Suggest some exercises for a stiff to the left horse please

[alexsmum]

MY horse is 171/2 yrs old. He is stiff and falls in to the left when ridden. Under the lunge I have observed that his right hind leg twists slightly at the stiffle and steps under the body, his left legs doesnt.

He isnt lame .

I would like to help him overcome this problem.

[WendyP]

I'd get the vet to check him out. There may be a physical reason he twists one leg and doesn't bring the other under.  It may be as simple as under-developed muscle, it may be arthritis of the hock. It could be years of having worked that way due to a previous problem.
I think we need to know what the problem is we are trying to solve.

I still recommend working evenly on both sides for a one sided horse, however I would avoid lunging until the vet has been.

[intouch]

Check with the vet and have some body work - Equine Touch etc, should help.
If on-going, magnotherapy eg Bioflow boots.

[alexsmum]

Hi

The he isnt lame comment in my email comes from the vet not me!

I suspect its in part due to being ridden on the same diagonal for years my fault which I did not realise I was doing until it was pointed out!

[shoveltrash]

lateral work!
first from the ground, then under saddle.
once your horse is moving away from your leg pressure (teaching it from the ground is easiest first), you can get more bend, and get more 'stepping under' with the hind leg you need to focus on.

massage & stretches would probably also help your horse 

good luck!

[WendyP]

TTouch could still help him.

The Stretching exercises for horses book is good.  Maybe consult with a good physio and see what they find and advise. 

[chapsi]

apart from checking with a chiro, carrot stretches are good supple exercises too.

[sixfootblonde]

TTouch could still help him.

The Stretching exercises for horses book is good.  Maybe consult with a good physio and see what they find and advise. 

Which book is that?