Skelton Equine

02/12/2025

02/12/2025

The pelvis, dont ignore it when looking at the shoulders !!! The whole body will tell you a story

I see allsorts when I am out and about, tilted forward, tilted back, tilted sideways, one side higher than the other, pokey up tuber sacrale, one tuber coxae waving hello in full view while the other is shy and hides away.

I have gone to work on a horse that had eating issues after the dentist, yet was presented with the horse backing up to get a good scratch on their tuber ishciums and while we are there we may as well have a good old feel to make sure one is not heading down towards the hocks while the other is reaching for the sun😉 and when you ask the owner their answer is "oh yes they are always asking for their butt to be scratched" ummm that tells me alot

Two places i look when checking the back is the scapula and pelvic angle now I dont want to draw lines on them trying to achieve the perfect degree angle of what a text book tells, horses bodies are not textbook perfect so why do we strive to see lines that a horse may not fit into??
As always I try to make things understandable and in digestible bites and well this is how I explain it to owners
Think of two chairs back to back with a cover over them like when we used to build dens, the more the chairs tilt towards each other the more the cover will sag and that cover is your horses middle, it also creates the tell tale atrophy, if the chairs are twisted it will create a twist through the body, if the chairs are to far apart it will create a tighter restrictive middle.

We need to change the position of the chair backs to bring the cover back to a less saggy middle🙂

Now we can manipulate, push, pull and often achieve a temporary change yet often because the soft and connective tissue surrounding the area has been that way for a long time its like an pulling an elastic band and not expecting it to just go back to where it was before when you let go,.we often think its only a pelvis or scapula issue yet mostly these angles change because of something else going on so often all we are doing is just chasing our own tails

Pain, pain anywhere in the body will always affect other areas, ever had a horse that is sore at the poll, and yet has gut issues ?? They come in a tandem and while we concentrate only on the poll to "fix" the area we often forget there is a head in front of it and a whole lot of body behind it, so would we start at the point of pain or work our way round to ask did the source of pain stem from one singular area, if your horse is camping under with the hinds then we find something somewhere else then just addressing one area is like leaving a door open to problems further down the line.

Which side is the wrong side?? We often see one side as an issue when both are not correct think of the pelvis like a box when one side is shifted then all the soft tissue connections on both sides will compensate one side may be strong yet to taut the other may be lax yet both need to taken into consideration.

Shoulder assymetry, well first there is no perfection in symmetry, if I had a penny every time I saw a picture of a dorsal view of the horse where everyone is pointing out the shoulder discrepancy yet no one notices the pelvis I would be rich and you can jack one foot up till the cows come home but every cow will probably have a problem in their back, every high low heel horse i have met i have never be concerned about the scapulas my concern always focuses on their back.
Remember different limbs have a different function in movement, the two sides of the body have different organ location, the two sides are not a mirror image of each other so why would we strive for perfection in symmetry.
Stop looking at just the scapulas as the only issue scan your eyes across the horse and see if you can find similar issues at the jaw, eyes, occiput, limbs, pelvis, and your horse must always be standing square to assess these !!!

A hamstring issue is hardly ever a hamstring problem look where the tendons attatch we can massage the area till our hands are sore but we also need to find the reason why or else it will just be a rinse and repeat, how many of you have been given homework of a hamstring massage yet they are still the problem area on the therapist return, I have never ever given a hamstring massage technique as homework for my clients as the problem has never been there they are just the result not the reason. Have you ever been told the reason why???

I dont live in a world of perfection I live in a world of this is how the horse is and can I make it better, I dont want to keep things as the are for the owner and the horse as both cannot stagnate and not move forward, but i dont want the owner to not see what i see and its why I try to be less jargon more action.

I see many many horses that are out there that do ok but my philosophy is it always could be better just dont strive for perfection as often that is the end of the rainbow we just can't reach and we can often miss out on enjoying our time with our horses trying to reach an impossible goal.

