What is stifles?

[Bob Gould]

What is stifles? Someone suggested I have my horse checked for it after I complained that he didn't always lift his back feet during a trot. He was a barrel racer when I bought him. He is four. He shows no signs of swelling of the legs, and his gaits are all fine except for dragging the back feet at a trot, and less often at a walk. I have never heard of stifles. What do we look for? He was vet checked a few months ago and came out with no problems. Is this something a vet could easily miss?
Phyllis

The stifle is a joint in the hind leg of the horse. It is the joint above the hock and is similar to the knee in people. If your horse was checked by the vet recently and he found no reason to be concerned about the stifles, then he probably is OK. Dragging the back feet at a trot and sometimes a walk can be the result of several different things. If you are worried about it, you should go back to your vet and ask him to specifically check him for some kind of problem in his back legs. Be sure and tell him that he drags his feet when walking and trotting. He may tell you, though, that you have a lazy horse that just doesn't pick his feet up.
Martha Wright