Horse breeding from planning through foal care

Prevention and treatment for problems of the equine foot

Proper feeding practices for foals, adult horses, and older horses

Discussions about the welfare of our equine friends

Horse-heath-problem risk factors, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment

How to care for the basic health needs of horses

All aspects of caring for performance horses

Design and maintain a healthy horse operation

Prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of leg lameness

News and issues for equine health professionals

Cover Story

The Many Faces of Equine Metabolic Syndrome

Unveiling what EMD and ID really look like.

Also in this Issue

Post-Foaling Red Flags
HERDA 20 Years Later
Strangles: An Old Disease in a Modern World
Before She Foals: Managing Broodmares
Beneath the Hoof Wall: Soft Tissues Injuries of the Equine Foot

Latest Q&A

4 Ways to Boost Soil Health on Horse Farms

April 22, 2024

Q&As

Equine Behavior

Our animal behavior experts field your questions about why your horse does XYZ.

Horse Nutrition

Equine nutritionists respond to queries about forage, grain, supplements, and other related topics.

Performance Horse Health

Veterinarians and researchers tackle questions about equine athletes.

Featured Podcasts

Can PPID or EMS Affect My Horse’s Joints?

Methodologies for Assessing Horses' Quality of Life Needed

When Should I Retire My Horse From Riding?

Podcasts

Ask 'TheHorse' Live

The Horse’s experts answer your questions during a monthly live audio event.

Equine Innovators

Join us as we interview leading equine researchers from the University of Kentucky.

Fact Sheet: Pituitary Pars Intermedia Dysfunction (PPID)

Fact Sheet: Equine Protozoal Myeloencephalitis (EPM) in Horses

Free Reports:

View All Free Reports

Quick referenced of horse conditions, diseases and health topics

Forms

Checklists and identification forms for horse owners

What’s Causing Lateral Resistance in My Quarter Horse?

February 12, 2020
Posted by Richard Markell, DVM

A horse appears healthy and sidepasses well to the right, but not to the left. Could he be in pain? A sports medicine practitioner shares his thoughts.

Topics: Article, Back and Spine, Commentary, Diagnosing Hoof Lameness, Diagnosing Lameness, Injuries & Lameness, Lameness, Monitoring Exercise Performance, Muscle and Joint Problems, Musculoskeletal System, Performance Horse Health Commentary Series, Sports Medicine

Favorite

No account yet? Register

Ask your veterinarian to conduct a lameness that includes both ridden and in-hand evaluations, as some issues only become apparent when the horse is under saddle. | Photo: The Horse Staff

Q.I have a 13-year-old Quarter Horse gelding that is in good health, and he is usually a pleasure to ride. He does extremely well with movement one direction, such as sidepassing to the right, but he seems very uncomfortable when I have him sidepass to the left. I was wondering if there could be some physical problem causing him pain that makes him reluctant to move to the left?

—Via e-mail

A.This is a great question. It brings up the concept that we must always rule out a medical issue as a base for behavioral issues. That is always a challenge as horses are, I believe, much smarter than many of us give them credit for, and they can quickly learn avoidance behavior

Create a free account with TheHorse.com to view this content.

TheHorse.com is home to thousands of free articles about horse health care. In order to access some of our exclusive free content, you must be signed into TheHorse.com.

Start your free account today!

Already have an account?
and continue reading.

Favorite

No account yet? Register

Written by:

Richard Markell, DVM

Richard Markell, DVM, of Encinitas, Calif., has been the official vet at four World Cup show jumping and dressage finals, treating vet at two Olympic Games trials, and has a client list of many celebrity and Olympic horses worldwide. His practice, Ranch and Coast Equine, is limited to sport horses. He and his wife, Kristin, have a son, Henry, and the Markell menagerie includes two horses, a Miniature Donkey, two dogs, a guinea pig, and a gecko.