​Work Up The Trippy Gaited Horse

​Work  Up  The  Trippy   Gaited Horse
By Gaye  DeRusso
 
No one tells  you.  But  if  you  ride enough  gaited  horses,  you  know that some can be  quite trippy. There  can be  many   causes.  But I  want  to share with  you, how  I  would work  one up  to  find the cause. This is  for tripping with the front feet, if it’s your horses back feet read the article on stifles. If the horse is constantly falling down,  this is unsafe and get the vet first but read what you should have the vet check for, at the bottom of this article. 
 
1.   X-ray  its  front feet. It’s not that expensive  and worth every penny .   The only  way   to know if the feet are the issue  is  to see  what’s inside of them. It’s also very helpful   for your shoer  or trimmer. We have found  navicular, ringbone,  thin soles, foot unbalanced, toes too long, wrong angles with the shoeing, to name a  few. Get those feet x-rayed. 
 
2. Poke the horses front feet with a pen. Some horses  cannot feel their feet well or they  have been nerved. If your poking and  there  is no reaction get the vet out to check him. 
 
3. If this was a show horse, they may not know how to handle the terrain on trail, and they may have  had heavy shoes all their life, without that weight some do not lift their feet as high. It may take  a year for them to adjust. So, condition them and give them time. 
 
4.  A horse from a different state may not handle the terrain well, it can take up to a year for them to figure it out and get in condition to handle it. Going from flat to constant hills is quite strenuous.  So, condition them and give them time. 
 
5.  Watch the  horse walk. Some just  do not pick  their feet up much. Read my article on the daisy clipper. If the horse keeps their  feet  low, I  make sure the shoer takes the  toe back as much as they can and I have  the shoer roll  the toe,  if that fails, rocker the  shoe  and if that fails  a square shoe or natural  balance  shoe.  These  things help  the horse break  over the front  feet easier  and  by having less  toe, they  get  more clearance  off the ground. If all fail  and  your positive that  is the cause,  then add weight  to the shoe, as horses usually lift  their feet higher when they have  added  weight, and  a heavier shoe is safer  than  a horse  falling  down.  
 
6.  Teach them how to use their feet. Some horses just have no idea.  Use  poles.  I start  with 4 in a circle like you see in my videos and add more over time.  Lunge  them over them  and  watch. Do  they step  on them, do  they  trip   on  them  and or  do  they  fall  over them. Start  out at a walk  and  then have  them go faster.  Watch everything  or video  and watch later.  Watch if they  pay  attention,  watch   if  they can figure out what to do,  watch how  they  balance  themselves, watch how  they use  their head and neck and how they use all their legs, because  your life  depends  on them  picking up   those feet.  Sometimes they just don't  have good proprioception  or out  of  shape  and no   muscle and sometimes they just can't do it for medical reasons. So,  use the poles 3-5 times a week for 5-10 minutes. In a month they  should be  pretty   good at  going over the poles, if not, time  to call the vet. If they are better keep it up  until they  no  longer trip on the trail anymore. Some will need to do it for the rest of their life to help. 
 
7.  Pacey horses and horses that just gait when loose,  may  not pick  their feet up high  and  can  trip  more. So, teach the pacey horse to trot. Use cavaletti poles, these are poles in a row. Make the poles about 12 inches apart.  Then you  can make them closer or farther  away depending on the horse’s stride.  Start with 4 and once they understand what to do keep adding more until they start to trot. Do it 3-5  times a week, until they start trotting some when loose. Trotty horses pick their feet up higher. Even if they never trot when loose it will still make them more surefooted and agile. 
 
8.  Ride with some speed and purpose. Some trip because they are just lazy or bored. So, wake them up, gait or canter every 10 minutes or so or when you feel them not paying attention. Make them walk over branches and rocks, give them things to do and make sure when going over tree roots, that they are paying attention to their feet. Even a little tap with a stick before going over obstacles can keep them awake. 
 
9. Check your saddle fit. If it doesn't fit well, it can cause compression on their spine and their nerves which can cause them to trip.
 
10. Ride them with engagement and keeping  them  light on  their front end. Horses that are strung out will have more weight on their front end so it’s easier to trip  and they are more likely to fall all the way down to the ground because all the weight is  up front.  When more weight is on the backend, horses are less likely to trip or if they do trip, less likely to fall all the way down. 
 
11. Keep a diary and write in it after every ride, so  you  don't   forget. You may see a pattern after enough rides, such as he tripped after we rode 3 hours. No tripping today we rode for 1 hour.  This may mean the horse is not in good enough condition  or  needs  more breaks. Or he tripped every time we walked on gravel, and he keeps walking on  the sides of the trail. This can mean his feet are sore and if barefoot he needs shoes for protection or pads to protect his soles. Some horses have such  thin soles that  boots will never give enough  support.  Or he only tripped once on a root, this could be normal as he didn't see  it and of course we all trip. Tripping occasionally on something and catching themselves is normal, but tripping and falling down is not. So, if he trips, falls down and lays there and starts eating, could mean he is very lazy and needs to be woken up more on the trail. 
 
12. Have someone else ride them. Did  they trip? If  they didn't it could be how your riding or that you are throwing off the horse's  balance. 
 
13.  If he  only trips in groups, it can be your riding too  close so he cannot see what’s  in   front of  his  feet or he  doesn't pay  attention   when  riding  behind. So,  try  riding lead,  if   no tripping  then its him not paying attention. 
 
14.  Have  a chiropractor or body worker work on your horse once a  week for a  month. This should help if  they soreness or muscle  tension that  is causing the tripping. 
 
15.  Call the vet. Have the vet check the eyes first so  they don't  forget. My Horse Tilly has cataracts, so I know she cannot always see the footing well  and I have to help her.  Have them check the horse’s neck,  and spine many gaited horses get neck arthritis which can cause tripping. Also,  they will find if the horses back is sore which could mean poor  saddle fit. Make sure the horse can feel its  front feet, they usually poke them with a pen. You want a full checkup. If the horse is lethargic, you  may  need labs to see if  it is  anemic or has other  issues.  And yes, I hear you,   have them do  a  neurologic exam  and  check   for EPM and  for tick related diseases. But many vets will  just start with EPM  and if it  comes  back positive, they  don't check for anything else. This  is a mistake as  many  horses are carriers of EPM  and don't actually have it. So, get a spinal tap if  positive and make sure  that it  is really  positive.  Otherwise,  the horse may still trip after EPM  treatment  as that was never the real  cause. And the medication has some anti-inflammatory  effects so you may think it helped  until  the horse gets off the meds and the tripping comes back. So, guide them on what you want them to do and do not just test for EPM. Your life can depend on the right diagnosis and the right treatment. But you have to be proactive to figuring it out.