When your horse is having a biomechanical problem, it is extremely important to take a ‘whole horse’ approach. When the biomechanics of the whole horse are taken into consideration the chance of a successful outcome increases. Strengthening protocols must encompass the idea of symmetry to avoid ‘over’ strengthening some areas. It is important to treat the movement pattern rather than just treat painful tissues. Important issues to address, and ask about are:
- Strength vs Flexibility – are you addressing both?
- Symmetry of Movement – are you ignoring asymmetry?
- Is there an area of rotation, addressing the force of movement and its symmetry
- Hyper vs Hypo Mobility – often areas of minimal movement are treated, however, excessive joint movement needs stabilisation as it is an important pre cursor to injury
- Proprioception – after injury are you addressing the reconnection of the horses awareness of their body/limbs in space. This disappears very quickly with immobilisation – and is extremely important to address to reduce the risk of re-injury.
