# New Horse!!



## eralcx3 (Jan 5, 2009)

Okay, so I know I said I didn't want a Thoroughbred but.....
There is a girl at my barn that had 2 OTTB's at another farm that she got from a friend that couldn't take care of them and since I really wanted another horse, one that was a lot calmer than Donna, she said I could choose between her two TB's. The one is a really cute mare but she was too high sprung for me so I tried the gelding and fell in love! haha He is the CALMEST TB I have ever met and he has a great personality too. He is 7 years old and about 16.2hh.
My only problem is that he keeps going lame. But I am starting to think he is faking it sometimes. One day he will move perfectly fine and the next day he will be limping really bad. His hooves were like completely flat so I have been putting Turpentine on them, farrier told me to, to help them grow and it is helping. Also, when I feel up and down his legs he doesn't act like anything is sore and nothing feels warm. I clean out his hooves before i ride too, but we will see what happens. I was also told he has never had any injuries during or after his racing career.


Let me know what you think of him please! **not all of the pictures are of me riding him, im the one with the purple shirt**Here is his registry stuff.... Thunder Angel Horse Pedigree I think his dad and grand dad are just gorgeous if you look at the pictures on there!!!


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## appylover31803 (Sep 18, 2007)

I would have a vet out to find out *why* he is going lame. I really dont think horses would fake something like that (considering they are prey animals and showing weakness is not good)

He needs more weight, but that's easy to fix.

He looks like a very sweet horse though, reminds me of this horse I knew.


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## eralcx3 (Jan 5, 2009)

Actually, there was a horse at the barn before that would fake it. The owner had lots of money and would have a vet out EVERY time the horse acted lame and the vet could never find anything wrong with it. There is also another horse at the barn now that will fake it every once in a while. I am going to talk to the previous owner about it and see if she will get the vet out to see it if he doesn't get better. It could be that his hooves are still really flat and soft on the heel.

Actually, some of the pics he looks ribby, but up close you can't see any of his ribs. He has a hay belly that he needs to lose and he needs to build more back muscle and get a better top line if that is what you mean.


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## Gillian (Aug 2, 2008)

He looks like a sweetheart. Reminds me of a TB that I learned to ride on when I was little.
His name was Webster, ha ha. Good luck with your new boy!
:]


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## eventerdrew (Mar 13, 2009)

I have known some horses to fake lameness for many reasons. So it's not that uncommon. But I would make sure he is just faking it and isn't really hurting :]

He's got GREAT bloodlines. Especially on his sire's side. Storm Cat is his grandsire, he's got Northern Dancer twice, Secretariat, Hail to Reason, and Buckpasser. On his dam's side he's got Princequillo and Raise a Native. all very good!

yeah, he needs a bit of weight but that can be easily fixed. 

Good luck with him! He's really cute!


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## eralcx3 (Jan 5, 2009)

Awesome thanks!!

I don't know much about bloodlines or about any horses or anything so that made me happy knowing he has good bloodlines. yayy!! =))

He should gain weight really fast. He gets a full scoop of grain twice a day and if hes not out on grass during the day then he has free choice hay. So weight should pick up soon. =)


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## JustLeaveIt2Mya (Jun 6, 2009)

cute horsie


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## morganshow11 (Dec 19, 2008)

My old horse herc would fake being lame when he was 100% healed from a pulled tendon. its funny wha some horses would do to make you now ride then. She is goreous BTW


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## HalfPass (Jun 12, 2009)

era...
Eventerdrew is totally right...
Being that my dad breed TB for the track for years, I do know the BL's...Your has some great one's in there..Yes..Storm Cat is a fovorite of mine as well as Deputy Minister..
I would not put it past a horse to try and be a little of a trickster and I have often wondered this myself about "faking"...But the likelihood of that Vrs. a real issue going on are two different ball games...
Yes I think his feet need work.
Was he not ridden for a while?
My OTTB...never raced...I screamed and cried to much about it because I just loved him...my Dad pulled him out of training just before he was to race...because a excercise guy thought there was a prob.
He came home and when my father spoke of putting him back into training....I screetched about it...
lol
I think that the best way to tell if there is a real issue is if you can afford it....have X-rays or ultrasound done...
What shoes if any does he have on?? Or what has he had in the past?
My horse actually was in a 40 x 40 and then sometimes in a bigger area for a long while because I was injured...My dad being the track breeder and all has different perspectives than I on some things...so Tiny's shoeing was always a controversy..
Sometimes My horse has intermittent lamness....No heat no swelling no visual signs of any issue....
But...upon x-ray there is some things that can be seen as possible causes...to the intermittent lamness.
But then again....He did not work for a while...He just hung out doing very little other then eating.
Now that he has moved here to my home town he has suffered with this intermittent limp...
Somedays If I work with him he will work out of the limping pattern...other days he will not...
I am not riding him at this time partly because I ..physically am not quite ready and partly because of his foot issues..
So..If at all possible I would have a vet check done...A once over is a good starting point because he might have some underlying thing going on in there you cannot see
I think he is well bred and with tender loving care and a starting point after a vet check you may be able to work with thiings..but sometimes you just never know...
Please feel free to PM me since we both have a similar issue with feet and intermittent lamness...and...it could just be that the feet of your horse need to grow, and have consistent work done by your farrier...
It is always exciting to work with a new horse...
He does look very sweet!
What type of riding do you plan on doing with him???
Half Pass...


