Cow hocked Weanlings

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Frizzle's Gal

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I have a 6month old colt. When I bought him his legs were straight, now he looks cow hocked. His hoofs are a little long but were getting them done. Will getting his hoofs done fix it? Will he ever grow out of it? Thanks in advance.
 
If his legs were straight when you got him...it sounds more like this is a nutrition problem, or a problem with his hooves not being trimmed correctly.

Many weanlings are a bit cowhocked until they develop their muscles on the insides of their legs. But...if the legs were straight when you got him, that isn't the problem. :no:
 
My gut feeling is that it could be a combination of needing a hoof trim AND nutritional.....but you didn't mention what feed he's been on.

MA
 
Dona - What nutritional components impact the legs, positively and negatively? What feeds/supplements are recommended to ensure maximum benefit for the legs?
 
One of my horses had super nice legs until I weaned him.

Immediately they turned.

One day they were good, the next they went off. Back and forth and it drove me nuts. This was crap.

Finally Hus began to trim him about once a week, then once every two weeks, just a light rasping. At the same time I stepped up the feed program, increased all of it, then top dressed it with Purina 12 12 minerals and finally we got those legs stablized. I'm not really sure what the heck was going on but we ended up with those nice legs again.
 
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This is hard to say.

Some do, some don't.

Some may have a predisposition to it, genetically, even if both parents have good legs.

Others will end up permanently off for the only fact that they had poorish nutrition and bad farrier work as youngsters, or no farrier work at all.

My advice is to have a good, well-trained farrier evaluate your weanie, and trim often. Now if either parent has this defect as well, then this would let that horse out of the breeding shed depending on the severity and reason for the defect.

TYPICALLY, it should abate as they grow into themselves, and be gone by long yearling age. As was mentioned, good nutrition is key, as is a good worming program.

I've seen some weanlings with the huge, bloated belly that so many get when they aren't quite getting the right feed, and slack muscular development over the topline that accompanies this condition (I see so many times people saying these are fat and so the feed is reduced, another mistake) improve the fastest with a mere change in feeding, though the hooves DO need to be addressed anyway.

Growing foals need very frequent trims, especially if something appears off for whatever reason.

Hope this helps, I know it's kind of a "non" answer, but in my observation, at least half of them grow right out of or through this phase provided they were relatively straight at birth, and both parents have good hind leg angles.

Liz M.
 
I think there are lines of minis that are predisposed to cowhocks and it will depend on what you choose do with your horse as to wheter they will be a concern or not. I personally do not like cowhocks but I have heard a lot of people who use their minis for driving say they don't mind if their driving horses are somewhat cowhocked and even like them better because the horse can do a better job of getting the rear moving. In halter it would be considered a fault for most judges, I think. It can depend on what the horse is used for as to the type of conformation a person may strive for. Just as a flat crop may be a fault to some people, others find it desirable. I do think that it is very important to keep those young feet trimmed and nutrion well balanced for a growing mini. Mary
 

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