Mouth/teeth.
Good to go: Your horse allows you to check his teeth and mouth without undue resistance. His teeth, tongue, mouth, and lips are free from injury. He gets regular checkups by your vet or veterinary dentist.
Potential problem: Your horse unduly resists bridling. Sharp hooks have developed on his upper or lower molars. His teeth haven't been professionally checked in over a year.
What you should do: Call your equine veterinary dentist today. Ask a knowledgeable riding instructor or trainer to help you evaluate bridle and bit fit.
Withers/back.
Good to go: A visual check reveals no sores, rub spots, or other abnormalities on your horse's withers or back. When you carefully run your hands along his back, you don't feel anything out of the ordinary. He stands quietly for saddling.
Potential problem: You find spots where the hair is rubbed off in the saddle area. Your horse resists saddling unduly. When you run your hands along his back, you find thickened tissue or texture changes in his skin and hair. After a ride, you see twisted clumps of hair where there's been abnormal friction or rubs beneath the saddle, or you find dry spots indicating pressure points.
What you should do: Consult with your vet about saddle fit. Also consider consulting a knowledgeable riding instructor or trainer, and/or certified saddlemaker. Avoid saddling or riding your horse until the problem resolves.
In-Hand & Under-Saddle
In-hand.
Good to go: On the longe line or in a round pen, your horse trots naturally and in balance. He doesn't appear to favor a leg. He holds his head naturally and normally.
Potential problem: In a tight circle or on hard-packed dirt, your horse shows signs of lameness. These might include an unbalanced gait, favoring a leg, or exaggerated head movement. (Note: Subtle lameness problems often don't show up on a straight line, but will under more demanding conditions, such as circles, inclines, or mounted under saddle.)
What you should do: Call your vet today. Avoid saddling or riding your horse until the problem is identified and resolved.
Under saddle.
Good to go: As you warm up your horse, he happily accepts both leads at the canter. He executes upward and downward transitions fluidly.
Potential problem: He resists picking up his leads. When changing gait, he trips, stumbles, collapses a hip, twists his body, throws his head in the air, bucks, or wrings his tail. These are signs of possible pain.
What you should do: Call your vet today. Avoid saddling or riding your horse until the problem is identified and resolved. TTR
Nancy Loving, DVM, of Boulder, Colorado, graduated from Colorado State University-Fort Collins. After a lifetime of trail riding, she began participating in endurance riding and became an FEI Endurance Veterinarian. She's a team vet for the USA Endurance Squad for World Endurance Competitions. She's authored hundreds of magazine articles, as well as three books: Go the Distance: The Complete Resource of Endurance Horses; Conformation and Performance; and Veterinary Manual for the Performance Horse.
