Equus Justo - Horse Bodywork Services

17/06/2023

Our horses welfare is the most important thing.

Please feel free to print out and post in your yard or share

HI RES ENGLISH VERSION HERE >https://drdavidmarlin.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/DM_HeatwavePoster_A4_high-2.pdf

HI RES GERMAN VERSION HERE >https://drdavidmarlin.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/DM_HeatwavePoster_A4_DE.pdf

21/05/2023

07/11/2022

WHY ARE DRAW REINS A BAD IDEA?

I could write a very long, technical explanation, but it’s really quite simple. Draw reins place the horse’s mouth at the fulcrum of a lever, one end of which is fixed (the girth), the other end is totally reliant on the feel, or lack of, in the rider’s hands. It is very, VERY easy to over-shorten them.

• They shorten and compress the neck
• They force the horse to close the angle in his gullet, crushing the larynx, parotid and restricting the hyoid apparatus. This also creates hyperflexion in the upper neck, damaging joints and ligaments.
• Compression at the base of the neck will cause most horse to drop through their chest and withers to try to fit the vertebrae into the smaller area they have been given. Rather than a regular, smooth curve at the base of the neck, you then have an ’S’ bend. This drives more weight through the horse’s front legs, making them ‘on the forehand’. Ironic, given that one of the supposed benefits of draw reins is to create lightness in the forehand (actually, they just encourage the horse to sit behind the contact).
• Dropping through the base of the neck will create hollowness under the saddle.
• With all that compression going on in front, any energy created by the hind limbs simply cannot be transmitted forward. There will be a ‘log jam’ somewhere in the middle, probably right under the rider.
• Often, because of this, horses will simply trail their hind limbs.
• A study by Bystrom, et al showed that head and neck angles were significantly decreased, and limb kinematics were affected by the use of draw reins. Roepstorff, et al, found that the use of draw reins influenced ground reaction forces at trot.

We are all familiar with the concept that the horse’s hind end is his ‘engine’. Pulling the front end in and forcing an outline effectively stalls that engine, and creates a chain of damaging load patterns, which will ultimately lead to injury.

Some would argue that only skilled riders should use draw reins. I would argue that really skilled riders have no use for them. If the horse is putting his head up, strong or leaning (already on the forehand, fyi), it is the rider’s responsibility to work out why. This could be due to discomfort, lack of training, or a combination of the two. The horse needs to be shown how to better carry himself through improved hindlimb engagement and posture, which will, in turn, lighten the forehand and allow a soft, lengthened neck to a light, elastic contact.

There are no short cuts to helping the horse find balance under the rider.

The picture illustrates how the horse will sit behind the contact, is compressed through the gullet and over flexed in the upper neck. You can clearly see that the horse’s face is behind the vertical and there is tension in the neck muscles. There is not even any contact on either sets of reins – it is common for horses to do this to avoid uncomfortable mouth pressure, and too often gets confused for being ‘light in the contact’.

You might think it would be a physiotherapist's dream, fixing problems caused by improper use of gadgets - but I'd much rather identify why the horse is having difficulty balancing himself, correct any musculoskeletal imbalances, and help the rider help the horse in a sustainable way.

Byström, A., L. Roepstorff, and C. Johnston. "Effects of draw reins on limb kinematics." Equine Veterinary Journal 38.S36 (2006): 452-456.
Roepstorff, L., et al. "Influence of draw reins on ground reaction forces at the trot." Equine Veterinary Journal 34.S34 (2002): 349-352.

29/10/2022

All progressive, forward thinking farriers should be aiming towards getting rid of the nailed on metal shoes. After all they certainly can’t heal or strengthen hooves (particularly the back of the hooves), they can provide short term relief by raising the hoof off the ground, which means you take away the ability of the hoof to create strength.
Shoes do the opposite and incrementally damage/ weaken the hoof capsules.
Farriers are exceptionally skilled at being able to adjust angles, remove distortions and use very complex machines to gauge hoof placement / pressures in order to get close to what they believe is a reasonable angle /form etc BUT you can’t strengthen the tissues and get correct function and create resilience with nailed on metal shoes.
Boots have come a long way since I started my hoofcare career, some 20 years ago, but they also are not without issues.

