Equistasis

04/09/2022

24/04/2022

After seeing multiple videos posted by various breeders bragging about their 2 ½ year olds/recently turned 3 year olds and sharing videos of them cantering around in the arena, I have decided to once again circulate the below article.

First of all, breeders *should* have the knowledge to understand a horse’s fragile and slow maturing musculoskeletal system. Breeders should not condone their own horses let along anyone’s horses being cantered around under saddle at an incredibly young age. Period. This sets a terrible example and is quite honestly animal abuse. Just because a horse does not object does not mean it is right. And quite frankly, most of the videos posted show animals that are already in pain or developing pain…

As breeders, we should strive to produce healthy and sound animals. We should promote horsemanship that produces long term soundness. No, starting a horse later does not guarantee soundness. But it certainly helps.

I am a firm believer in scientifically backed approaches to horsemanship. You can’t argue with science that has been proven time and time again. Let’s dispel some stupid rumors:

1. There is no such thing as a (skeletally) slow maturing horse or one that is fast maturing. No horse is skeletally mature before the age of 6. And that is on the low estimate for age.

2. Growth plates are not just in the knee. Every bone behind the skull has a growth plate. Not every single one needs to be converted to bone before starting. There is a schedule of when bone fuses…this is the information needed to know when to start a horse. Not their outward appearance. It is a known fact that during growth, proprioceptive awareness can regress, greatly increasing the risk of injury.

3. Starting a horse is not the same thing as riding a horse. Starting a horse does not mean cantering it 3-4 days a week in an arena.

4. Injecting a horse that is in pain does not mean you fixed a problem. You masked it.

5. You can build correct muscle and teach a horse how to move their body from the ground. This creates a solid foundation to work from once your horse is ready to actually be backed. Teach a horse to use its body correctly before backing and you’ll save yourself a lot of vet bills down the line.

Hocks are “late” for maturity. The growth plates on the tibial and fibular tarsals do not fuse until a horse is 3-3 ½. Ever wonder why so many horses seem to have hocks issues?? Horses need to learn to carry themselves and their own weight well before adding a rider.

The growth plates that are LAST to close are at the base of the neck. This area is where we ask a horse to raise the base of their neck and come round. If under too much stress, the growth plates can fracture or be permanently damaged.

There are DOZENS of activities you can do with a young horse to build healthy muscular development. None of them involve a saddle or your weight on their back. Teaching a horse to carry themselves correctly BEFORE adding a rider is essential and cannot be done in a week. A 2 ½ year old horse is a baby. Mentally and physically. We see far too many injured performance horses at VERY young ages - broken down and/or sour from work. It’s wrong. Period. They need slow and steady work and need time to recover from even the slightest of injuries.

PLEASE, if you are considering when you should start your horse and what that work load should look like, please read the below. There are some wonderful things you can do with your young developing horse. Please don’t rush a year out of greed.

http://www.equinestudies.org/ranger_2008/ranger_piece_2008_pdf1.pdf

08/12/2021

⭐️ SPINAL AND PELVIC ASYMMETRY ⭐️

When we put a saddle on our horses backs, when we ride them, when we add a roller, saddle pad, girth, breastplate… this is what is underneath us.

Now imagine a saddle too narrow/wide, a girth too far forward, asymmetrical flocking, rider laterality, a bunched up saddle pad… and there is oh so much that can go wrong. Even with a healthy horse!

Here is a basic diagram outlining some common spinal column and pelvic asymmetries that I came across last week mainly in response to poor saddle fit or rider asymmetry.

Each one of these changes to the MSK system are not mutually exclusive; they are all interconnected and have a profound effect on performance and wellbeing. To improve symmetry, straightness and correct movement a multifaceted approach to treatment is effective for the long term. Implementing joint mobilisations, stretches, myofascial and muscle release techniques in addition to postural re-education exercises on the ground will enable return to optimum performance and prevent tissue damage/injury.

Would anyone be interested to see before and afters of these real life case studies I treated last week? 🌟

01/12/2021

04/09/2021

12/07/2021

Start slow, train slow! Set your horse up to be physically well his whole life, not just for show season expectations when they are young.

08/07/2021

Fantastic visual here

21/07/2020

Any horse person is familiar with the words “GROWTH PLATES”... these are properly referred to as EPIPHYSIS and are located on both ends of each bone the same in every breed. This means that the ends of the bones are not attached until ossification is complete. WHICH ALSO MEANS early backing (before skeletal maturity) can displace the epiphysis. So... when does a horse skeletally mature and how do we know this? For centuries horsemen have known that horses mature in their fifth year at which time saddle training would begin. This does not mean that the horse didn’t have preparation ground work... a really easy way to know if a horse is skeletally mature and ready for weight bearing on his back is when he or she has grown in his last permanent teeth which would be the 3rd molar. It is safe to say larger and longer necked horses may mature 6 months to 3 year later... what age should a horse be backed? The training process of weight bearing on the back should begin somewhere around 5 years of age and because training should be a slow process, beginning at a walk for several months, the horse’s body can adjust to this new load over his horizontal back. Proper training of a horse should take between 8 to 10 years before he is considered fully trained. This also allows for the appropriate time needed to build muscle at a natural rate