Sue's Standpoint

Australia to ban whips in trotting races! I can't believe I missed this when it was announced in Dec. Such amazing, incredible good news! And something for the rest of the world to follow! The article is well written. David Marlin writes about the use of the whip in Brain, Pain or Training, and speaks passionately about it on the DVD ). He asks whether we'll look back in 100 years on the use of the whip, in a similar way to how we look back at children being sent down the mines (or at least, that's how it came across to me - his words may have been slightly different).

One of the phrases in this horse racing article really gets at me: "...how we used to hit them back then compared to now, it's all changed." What on earth are we doing hitting them in the first place?! How would we feel if that was said in relation to hitting children?! How can changing how you hit someone or something make it ok?! In the news just a couple of days ago, Russian MPs passed a bill to decriminalise domestic violence, meaning a lesser (non-criminal) charge for assaults 'that inflict pain but do not cause bodily injury that threatens the victims health' Click here for full report. Does mental health not count as health? Is there any way that a person or animal can be physically assaulted (i.e. hit) on a regular basis without it affecting their mental health or psychological well being? Given the studies done on the development of a child's brain who has suffered abuse, show that there are chemical changes in the brain as a consequence, I think the answer is no! This just goes to prove that even "mild" violence causes changes in the brain, which can result in poor health. I can tell you from personal experience that mental health is definitely part of 'health'!

Congratulations Australia's horse racing association, and I look forward to the rest of the equestrian world catching up with you 😊

 To read the full report into Australia's ban click here.

10 reasons to love Physiotherapy

In the dark and cold of winter, when a desk job can seem more appealing than a soggy, smelly stable, I came across an article titled '10 things to love about physiotherapy'. It brightened me so much that I wanted to share it with you: http://criticalphysio.net/2017/01/18/10-reasons-to-love-physiotherapy/

So many of the points relate directly to my work with horses. 

Physiotherapists:

Touch people.  Very few people can do this, and almost no others get to touch people for therapeutic reasons.  Some touch to perform a procedure, others to care, but few touch to reduce pain, help move or build strength, flexibility and power. The best part of my job is being so close to horses all day every day! Actually, thinking about it, that's just one of the many best bits of my job.... Read on!

Transform people’s lives.  Perhaps the most powerful effect of really great physiotherapy is its ability to help people feel different: to give them confidence to try something that’s been too painful or frightening to do for a long time; to take control of their lives; to breathe more easily; to stand on their own again; to move more freely; to be happier…Physiotherapists do this every day, and rarely give themselves the credit they deserve for their transformative power. This is something that applies to anyone who works to help owners with their horses I think. We put so much time, effort and money into owning a horse, that when we can't follow our dreams it can be heartbreaking. Being a part of resolving the problems truly can transform people's lives - loading a 'non-loader' is probably near the top of the list!

Are first contact professionals.  Few others, outside medicine, have this privilege.  Awarded after many years of struggle and tests of our autonomy, first-contact status isn’t available throughout the world for physiotherapists, but it’s available in many countries.  It’s a mark of our social capital and the high regard physiotherapists are held in by society at large. This is an interesting one, because as yet Physiotherapists have not achieved autonomy in the animal world. This is partially due to the lack of protection of title, meaning that there is a wide variety of level of qualification of animal physiotherapist. This can lead to a mistrust from vets and confusion amongst owners. The recent emergence of the Register of Animal Musculoskeletal Therapists (www.rampregister.org) will hopefully begin to address this over time to a degree. You can find your local Chartered Physiotherapist at www.acpat.co.uk.

Are diagnosticians.  Because many physios can see people without a medical referral, they need to be able to differentially diagnose.  That skill comes with a lot of expectations about physiotherapists’ safety, and ability to show consistently that they can handle the responsibility. The same applies with diagnostics as with autonomy, as discussed above. At present the law states that only a vet can diagnose in relation to an animal.

Are safe and trusted.  People trust physiotherapists.  We deal with some of the most intimate, personal aspects of people’s lives – from death and dying, to personal bodily dysfunction and the heartache of suffering, and act as a constant companion in times of strife. I'd love to think this was true, and certainly I think that a good therapist builds a bond with their clients, animal and human. The lack of protection of title issue again can lead to confusion here though, and more than once I've been called out as a behaviourist to an animal that has supposedly been given the all clear by 'the physio' only to find considerable discomfort causing the behaviour. Perhaps that discomfort wasn't presenting on the day the horse was previously assessed, but if the behaviour has stayed the same and the history suggests that the behaviour is linked to the particular pattern of pain, then I'll leave you to your own thoughts.

