Equine Massage and Cryotherapy

13/04/2025

Fog on the water……

19/03/2025

This is a great explanation

Tails tell a story

I thought I would add a little more in

Often tails are forgotten when we look at the horse we may pull them, or use them as an access point for other parts of the horse but often tails and how they sit in line with the rest of the body can indicate other things which may be happening

Anatomy

The tailbones are called the COCCYGEAL and on average there are 15-18 bones which begin at the end of the sacral bone, the first two are located internally and often the little triangle above the tail will indicate where these are or by moving the tail up and down you can usually feel where the sacrum begins as this is not as mobile as the tailbones
The tail can move up and down and side to side, it has muscles which can help with posture (slow twitch) and movement (fast twitch).
Even though there is no spinal cord here it still contains many nerves and also many soft tissue connections which reach further forward along the horse
Tails are great for communication we can tell alot by the tails movement and not just when riding, fly swatting and balance
If we look at the connection between the big ligaments that are effective between the tail and sacroiliac joints then we often find restriction in either will have an effect on the other and also a more global effect

A tail should feel like there is some resistance then relax when we work on it a bit like goldilocks and the three bears it should not feel to rigid nor to relaxed it should be just right 😁

I think of the tail as a rudder of the ship its used for balance, can indicate how your horse is feeling and we often only think of diagonals with a compensation pattern a straight line from right to left or vice versa when often when we look its usually a zig zag pattern as the horse tries to find a more normal pattern throughout the body sort of trying to right itself at each junction and more often than not if we have a tail off to one side the zig zag pattern of compensation will end up with the head favouring the same side that the tail is sat

Tail off to one side

Often this usually happens way before your therapist comes to work with your horse and its already a deep established pattern throughout your horses body, remember the tail and sacrum are interlinked so usually I come across this if the horse has had some strain around the pelvic area, maybe the horse had a slip or a fall as a youngster and that is why it is so hard to correct it as its usually been a long standing issue and a pattern is ingrained into the body, it's now the horses normal crooked tails are still not well documented as to the whys
So it's important if you see your youngster slip in the field to get it checked, often the bony landmarks hit the ground and you can see its all connected and mostly what I see is the Tuber Coxae that is most affected is the nearside and most tails I see are always favouring to the left side

Tail rigid and stiff

Again for me this may be an indicator that the horse is trying not to move things too much in this area think of the rudder of the ship if it is stuck in one position often intricate movements are hard, the horse is usually ok in straight lines but may struggle with schooling moves, again do not just think of the tail as a single entity you have to think of the connections and muscles in the tail can have connections further up the back

Clamped down tail

This is usually the polar opposite of the rigid tail but again is the horse trying to keep the area as still as possible often the engine is switched off in these horses so they often struggle to power their hind end as the easiest way I explain it to clients is pull your knickers up your bum and then try to run, it's not so easy

Different breeds will have different tail carriages, and different personalities will have different tail carriages as well but we must remember the tail is an indicator of the mobility of your horses spine, and the health of the soft tissue, a non-moving tail is trying to protect an area and like I say we come in much later so there may be no pain but a restriction and it's important we do the work in small parts to allow the horse to adjust and reset

We also have to think of the huge fascial sheets across the horse and the effects of fascial restrictions and patterns throughout the body remember we have to work on the whole horse even if we think it’s a hind end or front end or middle part of the horse for the connections of the tail go much further than the tail bones, think of the top of the tail in a little fascial pop sock

We often only think of steering is a front-end issue but if the rudder fails then the steering will never be right the tail should be able to move with the body counterbalancing the body and we have to work with what we have in front of us, often the owners have done all the vet checks and we are just trying to bring more balance to the body without it having to work so hard

18/03/2025

A little trivia

The horse trailer, or “horse box” as it was commonly known in England, was invented in 1771! A horse drawn carriage was adapted to pull the famed racehorse turned stud Eclipse, who had a history of bad hooves. His owner wanted a way to save his energy and hooves for his sire duties. The practice did not become common until 1836, when the owner of a racehorse named Elis wanted to give him a competitive edge. The travel to the racetrack was far and the odds were against Elis winning. Elis easily won the race and his secret trick of transporting the racehorse quickly became popular. Another common use was to transport injured horses for veterinary care. During World War 1, horse ambulances were constructed to transport injured horses from the front lines to base units for care. Once vehicles became motorized in the early 1900s, it became even easier to move horses long distances with little discomfort. The horse trailer as it’s known today was developed in the 1950s. The demand to transport horses increased throughout the 1960s and 1970s as trail riding became more popular. Horse trailers were expanded to accommodate multiple horses at once. The horse trailer industry has grown to a multi billion dollar industry in the 21st century!

06/03/2025

Rex tells me he’s a hard working Kelpie. He says it’s hard work making sure the horses stay in their paddocks and that the white chook is under surveillance. 😂😂😂

So when the cryotherapy unit comes out, he thinks he’s earnt the right to have a treatment for his tired and aching muscles. 😂😂

06/03/2025

A Rare Opportunity for Dressage Riders! 🏇✨

Step into the world of true Classical Dressage with Nadine Francois, one of the few top students of the legendary Nuno Oliveira.

This March, Nadine is bringing her wealth of knowledge and experience to the Central Coast for an exclusive clinic like no other!

With a deep understanding of horse and rider biomechanics, Nadine blends precision, tact, and classical principles to help you refine your training, no matter your level.

Whether you're working on ridden exercises or in-hand work, her passion and eye for detail will transform your connection with your horse.

Limited spots available, overnight horse accommodation available

Dates: 23rd - 26th March, 2026
Location: Wyee
Cost: $170 per lesson inc arena hire.

Further info about Nadine
https://www.equinemassage.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/Nadine-Francois-Bio.pdf

https://www.equinemassage.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Nadine-April-23-NZ.pdf

https://www.equinemassage.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/HP-article.pdf

https://www.equinemassage.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/Nadine-Dream-Lesson-Aug-09-HP-Mag.pdf

22/02/2025

20/02/2025

Finally someone showing a correct stretch. 👏👏👏. I cringe every time I see someone doing a foreleg stretch holding onto the hoof and hyper flexing the knee.