Of course this is my own opinion and experience of many horses out there doing ok with all those imperfections that leave the social media world aghast🙂

25/11/2025

22/11/2025

So what would a rib issue present as?
Girthiness
Sensitivity
Back pain
Unexplained lameness or loss of performance.
Resistance to the leg aids
Not ‘lifting’ the back
"All of the above can be attributed to SO many other factors eg. Ulcers, kissing spines, tendon/ligament disease. I’m increasingly seeing horses who have those symptoms be given the all clear from scoping or xrays, so the issue is deemed to be ‘behavioural’ or tack related. While this may be the case for some, rib pain is as yet not well recognised but may be an important consideration.

All of the above can be attributed to SO many other factors eg. Ulcers, kissing spines, tendon/ligament disease. I’m increasingly seeing horses who have those symptoms be given the all clear from scoping or xrays, so the issue is deemed to be ‘behavioural’ or tack related. While this may be the case for some, rib pain is as yet not well recognised but may be an important consideration.
Causes of rib pain in a horse may be from direct trauma to the thorax or sternum, strain from a slip/fall, poor tack fit, overuse of riders leg ‘pony club kicks’, coughing, overexertion, inflammatory conditions. I’ve even seen fractured ribs from polo mallets and balls"

20/11/2025

The “Stifle Lameness” That Wasn’t: A Story About Referred Pain

I once had a client who told me about a horse that developed an odd, on-again off-again hind-end lameness that no one could quite pin down. Some days the horse looked off behind, as if his stifle was sore; other days he moved completely normally. Nothing about it followed the usual patterns. Things that should have made a stifle issue worse didn’t seem to, and things that “should have” helped it, didn’t.

We were all very confused.

One day, the vet happened to be on the property with a brand-new scope and offered to scope several horses for gastric ulcers — partly to familiarize themselves with the equipment. When they scoped this particular horse, they found significant stomach ulcers.

The horse was placed on a veterinarian-directed ulcer-care plan, and within a few weeks, something unexpected happened:
the ulcers healed, and the mysterious “stifle lameness” vanished along with them.

It turned out the stifle itself had never been the problem. The horse had been expressing ulcer-related visceral pain as stifle discomfort — a classic example of referred pain.

Why Ulcers Can Look Like Hind-End or Stifle Issues

This situation is a great illustration of how the equine body handles pain. Signals from the internal organs and the limbs travel through overlapping pathways in the spinal cord.

Here’s what science tells us:

1. Visceral nerves and musculoskeletal nerves converge.

The stomach and the hindquarters share overlapping spinal segments, especially through the thoracolumbar region. When the stomach is irritated, the brain can misinterpret those signals as coming from the back, pelvis, or stifle.

2. Fascia connects everything.

The deep fascial membranes link the viscera to the musculoskeletal system. When the gut is irritated, the horse may brace through the abdomen and back, altering pelvic motion and limb loading.

3. Protective guarding changes movement patterns.

A horse in visceral discomfort often holds tension through the core, diaphragm, and back. This can create subtle gait irregularities that look orthopedic but aren’t.

When the gastric discomfort resolved under the veterinarian’s care, the nervous system stopped sending those distress signals — and the hind-end “lameness” disappeared.

✳️ Why This Matters

Not every hind-end irregularity originates in a limb. Sometimes the body is expressing visceral discomfort through movement changes.

This story is a reminder of how important it is to work closely with a wonderful veterinarian, and to consider the whole horse — inside and out.

https://koperequine.com/fascia-the-skeleton-of-the-nerves/

20/11/2025

Touch Over Tools: Fascia Knows the Difference

In bodywork, tools can assist — but they cannot replace the intelligence, sensitivity, or neurological impact of human touch.
Hands-on work communicates with the body in ways no device or instrument can.