Are powerful advocates.  Because physiotherapists have earned a high degree of social support, they can speak up for those less fortunate, and advocate for people whose voices are not being heard.  Marginalised communities, children, the elderly, disabled people…whomever they serve, countless people benefit from physiotherapists’ voice and support. This is what drove me to write Brain, Pain or Training, the central theme of which is 'horses can only demonstrate pain or discomfort through their behaviour or performance'. To me, being a horse physio is ALL about being an advocate for the horse.

Are experienced.  One of the greatest assets physiotherapists have is their access to the public health system.  Working with people who have had strokes, or live with COPD, chronic low back pain or depression helps when it comes to treating the elite athlete, the child with cerebral palsy or the post-op patient.  Experiencing the rich tapestry of life gives physiotherapists enormous advantages over many other healthcare professions. To qualify as a Chartered Physiotherapist took me 7 years. You can qualify through different routes as an animal physio or veterinary physio in just a few weeks or months, but the Chartered status means that I qualified to treat humans and then studied further to qualify to treat animals. I work full time treating horses. There is always more to learn and I never, ever feel as though I know enough, but yes, I have a great deal more experience in assessing and treating a horse as a physio than the average horse owner or instructor.

Work with people, not just bodies.  All good physiotherapists know that it’s not enough to treat the body-as-machine, or to look no further than anatomy, physiology and pathology when treating people.  To know people as social beings and the ways that our feelings, thoughts and emotions affect how we feel makes the difference between being technicians and practitioners.  And physiotherapists are fabulous practitioners. This was my reason for becoming a physiotherapist rather than a doctor or a vet. I like working with the 'whole', and in particular I like working with the horse and owner as a partnership. Improving or developing a partnership is what gives me job satisfaction.

Are inclusive.  Physiotherapists have worked in teams and been dependent on the help of others from the outset.  They are good at knowing their limits and not stepping on others’ toes.  They’re often seen as pragmatic, enthusiastic and motivated people who like to get things done.  As they have shown for many years that we make great allies. One of the things I strive towards always is knowing my own limits and referring on appropriately. I'm lucky in that I've developed a wide range of knowledge over the years, and I worked very hard to provide an exceptional range of 'allies' in the 27 guest contributors to my book and DVD 'Brain, Pain or Training' (http://www.thehorsephysio.co.uk/store/index.php?product/page/3183/Brain%2C+Pain%2C+or+Training+-++Book+and+DVD).

Are adaptable.  No matter how difficult things seem right now, people will always want someone to use their hands in skillful, caring ways to heal them of their suffering; they will always want people who can see them move and work out what is going wrong; and they will always call for professionals they can trust, who care for them, not just their illness. Working with horses always requires adaptability. Whether it's adapting to working in the stable or on the yard depending on where the horse is most relaxed, or adapting your techniques to suit the individual behaviour of the horse, or adapting your advice towards the happy hacker or the professional, being an equine physio is about constantly adapting to offer the best you can to both horse and owner.

E-training

Have you noticed the recent onslaught of e-training, or online training, available? I think in general that it's great news for horses and their owners, and I'd love to hear your thoughts. In particular, who have you signed up to follow, and why? What's your 'top tip' so far? What would you like to see more of, or less of? I must admit that being so very busy producing and marketing Brain, Pain or Training for the past couple of years hasn't give me much time to look elsewhere. It's time now to look to the future though, and I'd very much like to offer some kind of online education in terms of horse behaviour and performance, especially in relation to physical issues. What affects your horse, why, and what can you do about it? I've got plenty of ideas, but yours are more important... so fire away in the comments at the end of this blog!

In the meantime I'd like to share with you some of the online training that I've come across, in case you haven't yet seen any! Firstly the Monty Roberts Online University, which I believe to be one of the most valuable online behavioural training resources available - http://www.montyrobertsuniversity.com/library. Other leaders in this area are Peter Dove (author of Master Dressage), and Mary Wanless (Ride With Your Mind) - anything by Mary gets my vote 10 times over, she's a mine of information! Horse and Hound have recently released a free online training academy (although I have to say I was disappointed that the horse in the Prelim 1 video was ridden in spurs and was overbent the entire time - not my idea of a role model for Prelim competitors). I've watched some interesting videos from Invisible Horse Control (I'd love to know whether any 'ordinary' horse rider can achieve what he makes look so easy in the canter transitions video!), and the TRT method have a couple of free videos on offer.

What catches your interest? What would you like to know more about? What do you like about online training, and what do you dislike about it? I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!

Why we so desperately need “Brain, Pain, or Training?” taught everywhere…

This a quote from a public post on Facebook:

“No it just rears bigger I don’t need any natural stuff bloody thing needs to be told.”

By “natural stuff” I’m assuming the writer means: thought, respect, intelligence, problem solving…the qualities that most people value, which most people aspire to. “Brain, Pain, or Training?” was conceived out of comments such as this. Years of listening to people discussing how they had beaten their horse and then discovered it was in pain, its saddle didn’t fit, it was in foal, the reasons went on, but force or violence had often been used somewhere down the line.

