Kate Thornton Equine Sports & Remedial Bodywork Norfolk

09/07/2025

Makes a lot of sense 🙌 also really drives home the argument that if a horse does something under saddle which result in an accident/fall, calling them “naughty” is hugely over-simplistic and misguided. Bigger picture - let’s take some responsibility for it!

Recent research published in the journal Animal shows a clear link between horse welfare and rider safety.

Horses in facilities with better welfare—characterised by fewer health problems, higher haemoglobin levels, and more positive behaviour towards humans—were associated with the lowest number of rider falls during lessons.

In contrast, horses showing signs of poor welfare, such as chronic pain, apathy, aggression, or anaemia, were associated with more rider accidents.

The study also found that positive, attentive human-horse interactions during care and riding improved welfare, while rushed or minimal interaction worsened it.

Management practices like the frequency of turnout or the teaching strategies employed by riding instructors—were also found to be highly influential.

For example, the facility with the best welfare outcomes provided more frequent turnout and riding instruction that emphasised horse comfort rather than strict control. This approach not only improved horse welfare but also resulted in safer riding environments and a reduced risk of accidents.

This study, though modest in scale, clearly demonstrates that investing in horse welfare brings tangible benefits beyond simply having healthier, happier animals.

Facilities that make even small improvements in management—such as increasing turnout and providing more attentive care—see direct enhancements in horse welfare, which in turn results in fewer rider accidents during lessons and lowers the risk of costly legal claims for riding centres.

Ultimately, prioritising horse welfare is both an ethical responsibility and a sound, practical strategy for creating safer, more sustainable riding operations.

Full Study: L. Gueguen, R. Palme, P. Jego, S. Henry, M. Hausberger,
Differences between facilities in horse welfare profiles: slight differences in management/working conditions may be enough,
animal, Volume 19, Issue 6, 2025

06/07/2025

I can't believe it's a whole week since our last course at Equicode came to an end!! The June course went so well and it was, as always, so wonderful to watch partnerships grow in body and mind.

All the private lessons that people had with Nicky Donohue and Lynda Davey were, as always, bespoke to each client and their horse. Before the course starts, we have an individual discussion with each person to establish what they hope to gain from the days they are with us, and this information is then used to help them to achieve this - it may be a ridden/biomechanical goal, but also could be confidence, relationship, their horse' way of going or anything else!

We operate a timetable whereby if people aren't in the arena, they are either in a workshop with Lynda or Nicky (whoever isn't teaching in the arena), or they are with me looking at anatomy, functional movement, bodywork tips and techniques etc.

In this particular course, I'd prepared a few different options for people, which I'd tried to create as subjects which are useful for all horses and their humans, but tweaked for individuals

🐎posture assessment - key markers and ways you can chart change over the period of weeks/months
🐎K-taping - we had a workshop on how to measure, handle, cut and apply tape in a basic form, and then practiced applying a toning or proprioceptive application to their horse, as applicable to each
🐎The ventral chain - how important the muscles of this chain are - and how overlooked when people are looking at healthy movement (the focus is often on the topline but if you don't have a healthy ventral chain and allow it to move freely you can pretty much forget that!)
🐎Balance mats and pads - introducing each horse to the texture of balance mats and offering them the opportunity to stand on with whichever feet they felt good with. This is great for awakening proprioceptive receptors, encouraging stability, observing where more weight may be applied/used and sometimes tension release.
🐎The Bladder Meridian technique - finding areas of potential tension within this important meridian of the body
🐎On the last afternoon, it was decided it was too warm to ride, which gave us the opportunity to play around with a variety of sensory experiences. I have posted about the work of Sarah Fisher at Tilley Farm before, and this is inspired by her ACE Freework. Textures, scents, a choice of botanicals, a choice of food puzzles, hidden healthy treats, novel objects etc are randomly placed for horses to explore at will, without human intervention - each horse had their human sitting at the side of the arena so they could approach them if they wanted, or felt that they needed that security. It was interesting how differently each horse approached the items and what they were more attracted to. More on this in a separate post!

Looking forward to the August course - 3 of 4 we are running this year. PLUS we have just decided our dates for next year (TBA soonest!!)