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## mom2pride (May 5, 2009)

Wow...he has FABULOUS bloodlines! 

I too, would do some serious checking, to rule out anything that would cause such intermittent lameness. Navicular in a mild form could present that way; work brings on the symptoms, then the rest helps them subside a bit. 

He looks like a really nice horse; although, I have to ask, what, if he is such a calm horse, do you have to use the chain over the nose for? The chain overtime, can damage alot of nerves in his face, so I would becareful how you use it...Perhaps, get a Rope Halter with some extra knots instead; it will still have some 'bite' but will be gentler and safer in the long run.


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## dressagebelle (May 13, 2009)

I always had a chain on my tb mare. She was race bred and trained, but never hit the track. I had it pass under the chin through the bottom metal circle, up through the right cheek metal, wrapped around the leather a couple times, back down through the left cheek metal, and hooked onto itself. Never had a problem with it, and only had to really use it a couple times, but she needed to have it on not cause she was a crazy horse, just because she thought she could get away with stuff on the ground, but if the chain was on she was perfect even if the lead wasn't clipped to the chain. I personally don't think he needs that much more weight, I personally don't see his ribs, the only thing I see is a lack of muscling which will be solved with work. He has more weight than I was ever able to keep on my mare. You could always see a rib or two on her, and the vet said that she was at a good weight in spite of that. He is a very cute horse. Makes me miss my tb.


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## dressagebelle (May 13, 2009)

Just looked up his pedigree, he has a lot of the same lines as my TB Lady Diamondo. And I forgot to clarify, in the pics of him being ridden, and after his bath, I don't see any ribs. In the second pic I can though. How far apart where the pics taken?


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## reining girl (Jan 30, 2009)

He is very handsome. My barrel trainer had a horse that when you go to cinch him, as soon as he felt the cinch start to get he would actomatically act like he was going down, just so that you would un due the cinch lol.


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## eralcx3 (Jan 5, 2009)

I only used the chain that one time. Every time I would turn him out into the pasture before that he would try to run down the grass and it would pull my arm and stuff. So i used the chain that one time so he wouldnt pull as much and ever since that day he slowly walks down without a pull without a chain.

Those pictures aren't from too far apart. I think it just depends on how he stands really and the angle from where I took the picture. Whenever i go out there I never notice his ribs.


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## eralcx3 (Jan 5, 2009)

Oh! I went back to check because the picture of Thunder standing where you could see his ribs and stuff were on my phone. Those pictures were actually on the same exact day so it had to of just been the way he was standing and the angle I took the picture from.


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## mom2pride (May 5, 2009)

eralcx3 said:


> I only used the chain that one time. Every time I would turn him out into the pasture before that he would try to run down the grass and it would pull my arm and stuff. So i used the chain that one time so he wouldnt pull as much and ever since that day he slowly walks down without a pull without a chain.
> 
> Those pictures aren't from too far apart. I think it just depends on how he stands really and the angle from where I took the picture. Whenever i go out there I never notice his ribs.


Ahhh...I see...that's good to know! I don't like it when I see a horse having to use a chain, or other aids, just to keep it under control; it's like any other 'crutch' like whip or spur, over time...the more you rely on it, the more the horse has to rely on it; till you come to a point where you both 'feel' you 'have' to have it! I prefer to teach the horse to respond to a lighter pressure, before resorting to something like a chain or crop; and I get rid of the chain or crop as soon as I feel the horse is responding to my voice and leg, or just a light pressure on the halter, etc. No reason to rely on a chain, ever...JMHO.


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## MyBoyPuck (Mar 27, 2009)

Does he have pads on his feet? Some TBs have thin or sensitive soles. My OTTB did a lot better when we added pads. Maybe try them next shoeing. Cute horse, but then I'm a sucker for 16.2 geldings! Glad he's dispelling the myth for you about OTTBs being high strung. There's some really sweet ones out there as you're now finding out.