The explosion of track systems around the world are really pushing things forward and giving equines their ability to produce stronger well formed capsules, this needs to continue to expand.

Breeders need to do more about how they start youngsters and be more particular about what problems are being bred into stock, make sure that the young ones move from day one and continue to move 24/7, because a bad start in life just leads to a slow life of just patching things up.
Fat or overweight horses should not be allowed in show rings and breed societies need to stop the insane call for horses to be shod in certain classes.

Feed manufacturers really need to stop using ingredients that are not suitable for equines.

We need more vets to look at the whole picture and work together more with other professionals and remain open to discussing cases.
Horse owners need to keep questioning all professionals and demanding the best care for their equines, yard rules are understandable but good diet 24/7 movement and socialisation are paramount to good health.
I know the post started with getting farriers to head towards getting rid of the shoes, but if the rest of the equine world doesn’t change then it makes those progressive farriers job of gaining healthier hooves almost impossible to implement.

Image credit: V&T Equine services

23/10/2022

One of the oldest cliches but ‘no foot no horse’ is true, just because the horse doesn’t look lame, doesn’t mean it isn’t in pain or compromised.

15/10/2022

The 24 Behaviors of the Ridden Horse in Pain is a film that dares to challenge the way we look at "badly behaving" horses, and promotes the notion that lamen...

23/08/2022

We are all guilty of doing this at some point(s), but are we still ignoring the signals our horses are sending us??

You have a horse that is objecting to being ridden.. what do you do?????

The first question is why the horse is objecting so violently to having a rider on its back. Now remember horses wants an easy life they would rather put up and shut up, their responses are so subtle that we may not even notice till the horse has escalated their response to usually a buck or a rear or worse a flip over, because now we feel uneasy and maybe even in danger with their actions.

We ignore so many signals, a tail swishing, ears back as we girth up a wobble as we sit in the saddle, a reluctance to move forward or a rushing to get it over with ,,we demonise these behaviours and use the words naughty, taking the mick, mareish, stubborn, lazy, fizzy, pyscho, (interesting we have more words for a horse that may not want to work than does)

If your horse feels unsafe on the ground then usually it means stay on the ground until it does feel safe, calm, relaxed, happy.

It doesn't take a smart rider to stay on a bucking horse it takes a rider who can stay on, and horses will not fight something they can't shake off for long their bodies are not designed for it they will realise pretty quickly that there is no point, now what does the horse feel at this point does it feel relaxed, safe, happy or does it feel there is no way out no matter what it does.

Would you trust the problem has gone away or has it been shut down and waiting to resurface at some point...

And if your horse is putting up that much of a fight then you need to ask the question what is in it for the horse,,,we always seem to be amazed at the riders ability and maybe we are so mesmerised at we forget to actually look at the animal beneath,

If a horse is at a point of not even caring what happens to its own body then maybe its time to stop.

21/08/2022

This weekend has been spent learning the basics of Equine Touch - not a bodywork service I can offer yet but watch this space!

01/08/2022

An amazing weekend qualifying to treat horses and dogs with acupressure.

16/07/2022

18/06/2022

Next step acupressure!

18/06/2022

It’s official 😊

16/06/2022

14/06/2022

🌡️ The thermometer could hit over 30˚C (in the UK) later this week and Dr David Marlin has some important advice and words of wisdom for us!

We need this information out to the general public - to create a better understanding of how to keep horses safe and comfortable in the heat, please help by sharing!

WORDS OF WISDOM

✅ Acclimatise to increased heat - train for 2 weeks IN THE HOT PART OF THE DAY to compete in hottest part of the day

✅ Travel either very early or very late

✅ Provide water at ALL times, including warming-up/competing.

