The cast horse is when a horse lays down too close to a wall or fence. To get up, they cannot get their limbs underneath their bodies. They become stuck and what follows is dependent on the horse. Either they become motionless, or they thrash, injuring themselves.

Becoming cast usually happens when no one is around – late at night. However, it can occur anytime a horse lays down. I recently watched my horse lay down too close to the fence at my house. She struggled to get up, breaking one of the wood boards of the fence and scraping her legs. I was helplessly far away, and the action lasted about 10 seconds.

One day while floating the teeth of a mini, the horse went down and became cast. He became motionless. I had my camera and asked the barn manager to film how to get a cast horse up without injuring the person. While I weighed more than this mini, the principle works no matter how much larger the horse is than you.

Please watch the two videos to learn how to un-cast a horse without injuring yourself. Please also visit the topic “Cast rails” in the related material tab to see how these devices can be installed to help your horse get out of being cast on its own. Sandwich boards are another topic to prevent catastrophic injuries when a horse becomes cast.

Casting Rails 

Stall Wall Sandwich Boards

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