I am reminded of the policing of Gene Hunt in the hit shows “Ashes to Ashes” and “Life of Mars”. This was standard fare in the 70s and 80s, beat up your suspects first and question them later. This was also the era of sexual harassment in the workplace being commonplace and acceptable. This is an era which now seems so outdated it belongs to a different world, and not one that we want to return to.

Whenever I stumble across comments such as this, I am so saddened that in our enlightened times, in an age when the access of knowledge is merely a click of a button away, people still fall into re-acting with violence, rather than considering with thought.

Take a moment and ask yourself – is this behaviour abnormal? Has something changed? Is it in pain?

Personally I will advocate the “natural stuff” every day over spurs, whips, ignorance and violence.

Please share this and help improve the welfare of horses everywhere, one horse at a time.

On publicising our book “Understanding Horse Performance Brain, Pain, or Training?”

It would appear that writing the book is not the challenging part! Brain, Pain, or Training is the result of years of experience and research, being turned into a concept and put down on paper. Even the DVD, which was hard work, still followed the same pattern of translating thoughts into a visual representation. But publicising it is a whole different matter…

There are nearly 10,000 equestrian books listed on Amazon, that’s a lot of reading. So how do you make your voice heard amongst the shouting, how did we get “Understanding Horse Performance Brain, Pain, or Training?” listed as one of Horse and Hound’s recommended Christmas books for 2016, and Horse Magazine’s Book of the Month for December 2016?

I think the passion in Sue’s writing, and the sheer depth of knowledge that she has painstakingly accumulated over the years shines through. The clarity of writing and the unique “roadmap” feel of the book, stand out amongst many of the training books. The quality of the contributors also speaks volumes with Richard Davison, Monty Roberts and Kelly Marks to name but a few, all this lends weight to a gain support from journalists.

However, at the end of the day, I think “Understanding Horse Performance Brain, Pain, or Training?” has had such fantastic coverage, simply because it is a fantastic book. Reviewers share books that speak to them, that they feel engaged by, that they like and that they want other people to read.

So thank you to the reviewers who loved “Understanding Horse Performance Brain, Pain, or Training?” and we hope that more people will be inspired by the concept of Brain, Pain, or Training.

Lizzie Hopkinson

New Year’s Honours List…and encouraging aspiration.

I was disappointed when reading the report on Hound and Hound about the New Year’s Honours List that the only comment was a negative one.

“With the odd exception like Claire Lomas and Sam Moorshead, these people have done little or nothing for the good of other people. What are honours for these days - getting your name in the papers? It used to be for public service.” Click hereto read the report and comment.

The two exceptions which the writer refers to have both done charity work, which is, I assume, why they have been excluded from the writer’s blanket condemnation of the other equestrians. While I agree that supporting and raising money for charity is indeed a more obvious service to the public than that of winning medals, it is not the only way to do good deeds.

Any athlete that strives to be at the top of their sport, strives to break records, strives to be a better person than they were yesterday is providing a role model for others. Children emulate their heroes. I would far rather my child followed Charlotte Dujardin as a role model, than a drunken rock star falling out of a nightclub at 2am. All success in sport is driven by attributes that we need in our society – hard work, dedication, perseverance. These are the qualities that we want our citizens to aspire to, to work towards. We need successful role models to provide aspiration for the future.

Sporting achievement both in the able-bodied and para disciplines unites people. As a country we feel part of something during events such as the Olympics and Paralympics. Success in competitions such as the Olympics encourages people to take up sport, and given that exercise is the greatest weapon against mental health, what better way to help others than to encourage more people to participate in sport? If that not doing something “for the good of other people,” then I don’t know what is!

Rider Posture Research

The University of Sunderland has been carrying out research into the effect that hip flexion and pelvis rotation has on lower back pain and injury in horse riders. Drawing together on a variety of expertise, the computer science faculty has worked in partnership with sports physiotherapists and the Saddle Research Trust to develop software to evaluate riders’ posture.

The results have been very useful. They have learnt that it is important to consider the rider’s posture dynamically. The presence of asymmetry in the rider’s hip flexion would seem to be indicative of another risk factor for lower back injury. As always any imbalance or misalignment through the body has the potential to cause problems. However any sort of biofeedback can be an excellent tool for riders and coaches to help resolve misalignment issues and help riders to remain healthy and balanced. It is hoped that this will be further developed into an excellent training tool.

A paper from the work achieved so far has been accepted for publication into the Journal of Sports Technology. Gandy, E.A., Bondi, A., Pigott, T.M.C. & Smith, G. “Investigation of the use of inertial sensing equipment for the measurement of hip flexion and pelvic rotation in horse riders”.