Zoe Smith Equine Therapist The osteopathic approach

03/07/2025

Saxon having a good stretch out 💪

03/07/2025

Lets talk about the thoracic sling !

* The horses forelimbs are an upright bony column which is connected to the spine via the thoracic sling. There is no bony attachment so this sling of muscles supports the weight of the thorax and body between the front limbs.

* The muscles involved are the ventral serrated muscle thoracic and cervical, Subclavian, descending, transverse and ascending pectoral.

* These powerful postural muscles stabilise the shoulder and elbow and attach the scapula to the withers, spine and ribs.

*They enable the scapulae to glide over the ribs and trunk and allows the body to move between the scapulae so it can roll into a turn at speed and dissipate concussive forces.

* The sling supports the weight contributes to balance, turning and braking.

* Strengthening the thoracic sling will shorten the muscles and lift the thorax between the forelimbs and gives the impression the horse has grown.

Weakness in the thoracic sling can lead to many issues here are a few -
* Going on the forehand
* Difficulty bending, turning, lateral movements
* Reduced stride length
* Girthy
* Pulling along rather than pushing from behind
* Heavy in the hand
* Would rather adopt a hollow outline with a high head position and struggling to maintain good balance.
* Falling in
* Performance issues such as tiring more quickly

Here are some of the ways to recognise it your horses posture -

* A downhill posture
* A dip int he neck in front of the withers
* A pronounced and slack looking set of pectoral muscles
* A hollow behind the withers and shoulder
* Elbows angled outwards

What can you do?

* Raised walk pole work , this encourages the horse to use the thoracic sling, lift its legs, stretch its head sown and out.

* Up hill work engages the thoracic sling muscles, in hand or ridden and it doesn't need to fast either. Walking engages the muscles to.

* Backing up, ideally on a daily basis, encouraging the horses head to lower.

* When the horse is ready lateral work when riding such as leg yield or shoulder in strengthen the sling.

What can I do?

* I can assess you horse and establish if it it a thoracic sling weakness.

* Help rule out pain and any other body or compensatory issues.

* Relieve any muscle soreness and tension with the thoracic sling muscles ( often most noticeable in the transverse and ascending pectorals when girthing).

* Advice exercises tailored to your horses specific needs.

24/06/2025

Wow what a couple of days!! I have been away at Horses Inside Out with Gillian Higgins taking part in CPD course on myofascial lines. i love these courses it teaches me new skills and refreshes old ones to better enable me to help all your lovely horses.

My art work could do with some improvement though 😂😂.

22/06/2025

Today is World Osteopathy day!!
Animal osteopathy follows the same principles as laid out by Andrew Taylor Still in 1874 - Structure and function are deeply connected, the osteopathic gentle hands on techniques support the body's natural ability to heal itself.

🐎Osteopathy views the body as a connected whole, recognising that problems in one area can affect other parts of the body.

🐎Osteopaths consider the relationship between the musculoskeletal system and the body's other systems including the nervous systems, circulatory, and lymphatic.

🐎This holistic approach helps the osteopath to find the root causes rather than just treat the symptoms, helping the body restore homeostasis.

16/06/2025

Someone was tired after his treatment 😴

16/06/2025

Here are some of the lovely horses I treated from last week 😁

02/06/2025

It's not everyday you get to assess a 2 week old donkey what a beautiful fuzzy chap 😍

07/05/2025

07/05/2025

When your head gets to heavy to hold up find a resting place . This lovely boy just needed to rest his chin on my head for a while.

27/03/2025

Lets talk a bit about teeth....

Dental problems can cause a whole host of issues in the body it can affect the way a horse holds themselves and moves and uses its body causing compensation patterns to develop which can lead to a whole host of other problems, it can reduce performance, and their demeanour. It may not always be our first port of call when performance or behavioural issues strike but It should be on our list of top things to check when investigating.

You can check for horse for signs such as -
* Look at their face is it obviously asymmetrical, do they seem to be holding tension on one side or both
* Are the muscles on their forehead overdeveloped or developed unequally
* You can part the lip and have a look at the incisors at the front, are they uneven, have they sharp points on them, do they line up? The horse in the picture below shows teeth that do not line up, he had issues and avoided using one side of his jaw.

Some general signs a dental check might be needed are -
* Dropping food
* Loss of body condition
* Large food particles in their manure
* Head tilting or tossing
* Foul odour from their mouth
* Food packing ( can give them hamster pouches)
* Bit issues
* Manual therapies not lasting
* Movement and performance issues

The horse can develop pain signs as well some of which can be
* Ears back
* Wrinkles above the eyes
* Muzzle tense

The horse teeth can be affected in several ways here are just a few -

* Diminished inclination in the body of the tooth which is where the tooth has been over filed and they are to smooth this can cause issues such as -
* TMJ sensitivity ( the jaw joints)
* Head shy/ head tossing
* General moodiness, stiffness and pain signs

Lateral restrictions this is the one most people are familiar with this is where the sharp points develop on the edges of the teeth, issues here can lead to ulcers in the mouth which will contribute to the issues below, some signs for lateral restrictions can be -
* Difficulty turning and changing direction
* Lateral flexion in the neck difficult
* Disliking the bit
* Overdevelopment of the temporal muscles on the horses forehead

Finally Anterior and Posterior restrictions, some signs to look out for here are -
* Tight in the poll
* Poor hind end performance
* Difficulty with transitions and lead changes
* Weak impulsion
* Shortening of the strides

24/03/2025

The nervous system plays a most important role in coordinating movement and overall health of the horse. Misalignment or tension in the musculoskeletal system can compress the nerves which causes pain and discomfort and can reduce function.
Osteopaths work to alleviate these restrictions and enhance neurological function which allows clear communication between the brain and body. Helping your equine friend to feel their best.