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## boxer (Feb 20, 2009)

he's cute. looks chunky for a tb though! One of the girls I used to know at uni had a horse that would occasionally fake lameness under saddle but as soon as you set her free she would go trotting and cantering off perfectly. One dressage judge at a show described her as being "bridle lame".


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## eralcx3 (Jan 5, 2009)

Yeah, right now he is barefoot. I went back out to the barn yesterday to look at him again and have my trainer look at him and she noticed something that I somehow didn't notice. He chipped the front of his left front hoof. So once his feet are long enough we are going to get shoes on him and see how that helps.

As of right now his feet are pretty much flat still but I've been putting Turpentine on them to help them grow. =) I guess until I can get shoes on him I'll just brush him and pamper him and make him feel good and then just let him go back to the pasture. =)


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## Ravenmoon (Aug 5, 2008)

Wow...impressive bloodlines. He does look like a nice horse. Congrats.


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## eralcx3 (Jan 5, 2009)

Thank you!

He is very nice. The day I came back from vacation, i was gone for 10 days, before i took him out in the ring to find out he was lame, he was like hugging me with his head. he is such a sweetheart and a big baby! For being so big, hes normally like the last one to get grain, He lets little ponies a fraction of his size beat him up. Poor guy! =(


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## MyBoyPuck (Mar 27, 2009)

I wouldn't worry about his current omega herd status. Most OTTB's move up very quickly in the herd once they learn how to interact with other horses. Mine used the get the crap beat out of him. Two years later he's 2nd in command and challenging the top horse.


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## mom2pride (May 5, 2009)

My Appy is like that right now; where he's at, a mini horse sends him to the opposite end of the pasture...

I've found putting a horse like this in with younger horses can help, because they develop that sense of 'herd leadership' and then can fare better in a normal herd. Right now, I can't do that with my boy, because all the other horses there are older.


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## eralcx3 (Jan 5, 2009)

Yeah he was never really getting beat up by the horses at this farm, he was just bossed around. He had a whole bunch of cuts from the last barn from horses there though. They are healing nicely now. =)) Hes in a super big field with about 6-7 other horses right now. One of them is only a couple years old and other ones a lot older than him.


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## MIEventer (Feb 15, 2009)

Congrats on the new horse, I've been involved with TB's for years.

Lets talk feet for a minute - TBs are notorious for flat feet, thin soles - BUT THIS CAN BE REMEDIED BY CORRECTIVE SHOEING.

You MUST have a knowledgeable Farrier who will promote BLOOD FLOW thorugh the hoof. NOTHING can improve if the farrier does not do his job correctly to allow the hoof to have bood flow.

The angles of the hoof has to be in accordance to the horses pasturns, shouldres and hips. The breaking point has to be correct, the frogs have to be open and the heels have to be permitted to grow.

If your Farrier says that your TB is just how he is and leaves it at that - FIND A NEW ONE!

My TB had horrible feet because the farrier we did have was not doing his job properly, not that he didn't know any better - it was because he only knew what he knew. My TB had long toes, no heels, thins soles and couldn't keep a shoe on him if his life depended on it...until I found my currect Farrier.

Now my TB has THICK soles, HEELS and a proper toe with correct angles and a fabulous breaking point. Plus, my TB keeps his shoes on which is a bonus.

~~~

Also - Full Cheek Snaffles should be used with the keepers. The Full Cheek was created to lay in the horses mouth at a certain angle, and this is only achieved with the keepers used. When you use the Full Cheek without the keepers, the bit rests in the horses mouth at an incorrect angle.










~~~


You have a beautiful horse, and congrats again - please get a thorough vet check done, and find a Farrier who will trim your horses feet to promote blood flow and proper growth.


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## eralcx3 (Jan 5, 2009)

I honestly have always thought that you were supposed to use bit keepers with the full cheek but no one at my barn uses the bit keepers and no one has ever said anything about it, so i was never positive. I will try to get some asap. thanks!!

About his feet. Right now his hooves aren't even long enough to put shoes on. I have been putting turpentine on the every other day to help them grow. Farrier told me to. Once his hooves are long enough I WILL be getting shoes put on him. This farrier does most of the horses at this barn including other thoroughbreds and does a great job. The reason he was lame, and still is, is because he chipped the front of his left front hoof off so that is really sore now.

The next time the farrier comes out I am going to have him take a look and see what he thinks and how long until I can get shoes on Thunder.


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## MIEventer (Feb 15, 2009)

It isn't about getting shoes on - it is about the farrier trimming the hooves at the correct angles, to allow blood flow.

The important factor is blood flow.


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