Get Your Cast Horse Back on Its Feet

It sometimes seems that horses have a talent for getting themselves in trouble. Usually, it’s the environment we keep them in that is the real problem. No doubt, wild horses occasionally get cast, but it’s common in our domestic horses, and while it can happen to horses in pastures, getting cast is more likely to happen when a horse is in a stall.

What Is Cast?

A horse is said to be cast when it gets stuck on its back or side and a bit like a turtle, can’t get its feet under it to stand up again. The horse's legs may get jammed against a wall or fence, caught in a rope, its own halter, or blanket straps, stuck under a feeder, rail or another object, or the horse might lie down in a hole or hollow in the ground and not be able to scramble out of it. ​

If your horse has fallen, or has laid down and is unable or unwilling to get up, but is not cast, call your veterinarian immediately.

How Do Horses Get Cast?

Horses that lie down in their stalls may lie down too close to a wall, and be unable to stretch out their legs to get up again. A horse may roll in its stall and get stuck with its legs up against a wall, or tangled in a hay feeder. A horse will roll to scratch itself and get comfortable, or a horse might roll if it has colic. If a stable blanket gets shifted while the horse lies down, it can 

get tangled in the leg straps and be unable to stand up. In the pasture, 

horses can get cast when they lie down too close to fences or other objects. Even lying down in a hollow, or against a hill can prevent a horse from regaining its feet. Sometimes soft footing makes it hard for a horse to stand up after lying down. In the winter time, horses that lie or fall in deep snow can become cast. Horses can fall in trailers, and be unable to get up.

Many horses, especially youngsters scratch their ears with a hind toe and can get tangled in their halter. Once tangled, the horse may fall and be