1. Hands Provide Real-Time Feedback Tools Cannot Match

Your hands sense:
• tissue temperature
• hydration and viscosity
• fascial glide
• subtle resistance
• breath changes
• micro-guarding
• nervous-system shifts

This information shapes your pressure, angle, and pace.
Tools apply pressure — hands interpret and respond.

2. The Nervous System Responds Uniquely to Human Touch

Skin and fascia contain mechanoreceptors that respond strongly to:
• sustained contact
• warmth
• contour
• slow, intentional pressure

Human touch activates pathways that:
• quiet the sympathetic system
• reduce pain signaling
• soften protective muscle tone
• improve movement organization

Tools stimulate tissue.
Hands regulate the nervous system.

3. The Effect of Physical Contact Itself

Physical contact changes physiology — even before technique begins.

Touch triggers:
• lowered cortisol
• increased oxytocin
• improved emotional regulation
• better proprioception
• reduced defensive tension

Horses and dogs — whose social systems rely on grooming, leaning, and affiliative touch — respond especially deeply.
Tools can compress tissue, but they cannot create that neurochemical shift.

4. Hands Follow Structure; Tools Push Through It

Fascia does not run in straight lines — it spirals, blends, suspends, and wraps.

Hands can:
• contour around curves
• follow the subtle direction of ease
• melt into tissue instead of forcing through it

Tools often pull or scrape in a linear path, bypassing the subtleties that create real, lasting change.

5. Tools Can Override the Body’s Natural Limits

Hands feel when:
• tissue meets its natural barrier
• the nervous system hesitates
• a micro-release initiates
• the body shifts direction or depth

Tools can overpower these boundaries, creating irritation, rebound tension, or compensation patterns.
Hands work with the body’s pacing — not against it.

6. Hands Support Whole-Body Integration

Bodywork isn’t about “fixing a spot.”
It’s about improving communication across the entire system.

Hands-on work:
• connects multiple lines at once
• enhances global proprioception
• improves coordination and balance
• supports the body’s natural movement strategies

Tools tend to treat locally.
Hands treat the whole conversation.

7. Physical Touch Builds Trust, Comfort, and Confidence

Comfort creates confidence.
Confidence nurtures optimism and willingness.

Hands-on work:
• reduces defensiveness
• supports emotional safety
• encourages softness
• creates a more receptive body
• builds trust and relationship

Tools cannot build rapport or communicate safety.
Hands do — instantly.

Additional Elements (Optional Enhancements)

A. Co-regulation: Nervous System to Nervous System

Humans, horses, and dogs all co-regulate through touch and proximity.
Your calm hands shift their physiology — and theirs shifts yours.
This shared state enables deeper, safer release.

B. Touch Enhances Sensory Clarity

Touch refines the brain’s map of the body (somatosensory resolution), improving:
• coordination
• balance
• movement efficiency
• reduced bracing

Tools cannot refine the sensory map with the same precision.

C. Hands Integrate Technique and Intuition

The brain blends tactile information with pattern recognition and subtle intuition.
Tools separate you from that information.
Hands plug you into it.

In Short

Hands-on wins because touch is biologically intelligent, neurologically profound, and relationship-building.
Tools press — but hands listen, interpret, regulate, and connect.

When the body feels safe and understood, it reorganizes more deeply, moves more freely, and heals more efficiently.

The Energy Connection Between Horse and Human: Science and Sensation - https://koperequine.com/the-energy-connection-between-horse-and-human-science-and-sensation/

20/11/2025

Love this,.well said

Let you come through in your therapy

Do we all want to just learn a modality and robotical go through the moves on every horse or do we all put our own individuality to our work as we progress over the years

My touch will be different to yours, my hands may move in different manner which means we could be doing the exact same technique yet we get different results, I sometimes cannot explain how you should feel and what you should feel for I think in pictures you may think in words, each touch and the feedback you receive is unique to you

That is what brings your individuality to your practice, it's why a client may choose you as their therapist not for the modality they use but the way that you apply it, their horse may respond better to your work and when the owner is relaxed the horse can take that breath too

