Noseband too tight?

This week's Brain or Pain newsletter included a comment about nosebands being too tight on so many horses, and how this could potentially affect performance. Can you imagine the professionals on Strictly Come Dancing being able to move so freely if they had their jaws clamped shut? There is a direct link between tension in the muscles that close the jaw, and tension throughout the rest of the body. A tense muscle cannot extend to the end of its range of movement, and since in horse competition range of movement is a factor in performance, this causes reduced performance (think of how restricted your movement is when your muscles are tight and sore the day after you've exercised too hard, as an example). A jumping horse needs to be able to stretch over the fence, a racehorse needs to be able to stretch his stride to gallop faster, the dressage horse needs to be able to extend his forelegs, the hacking horse needs to be able to move freely up and down hill, and that's just the beginning.
This comment has brought several responses, all agreeing with me that strapping a horses mouth shut to hide unwanted behaviour is not the right thing to do. There aren't necessarily any other easy answers, but as responsible horse owners, for the sake of our horses comfort, we should do our best to identify the cause rather than ignore it.

Thanks from a grateful horse owner (and probably her horse as well)

In my last post I gave my reply to a recent email from a client, and you may have noticed that I asked her if I could post her original email.  She has given me permission to do so, and here it is:

Both your recommendation of Janine Wilbrahim's Book & Julie Houghton's ECST have helped

"I discovered Janine, through an article in Sue Palmer’s weekly newsletter ‘Holistic Horse Help - Pain or Gain’ that recommended Janine’s book ‘’Can You Hear Me’’. 
I was fascinated to read about her ability to communicate with horses and as I had been troubled by my horse’s resistance to be tacked and rugged up, which could not be explained by the normal checks such as saddler, dentist, vet etc I was keen for her to do a psychic reading for him. 
I was amazed at the amount of detail she was able to provide just from a photo of him, from the fact that he is a clock-watcher, likes the smell of my fruity shampoo and more importantly was saying ‘’Something hurts’’ and describing pain at the base of his spine. 
Having had my saddle checked by 3 different saddlers who all confirmed it was a good fit, I was concerned about what this pain that Janine had told me about was and how to pinpoint it, as he showed no signs of lameness, had his teeth done recently and is seen annually by an osteopath and a physiotherapist. 
This weekend saw a ‘eureka’ moment when Ned was treated by Julie Houghton (a colleague of Sue Palmer) who is an Equine Craniosacral Therapist (ECST), who discovered that his left hip was unlevel which was causing a lot of tension in his quarters and tightness in his ribcage. 
After just 1 treatment, Ned is already much more comfortable, far less grumpy being tacked up and having his rugs changed, and with on-going massage and a couple more ECST treatments, will be back on form in no time !
I am amazed that Janine was able to pin-point the trouble-spot so accurately and easily through communicating with Ned via a photo and helped me solve the mystery regarding the underlying problem that more conventional checks had missed. 
I am also extremely grateful to Sue for initiating the discovery through her HHH articles that emphasise that a horse is trying to tell you something when he acts out of character and also to Julie for finally pinpointing and treating the problem area. 
Very many thanks to Janine, Julie and Sue from both Ned and I, your help is hugely appreciated!"

She replied to me:

"I'd be more than happy fo you to share my email with other readers of your newsletters as it was through reading it myself that I persevered to find out what the issue was, as your constant philosphy is that if the horse is behaving strangely he is trying to tell you something. I just wish I had investigated further earlier but it is hard to know what to do when all the normal routes failed:-
- osteo that saw him last said that he only needed a check annually
- physio that saw him in the spring didn't recommend any follow up treatment
- teeth all good as done in July
- saddle all good as done in Aug"

How often should your horse have his back checked?

Below is the reply I sent to a lady in response to an email thanking me for some contacts she made through my regular newsletter who were able to help her find and address the cause of her horse's unhappy behaviour. It's worth remembering as you read this that Carl Hester's horses are treated every 2 weeks - clearly he believes (and I would say has proved) that regular physical therapy is beneficial for horses!

"I'm so glad we've been able to help your horse between us all. However, I am saddened by the fact that the issue was missed by your regular [yearly] physio and osteo. This is something I come across all too regularly. It seems that behaviours such as those your horse was demonstrating (and many other horse behaviours) are just taken to be 'normal', and so the practitioner doesn't place enough significance on the areas of soreness they find. All too often they just report to the owner that the horse is 'fine', when in my opinion he clearly isn't (or perhaps that's how the owner interprets the message, and its a communication problem).

I also find it sad that so many practitioners recommend yearly or six monthly check ups for horses that have pain issues that I believe they need maintenance treatment to help with. It seems to me that practitioners are frightened to offer the treatment that the horse needs, maybe because they are frightened that the owner will think they're being greedy. In my opinion a horse that is doing a reasonable amount of work (I.e. most riding club type horses) should have a physio assessment and treatment every 3 months, unless they are particularly healthy in their musculoskeletal system. That way any pain issue has not been there too long before treatment, and if no pain issue has arisen then the treatment will enhance the horse's performance, improve his willingness to work, and reduce the risk of injury and the chances of a pain issue arising. Of course, if the practitioner is not actually spotting the problem in the first place, this doesn't help! Horses didn't evolve to live in restricted areas, eat from haynets, or carry the weight of a rider, so no matter how careful we are, they are likely to suffer strain through their musculoskeletal system. Only a well trained, experienced and empathetic practitioner can assess the effects of this strain (I.e. not the average horse owner, although I do have many people telling me that they've felt their horse's back and there's nothing wrong - would they go to a lay person if they had a back problem themselves, or would they go to a professional?!), and treat and advise appropriately.

