A short step, a hard lead, a horse that stops jumping the way he used to — here is exactly how Dr. Murphy gets from "something's off" to an answer.
Performance problems are rarely dramatic. Most start as something small — a horse who lands a little harder one direction, warms up longer than he used to, or just stops feeling like himself. The purpose of a lameness evaluation is to turn that impression into something you can act on: a localized diagnosis and a plan.
Every workup follows the same systematic sequence, because shortcuts in lameness work turn into guesses — and guesses are expensive.
The exam starts before anyone touches the horse. When did you first notice it? Is it worse on hard ground, in one direction, at the start of work or the end? What's the horse's job, his schedule, his shoeing cycle, his history?
You and your trainer see this horse every day — that knowledge is diagnostic gold, and Dr. Murphy takes the time to collect it.
A careful hands-on examination at rest: palpation of the limbs and back for heat, swelling, and sensitivity; assessment of digital pulses; hoof testers to check the feet; and a look at conformation, muscling, and how the horse stands and bears weight.
Feet first, always — a remarkable share of performance problems begin in the foot.
The horse is evaluated at the walk and trot in hand on a straight line, then on a circle — typically on both hard and soft footing, because different problems show themselves on different surfaces. When the issue only appears under tack, Dr. Murphy watches the horse under saddle doing his actual job.
She's watching for the grade of the lameness, which limb — or limbs — are involved, and the character of the gait: how the head moves, how the pelvis rises and falls, where the stride shortens.
Each limb's joints are held under flexion for a standardized interval, and the horse trots off immediately after. Comparing the response side to side — and joint region to joint region — helps localize which structures are contributing.
Flexions are a screening tool, not a verdict; they point the investigation, and their findings are always weighed against the rest of the exam.
When the source isn't obvious, this is the definitive step: numbing specific nerves or joints in sequence — starting low and working up — and re-evaluating the horse after each block. When the lameness improves, the problem has been localized to a region, not guessed at.
It takes patience and a methodical hand, and it is the difference between treating the actual problem and treating a theory.
Once the problem is localized, imaging confirms what's happening there — radiographs for bone, ultrasound for soft tissue, and referral for advanced imaging such as MRI or CT when a case warrants it. Because the block localized the region first, imaging is targeted rather than a fishing expedition.
Dr. Murphy walks you through the images and what they mean in plain language.
Diagnosis in hand, the conversation turns to what will actually help: targeted joint therapy or medication, shoeing changes worked out with your farrier, adjustments to the training program, and a realistic rehabilitation and return-to-work schedule built around the calendar you're actually keeping.
You leave knowing what was found, what it means for the horse's job, and exactly what happens next — including honest advice when the right answer is rest, or a referral.
A little setup makes the evaluation faster and more accurate:
Describe what you're seeing and Dr. Murphy will point you in the right direction — whether that's a workup this week or reassurance that it can wait.