Horse-Chat Topic

A-Cast-Horse...

I've had many inquiries at Horse-Chat about the subject of horses getting cast in confined spaces. A-cast-horse...can be a difficult thing to deal with on your own. Today one of my stallions got cast, so I decided to address the subject a bit more in depth. I'll tell you how my Stallion Xampu got cast and how I dealt with it, but first...

What is "a-cast-horse"?

Horses can lay down in such a manner that their legs get stuck and they cannot get up. This is called getting cast. This usually happens when a horse lays down too close to a wall. His legs cannot stretch out in front of him to be used as a lever to turn himself over or get up.

The process of getting up from a prone position for the horse involves a few steps.

• First the horse must raise its head and neck.
• Then he must get both front legs and elbows stretched out in front of him
• This way he is balanced on his chest.
• He then pushes his front end up so he looks as if he is sitting.
• Finally his back legs push the hind end up.

If during any of these steps he is so confined that there is not enough room in front, to the side or behind him, he will get cast.

An alternative is for the horse to roll over and give his legs more room. But in order to role over the horse must again stretch his legs out in front of him to use them as leverage to swing his barrel over. If, as we said, there is not enough room in front of him to stretch out his legs, he cannot roll over.

A-cast-horse may struggle, kicking and thrashing until he hurts himself. Or he may fight and struggle so hard that he wears himself out and just gives up. Horses should not be in a prone position too long as this can cause muscle atrophy and damage to important organs.

Quote for a Stressful Day

God forbid that I should go to any heaven where there are no horses" ~ R.B Cunnigham-Graham