# My horse has problems in canter. What do i do?



## xxxxxxdemiang (Nov 15, 2010)

hi everyone,

I have a gelding and i am having some problems with his canter. He mainly disunities and as soon as you get of his back he looses his back legs. he is a very nice boy and he is only 8 years old. Oh yeah i am a show jumper, if that helps with anything. he normally disunites in corners and especially when i am riding him at faster speeds. If anyone has anymore questions please ask, because i have been riding him for more than 2 years and i would really like to find out how to get rid of his disuniting. Thank you.


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## MyBoyPuck (Mar 27, 2009)

I just got back from a saddle fitting clinic. The number one reason for a disunited canter is a saddle that sits on the horse's back where there is no support. If you saddle sits behind the last rib, there's your answer. This is more common with western saddles since they are longer. Not sure which you have.


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## SaratogaTB (Jun 14, 2010)

When you say "disunites" do you mean the same thing as to cross-fire, when their back lead is wrong and their front lead is correct? If that is what you mean, from what I have learned, it is a balancing issue. Agree to check on saddle fit, but absent that, its about balance.


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## xxxxxxdemiang (Nov 15, 2010)

Thank you for helping me, i will try to see if the saddle is the problem and if not i will see whether it could be his balance. although recently we gave him an injection into his left hind leg and it seems to resolve part of the problem. He still disunites but not as much as before. So some people think something could be hurting him. Any suggestions.


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## Luvs2jump (Oct 11, 2010)

How old is the horse and what was the injection for? If it's due to any type of pain like from arthritis then the pain is the problem and the end result then is your canter problem.


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## xxxxxxdemiang (Nov 15, 2010)

The horse got the injection because we were worried whether he had pain in his joints or not. But he is only 8 years old so i cant be because of age. I think that maybe something is hurting him and so he disunities. I have been riding him for 2 years and since i got him he has been disuniting, but it was a lot worse in the beginning. Do anyone have any other ideas. Thanx.


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## MyBoyPuck (Mar 27, 2009)

Has anyone done flexion tests on his hind legs? That may show something concrete.


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## acp723 (Oct 31, 2010)

I almost bought a horse with this same problem. We did a flexion test and it turned out she had a problem with her suspensory ligament. I would check with the vet to make sure it's nothing serious!


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## xxxxxxdemiang (Nov 15, 2010)

Thank you guys for your help i really appreciate it. I will see if i can get a flexion test done, hopefully i can. If anyone else has any questions please because any help could be helpful. Thanks.


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## SaratogaTB (Jun 14, 2010)

Sorry, I still dont understand what you mean by "disuniting". Is that the same as cross-firing?


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## xxxxxxdemiang (Nov 15, 2010)

What i mean by disuniting is that he cantering correct in the front but at the back he cantering counter counter canter sort of. He does it maybe because something might be hurting him. Maybe i didn't explain properly, he does it because also maybe because of inexperience and its really annoying because in the front he has the correct canter but he has the incorrect canter on his back legs. This normally happens when going into corners, because thats when they normally get unbalanced, the problem is i don't know how to get rid of it. The thing is that i do show jumping and i loose tons of time when going around a course and its really uncomfortable going round a corner. I loose time because i have to do big corners for him not to disunite as easily. If anyone has any more suggestions i would be very happy. Thanx.


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## SaratogaTB (Jun 14, 2010)

ok, that's what I thought you meant. I know it as "cross firing". My OTTB does it sometimes too, especially on one side. My understanding is that once you rule out some type of pain, that it is about being imbalanced and lots of walk/trot work, trotting over poles, up hills, etc will help strengthen/develop the horse.


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## Shimla101 (Nov 7, 2010)

By 8 years old it's entirely feasable that there could be arthritic/boney changes in the joints. Largely dependant on the type of work the horse has had to do. It's extremely common in Thoroughbreds and Warmbloods, because most TB's are started too early, and most Warmbloods (especially those who are aimed at dressage) are 9 times out of 10 just generally weak in the joints. In part, due to their size.
If he continues to disunite, even after having injections and provided your saddle is fitting properly, I'd highly recommend getting xrays and scans done of the stifle and hock in particular. Some form of physio therapy in conjunction with strength building wouldn't go amiss either.


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## AlexS (Aug 9, 2010)

So your horse was given an injection of pain meds and he did not do this afterwards? Then to me it is clear that he is in pain from something, I think you should get a vet out to check him out.


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## HalfPass (Jun 12, 2009)

From my experience it is common to "diunite" or "cross-fire" behind when there is a pain issue. In young horses I feel it could be balance but it should be checked.

The fact that you have had a joint injection in his hind leads me to believe there is a pain issue someplace.
Before the vet administered the joint inject did they do any evaluation of the horse? 
You asked about flexion testing- didnt the vet do this before deciding to inject and to figure out where to inject? And possible cause?

If it were my horse I would have the vet come out and do a full lamness evaluation. If x-rays or ultrasound is needed i would fork the cash out and figure it out.

Does the horse constantly swich leads behind? Any previous injuries? How long ago was this injection and where exactly was it?

Does the horse ever "Hop" behind???

Just wondering because this can signal some type of lamness or pain issue. Even if it is very slight or grade 1.

Hope this helps...
Halfpass


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## xxxxxxdemiang (Nov 15, 2010)

My horse is indeed a thoroughbred and he was raced when he was really young. As far as i know he has not had any past injuries that i know of. The vet did some x-rays before she injected the medicine. She saw a small black spot which could have been arthritis, and so she injected it into the joint above the hoof. I will also see if a vet can help me to a full evaluation of the horse maybe with x-rays. Does anyone one know if the training of the horse from a early age can affect the canter specifically disuniting?


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## apachiedragon (Apr 19, 2008)

It could also be something in his back causing pain, if he's doing it mainly around turns. I once had a gelding brought to me for training that did this in one direction, but not the other, and turned out he had a pinched nerve in his back that hurt when he bent a certain way, we assume because he had twisted it funny kicking the wall in his stall. A chiro and a little rest sorted him right out. I'd have the vet check him for back pain the next time she's out.


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## tealamutt (Aug 21, 2009)

Just to add my 2 cents- my OTTB also cross fires on one side. It was much worse before I got a properly fitting saddle (totally agree with My Boy Puck) but he still does it to some degree because he has a fibrotic myopathy in his right hind. It is a very common race horse injury and though he is sound to ride he will always have some degree of mechanical (not pain related) lameness in that leg. Unless you are 100% balanced at the canter he will swap out behind. 

I strongly suggest you get him vet checked and the saddle fit checked out by a pro. I am willing to bet there is a combo of poor saddle fit and some degree of unsoundness in him. If all that checks out, I'd go back to looking at yourself and make sure you have him completely balanced at the canter.


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