Q: Sway Back

Answered by terrir on 7/12/03, 3:49 am

A: Sway Back

> I am contemplating purchasing a horse from my riding stable.
> This will be
> my ''first horse'' and I'm a little bit concerned about the
> fact that I am not
> very knowledge about the confirmation/health of horses. I
> have to rely on
> information from other sources, such as my riding
> instructor. This horse is a
> 7 year old quarter horse gelding. He's very friendly and
> quiet. He was purchased
> from a local horse dealer. My problem is that he has a sway
> back. My riding instructor
> does not seem overly concerned about this and has told me
> that the condition can be
> reversed with proper exercise and muscle conditioning. Is
> this true? He has not been
> checked by the vet yet, so I'm not aware of any other
> problems with him. Can you please
> provide me with some information about ''sway back'' such as
> the possible causes, whether
> it's reversible and is there possibility for future problems
> with his back? I'm wondering
> if I should pass on him and keep searching. I would
> appreciate any information you could
> give me.

Hi, before you purchase any horse you should have it thoroughly checked by an equine vet. A sway back in a horse could be caused by a number of things Brood mares are sometimes swaybacked simply because they've spent their whole lives relaxing and carrying lots of belly weight. Chronic hyperextension of the back to avoid other uncomfortable problems--from of poor shoing (angles wrong), leg/hoof problems, to spinal defects are common causes. Swayback in a horse that young is fairly uncommon and most often associated with defects in the articulations of certain vertebrae in their back (usually arount the 12th to 14th thoracic vertebrae) this results in defective support for ligament attachments and weakness in the back. Another thing to consider is this: The American Saddlebred horse (I don’t know if you’ve ever seen one naked—i.e. standing without a saddle) but they LOOK swayback because most of them are. Over the years, this trait has been bred into the horse in order to get them to ‘look’ the way they do and enhance the highstepping, bouncy, high tailed action they are know for. When standing, the neck is elevated, the forelegs straightened, the thoracolumbar spine (the back) is lowered, and the hindlegs are stretched back. This ‘lowers’ the spine. Historically Saddlebreds that naturally takes this stance, are more likely to be selected for breeding, thus passing on this characteristically uncharacteristic sway in the back.
Is it possible that this 'quarter horse' is a saddlebred or saddlebred cross?
I’d get the horse checked out by a vet before I bought it if I were you. Good luck with it, hope everything works out for you!
Terri