I'm sorry to have gone on, as you can probably guess this is a source of frustration to me on a daily basis! Particularly when I am called to address a horse's behaviour who has supposedly had his back checked, but to my eyes the behaviour is clearly pain related - I have dozens of stories of that being the case. Would you be willing for me to share your email with readers of my newsletter to encourage others to look for the solution that's right for their horse, and to trust in their instincts?"

The Back Person

What or who is the 'back person?

This post is prompted by an email I received from a client asking if what Amy and I do (as Chartered Physiotherapists) and what Alison does (as an Osteopath) is the same as what the 'back person' does.

My first thought was that I'm not explaining my role well enough to my clients!  My next thought was how confusing it is for the average horse owner to know who to call to assess and treat their horse.  Hopefully I can give you a bit more information here...

One of the questions I'm often asked is 'what's the difference between a physiotherapist, a chiropractor, and an osteopath?' My answer is that although we all start from different training backgrounds, our aims are all the same, to help the horse to be more comfortable and to perform more easily.  The most important thing, in my opinion, is whether that practitioner is right for you and your horse, and here you have to at least partly trust your instinct.  If you don't like what they do, don't ask them back!

Whilst qualifications are by no means the be all and end all, they can play some part in giving you confidence that the person you are paying is doing the right thing by you and your horse.  The titles 'Osteopath' and 'Chiropractor' are protected titles, so if your practitioner is an osteopath or a chiropractor then you can be confident that they have at least completed recognised training.  This doesn't necessarily, of course, mean that they are good practitioners, but it's a good start!

The title 'Physiotherapist' is sadly more complicated.  Whilst in the human field it is a protected title, if it has an animal related word in front of it then it is no longer protected (e.g. Animal Physiotherapist, Veterinary Physiotherapist, Equine Physiotherapist).  This means that anyone can call themselves a Veterinary Physiotherapist and set up in business, even with no training or qualifications at all (in fact, I was told of someone today who has done just that).  To be sure that you are employing someone who is a qualified Physiotherapist, you should look for the word 'Chartered'.  You can find your local Chartered Animal or Veterinary Physiotherapist at www.acpat.co.uk.

There are of course many other practitioners helping horses, ranging from massage therapists to reiki, and plenty in between.  Some of these therapies are self regulating, many aren't.  Again, trust your instinct, and do your research.  Word of mouth is very powerful, although it's worth remembering that just because a certain practitioner didn't get on with one person isn't a guarantee that they won't get on with you.

As for what or who is the 'back person', any of these people can be given that term by horse owners!  Chartered Physiotherapists, Osteopaths, and Chiropractors have trained for a minimum of 3 years (most of them longer, I took 7 years to qualify as a Chartered Veterinary Physiotherapist) and will have a BSc in their subject, and probably an MSc as well.  None of the other therapies have such rigorous training in order to qualify.

I hope this helps a little, please feel free to drop me an email if you have any questions or comments.

Sue

P.s. If you'd like to arrange for Amy or Alison to visit your horse for assessment and treatment then email me today.

p.p.s. If you'd like to do more to help your own horse physically, take a look at Horse Massage for Horse Owners, available as a book, DVD or course.

A New Blog!

Holistic Horse Help was founded in 2007 by Veterinary Physiotherapist and Equine Behaviourist Sue Palmer. Described as ‘inspirational, enthusiastic, informative, friendly, calm, understanding, supportive’, Sue's expertise allows her to help you and your horse, whether the issue is caused by ‘brain’ or ‘pain’. 

The Holistic Horse Help therapist team is made up of equine professionals Sue Palmer (Physiotherapist), Alison O'Dochartaigh (Osteopath), and Amy Gilbert (Physiotherapist), supported by Practice Manager Simon Palmer. Sue, Alison and Amy have a similar successful philosophy on assessing and treating horses, using a practical approach that aims to relieve pain and stiffness towards improved health and performance. Experts in their fields, working with powerful and proven techniques, each uses her own specialist skills to deliver individualised help for your horse. Working as a close knit team, they regularly discuss cases and solutions, enabling them to provide a superior quality service for the benefit of both you and your horse. If appropriate, cases are discussed with your vet / farrier / saddler / dentist / instructor or other equine paraprofessional to ensure a complete therapeutic intervention for your horse.

Based in Stafford, Staffordshire, the Holistic Horse Help team work freelance throughout the UK, offering a variety of physiotherapy and teaching techniques including individual and group sessions, courses and demonstrations. From a routine physiotherapy ‘back check’, to solving loading issues, to teaching the Horse Massage for Horse Owners Course, they will look at the whole picture to support you towards achieving your dreams you’re your horse.

This blog is written by Sue, with the aim of keeping you up to date with events, and provoking thought into the links between 'brain' and 'pain' issues for horses - so often the two are linked (in particular Sue believes that many 'behavioural' problems' are caused by physical pain).  Enjoy the blog, and join in when you can!

Sign up to receive Sue's regular 'Brain or Pain' e-newsletter for free by putting your name and email address in the box at the top right corner of the HHH homepage.  You can also keep in touch with Sue and Holistic Horse Help on Facebook or Twitter, where you'll find daily 'Helpful Hints'.