Lots of things come into factor when learning anything

How experienced you are not only in your work but just in general around horses, if you were only introduced to horses at the beginning of your therapy career then there are many other skills you will need to learn than just the techniques, education may acquire you knowledge your hands will acquire the skill

How do you put into practice with your everyday horses and does that relate to the ethos of your modality, which basically means if you are a bit heavy handed in real life but preach kindness and softness you may fool the human but the horse will have your number and react accordingly
Being kind and considerate and patient is something you need to have with all horses we cannot turn our true intention on and off like a tap its within us and the horse will see through us

Don't just copy a technique without understanding the why, doing is always easier than knowing, a reaction off the horse however photogenic it may be is not the important part it's that you understood what you did to help a change for the better

Give yourself time to learn, practice and perfect your moves and more importantly your feel, no matter how long you have been doing this everyday will learn you something new just this week I found two new techniques just by having to figure stuff out

Don't waste your time trying to put all the wrongs right, you may look at someone and think WTF but someone may be looking at you and saying WTF (😄)

And on that note (and I am taking this advice) don't worry about other people judging you, I have just spent all morning doing a anatomical post making sure everything was right just in case someone wanted to pick it apart, those people would do that whatever you put out you know the old saying you can't please some people all the time, but on the same note its because you care you want to get it right so often that post may sit in your drafts along time while you fact check

If you look through my lists of therapies I have studied it defines what I have studied but not the therapy I provide for the therapy I provide is part of who I am and how I am with horses wether professionally or with my own. For it is the education of life with horses over the last 30 years that has took me on my journey of who I am today

And that is how we should see our therapy as part of a journey which is never ending and each person's journey is different, I am not you and you are not me and we can never replicate that uniqueness and why would we want to, if everyone is heading in one direction but you feel a pull in another its OK your individuality can be your friend not your enemy

The horse in the picture was when I was taking my first myofascial course many years ago, its where I learned to slow down and let the horse guide your work, where i learned that to go in with a pre planned thought of where i was going would only hinder me in what the horse was showing me.
Where i learned that the waiting with my hands was something I had to learn and be confident in having patience, that to rush would lead to me shutting the horses voice out a little because its not where I want to go its where I am allowed to go and for a sore horse the boundaries may be set a little harder than one thats not.

Its where for the first time I truly listened to the horse and I have been ever since xx

10/11/2025

Massage, Vascularization, and Neuroplastic Renewal: How Touch Rewires and Refuels the Body

Massage is far more than mechanical pressure—it’s a conversation between the hands, the tissues, and the nervous system. Every stroke, compression, and release communicates through the body’s intricate networks of blood vessels, nerves, and fascia. This communication doesn’t just relax muscles—it reshapes them from the inside out, promoting both vascularization (growth and function of blood vessels) and neurotrophic-neuroplastic adaptation (growth and refinement of nerve networks).

Together, these processes explain why massage can restore vitality to fatigued tissue, reawaken dormant movement patterns, and even shift how the nervous system perceives and responds to the world.

1. Vascularization: Nourishing Life at the Cellular Level

Healthy movement depends on healthy circulation. The smallest vessels—capillaries and arterioles—deliver oxygen, nutrients, and hormones to every cell, while removing waste. When these microvascular networks stagnate from injury, chronic tension, or inactivity, tissues lose their metabolic resilience.

Massage rekindles this flow.
• Mechanical stimulation from rhythmic pressure and stretch dilates small vessels, enhancing perfusion.
• Nitric oxide release promotes vasodilation and endothelial repair.
• Repeated sessions can encourage angiogenesis—the formation of new capillaries that improve local circulation long-term.
• Improved flow through lymphatic and venous return supports detoxification and tissue recovery.

In effect, massage restores vascular tone and adaptability, making muscles more oxygen-efficient and fascia more supple.

