What does it mean when a horse is over at the knee?

Asked by: Noah Smith

If the line is in back of the knee (i.e., the knee looks like it is bent even when the horse is fully bearing weight on the leg), the horse is considered “over at the knees” or “buck kneed,” a condition that also distributes pressure unequally over the leg.

What causes a horse to be over at the knee?

Over at the knee (sprung knees)
It is sometimes caused by an injury to the check ligament or the structures at the back of the knee. The extra stress applied to the tendons increases the risk of bowed tendons, as well as injury to the suspensory ligament and sesamoid bones.

How does over at the knees affect a horse?

“It puts severe stress on the soft tissue running down the back of the leg.” Conversely, horses who are over at the knee are very prone to stumbling. A long pastern leaves horses prone to soft tissue injuries.

How can you tell a good horse?

Ask about their temperament to help you determine if they are generally calm and easy to control, or are they more high-energy and free-spirited. Depending on your riding goals, it might be worth getting a high-energy horse because once trained, they’ll do well competing in strenuous activities.

What does it mean when a horse is flat kneed?

Short, Low Movement is also called “flat-kneed” action by western pleasure riders. It also shows little flexion at the knees and hocks, but with a shorter stride than the daisy cutter.

How do you tell if a horse is a good mover?

A horse that has balanced conformation–with neck, back and hip of equal length–will generally be a good mover and that translates into good performance. A horse that exhibits correct conformation should be a natural athlete.

What does it mean if a horse is camped out?

Camped-out horses have their hind legs set out behind the point of the buttock posterior to the imaginary line. This fault prevents the horse from getting its hind legs under itself to move collected. These horses tend to jab their legs into the ground and are unable to lift their bodies sufficiently to be good movers.

What does it mean when a horse paddles?

Paddling is when the arc of the flight of the foot doesn’t swing straight forward, but rather wide and to the outside before landing straight in front of the horse.

What causes a horse to paddle or wing?

It depends on the reason for the paddling or winging. Some horses do it because of conformation and some do it because of unbalanced trimming or shoeing. There are other possible reasons but these are the most common. Paddling is when the flight path Is toward the center and winging is when it is toward the outside.

What does tied in at the knee mean?

Tied in at the knee refers to a horse who has too small (or light) a tendons for their size. You can see this by there being a marked difference between the circumference of the leg below the knee and above the knee. It almost looks like an elastic band has been tied around the leg below the knee.

What is splay footed in horses?

Horses that have toes that point outward (toed-out) are called splay-footed. These splay-footed horses travel with an inward hoof flight path referred to as winging or dishing in. Another structural deviation in the front legs is that in a horse that is base-narrow.

What is pigeon toed horse?

“Pigeon toe” refers to conformation of the limbs such that when viewed from the front, the hoof from the fetlock down deviates inward. This is much more common in front limbs. Pigeon toed limbs usually grow excessive hoof on the medial (inside).