11/03/2025
*** LAMENESS IN HORSES = PAIN ***
Very rarely is a horse “stiff”, and not in pain, or at least some discomfort.
If your horse is lame, then he/she is in pain. (Mechanical lameness can exist, but is extremely rare).
Your horse is not “a bit stiff”, if he is constantly “a bit stiff”. Stiffness (both muscular and arthritic) wears off as the horse moves about, and most horses that look stiff, are in fact lame. Agreed, ancient horses and ponies can look stiff, but this is due to arthritis, so again, is likely due to pain!
If your horse is looking “stiff” in one leg, he is definitely lame. There are very many causes of lameness, and if your horse is suddenly looking “stiff”, then you need to speak to your Vet.
I try not to involve myself with social media posts in various groups, but the one time I do step in, is when someone states that their horse is “not comfy” in trot, or “quite stiff” in trot, but definitely not in any pain. Yes, your horse is in pain.
Unlike in humans, muscle stiffness in horses is relatively rare. You will soon know if your horse is just a bit stiff, as he/she will improve to looking their normal self with a bit of light exercise/turn out.
Another comment I sometimes hear, is that “my horse didn’t look lame when he cantered across the field”, or “my horse isn’t in any pain as I have seen him charging around the field”. This is firstly because a horse rarely looks lame in canter or gallop, unless extremely lame, and secondly due to the fact that horses are a prey species, and therefore have a very strong “fight or flight” response to danger; if their field mates shoot off across the field, they will do their best to keep up with them, however painful that may be.
To summarise:
- Lameness = pain
- Horses rarely look lame in canter
- Your horse cantering across a field when his herd mates bolt off, doesn’t mean he isn’t in pain.
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