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Young horse care involves much more than feeding, hoof trimming, and preparing your horse for training. The way a foal or yearling stands, moves, uses their feet, and behaves can reveal patterns worth paying attention to long before they are ever ridden.

What if your young horse constantly tosses her head, chews on everything, doesn’t stand square, develops uneven hooves, or simply moves differently from the other horses?

It can be easy to assume they’re just being young.

In this episode of Holistic Horseworks Live, April Love evaluates two young Arabian horses, Gem and Honor, and shows viewers what she looks for when assessing a young horse from head to hoof.

From hoof balance and posture to the first rib, pelvis, TMJ, cranial structures, and previous injuries, April explores how seemingly unrelated signs may fit into a much bigger picture.

Watch the full episode to follow both evaluations and learn what April looks for in foals and young horses.

When Young Horse Behavior Seems Unusual

Gem is an 11-month-old Arabian filly with a few behaviors that have left her owner wondering why.

She frequently tosses her head, puts her mouth on things, runs much more than the other horses, and even carries her hay over to her water before eating it. Her teeth had already been checked, but her owner still felt there was something unusual about what she was seeing.

Gem also had an accident earlier in life. She became trapped underneath a gate with her neck beneath the bottom rail and may have remained there for some time.

Rather than dismissing the behaviors as simply part of being a young horse, April begins looking for physical patterns that she believes may help explain what Gem is doing.

Horse Head Tossing, TMJ and Cranial Balance

One of the first places April examines is Gem’s head.

Looking at her face, April points out differences she sees in the position of Gem’s eyes and nostrils. She then uses a model horse skull to demonstrate the structures she is evaluating and discusses the relationships she sees between the TMJ, teeth, chewing patterns, poll, atlas, and cranial bones.

For horse owners, this part of the episode provides a different way to observe horse head tossing and unusual mouth behavior.

Does one side of the face look different from the other? Does your horse chew differently? Are dental problems recurring? Is there a history of an accident or pullback incident?

April demonstrates what she looks for and why she believes these details deserve attention as part of a whole-horse evaluation.

Why Your Young Horse May Not Stand Square

How does your horse stand when nobody is positioning their feet?

April pays close attention to this during her evaluation.

When the front feet don’t naturally rest side by side, she examines areas such as the ribs and withers. When the hind feet aren’t square, she looks farther up into the pelvis and hind end.

This is one reason horse posture is such an important part of April’s approach.

Instead of looking only at the foot that’s positioned differently, she asks what may be happening elsewhere in the body that could influence how the horse chooses to stand.

In the full episode, you can watch April evaluate these patterns directly on Gem and explain what she’s seeing as she moves through the body.

High-Low Hooves and Uneven Hoof Growth in Young Horses

Uneven hoof growth can become noticeable surprisingly early.

During Gem’s evaluation, April looks at all four feet and discusses high-low hoof patterns, hoof loading, posture, first rib position, and hip position.

Her approach is to look beyond the hoof itself.

If a young horse repeatedly loads one leg differently, April believes it’s important to investigate why instead of only correcting the resulting hoof shape.

That means considering the relationship between horse hoof balance and whole-body posture.

For owners dealing with a young horse whose hooves continually grow differently despite regular trimming, this is one of the most useful demonstrations in the episode.

Is It Horse Conformation or Posture?

Honor, the second young Arabian featured in the episode, presents very differently from Gem.

Where Gem is constantly moving and showing obvious behaviors, Honor is much more laid-back.

But April still finds patterns she wants to investigate, particularly through his front end, first ribs, stance, and hooves.

This raises an important question for young horse owners:

Are you looking at your horse’s natural conformation, or at the way your horse is currently holding and using their body?

April also discusses why she doesn’t automatically interpret reluctance to move as laziness or unwillingness. In her approach, she first considers whether moving freely may be physically difficult for that particular horse

Why April Starts Equine Bodywork With Foals and Yearlings

April believes there is value in observing and working with horses before riding and training add more physical demands to their bodies.

In the episode, she discusses handling a foal’s feet early, gradually introducing young horses to everyday experiences, monitoring how they stand and move, and paying attention when hoof or posture patterns begin developing.

She also explains that her bodywork approach with babies differs from working with older horses because young horses have not accumulated years of riding, training, and compensation patterns.

The goal isn’t to assume that every unusual behavior means something is wrong.

It’s to notice patterns early instead of waiting until they become bigger problems.

What Should You Watch for in a Foal or Young Horse?

Take a few minutes to observe your young horse without asking them to stand or move a certain way.

Look at:

• How naturally square they stand
• Whether they consistently place one foot forward
• Differences between the left and right hooves
• High-low hoof patterns or uneven hoof growth
• Head tossing or unusual mouth behavior
• Differences between the two sides of the face
• How freely they move in both directions
• Changes following an accident, fall, or other physical event

These observations don’t provide a diagnosis on their own. Instead, they can help you notice recurring patterns and decide when something deserves a closer look.

Watch the Full Young Horse Evaluation

If you have a foal, yearling, or young horse, this episode gives you an opportunity to watch April evaluate two very different horses and explain what she notices along the way.

You’ll see her examine horse posture, hoof imbalance, high-low hooves, first rib position, TMJ and cranial patterns, head tossing, movement, and young horse behavior while demonstrating the Holistic Horseworks whole-horse approach.

Watch the full episode and learn how April evaluates young horses from head to hoof, before years of training and compensation patterns have accumulated.

You’ll also get a glimpse into April’s signature Holistic Horseworks programs, clinics, and free resources—including the Horse 101 eBook and dozens of YouTube tutorials.

🍎 Ready to Start Helping Your Horse?

Start with April’s foundational training, Equine Musculoskeletal Unwinding, available to learn online with live 1:1 support. This step-by-step course teaches you how to release deep patterns of imbalance and pain—so your horse can move, feel, and live better.

Whether your horse is showing signs of discomfort or you simply want to deepen your connection and care, this program puts powerful tools in your hands.

Includes video lessons, downloadable workbooks, and a personalized distance reading from April herself.

Rather learn in-person?
Check out our hands-on equine remedial therapy clinics, available all over the globe →

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