05/07/2025

As I sit in a lay-by with my cup of tea, a bit of time to reflect on a brilliant couple of days with my buddy and fellow therapist Louise Hearn of Equines in balance 🐎 🏰

After driving to Surrey on Thursday morning, we decided to spend a rare afternoon off at Hampton Court Palace (I’ve never been but Louise has, about 1004 times 😂). Soooo interesting, beautiful and strange in a way to be walking through the same rooms as Henry VIII 🤴 we did try to spend the time not thinking about horses (!) but some of the artwork is a stark reminder of the hundreds (thousands) of years that horses have lived by our side and done our bidding. I don’t know, but I assume their body language and pained facial expressions are not simply the imagineation of the artists…

Anyway, next day we did the real reason I was down there - a fantastic day CPD at Rose Holistic Therapies and Training, this time for Positional Rekease Techniques and MET (Muscle Energy Techniques). As normal, I think it will take me some time to consolidate everything and start putting it into practice but I do love adding to my skill set and knowledge of the ever-complex equine physiology 🙌

Back soon 🤓

05/07/2025

Great post by Becks Nairn 🙌

How things “should” be and how they are can be worlds apart. There are very few “text book” horses because they are all living, breathing creatures with very different sets of circumstances, genetics, experiences etc.

But their bodies tell a story and at times this is no fairy tale 😔

03/07/2025

Experimenting with some pretty old scar tissue on Hector at the moment. We don’t know the cause - possibly a kick, but as an ex harness racer it could have been any number of things 🤷‍♀️

The tissue is hard and raised, reminiscent of how scar tissue is laid down erratically, especially if scar reduction techniques are not used.

It seems like a tall order to reduce this after such a long time, however, worth a shot! Had a call from his Mum a few days later with lots of surprise that it did seem more pliable and slightly smaller.

This tape is lovely to use, has great staying power and is from the wonderful Equine K Taping UK 🫶🙌

It’ll be interesting to continue and see if we can reduce this as adhesion can cause restriction through this and surrounding fascia

02/07/2025

This will be interesting to read! (Added to the list 🫣)

A major international research project, published on 2nd July, has explored how riders around the world perceive ‘sidedness’ in their horses, and the findings could reshape how we think about straightness, training, and equine welfare. The study, led by Russell MacKechnie-Guire and supported by ...

02/07/2025

I'm super excited to announce that I have just begun working with the wonderful .brown.ahern_eventing and her superstar Rocky 🐎

Izzy will be my Supported Rider as she continues her eventing journey, which she is excelling at, currently competing at BE100 - she really is one to watch 🎉👏

I have known Izzy on and off since she was scurrying around as a 2 year old, and more so in recent years, as she has really begun to flourish as a young rider and horsewoman.

Rocky is a lovely Connemara boy who is always so happy to interact and happily, he really enjoys his bodywork sessions ❤️

I'm so happy to be working with them both ❤️

12/06/2025

The lovely Sienna 🥰

Sienna is one of two gypsy cobs who were both regimes from at the back end of last year to this wonderful home, which they also share with a Connie and Connie x TB.

Sienna had her first session with me yesterday and was a real gem 💎 such a sweet girl. So happy to see two more ponies realising that life can be very good 🥰 🐴

07/06/2025

Something a bit different last week for Blossom 🌸
Blossom was recently diagnosed at with chondromalacia (softening of the cartilage) in the medial femoral condyles, causing bilateral stifle lameness 😢 She is 6, and was the surprise result of unknowingly buying a mare in the early stages of pregnancy!! She has never been backed & lives with her Mother, Rosie (and Uncle/not uncle Arthur!)

Although groundwork has always been varied and aimed at being enjoyable for Blossom, she has clearly had some pain with this condition. Therefore, to attempt to alter the picture of the arena, and provide some variety whilst she is on limited exercise, we decided to try some Freework (inspired by the the great Sarah Fisher ).
Freework has a number of potential benefits;

🐎Emotional regulation/decompression provided by allowing agency, providing outlets for scenting and other sensory processes
🐎 Mental stimulation and sensory integration - incorporating sights, smells, textures etc - exploring these at will and experiencing how they make the individual feel
🐎 Opportunity to observe posture and movement - how do they position themselves when they come to a stop? Where do they bear weight, how is their body language in response to various stimuli - this can be great in ascertaining whether there is discomfort/pain, habitual movement, fear, comfort etc
🐎 Observing preferences: providing different containers, different heights where possible, different textures to walk on, a variety of smells, tastes etc - what do they choose at will?

In this practice run, we included;

🌿Cleavers (freshly picked, both on the ground, within other obstacles, and in water)
🌿Freshly picked cow parsley & Mint (in water and on the floor)
🌿Peppermint tea, brewed and diluted in a bucket of water
🌿chamomile tea, as above
🌿Dried nettle in water
🌿Boswellia in water
🌿Marshmallow root in water
🌿Dried chamomile in water

👃Lavender (essential oil drops on a towel)
👃Eucalyptus (as above)
👃Lemongrass (as above)
👃Pet Remedy sprayed on a towel
Plus different textures to walk on
Blossom explored freely for 24 minutes!