Stringhalt and Shivers Explained

Summary Hind limb gait abnormalities in horses such as stringhalt and shivers can be very frustrating and impact the horse’s performance and the ability of farriers to trim hind feet. The two conditions are often confused and until recently there has been very little information available to horse owners about stringhalt and shivers. This seminar, rich with videos, will describe the symptoms of stringhalt, shivers and some other gait abnormalities, review the latest research into the cause of these diseases and outline what owners can do to help maintain horses with these conditions.Shivers research was funded by the US Equestrian Foundation, The University of Minnesota Comparative Medicine Grant and the Mary Anne McPhail Equine Performance Center.

Presenter Information

Stephanie Valberg is professor and Director of the University of Minnesota Equine Center, St. Paul MN. She received her undergraduate degree and D.V.M. from the Ontario Veterinary College, completed a Ph.D. in equine exercise physiology at the Swedish University of Animal Science as well as a residency in internal medicine at the University of California – Davis. She is a Board certified internal medicine clinician at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Valberg’s research centers on neuromuscular diseases in horses with a special focus on genetic diseases of skeletal muscle and their nutritional management.

She has received several research awards including the Distinguished Women Scholar at the University of Minnesota, the EquiSci International Award and the Pfizer Award for research excellence and has over 110 scientific publications. Dr. Valberg is a frequent speaker at national and international veterinary, nutrition and genetic conferences.

Watch the recorded webcast below!