✅ If sweating during training add a balanced electrolyte to their daily feed

✅ Don’t expect your horse/pony to be able to perform as well in hot weather – EVEN IF ACCLIMATISED

✅ Split your WARM-UP AND cool and offer water

✅ Offer water immediately after exercise

✅ Cool DRINKING water (around 20°C/68°F) preferable to warm or cold



RAPID COOLING

💧 Cover the horse's body with cold or cool water (5-25°C) as quickly as possible without stopping to scrape. This should be done for AT LEAST several minutes.

💧 If the horse is agitated or appears to be recovering give a short walk before another period of intensive cooling.

💧 CONTINUE COOLING until blowing has subsided and or the horse appears more comfortable. This may take 10-15min.

💧 If shade and or fans are available these can be used but water cooling over the WHOLE horse is the priority.

💧 DO NOT rely on cooling blankets/rugs, evaporative coolers or fans as the main means of cooling. These provide comfort but NOT rapid cooling.

💧 Ice packs placed over large veins are ineffective at cooling.

😰 Older, younger, those with health issues, heavy/large horses, dark horses and overweight horses do not cope well in hot weather.

💡 If your horse is uncomfortable in hot weather then spraying them down and leaving the water to evaporate will help keep them cool and can be done every few hours. Your horse WILL NOT overheat due to insulation by water - this is a myth!


READ the full article here >>> https://drdavidmarlin.com/hot-weather-advice/

PLEASE SHARE - THIS INFORMATION COULD SAVE A HORSE'S LIFE!

Thanks,
DDM Team

11/06/2022

04/06/2022

04/06/2022

Fasciculation
What it is - a spontaneous contraction affecting a small number of muscle fibres, often causing a flicker of movement under the skin.

What it looks like - for this client you can see the fasciculation in his longissimus dorsi as I was working on his intercostal muscles (which were very tight and sore).

02/06/2022

30/05/2022

Why use massage?

Regardless of what we want to do with our horses, from field ornament to Olympic show jumping, it is vital that our horses can move in the way that they were designed to and to do so comfortably and without pain. It is becoming more commonly understood that given the chance and the right environment, a horse will, in essence, heal itself. Many of the ‘ailments’ that a horse is trying to heal itself from, are in fact, unwittingly, created by us, the way we force our horses to live and for some, very sadly, endure pain.

Massage has many proven effects that will improve the welfare of our horses and support them on this self healing journey. Why wouldn’t you help your horse to heal if you could? It isn’t enough to see one therapy or professional as an isolated answer, but that all professionals involved with our horses are working together to continually improve the horses’ welfare and provide them with the best possible foundations on which to excel in their discipline (even those excelling at being a field ornament need adequate care!).

So what can equine sports massage add to the equation?
🔹Increased range of movement and stride length
🔹Reduced activity of nociceptive pain receptors
🔹Reduced muscle tension and soreness
🔹Reduced muscle spasm
🔹Greater flexibility and range of motion
🔹Increased sense of wellbeing and reduced stress
🔹Enhances blood flow
🔹Improved proprioception
🔹Improved posture, circulation, hair coat, muscle tone
🔹Immune system support
🔹Injury prevention
🔹Reduced fatigue

What I offer plays a part in your horse’s welfare and capacity to live a healthy, enjoyable life; please get in touch if you would like to discuss your horse’s needs or any concerns that you might have about your horse. I am more than happy to, and will actively encourage, working with any professional already involved with your horse - let’s make sure we treat the whole horse, not just the knots!

19/05/2022

Don’t just blindly use training aids, understand what they do and why.

TRAINING AIDS......Quick post as I don't currently have time for a longer much needed post on this subject.
Q re: PESSOAS
NO I do not recommend these for rehabbing from a KISSING SPINE diagnosis.
Research so far hasn't proven them to be of any great help in some key areas.

