Carrick Hill Equestrian Centre

24/08/2024

There is no piece of equipment, supplement, vet/chiro/massage treatment that will make up for lack of hours spent developing your horse.
Take the time.
Do the work.
Warm your horse up
Cool them out
Be consistent
Do your homework

I did not write this, but everyone needs to see it...

When we rush our horses in their training, we aren't expediting their fitness or building muscles faster - we are breaking them down and rushing to a place that will require more veterinary intervention, more alternative therapies, more time off, more risk of injury, more wear and tear on the fragile structures, and a quicker end to the riding career and soundness of our equine partners.

You cannot rush fitness, you cannot rush collection, suppleness, relaxation, it's impossible. Wherever you do rush and cut corners, you will end up with holes and issues in other areas of your riding and the overall health and welfare of your horse.

Don't want to take the time to teach your horse to collect, and instead just force him into a false frame? Well, you're going to be stuck with fixing the slew of problems that come with the tension that was just created.

Don't want to work your way up the scale to create true endurance and stamina? You now risk your horse pulling a muscle or injuring themselves from overexertion and being pushed too hard for too long when the body simply isn't ready for that workload.

Don't want to get a saddle fitted to your horse? Your horse will suffer the consequences of altering his posture and way of going to alleviate the pressure and pain caused by something that isn't suited to his build, even going so far as risking injury to yourself when he can't pick up his feet enough, causing a stumble which can be catastrophic.

Don't want to do boring small jumps to build up to the larger ones? You risk your horse not being able to find a good take-off spot, knocking rails, refusing and even crashing through the jump. You will also make the horse more nervous, anxious and again, tense and sometimes unwilling to jump again.

Don't want to waste time working up the scale of collection to achieve the proper head set without force? Let's just throw a harsher bit in his mouth, maybe tie the nose shut with both noseband and flash to get him into "frame". You've now lost all relaxation, the wrong muscles are activated and depending on how deep you yank the horses face in will determine if he's even able to swallow. Tension throughout the jaw and neck translate all the way to the hind legs, so zero collection is possible, even the slightest bit of engagement and lift of the back cannot be achieved.

Rushing will lead you nowhere except to more problems that could've been avoided had you taken the proper time for development.

📝 Unknown

📸 Sister

08/08/2024

Everyone is tucked in for the evening due to pending storm-geddon. Hopefully back to our normal schedule by tomorrow night. 🤞🏻🌂

08/08/2024

“the body operates as a system of interconnected parts. When one body part is restricted or compensating for another, it can create a chain reaction of biomechanical changes throughout the body. This can lead to inefficient movement patterns, increased strain on certain muscles or joints, and a cycle of compensation where the body continues to adapt to accommodate the initial imbalance or restriction.

In other words, if you want your horse to perform and have a long career, you need to help his body work efficiently. “

In biomechanics and movement science, the body operates as a system of interconnected parts. When one body part is restricted or compensating for another, it can create a chain reaction of biomechanical changes throughout the body. This can lead to inefficient movement patterns, increased strain on certain muscles or joints, and a cycle of compensation where the body continues to adapt to accommodate the initial imbalance or restriction. Identifying and addressing these imbalances is important for optimizing movement efficiency and reducing the risk of injury.

In other words, if you want your horse to perform and have a long career, you need to help his body work efficiently. The best way to do that is through a combination of regular massage therapy, fascial training and functionally correct exercise.

https://koperequine.com/the-importance-of-understanding-biomechanics-and-tensegrity-in-horse-movement-and-structural-integrity/

https://koperequine.com/why-hands-on-massage-is-the-best-way-to-for-sore-care-muscles/

03/08/2024

Sometimes doubles as

27/07/2024

If all you’re doing with your horse is chiro and/or PEMF then you aren’t taking care of your horse’s musculoskeletal system. You may think you are, but you aren’t.

You’ll also find that each individual massage therapist, and other types of soft tissue workers, will differ in their approach, and so will vary in their effectiveness.

Function will follow form which means if the muscles are tight, imbalanced or set in a particular functional pattern, that’s how your horse will go. To interrupt the set in their ways muscle (and neuromuscular) patterns and help your horse move forward towards a more functional, higher performing ambidexterity, find yourself an effective, experienced massage therapist, preferably one with a solid sport horse background. Even your backyard horse will benefit from it.

Why Hands On Massage Is The Best Way To Care For Sore Muscles - https://koperequine.com/why-hands-on-massage-is-the-best-way-to-for-sore-care-muscles/

The Box Analogy – (And Why You Need To Know It) - https://koperequine.com/the-box-analogy-and-why-you-need-to-know-it/

13/07/2024

The summer heat and sun won't be letting up any time soon, so make sure your equine friends are adequately protected from harmful UV rays. ☀️

Hot summer weather puts horses at risk not only for dehydration and heat stress but also the skin damage and discomfort that accompany a sunburn— just like humans.

