Offer high and low intensity PEMF, Red Light/Infared, Equine Massage, Negative Ion, Photonic therapy
01/27/2025
Couldn’t agree with this more…after having dealt with low heals on the back end of one of my own personal horses I have seen some of the exact same issues effect him. Please pay attention to your horses heals.
Oftentimes, we put a lot of onus on the balance of the front feet whilst disregarding that the horse is a quadruped with hind feet that require attention too.
The fallacy here is that if your horse's hind hoof balance is poor, i.e. they have low heels or negative plantar angles, they're going to be more inclined to overload their forehand to reduce the loading through the hinds.
It is very, very rare that I see a horse with good hind hoof morphology.
It is incredibly common that I see horses with indicators of negative plantar angle combined with at least two (but usually a handful) of the following:
- Chronic lumbar discomfort
- Chronic sacroiliac discomfort
- Atrophied gluteal muscles
- Atrophied quadriceps muscles
- Effusion around the stifles
- Diagnosis of hock arthritis
- Diagnosis of hind suspensory ligament desmitis (+/- recommendation for fasciotomy & neurectomy)
- Reactivity to palpation over proximal suspensory branches
- Reactivity to palpation over deep digital flexor tendon as it inserts into the hoof capsule
- Difficulty lifting hind legs.
What is even more farcical is that we bodywork, we medicate, we operate, we bash over the head with movement intervention...
.. And we are still SO slow to intervene with the feet??
And yet I have found that if you intervene with the hoof balance, you:
- Support greater muscular equilibrium: I find horses literally walk symmetrical muscle mass on without the need for an exercise plan!
- Restore joint range of motion, which improves joint comfort and longevity
- Perhaps (or in my experience often) reduce the discomfort in the suspensories, support their healing and can avoid surgery(!)
- Find the elusive sensation of "push" from behind when riding your horse.
So with all this in mind... why are we still so slow to catch on and do it?
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📸 the superficial dorsal myofascial chain which connects to the solar surface of the hind hoof.
You can see how if we lower the plantar angle, we traction all along the horse's topline, collecting discomfort as we go.
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For this month's webinar, I am delighted to be joined by the wonderful Beccy Smith of Holistic Equine, where she will be discussing what healthy hoof morphology really is, the factors that influence it and what you can do to help your horse.
Beccy is an Integrative Equine Podiatrist who truly considers the whole horse with respect to hoof health. Her keen eye and attention to detail is second to none in the hoofcare sphere and I cannot wait for this webinar!
NEW DATE: 28.01.2025 19:00 GMT
Recording available if you can't make the live ❤️✨️
