Tripping/stumbling/falling

Question
Hello Dorothy,
I have an 8 year old Rhinelander. I have owned him for a year now he is my first horse and I ride 5 to 6 times a week hunter/jumper and would like to try cross country in the future...In the past year we have had tripping/stumbling issues at the walk/trot/canter but nothing serious and we always know when he is due for shoes because it increases...In the past few months we have tripped and fell to the ground twice and we both have been fortunate to walk away but I feel like I may be missing something. I have addressed this with my ferrier and he has adjusted his shoes but I wonder if this is enough... Please let me know if you have any ideas to try....He is a great horse...Thanks for your time...

Answer
Hello Jamie,

First of all, let me tell you that I am sorry for your horse having this condition because there is no sure answer.  I know because I had the same situation during 2008/09.  I had a lovely warmblood mare, great mover, and I was having a ball training her for dressage.  She began to stumble quite regularly at all gaits.  I tried the same thing you did.  Farrier issues.  Then the stumbling got worse until one day, while we were having a quite lovely ride, she suddenly went down to her nose on the ground.  That movement dislodged me but did not throw me from the saddle.  She struggled to get up and could not...went down again and then threw herself up. She is a very powerful mare.  I went off but did not get seriously hurt.  I figured that it was an anamoly and got back on.  I took the mare to vets, had her tested for all sorts of problems. I took her to an equestrian chiropractor/massager and he did all sorts of things with her.   The vets and the chiropractor told me that stumbling/falliing can have many, many causes and seldom are they discovered and cured.  Could be stifle, could be neurological. Many expensive tests are required and a real answer is seldom found.  I researched the issue on the internet and in vet books.  No real answer.

For another month we had great rides, but she continued to trip and stumble, although catching herself.  Then on one day she repeated the nose on the ground fall and this time when she threw herself up, she threw me off.  I had a back injury and an internal injury that kept me down for 3 months.  I could have been killed or had a broken neck or broken back.

I gave the mare away for a brood mare to a good home.

So you can see what I am telling you.  If the horse is very valuable and you wish to spend large sums trying to find the cause of the stumbling, go ahead.  If not, find the horse a good home or turn him out to pasture.

So very sorry that I cannot give you more hope, but none of my advisors gave me any at all.

Happy riding,
Dorothy