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Veteran
Posts: 220
Location: Conroe, TX 77304 | Stifles, when they work and then start going up the fence to the 1st barrel it is stifles. |
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 Am I really the Weirdo?
Posts: 11181
  
Location: Kansas | That sounds like my blaze face sorrel Clifford. He was winning rodeos last summer, then fell at a jackpot (panacked and I didn't think he had hurt anything), and ran down the fence 3 rodeos in a row despite slow work in between them and varying pocket sizes/first barrel approaches. This was an on & off thing for a few months because we couldn't find any soreness. He'd win a jackpot, then the next week go down the fence. No real rhyme or reason to it. DROVE ME CRAZY.
Finally in February I got fed up and spent an afternoon at the vet digging until we found that his hocks were slightly sore and the vet was fairly confident he had a stifle issue. We injected hocks, then I came back the next week when a second vet was there to get both sets of eyes on him. Determined it was a stifle problem, injected it, and went back to slow working him the next week. I did literally nothing but slow work for a couple weeks on the pattern, and he came back to turning the first barrel. For several runs. Then he decided he could just go blowing in there and not turn the first part of the time.
I got fed up with that after two runs in a row being taken for a ride, and decided to switch him back to the right and hope that would get us over the mental block from the old soreness. He did one exhibition at a race to the right, then cut a leg and was out of the lineup for a couple weekends so I didn't get to actually enter him until a month after that exhibition. He won a small local jackpot last week, then pulled a 2D check at a super tough one last night despite our timing being bad on the first barrel both runs. Best of alll, he is going in the gate and alley calmly and waiting for my cue to take off instead of just being a hot mess back there.
With all that said, I would suggest you go back to the vet, find whatever is sore because odds are something is if he had been doing so well previously, then bring him back slowly and consider switching to the right for a run or two at least to get over that mental hump. I know a lot of people don't like to switch a horse, but I pattern mine both ways and so switching back & forth is no big deal to me. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 784
Location: USA | He's hurting somewhere.... This was my gelding last summer. Took him to a couple different vets.. took him to the best lameness vet around our area. He couldn't anything. This went on all summer. I run to the right and he would go down the fence with me if I added any speed to it. I could lope all day long and he would turn the first... but he never got in the ground when he did. Tried switching directions and he would duck off in front of the second barrel. FINALLY he popped a splint on the hind left leg and it was growing. So took him back to the vet and this time he was slightly off... was never lame in any of his previous exams. We did an ultra sound and the vet couldn't see behind his splint. I have insurance on him so we decided to have an MRI done so he could see exactly what was behind the splint. Got the MRI..... Not only was my horse lame on the left leg... he had several bone chips (OCD) on his right hind fetlock.... So we finally found our problem. He had surgery done on both hind legs last fall and I am back to running him. No more going down the fence. My horse didn't show any lameness... he never refused going in the arena to work... with speed he wouldn't turn the barrel. Took all summer to find it but we did. So I wouldn't rule out pain... even if the vets say he is sound. Another thing you can try just to see if it is pain would be to bute him a couple days before a race and on race day. If he turns and doesn't go down the fence you know it's pain. That would help rule things out. I don't suggest to keep running him on bute only to rule out if it's pain.. don't want to get flamed for that statement.
Edited by Lookin For Diamonds 2015-05-14 9:15 AM
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 Shelter Dog Lover
Posts: 10277
| Just a note that bute won't mask or help all pain issues so even if you bute him he could still be hurting enough to not want to work. Bute did not help my guy at all. |
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Veteran
Posts: 287
| Mine started doing this, my story is almost identical to yours, spent over $1,000 with MULTIPLE vets, injecting about every joint he had over a 6 month period, still continued to do it. Finally, found out he was a bleeder, treated him, gave him 2 months off, brought him back slow and on lasix, I have never had the issue again. I agree with everyone else, something is wrong, don't quit until you find it....good luck!!! |
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Veteran
Posts: 111
| I have a friend who had the exact same issue with her good horse - she'd run into the first barrel and 8 times out of ten, her mare would run up the fence. When she didn't do it, she typically won the 1D. Turns out, the tree in her saddle was broken, and when she went in at speed, the broken tree was hurting her horse's back. May not be the case here, but maybe something to try!
Good Luck!
Edited by IdahoBarrelRacer756 2015-05-14 10:13 AM
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 814
Location: California | I had a horse that was the exact same...turns out it was his stifles. Never took a lame step in his life and acted completely normal until we ran to the first barrel. If I could manage to get him around the 1st, his second 2 barrels were perfect.
Also, check to see if he is bleeding. If a horse is bleeding, they will panic most of the time and if there isn't blood coming out of their nose, you wouldn't even know.
