Physio - food for thought!

[donnalex]

Yesterday I took my homebred filly for a full check up as I have been riding her properly for a few months. She was three in April and I always get them checked after they have been ridden for a while.
Anyway the walk and trot up she was pronuounced level, sound and very free moving Would easily pass a vet.
I was very pleased there is no tightness in the saddle and shoulder area as she is rump high as is her mother a little and saddle fit has been a bit tricky. But no everything soft and good there, very symmetrical but towards the back end the physio says she is tight in both ham strings right at the top at either side of her tail and also her tail itself. I then say 'Ooohh thats not coincidence that she hates her tail being messed with and swishes it madly then? Ive been telling her off for that!'
So then obviously we want to know why. Physio says 'Well you do have very hilly land I suppose. But this type of soreness is most often associated with ponies that have had laminitis and they have taken the weight behind to relieve the front feet.'
The penny then drops as this pony has had chronic white line disease, had to have it dremelled out at the vets and plastic glue on shoes fitted. She is the reason we have had the grass analysed. Started with an abcess as a yearling and had rubbish feet since until now. She is shod and on minerals to supplement what our land is lacking. Apparently if she had not been treated early then slowly her ham strings would have got worse eventually showing up in her movement as stiffness and not tracking up.
Onwards and upwards, pony will be fine and has never had laminitis but of all those that get footy every year how many get physio checks to make sure they are not sore afterwards? And all those horses who go through transitioning, maybe they should be checked too?
Diet, mineral balance, foot trim/balance, tack fit, dentistry, physiotherapy.
Makes you think how it is all linked together!

[Deleted]

Dec 7, 2011 9:44:19 GMT 1 @donnalex said:

Makes you think how it is all linked together!

A shamless plug for IH membership - there's an article on how these apparently unconnected physical problems all link together in this quarter's IH Magazine. It's a fascinating subject, which is of course why I wrote an article on it .

And good to point it out, P-N

[donnalex]

Im not a member so not read it.
But with barefoot trimming and transitioning on the increase plus the ever present laminitis risk it is very topical
I did read an article, possibly in H&H or one of the many free ad mags at feed stores about physio checks preventing lamenesses years before they would show up as tendon and ligament problems due to muscles higher up being tense or tight for years on end.
I think my pony proves it without doubt I say this because the physio had no idea there had been any foot problems at all yet says about the lammi stance causing this type of soreness.

[2 bays & a grey:D]

Thats why I like the Materson Techinique so much, releases EVERYTHING from jaw to poll to tail and releases further than just the surface. The difference in the horse afterwards is quite astounding, in fact, after nancy's 1st session I actually saw a difference in her length .

[donnalex]

Never heard of it, what is it?
I likw them short coupled - dont want her stretching

[2 bays & a grey:D]

Dec 7, 2011 11:13:18 GMT 1 @donnalex said:

Never heard of it, what is it?
I likw them short coupled - dont want her stretching

Its stretching in the sense that her muscles are relaxed, long muscles are more beneficial than short tight muscles. Your pony would still be short coupled. Go on his website Jim Masterson. i swear by it & does Miss HM ;D

[donnalex]

I was joking but will have a look

[2 bays & a grey:D]

I thought it was a strange thing to say ;D

[Deleted]

I couldn't have imagined in my wildest dreams the difference that Lorna Rowland has made to Talin. He saw 2 other physio's last year and neither made much difference. Lorna was his last chance before retirement and even though I hoped she'd get him happy being ridden I couldn't have imagined how staggering the difference has been... and the reason? because she's interested in the whole horse.

[Olivia]

Interesting, I had this thought last week as my TB is transitioning at the moment. I think it must make a difference so hopefully he's seeing the physio next week. I have a sneaky feeling he may be a bit tight in his shoulder area, even though he has been in very light work for last 3 months since last physio when he was in full work.

[specialized]

A good farrier will watch the horse walking out and tell you the same thing - ours will recommend if the horse will benefit from a back treatment. It is certainly the first thing he will recommend after a bout of lami, as it would be difficult to get the feet right without the back being right, and of course the gut.

[Amanda (S Yorks)]

It is basic common sense, most lamenesses are hoof related to start with but I suspect many of the ones that aren't directly associated with the hoof actually start off lower down in some way or another.

My mare had remedial trimming (hinds) and remedial shoeing (fronts) earlier this year. It was a bit scary how much changing the balance of her feet, which didn't appear all that bad to start with, made to her. As everything changed she became quite sore and it took several physio sessions to get her back on track. She wasn't being worked at the time either (still isn't), so didn't have a rider's weight to worry about and she has a bowen treatment every month also, so it's not like anything had been allowed to get really out of hand at any point in time.

[Sue Palmer]

Just thought it might be worth pointing out here that the titles 'Veterinary Physiotherapist' and 'Animal Physiotherapist' aren't protected titles, so the people using these titles don't have to be Physiotherapists in the human field. Of course am not saying that any of the above physios fall into this category, as it sounds as though excellent advice has been given, but I think it's important to raise awareness of this issue. There was a case in 2006 when a puppy had to be put down after being treated by someone who claimed to be an osteopath but wasn't. To find your local Chartered Veterinary or Animal Physiotherapist (i.e. someone who is a Member of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy), visit www.acpat.co.uk.

[donnalex]

It never occurred to me that this could make her muscles sore.
My physio was first qualified to treat people and comes highly recommended by my vet.
Current physio will refer me to someone on the register if we do eventually move to Scotlad so I wont need referrals from vets

[shan]

We had the physio/osteo out this morning for the girls - we waited weeks for her! I suspected for a while Sandy's neck wasn't right as she'd started chewing he rope or the fixings when I brushed her mane - I gave up brushing it but she let me pick the mud out. Her C3/4 was the problem, she had alot of soft tissue release done and by the end the phsio was 'wringing' all up her neck without Sandy batting an eye. I now have specific stretches and quarters strengthening work to do with her, instead of just general stretching and routine toning. I love getting them MOTd!