My horse can't keep his balance

So, almost every time I pick up his feet, he has to collect himself and put his foot down like he's going to fall. I make sure he doesn't have all his weight on that leg before I ask for it. And it seems like when we ride he stumbles once or twice. Why such bad balance? The farrier says his feet are fine.. Maybe he's just clumsy

How old is the horse? I have a 2 year old that plays that game. She will fall down all the way to her knees when she gets her fronts trimmed. Just a trick she learned that we have been working on. She goes from falling down to swinging her foot out and pawing when you put her foot down. Just a nasty habit we've been working out.
Ruling out any neurological or physical problems, I put it down to bad habits and testing me.
She isn't under saddle yet so no idea if she will be trippy or not, I'm sure she will be, she's a lazy stinker

He just turned 6 this August. I'd say he's possibly doing the same thing as your 2yr old, testing me to see what he can get away with. In the beginning I had to practically beg him to pick his feet up at all but he's been getting better and better with giving it the first time I ask. And tonight he was ready to lift his hind leg for me right away. I had just put the front right foot down and as soon as he saw me going for the back I saw him shift his weight and he picked up 1st try.
I guess his previous owner was very much a beginner and didn't have any real experience with horses (not that i'm an expert by any means!) She boarded him at the farm I got him from and would go months at a time between visits. I guess before she decided to give him to the farm it had been 4 months since she even went to see him!! I couldn't believe it, I can barely make it 2 days without at least going out and giving him a treat or something.
So I'm hoping with more practice and handling he'll get better at it. If it continues I'll have to have a vet come check him out Hopefully it won't come to that though!

You might check your saddle placement too. Sometimes if you have your saddle too far forward or if your riding too far forward, the horse will get trippy.
Keep picking those feet up, I'm sure he will gain trust and respect in you the more you work with him.

Hm, I'll definitely double check the saddle next time I go for a ride. Now that I think of it, he was a little trippy when I "test drove" him at the farm I got him from. But, he had also just lost a shoe so I thought maybe that had something to do with it since he only had one on at the time. He's barefoot now. I'll have to see how he does tomorrow (if it doesn't rain :( like its supposed to)

If he's just now starting to have his feet picked up regularly then it might take him awhile to learn how to balance. Just like when a foal is taught, they have to learn how to distribute there weight on three feet. If he continues to get better, I wouldn't worry about it.

Riding is the same. If he's just getting back into work, or hasn't been regularly worked he might have to learn balance there too. Lots of trotting and ground poles would help. Lunging will also help build up balance. If you are unbalanced while riding, the horse will be too.

Nothing a little time wont fix. Good luck!!

Thanks WishUponAStar, I think he just needs time like you said. I was told when I got him that he's good under saddle and "just needs miles" The girl I got him from said his previous owner "would have ruined him if she kept him" Probably because he wasn't worked on a regular basis and apparently she wasn't a great rider either. So when the farm bought him from her, they were hoping to find someone who would give him all kinds of attention( that's where I come in ) So looks like I've got my work cut out for me!