A lot of equestrians love some chrome on a horse, but it's important to remember that those beautiful white markings and the non-pigmented pink skin underneath are more likely to suffer from sunburn, especially in areas where the skin is more sensitive — like around the eyes and the nostrils.

In addition to the pain and discomfort, horses that are prone to recurrent sunburn may also face other long-term consequences, like the increased likelihood of developing squamous cell carcinoma (a common cancer).

If your horse is susceptible to sunburn, contact your veterinarian for more information about sun damage and recommendations to keep your horse protected this summer.

10/07/2024

🏠🐭 out and about at the Buck clinic last month.

🦄

09/07/2024

Spots on spots. 🤎🤍🤎

07/07/2024

When you are a racehorse but vacation with show horses🦄

02/07/2024

22/06/2024

Cliff notes:
Warm up - at least 10min walk
Cool down at least 10min walk

It is tempting isn’t it?! To just jump on board your horse and set off at a fair lick (they do say start as you mean to go on after all!). But did you know this can actually be damaging to your horses musculoskeletal system and may result in injury or even problems in later life. We all know we SH

21/06/2024

🌙 Luna 🌙 3yr old CSH filly
Loved & owned by the McCaig Family.

20/06/2024

August 1st we have a training space coming available ✨
Full or partial options available to suit you and your partner’s needs.

💫 We specialize in young horse development

💫 starting or restarting green horses

💫OTTB rehab & restart

💫developing training programs to suit every equine athlete

Feel free to message with questions or to book your spot.

17/06/2024

Anyone interested in grabbing a spot at the Buck Davidson clinic June 24-25?
PT/TR level, SJ day 1 and xc day 2.
Great opportunity to learn from one of the best!

Please message me or Holly Jacks-Smither if interested

12/06/2024

Something to keep in mind when planning a program for your horse.

12/06/2024

“Be patient! Muscle doesn’t happen overnight. Visible muscle changes take a good six to eight weeks.
You increase the number of muscle fibres that work inside the muscle to start with, which is why you get an apparent increase in strength and function, but the development of muscle is a much slower process. Three signs you’re overdoing it are stiffness, behavioural changes and lack of progress in your horse.”

Poor topline needs correcting, as it supports your horse’s body, the weight of their rider and saddle, as well as facilitating movement

10/06/2024

"Cool" hot weather tips! ☀️

The notion that a hot, recently exercised horse needs to walk until they are completely cooled off is a myth. A 2020 study found that out of the five methods tested, the quickest way to return to normal body temperature was stationary with continuous tap water application. This doesn't mean that you should abruptly stop exercise—finish your ride or training session with a slow walk to allow your horse's heart rate and breathing to gradually return to normal, but after that your sweaty, hardworking horse should be offered a cool shower and drinking water (small but frequent amounts) without delay.

Overall, enjoy your summer rides but be aware of signs of heat stress in your horse. When heat and humidity soar, even moderate exercise can push your equine friend's body temperature beyond safe limits! Be sure to contact your veterinarian for more information about heat stroke and for recommendations tailored to your horse's individual situation.
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Information brought to you by the AAEP Horse Owner Education Committee.

05/06/2024

It’s not the most glamorous job, but it sure is satisfying.
Patience, repetition, and keeping it simple are the building blocks for a solid foundation.

02/06/2024

Training Horse Intake Procedures,

Dental check
Soundness check
Farrier consultation, potentially including X-Rays
Chiropractor
Massage Therapy
Saddle Fit
Nutrition evaluation
Training evaluation (to include fitness, quality of movement, posture, temperament, mindset evaluation)

Are your the same or different?

Now that the horse and its equipment have been optimized, we can start to consider how long it will take to see changes.

In the past I’ve worked for trainers who required a minimum of 3 months with the horse if they are going to work with the horse at all. Due to how long it takes to build muscle, develop positive movement habits and solidify learning I think that’s a pretty fair. In 3 months of hopefully smooth and productive work, you should start to see a fair bit progress in the horse’s training and musculature. In theory, the longer we work together, the better we progress.

For a horse that’s never been fit before, it can take a couple of years to truly develop a solid core of strength and fitness. More than muscles have to adapt.

Core strength building exercises - https://koperequine.com/building-a-healthy-topline-tips-and-exercises-for-your-horse/

27/05/2024

The body controls the legs NOT the other way around.

“The spine affects the physical and neurological health of the entire body, as it is the connection between the axial and appendicular skeleton. It also houses the central nervous system. The joints of the body depend on the health of the spine in order to properly articulate, and they are moved by the muscles that are innervated by spinal nerves.”

04/05/2024

🌺We have a couple new partnerships here this spring 🌺
Gloria has a pretty handsome new ride and we’re excited to see how much fun they get up to!

Thank you Megan for sharing your boy with us💕

18/03/2024

🙌🏼

13/03/2024

Today I had an interesting conversation with an on-looker of a session. The owner had been talking about how the horse had been steadily improving over the last 5 months and now was going better than ever. He looked better than ever, too. In fact, all 3 of the horses we did there that morning reported the same thing…

I started working with them regularly 5 months ago.

