Did you know that acupuncture can be used to help treat shoulder sweeney?
Shoulder sweeney is a condition affecting the shoulder muscles of the horse where these muscles become atrophied. It is typically caused by damage to the suprascapular nerve where it runs relatively superficially across the front of the horse’s shoulder joint. This nerve innervates muscles in the horse’s shoulder, so when the nerve is damaged, these muscles stop working and start to waste away.
Electroacupuncture is a helpful modality in the treatment of shoulder sweeney and a session is seen here on a yearling that injured his shoulder by going through a fence several weeks ago.
This sweet older mare, Trixie, has been going through a lot of lameness issues in both the front and back end over the last six months. Chiropractic work can’t directly help what she has going on in her legs, but it has been hugely helpful in keeping her body more comfortable.
Here is a clip the owner took of her back and pelvis being motioned (checking the mobility of each joint) and a few adjustments being performed.
It’s a little bit wet out here today, so we are rescheduling appointments for the rest of the day. Until drier times, my friends!
This mare really enjoyed her acupuncture today! Yawning is a form of release, which demonstrates that the horse is appreciative of what I am doing and some tension has been released. As you can see in the video in the comments, electroacupuncture can cause muscle contraction/twitching. Not all horses tolerate this, so the intensity can be kept at a lower setting so as not to cause twitching as well.
Ever wondered what an equine adjustment looks like? This quick video shows a left SI (sacroiliac) adjustment as well as a lumbar adjustment. This sweet older mare has had quite a bit of discomfort due to some chronic left hind hoof issues as well as a recent left hind injury back in September.
Text message received from the mare’s owner the day after her first adjustment, “I have to tell you, it's anything short of a miracle 🙏❤️she doesn't have the stammer in her step anymore. She actually trotted while I was walking her around she has pep in her step. I think we should do another session in three weeks instead of four I don't wanna let it go too long. This is absolutely amazing. Thank you so much from the bottom of my heart”
For all of you out there whose horses have stopped sweating in this ridiculous Texas heat, just know you’re not alone. One of my own horses is trying to do the same thing. 😩
Thankfully for him, his mom is an acupuncturist, so he got treatment immediately!
I get asked all the time how acupuncture can help horses that aren’t sweating well, and the basic theory is that when a horse’s energy is out of balance, it can’t ward off the external heat “toxin”. The needles help restore proper energy flow and balance, and the horse’s body can handle the heat appropriately once more.
Treatment is not a “one and done” kind of thing, though. I recommend 3-4 once weekly treatments to start, then evaluate how the horse is doing. If the response is positive, then gradually decrease the frequency of the treatments until it’s down to once monthly, then continue at that until the weather cools off.
Here is a video of Twist’s acupuncture session this morning (and a couple of photos in the comments). He was a very good boy! #bestpatientever
Did you know that acupuncture can be used to treat many different types of nerve injuries? Facial nerve paralysis is one of those, and this video is a wonderfully-behaved 4 year old Mustang mare who has been receiving electroacupuncture treatment recently for it. In the video, you can see some of the needles twitching as the electrical impulses are passing through.
Facial nerve paralysis is a condition in which the facial nerve (cranial nerve VII) is injured, often times by blunt trauma to the side of the face or pressure from a halter worn during anesthesia. Some common symptoms are decreased ability to move the ear, eyelid, and muzzle on the same size of the face as the injury. The muzzle becomes pulled to the side of the face without the injury, and this is one of the more noticeable symptoms.
This mare was found to have an abrasion and some swelling on the side of her face about 6 weeks ago. Her owners had her treated by their regular veterinarian but are having acupuncture treatments performed weekly as well. She displays all of the symptoms mentioned above, but she is showing steady signs of improvement!
For those wondering what a scapular adjustment looks like, take a peek!
When I rock back and forth, that is me checking the motion of the shoulder and scapula to determine if the area is moving the way that it should be. The mare was a bit flinchy during this, as the area was tight and the mare had mild discomfort in this region. The quick thrust is the adjustment, and the rocking back and forth after the adjustment is checking the motion afterwards to make sure that the discomfort had resolved and everything was moving more fluidly.
A client caught some good video of me adjusting her lovely mare yesterday, so here is what a poll adjustment looks like! See what a scapular adjustment looks like in the next post!
