Tall horses, especially those over 16.2 hands, are also more susceptible than shorter horses; ponies and Miniature Horses are, if ever, rarely affected. myasthenic horses but all Shivers horses are Bartonella horses (i.e., infected with one or more species of Bartonella) until proven otherwise. “Their legs would stretch out behind them rather than move upward. It is suspected that shivers stems from a problem with the nerves, or within the part of the brain that controls the fine movement of the limbs. This is his story so far. It is not known what causes shivers or why certain horses are affected (shivering more usually affects draught horses, though it is also seen in Warmbloods, Thoroughbreds and other breeds). The prognosis for horses with Shivers is generally poor: many cases remain in a plateau, but the majority will worsen over time. Dear Robert, I have a 17.3 hand warm blood that has shivers in his hind leg (right now in both legs due to scratches on his fetlocks). Our ambassadors at Hesteyri Horses took on Jazz, a dressage bred warmblood, who had been diagnosed with shivers. Anyway, this horse is quite low in energy and laid back, however...he's a worrier and startles easily and is a HUGE dramatic "spooker". This is a perfectly safe assumption to make due to the current lack of a definitive laboratory test for Bartonella in horses. He was in a very advanced stage of shivers at the point this video was taken. The videos also revealed that there were two basic types of shivers cases. How to Manage a Horse with Shivers Dr. Lydia Gray, SmartPak Staff Veterinarian and Medical Director, discusses how to manage a horse diagnosed with shivers, including signs and symptoms, as well as predisposing factors. Shivers horses already have plenty of IgE; MG is characterized by high levels of mast cell density in certain tissues and LEMS has been linked to mastocytosis (an excessive number of mast cells) in humans. Shivering, or shivers as it is also known, is a mysterious and poorly understood disease of the nervous system. His limbs get stuck in hyperflexion intermittently at a walk, consistently when backing and occasionally when turning. Wasting of the muscles across the thighs and hindquarters may become increasingly apparent, with the horse's back-end eventually becoming weak and stiff. Researchers suspect a genetic component, considering shivers most commonly occurs in draft horses, Warmbloods, and occasionally light breeds, such as Quarter Horses and Thoroughbreds. Farriers are probably most aware of the condition and know how common it … Shivering in horses is a little-understood neuromuscular disorder, which sadly worsens over time, with no effective treatment currently available. “Some horses refused to back up in hand or lift their legs when asked,” says Valberg. “Shivers is a progressive condition and in severe cases can progress to the point where the horse refuses to have his hindlegs picked up at all,” says Gil. This is Stanley, the horse profiled in “The Mystery of Shivers,” (EQUUS 448, January 2015).