😏 The pessoa aims to encourage correct “rounding” while collecting the hindlimbs with the most popular placement leading between the front legs to adjoin to a ring on the girth of the roller, designed to “stretch the topline” while engaging the hocks.
Hmmmmm
👇👇👇👇👇👇👇
Walker et al. found dorsoventral displacement (topline and core) increased with pessoa use when set at shoulder level, with greater lumbosacral joint extension during hindlimb retraction, suggesting greater back movement. However, the highest point of the horse changed from the poll to the crest, suggesting a high degree of cervical ventral flexion, which is not ideal for horses with neck pain and, is not indicative of a more uphill, engaged, and collected frame.

Other research noted the pessoa on setting 1 on a treadmill did not increase core muscle use, which also supports previous research finding no increase in long back muscle use with a pessoa, it does not assist with spinal stabilisation, and a horse should already have good back and core musculature prior to use for collection.

Additionally, Mackenchnie-Guire et al. found high pressures below rollers with a training aid such as a pessoa, thus indicating use during kissing spine rehab may be counter-intuitive when pressures are highest at T11-T12 which are key kissing spine locations.

So do your horse a favour and learn ground work from someone reputable.

👉🌟You can also learn some techniques to help start your horse off correctly on my 2 day horse owners course. June is full but JULY & AUGUST dates added on the events tab on my page.
It's not a course specifically for horse owners with ks horses but I may organise one for the end of the year, however you will learn some very useful information and techniques as a horse owner whether competitor or happy hacker that will be invaluable.

Links:

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0737080618301035?via%3Dihub

https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/comparative-exercise-physiology/article/abs/effects-of-training-aids-on-the-longissimus-dorsi-in-the-equine-back/7A61B5273E88DBFD9FC1FEB8FB7DEE33

https://animaltherapymedia.co.uk/the-effect-of-the-pessoa-training-aid-on-equine-rectus-abdominus-workload-on-a-treadmill/

https://facebook.com/events/s/horse-owners-empowerment-cours/216833067598885/

Image from Google

18/05/2022

We must ensure that we keeping ourselves informed, not simply doing things because it’s what we’ve always done.

15/05/2022

Interesting 🤔

08/05/2022

Laminitis

Has your horse had laminitis? Does it currently have laminitis?

One of the huge benefits of a massage is the improved blood and lymph circulation - so important for a laminitic horse or one prone to laminitis. So often we are told to get them moving, even if it’s just a little a day - in part (a big part!) this is to aid their circulation.

Another consideration for our poor laminitic horses is the extra strain put on muscles, as they struggle to keep themselves in the most comfortable position - usually one that is quite alien to them and certainly doesn’t do their posture, muscles and joints any good! Massage can help here too, you’ll be pleased to know.😊

Yes we need them to move, but we need to help them as much as we possibly can and keep them as comfortable as possible as they (and we) fight this horrible condition.

If your horse is under the vet with their laminitis, we will need to get their permission prior to a massage - all professionals should be working together at all times, but it is never more important than when one of our beloved 4 legged friends is ill.

07/05/2022

One of today’s clients reciprocating his massage 💙

07/05/2022

One of today’s clients showing release in his massage 💙

07/05/2022

Why is massage important for our horses?

Like all athletes, couch potatoes and those in between, our horses get tired, pulled, knotted or tight muscles. If the muscles can’t work as they are designed to, this will impact on the way the horse moves and therefore performs. By addressing these pulled, tight, knotted muscles, we ensure that our horses are, at the most basic level, comfortable and able to enjoy being a horse and at a higher level improve our horses ability to perform (whether this be on a hack or at a competition). Unaddressed, the horse will learn to move differently to compensate for the pain/discomfort they feel. This in turn impacts on their ability to perform/move as they are designed and so the pain, discomfort and affected performance/movement builds.

Is this what we really want for our horses?

03/05/2022

02/05/2022

New beginnings….