Can A Horse Live With Three Legs? (Find Out!)

One of our horses recently had a medical issue, and the vet warned that its leg may not survive.

I asked the vet if it was possible for the horse to live if one of its legs had to be removed—I wasn’t too hopeful.

Horses are big, heavy animals, and I found it hard to imagine they might be able to live with only three legs.

Nonetheless, I did some research while my horse was resting up and tried to answer the question.

So, can a horse survive with three legs?

No, a horse cannot survive with three legs. Horses need all four of their legs to support their huge weight, and unlike dogs or cats or other lighter animals, they cannot live with only three legs. This is why racehorses that break their legs are often simply put down—there’s very little that can be done to treat it.

So, horses cannot live with three legs.

It can be unfortunate as, though horses are overall very large, it’s still quite easy for them to injure their legs beyond repair.

You should always be very careful of this fact when caring for your horse.

Can a horse survive with an amputated leg?

Universally, no, a horse cannot survive with an amputated leg.

Horses simply carry too much weight in their bodies to be able to walk on only three legs.

In the case that a horse’s leg has to be amputated, most of the time the horse will probably be euthanized.

Dogs and cats and other small animals are able to survive with an amputated leg because they carry a much lesser weight, and are able to distribute that weight to different parts of their body as needed.

Horses are simply too heavy, and most of their bulk is supported by all four of their legs.

They can’t balance their weight any other way, except for a moment or two.

Whether the front or the back legs, horses need to have all four legs.

If they don’t, they won’t survive.

Their other legs will be bearing too much weight, and they’ll begin to buckle over time until they eventually break.

Advancements in veterinary medicine do mean that there are treatments available that can help some horses gain full mobility again after losing a leg.

They’re hard to come by and expensive, though, and a three-legged horse will not survive without them.

Has there ever been a horse with three legs?

There are examples of horses with three legs who have been treated.

A miniature horse named Pogo had three legs when he was rescued by an animal welfare group.

Through the help of a prosthetic leg, the horse was able to walk and even gallop a little bit in its field.

It had been seen on a rural road by people who reported it animal welfare groups, so Pogo must have been surviving with only three legs for some time at least.

However, Pogo had numerous health problems when he was rescued, despite his incredible will to live.

Pogo’s leg was unfortunately torn off after he was attacked by dogs, so he was not born this way.

The other important point here is that Pogo was a miniature horse. miniatures horses have, proportionally, much less weight to carry on their three legs than ordinary horses. this goes a long way to explaining why Pogo was able to survive for any amount of time with only three legs.

Had Pogo been an average sized horse, walking around with only three legs would have been a much bigger problem, and getting it to survive with a prosthetic would have been equally difficult.

Prosthetics can only go so far for such a heavy animal.

So, what about birth defects?

Can a horse be born with three legs?

Horses certainly can be born with three legs, and birth defects like this are not uncommon.

Typically, responsible breeders will abort fetuses that show signs of defects like missing a leg.

If a horse is born with three legs, it does not give it a much better chance of surviving with only three.

It will likely not reach maturity, if it is allowed to be born.

The ethical thing to do with a horse born with three legs is to euthanise it.

If you are overseeing a horse pregnancy, you should have ultrasounds done regularly to ensure the health of the fetus.

If it is not healthy, aborting it is the most ethical thing to do.

Horses are, despite their appearance, actually quite fragile creatures, then.

If something severe happens to their legs, the possibility of them surviving the injury is unfortunately quite low.

It’s certainly possible for them to survive the injury and have their leg treated, but in the case that it must be amputated, the horse will most likely be euthanized.

Horses that lose a leg face a whole array of potential health problems, and they are usually fatal.