2. Neurotrophic and Neuroplastic Effects: Repatterning the Body’s Communication Network

Just as tissues respond to improved circulation, nerves respond to stimulation. Massage acts as sensory nourishment for the nervous system.
Each layer of touch—light, deep, static, or gliding—feeds information to mechanoreceptors embedded in skin, fascia, and muscle.

This sensory input:
• Stimulates the release of neurotrophic factors such as NGF (Nerve Growth Factor) and BDNF (Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor), which support nerve health, branching, and repair.
• Promotes remyelination and improved signal conduction along existing pathways.
• Engages spinal and cortical plasticity, helping the nervous system remap and refine motor control.
• Modulates pain perception through gate control and descending inhibition, restoring more accurate sensory feedback.

In short, massage can rewire the body’s maps—especially valuable when injury, chronic guarding, or stress has dulled or distorted proprioceptive awareness.

3. The Vaso-Neural Relationship: Flow and Signal Are Partners

Blood vessels and nerves don’t function in isolation. They travel together as neurovascular bundles, sharing signaling molecules and growth cues.
When circulation improves, nerves receive more oxygen and metabolic support. When nerve activity is stimulated, it releases substances that encourage vessel growth.

This vaso-neural coupling means that touch which enhances one system inevitably benefits the other. The result is a more adaptive, responsive tissue environment—alive with circulation, sensation, and communication.

4. The Fascial Interface: Where Mechanics Meet the Mind

Fascia is the medium through which both vascular and neural networks are woven. It transmits mechanical forces, electrical potentials, and biochemical signals in every direction.
Massage that respects fascial continuity—rather than working muscle by muscle—can enhance fluid dynamics and sensory coherence throughout the body.

This integrative approach explains why massage can influence not only local tissue health but also posture, coordination, and emotional tone.

5. Implications for Horses Other Athletes

In equine and athletic bodies, where repeated strain and static postures can create zones of restriction, massage serves as both rehabilitation and recalibration:

• Increased vascularization supports muscle endurance and recovery.
• Neurotrophic stimulation refines proprioception and coordination.
• The fascial network regains its fluidity, allowing movement to reorganize around balance rather than compensation.

Horses, in particular, respond visibly: softer eye, slower breath, more rhythmic movement. What begins as mechanical contact becomes a whole-body recalibration—a dialogue between pressure and perception.

Conclusion: Touch as a Regenerative Language

Massage is not simply about softening muscles; it’s about restoring communication—between vessels and nerves, body and brain, tension and release.
Through vascularization, it nourishes.
Through neuroplasticity, it teaches.
Together, they make massage a profoundly regenerative practice—one that literally helps the body grow new ways to heal, move, and feel.

26 Interesting Facts About A Horse’s Heart - https://koperequine.com/26-interesting-facts-about-a-horses-heart/

08/11/2025

How does bodywork help prepare a horse for this?
Bodywork helps by influencing the nervous system.

Conterrary to outdated beliefs we are not fixing, shifting, or breaking anything but influencing the nervous system.

When you apply pressure, stretch, or movement with your hands, you stimulate receptors embedded in the skin, fascia, joints, ligaments, and muscles. These mechanoreceptors respond to mechanical input (like touch, tension, and vibration) and send signals to the brain. The brain then adjusts the output ,reducing pain, calming overactive muscle tone and improving coordination.

The nervous system changes the output.

It’s not about “fixing” tissue — it’s about communicating with the brain to change how the body moves and feels.

Ruffini endings respond to slow stretch and sustained pressure. Calming. Found in fascia and joint capsules.

Pacinian corpuscles love vibration and quick pressure changes. Help boost joint awareness.
Merkel cells.

Meissner’s corpuscles live near the surface. They’re your light-touch, texture-sensing squad and your best way to affect deep change.

Golgi tendon-like receptors respond to deep, slow pressure and help lower muscle tone.

Manual therapy changes the input. The nervous system changes the output.

