Hidden damage
Old injuries can sometimes be very tricky to spot. Here are some issues that are quite common in horses, but often overlooked.
Pelvic asymmetry very typical of an old injury.
When seeing a horse for the first time, I always ask the owner, if the horse has had any injuries. A lot of the times, the answer is no. No torn tendons, no damaged ligaments, no traumatic injuries that might cause lameness. As I proceed to work on the horse, I often discover traces of past injuries. Bad ones, sometimes. I ask the owner if they are aware of it, and most of the time the answer is no. Many horses have had injuries that the owners don't seem to be aware of. You might be thinking, well, if the injury is old and the horse seems to be ok with it, what's the big deal? The big deal is that hidden damage often causes issues that seem to come back again and again. The big deal is that because we are not aware that these injuries even exist, we can be oblivious as to why the horse might be struggling to bend evenly left and right or pick up the right canter lead.
There are some very typical sites of damage in horses that are not often discussed. Knowing about them can help you make better decisions for your horse, so I would like to share some of those with you.
1. Pectoral tears. Damage in the pectoral muscles seems to be quite common in horses. I have seen these both in high level horses as well as horses that weren't being ridden. Often the scar tissue resulting from it can impede the horse's ability to properly engage the thoracic sling and it can shorten the stride in front. To check for this, carefully palpate the muscles between the horse's front legs. An old injury there will feel like a dent in the muscle tissue.
2. Damage to the nuchal bursa. There's a fluid filled sac called a bursa (two of them, actually) where the nuchal ligament attaches to the poll. Repetitive strain on the poll can cause this structure to become inflamed and very sensitive. If this goes on for a long time, there could be permanent damage to the region. Horses that look like they have a big ball of hard tissue just behind their ears have a damaged poll. In some horses, this can be alleviated, but not fixed. The muscles of the poll should be soft to the touch. If they are hard and sensitive, the poll is tight and restricted. If the tightness is very distinctly ball-shaped, this could mean the bursa is damaged.
3. Rib damage. Damage to the ribcage is very common too. While this can present in many different forms, the easiest one to spot is a depressed rib. This is most often caused by an unfortunate fall and can be something that is present for a very long time. It can negatively impact the horse's breathing, as well as his ability to bend through the ribcage. Run your fingers over the horse's ribs (this will be trickier with fat horses) and try to feel if all the ribs on the same level. If you feel that one is depressed more than its neighbours, your horse might have an old ribcage injury.
4. Very pronounced pelvic asymmetry. Most horses have slightly asymmetric pelvises, meaning that one or the other coxal tuberosity is higher than the other and that one of the sacral tuberosities is higher too. Most of the time the asymmetry is due to imbalances in soft tissue, but when it's very obvious it could be a sign of an old injury. This is especially true when the asymmetry in the coxal tuberosities does not match the asymmetry in the sacral tuberosities.
I encourage you to go out to your horse and check if you can find any of these issues. If you do, don't panic. Most horses with these problems can function just fine, but it is good to know what you are dealing with. Maybe the reason why your horse sometimes seems uneven on a small circle is because of a pectoral tear. Or maybe he swishes his tail when you ask him for a shoulder in on one side is because he has a rib injury. The more information you have, the better decisions you can make.