I would also treat him for ulcers. And make sure your bit isn't pinching or stabbing into the side of his face when you pick him up for the first barrel. |
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 Morale Booster!!
Posts: 1459
| Lots of great advice here. I love coming to this board for that very reason. Is there anyway you can post videos? One of him working and one of him not? That might help somone to see something. |
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Too busy outside!
Posts: 5417
| I agree with most everybody else here- it's a pain issue. He could have had an old suspensory injury when you bought him, which was maybe why he runs to the left now, (just a guess, whoever had him before probably figured he'd have less of a chance re-injuring it if he took just one left turn instead of two). Anyway, he's either re-injured an old injury (my first guess) or created a new one (my second guess). I'd have a vet look specifically at his left hind suspensory- just a thought. Keep us updated and good luck with it!
eta: I'm guessing suspensories because the vet has already ruled out anything that could be found on X-Rays or basic lameness evaluations. You might have to go for a nuke scan if the ultrasound can't find anything. Sucks I know- 
Edited by trickster j 2015-05-14 11:31 AM
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 Expert
Posts: 1440
Location: Texas | My horse with kissing spine did this. Have vet xray his back. It's the best $50 you will spend. Unfortunately by the time I got it diagnosed and did surgery it turned into a habit. After surgery I switched him left and have never looked back. Good luck. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 591
| Do you have a video? That may help with what is going on with the run. Also, as everyone else has said, rule out pain as being an issue. Seeking the help of a good trainer may also be very helpful. I cannot count the number of times that I have seen someone purchase a horse and go from the 4D to the 1D to only go back to the 4D or worse again on that same horse. 99.9% of the time it is a rider/horsemanship issue. The horse could put up with it for a little while, but it eventually catches up and starts causing big problems. People don't often want to admit they are the problem, but it is rarely the horse that is the problem IMO. Even the greatest riders out there are constantly trying to improve their horsemanship and communication with their horse. (Sherry has ridden with Clinton Anderson, Fallon said she went and rode with a cow horse or cutting trainer). After you rule out pain, I would work on horsemanship to fix the problem. |
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Duct Tape Bikini Girl
Posts: 2554
| Check for navicular issues. |
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Too busy outside!
Posts: 5417
| Pretty much I guess you've figured out the common consensus is that your horse is hurting somewhere. Prob shouldn't try to do any more runs or training on him until you find out why- let us know what you find out though! |
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Shelter Dog Lover
Posts: 10277
| trickster j - 2015-05-14 3:43 PM Pretty much I guess you've figured out the common consensus is that your horse is hurting somewhere. Prob shouldn't try to do any more runs or training on him until you find out why- let us know what you find out though!
Ditto, you can create a mental problem that could be tough to get over. My gelding's issue was his suspensory. In the process of trying to figure out his issue, vet would try something and tell me go make a run and see if it worked- at a run was the only time he would not work his left. I had chips taken out of a rear ankle thinking that was the issue- out for 6 months, came back good for a few months then same issue. Finally tore his suspensory, vet siad it was a progressive injury and what had been bothering him all along. Three very good vets could not find it, that is how tough they can be to diagnose. He was out a year but healed beautifully. He can go either direction but now is leary if you send him to the left first, which I prefer because his right turns are gorgeous and automatic and I want 2 of those. It has taken a long time to get him confident again to the left. |
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Am I really the Weirdo?
Posts: 11181
Location: Kansas | rodeomom3 - 2015-05-14 4:18 PM trickster j - 2015-05-14 3:43 PM Pretty much I guess you've figured out the common consensus is that your horse is hurting somewhere. Prob shouldn't try to do any more runs or training on him until you find out why- let us know what you find out though! Ditto, you can create a mental problem that could be tough to get over. My gelding's issue was his suspensory. In the process of trying to figure out his issue, vet would try something and tell me go make a run and see if it worked- at a run was the only time he would not work his left. I had chips taken out of a rear ankle thinking that was the issue- out for 6 months, came back good for a few months then same issue. Finally tore his suspensory, vet siad it was a progressive injury and what had been bothering him all along. Three very good vets could not find it, that is how tough they can be to diagnose. He was out a year but healed beautifully. He can go either direction but now is leary if you send him to the left first, which I prefer because his right turns are gorgeous and automatic and I want 2 of those. It has taken a long time to get him confident again to the left.
Oh boy isn't that the truth!!
It took us a while to figure out Clifford's problem and since he's a nervous horse to begin with, it didn't take long before he was getting pretty bad at the alley....mainly just trying to take off before we were lined up. After switching him to the right, I think I'm getting past it. He was an angel Wednesday night and I hope that is a sign of things to come. |
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 No Name Nancy
Posts: 2715
Location: never in the right place | My friends horse started doing that out of no where and it ended up to him needing his hocks injected. |
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