Quoted from
equine tensegrity balancing therapy

08/11/2025

Love seeing the horses I work on win, To see they are feeling and being able to preform at their best.

07/11/2025

🐴 Safety Matters More Than Performance

Lately, I’ve been reminded how deeply our horses need to feel safe.
Before softness, before performance — safety must come first.

Every horse is born with an instinct to protect itself from danger. When that instinct is triggered, it’s not defiance — it’s fear. Our job isn’t to control that, but to understand it.

A good leader doesn’t demand obedience — they create safety.
A good teacher doesn’t push harder — they listen deeper.

When your horse truly trusts you, everything else — connection, confidence, and lightness — follows naturally.

It’s far more important that my horse feels safe and trusts me than it is that they perform for me.

✨ Light hands. Light mind. Light horse.
— Steve Halfpenny

07/11/2025

No Stirrup November: Let's Talk About Doing It RIGHT

It's that time of year again - No Stirrup November is upon us but before you drop those stirrups and suffer through entire lessons, let's have a real conversation about making this EFFECTIVE instead of just painful.

The goal of no-stirrup work isn't torture. It's building:
- Core strength and stability
- Independent seat
- Proper leg position
- Balance without relying on stirrups
- Muscle memory for correct position

But here's what I see go wrong EVERY November:
❌ Riders pushing through entire lessons without stirrups
❌ Gripping and tensing to compensate for fatigue
❌ Creating BAD habits from exhaustion
❌ Horses dealing with tense, bouncing riders

When you ride to exhaustion, you're not building strength - you're building TENSION and bad patterns.

A BETTER APPROACH: One Stirrup at a Time
Instead of dropping both stirrups and white-knuckling through your ride try this:

Start with ONE stirrup removed. Ride with just your left stirrup dropped for 5-10 minutes and then switch and ride with just your right stirrup dropped for 5-10 minutes. This isolates each side and helps you feel differences in strength/balance

Then progress to dropping both stirrups, briefly. Start with 5 minutes, not 45, and remember quality over quantity ALWAYS

WHEN TO STOP:
The MOMENT you feel yourself:
- Gripping with your knees
- Tensing through your hips or back
- Bouncing excessively
- Getting sore to the point of compensation

Stop. Put your stirrups back. Rest. Tired muscles build strength. EXHAUSTED muscles create bad habits and tension patterns that take weeks to undo.

GUIDELINES FOR SAFE NO-STIRRUP WORK:
✅ Warm up WITH stirrups first! Get your body and horse warmed up properly before removing stirrups.
✅ Start at walk, progress to trot. Master walk without stirrups before adding trot. Canter comes later (if at all, depending on level).
✅ Use shorter intervals. 5-10 minutes of quality work beats 30 minutes of gripping and bouncing.
✅ Listen to your body - pain is not ok. Shaking muscles mean STOP.
✅ Stretch after! Stretch your hip flexors, hamstrings, inner thighs - they all need stretching post-ride.
✅ Not every ride needs to be no-stirrup, 3x per week is plenty. Your body needs recovery time.
✅ Consider your horse... a tense, exhausted rider bouncing on their back isn't fair to them either.

FOR INSTRUCTORS:
Don't make No Stirrup November a punishment or endurance test.
Make it purposeful and:
- Assign specific time limits
- Check in frequently about tension/fatigue
- Have students put stirrups back when quality declines
- Focus on FEELING and body awareness, not just "surviving"
- Celebrate small improvements in balance and strength

Remember: We're building better riders, not tough riders who can suffer through discomfort.

No Stirrup November is a TOOL for building strength and balance - but only when done correctly. One stirrup at a time is often more effective than both. Short, quality intervals beat long, exhausting sessions. Tension creates problems - stop before you get there. Your goal: End November as a stronger, more balanced rider with GOOD habits, not someone who "survived" a month of suffering.

Instructors: How are you approaching No Stirrup November in your program?