often horses start to misbehave like this for no apparent reason. When you investigate there seems to be nothing wrong. Have referred a horse for something similar and it had all sorts of scans and x-rays, but still nothing physically wrong. She was "cured" (for want of a better word) by taking her right back to the start and schooling her as if she'd never done any work before. Take things slowly and gently and make sure you do real balanced workouts. The horse in question was a grand prix dressage horse, and is now competing again 6 months down the line.

I would recommend that you get your vet to check him over if you are unsure, but I wouldn't bother paying for any other stuff, as I'd be willing to bet money he's got nothing physically going on.

 

[Zingy]

Thanks for the suggestions. The history's a bit of an essay, but here goes! I've had my horse for just over 2 1/2 years and he's now 8. I got him from a riding school but he hadn't done much and they hardly used him - I knew him for about 6 months before I bought him and certainly in that time there were no problems with him.

The bucking first started after 6 weeks when he'd had a new saddle for about 2 weeks. I changed the saddle & he was fine. 12 months later a new farrier then suggested getting his back checked as he'd always hated being shod and he thought there was something wrong with his back. The vet had checked him before and said it was ok so I got a physio out. After 5 mins he started rearing (as he did for the farrier) and she said there was nothing wrong with him except slight muscle tension - he was obviously a wuss! After she left I couln't ride for a month as he was bucking again. I had his saddle & teeth checked & was told both were fine. He finally stopped when I was loose schooling him one day (I'd had to give up lungeing as he was bucking then as well) - he threw himself round the school, suddenly stopped, then trotted round like it was all better. The next day I rode him with no problems.

He then had 6 months off for a chipped splint bone in his hind leg. When I started riding again he started bucking. He was checked by a physio just before I started working him and she said his muscles were unusually tense for a horse that had been on box rest for 3 months. I had some acupuncture done on his back and changed his saddle (again!) as the last one no longer fitted. Since then we've tried the osteopath twice - after the first treatment he was ok for 3 weeks.

He does a really funny buck - it's not like he tries to throw you on the floor. He tenses up the minute you sit on him either with a saddle or bareback, then he's ok until he moves. He'll go about 2 strides then do a kind of bunny-hop buck. I know I can force him to go if I hit him, but I think this is what's happened to him before and he's just learned to tolerate the pain - that's not what I want. He's normally really willing and enjoys working and he's fine long reined or lunged, so he's not getting out of working completely!

Any more advice gratefully received!

 

[Wally]

In my experience horses play up when being shod because they have a problem with their feet, not their back!

Hákon is a wuss with his feet, but he's entitled to be, he has rather odd shaped front feet, he feels the nails going in sometimes, it must be like silver foil on a filling for him. He's better now and is very brave having his front shoes nailed on. While he does this he arches his back to the most alarming degree taking on the very image of a camel.


On the subject of osteopaths, I liked mine, I was hospitalised some years back, in a wheelchair. The physiotherapists had done me no good at all. In desperation I went to see an osteopath, she leapt on me from a great height and got me standing upright again in one session, something I hadn't been able to do for 4 months. Not for the faint hearted though

 

[ponyvet]

The thing I think about osteopaths is that they are either brilliant or crap, with no inbetween ones. physios tend to fdo more training I think (sorry any osteopaths out there if I'm wrong) and the horse ones do have to qualify on humans before they can learn horses so they generally have a very good knowledge base before they get anywhere near a horse. I think that's good because horses are fussy little animals and need all sorts of care taking with them. One wrong move can set you back for ages, as I'm sure we all know from experience.

On the subject of your horse Zingy, it does sound to me like he's out of work and out of the habit of being good! He seems to get better when schooled right? well there's your answer. It also sounds like he's thinking about it when you get on, rather than trying to throw you off, he's just weighing it up. i know a very lazy horse like that who definitely has no physical problems, but the fitter he gets, the worse he is. He took my friend on a right jaunt last week before chucking her in a ditch and cantering triumphantly round the field, all because she wanted him to change the rein!

In addition, I'd expect most horses to buck after box rest, and I think it's ok for them to have tense muscles after resting for that long. They get stressed and frustrated, so will tense up when they get out!

I agree with wally that if he always hated being shod he may have a leg or foot problem, so ask your farrier to have a think about it, and maybe your vet. Even if your vet thinks there's nothing wrong, if YOU think he isn't right you can ask for referral to a specialist centre, like Leahurst (which is close to you) and they may be able to find something your vet can't. This can be expensive though, so if he's not insured you might not want to do that.

 

[ros]

It sounds to me like a bit more than coincidence that the bucking started shortly after you got a new saddle. Intouch would probably recommend you ask a Bowen practitioner to look at your horse, and I've heard from other very reliable sources that they do tend to pick up on things that other physios/"back people" have missed. He just doesn't sound like a naughty horse to me.