The onlooker’s question was:

“If the horse is going so well now, why are you still spending money on bodywork?”

What seemed very obvious to me, didn’t seem so obvious to someone who was less familiar with bodywork and horses.

Bodywork with soft tissue manipulation, like massage and myofascial release, helps your horse manage his body. It releases the tension and imbalances that interfere with efficient, smooth movement, making it easier for your horse to do the things that you ask him to do. If you make it easy for his body to do his job really well, he will. 👍😃

And with horses (and life) - if something works this well for you, keep doing it!

Here’s a List of Other Things You May Not Yet Know About Massage -
https://koperequine.com/heres-a-list-of-things-you-may-not-yet-know-about-massage/

17/02/2024

A little late in posting, but I would like to send out a heartfelt thank you, to all our training clients from 2023!
Training and development of the young horse is what we specialize and take great delight in.
It was a pleasure getting to work with such a nice bunch of youngsters last year. 🥂

17/02/2024

ISO: Barn help Sunday/Monday mornings. General barn duties approximately 3.5hrs at a smaller facility located in Roseneath. Please message for more information.

08/02/2024

Great advice and easy plan to follow.

If you bought yourself a nice, kind, well started 4 year old with 60 days of training, you basically bought yourself a horse sized lump of play-dough. 60 days is nothing. Your horse has no fitness, barely knows anything and has next to no experience. It will take years of steady, regular exercise to build up a good, solid core of strength, range of motion and fitness.

His training will also be unconfirmed. 60 days is nothing. The best thing to do here is focus on solidifying the correct reactions to your aids, especially to your leg and seat, while your horse gains the fitness and experience he needs to carry your weight and do his new job. When he’s fit and all your aids are in place, you’ll have everything ready to start working on fancier things.

If weather, footing and temperament allow, our work week might look something like this:
* A baby “dressage/flatwork” day where we practice turning, bending, stopping, starting, rest and relax in the middle of the ring and then calmly go practice for a few more minutes.
* A “conditioning” day - we have a 3 acre field with a good fence line, 2 gates and good footing. A few laps in walk each way, with a 2 or 4 footed friend is often enough to set a young horse up for a lap-lap and a half in trot around the outside, practicing straight lines supported by a wall and passing the gate. Then a rest and chill followed by a lap or so the other way. After another rest we might leave by a different gate than we entered through, walk around the outside, still supported by the fence line, and home.
* “Obstacle” day - this might be a cone course to practice steering, a few poles, and gentle terrain like small hills, easy ditches, and different surfaces. We’re fortunate to have an area where we can serpentine down a slope to a driveway, across the road and up another slope. Figuring out how to comfortably carry a rider through these types of exercises can be a real challenge for a young horse.
* Ground day - this could be practicing getting on and off the trailer for the day or it could be something like some a series of Dynamic Mobilization Exercises such as a few small circles in-hand, a few steps sideways each way, backing up a few steps and a nice bonding hand-walk over some terrain and around the neighborhood, as a precursor to trail rides.
* A short trail ride with a friend if there’s a suitable area and our horse feels safe and has developed enough confidence to go out.
* We also like to practice 2-3 hours in a stall most days but otherwise they live out with friends.

Each time you practice something, even something small, like walking past the gate to go home, or walking forward from halt, practices a skill, it etches a small dent into what will someday become a full picture of a well prepared sport horse.

Knowing how much you can do with a young horse is a bit of an art form. We try do enough that we’re contributing to fitness but not so much that the horse is surprised by it or uncomfortable from it the next day.

Click here for some more suggestions on developing your horses: https://koperequine.com/10-tips-to-improve-muscle-care-recovery/

And for some suggestions on how to ease the training development process:
https://koperequine.com/massage-can-help-your-horse-through-the-training-process/

06/02/2024

🌟 There are four things I try to focus on repeatedly in my riding. Building on the idea of repetition, these principles guide you no matter what phase or discipline you're riding.

1: Position. If horses go the way they are ridden, your job is to be in balance with them.
2: Steering. Be clear about this! How can you make your steering smooth?
3: Rhythm. Own the rhythm. Have it become the basis of everything you do, whether or not there are jumps in the way.
4: Intention. Too often, we get on before thinking too hard about what we'd like to practice or what we want to keep in mind. Balance this with riding the horse you have on each day.

18/01/2024

2023 was a big year for learning and growth. We were fortunate enough to be able to attend 3 great clinics; Jonathan Holling, Sharon White and Buck Davidson.
A huge thank you to the organizers for providing the opportunity to train with these clinicians.
Pictures are from the Sharon White clinic hosted by Four Leaf Stables. Lucky for us photographer was there!

10/03/2018

Horsetrader Mag

09/03/2018

A Certain Bear is loving his new role in life...spoiled pony.