03/13/2026
Letโs talk SI painโฆ stifle painโฆ hock painโฆ hamstring tensionโฆ low back pain/tensionโฆand how it ALL can trace back to one sneaky root cause: low hind angles.๐๐ฆถ๐ผ
๐ฅ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐:๐ฅ
๐๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ฌ๐จ๐ง๐๐ฅ ๐๐ฑ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐ง๐๐ ๐ข๐ง ๐ฆ๐ฒ ๐๐๐๐ข๐ฅ๐ข๐ญ๐ฒ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ฐ๐ก๐๐ญ ๐โ๐ฏ๐ ๐ฌ๐๐๐ง ๐ข๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฒ๐๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐โ๐ฏ๐ ๐๐๐๐ง ๐ฐ๐จ๐ซ๐ค๐ข๐ง๐ ! ๐๐ก๐ ๐-๐ซ๐๐ฒ๐ฌ ๐ข๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ฌ๐ ๐ฉ๐ข๐๐ญ๐ฎ๐ซ๐๐ฌ ๐ก๐๐ฏ๐ ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐๐๐๐ง ๐๐ฑ๐๐ฆ๐ข๐ง๐๐ ๐๐ฒ ๐ ๐ฏ๐๐ญ ๐๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ!
Iโll die on this hill: a LOT of the โmysteryโ issues people bring their horses to me for arenโt actually mysteries. Theyโre compensation patterns stacked on top of compensation patternsโฆ all starting in the feet.
When those hind feet have low angles or underrun heels, the entire hind limb chain gets thrown out of balance. And guess who ends up paying for that?
โก๏ธ The SI,
โก๏ธ the stifles,
โก๏ธ the hocks,
โก๏ธ the hamstrings
โก๏ธ the low back
โก๏ธ AND the horseโs posture from the ground up.
I see it constantly in the rehab barn. These horses come in sore behind, tight through the low back, tight hamstrings, dropping their shoulder, dragging toesโฆ people assuming itโs a stifle issue or that their horse just โhas a weak topline.โ And sure, those things show up. But the root? Nine times out of ten, itโs that the hind feet canโt support the rest of the body the way theyโre supposed to. And one of the FIRST things I look for is that โUโ shape in the neck.
You know what Iโm talking about. That upside-down neckline where the horse bulges the underside of the neck and almost hollows out in front of the wither. That โUโ is a huge red flag for me. Why?
Because a horse thatโs compensating behind canโt properly engage their core or lift their topline, so they brace with the underside of the neck instead and hollow out their entire body because theyโre experiencing pain & tension trying to evade it.
The neck literally tells on the hind feet. Which also creates stifle pain & tension. ๐คทโโ๏ธ
Low angles = overloading.
Overloading = chronic tension and faulty movement.
Faulty movement = SI strain, stifle fatigue, hock irritation.
And when the hind end canโt function correctly?
โก๏ธ The core disengages,
โก๏ธ the topline collapses,
โก๏ธ the โU-neckโ appears,
โก๏ธ and the snowball starts rolling FAST. โ๏ธโก๏ธ๐๏ธ
And hereโs where my experience continues to come in:
I donโt just look at the symptom. I look at why the body chose that compensation pattern in the first place. Iโve rehabbed enough of these cases to confidently sayโฆ fixing the feet is step ONE. Not step five. Not an afterthought. STEP ONE.
Thatโs why in my facility, Iโm so grateful to work with our farrier, Joe. ๐
Joe balances these horses beautifully and isnโt afraid to make the changes they truly need. When weโre dealing with low angles or underrun heels, we often use:
โ๏ธ Leather wedge pads for lift and cushion
โ๏ธ Frog support to distribute load where it belongs
โ๏ธ A setup that encourages REAL heel growth instead of crushing the capsule
And let me tell you, the changes in the SI? The changes in the stifles? The changes in the topline and that neck? MASSIVE.
When the foot is corrected, the body finally gets permission to stop bracing and start engaging. The โU-neckโ starts to disappear. The horse starts lifting through the core again. You can feel the release. You can SEE the movement change.
This is why I preach whole-horse rehab so hard. If youโre only treating the pain and not the causeโฆ youโre just chasing your tail while your horse keeps compensating.
Balance the feet. Support the structures. Retrain the muscles.
Do thatโฆ and your โmystery lamenessโ horse suddenly looks like a comfortable, functional horse again. ๐๐ฆ
