Horse Muscle Management v50 1

7/30/2019 Horse Muscle Management v50 1

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Horse Muscle Management

We marvel at the speed, the athleticism and the grace of movement of ourequine partners but how often do we think about what makes thatmovement possible? In this article I have explored the factors affecting

the horses ability to move to its full potential; what we can do to helpand how to identify and take action early when things start to go awry.

I have owned horses for most of my life (I am now 49) and started riding at11 years old. Whilst I am not a professional horsewoman, I have studiedhorsemanship: both under the British Horse Society (BHS) system to stage4 horse care and through British Dressage judge training (assessingquality of movement). I have also had several articles published in Horse &Rider magazine and a book Riding Dynamics.

Whilst studying for BHS examinations I was taught to regularly checkthe

horse's feet and tack for my safety before mounting. However, I was neverroutinely taught to check the stuff that actually holds the horse togetherbetween his feet and the tack: His musculature! I was taught the signs ofgood health in the horse but not how to understand the way the horsecommunicates.

This summer I had a wake-up call. I saw a stunning horse warming up ata show jumping competition at the National stud at Pompadour in Franceand was enchanted by this stallions athleticism, power and lightness. Ispoke to the rider and discovered that 3 years before this beautiful animalwas on the equine scrap heap. Unable to perform due to injury and

declared untreatable by vets, the stallion Vigo, was picked up for meatmoney by Willy Sidorak. Willy and his apprentice, Stephen Goodridge,nursed Vigo back to health at Samsara Equitation their rehabilitationcentre in the Auvergne in France. Vigo is one of the lucky ones. Intrigued,I decided I had to visit Samsara and understand more about what they do.


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Vigo with Jean-Charles Pirot on board

The day before I was due to visit, my horse, a pure bred Lusitano calledEric, came in lame from the paddock. Willy and Stephen decided that theywould visit me instead. They showed me how to examine my horsesmusculature: How to feel my horses muscles and to interpret hisresponse. Without seeing my horse move Willy told me how he would

move and what I would need to do to put it right. At the time Eric wasliving at the Gammas Stud in Champsac, France. The yard owner Sam deWykerslooth asked them to take a look at her stallion. The same thinghappened. Willy felt the horses muscles and then told Sam what shewould feel when she rode the horse. Again he was right.

I was fascinated to know more. Willy and Stephen came home with meand we talked horse for many hours. Their goal is to establish a europeancentre of excellence for ethical horsemanship. A key element of thisis educating horse owners on how to care for their horse's musculature.We watched videos of a variety of horse problems and they explained theimportance of healthymusculature to a horses performance, how to carefor that musculature and how to identify a small problem and address it.

This is the key. Avoiding the problems in the first place and noticing andaddressing small problems. We tend topush our heads in the sand andavoid confronting a subtle problem,meaning it becomesmore pervasive.Like us the horse will start to compensate and soon there are problems(and pain) throughout the horse's body.

Willy told me that in Holland he ran a rehabilitation centre treatingupwards of 2000 horses per year. This got me thinking. We are all wellaware of the wastage rates in the horse racing industry. What about theother competitive disciplines? How many young dressage horses do we

see making old bones? What about at riding club and leisure horse level?

I looked for information on the internet. I found a study published in theEquine Veterinary Journal in November 2010(http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.2042-3306.2010.00251.x/abstract)which followed a random sample of 520horses registered with the Dutch National Equestrian Federation. Theaverage age of these horses was 7.1 3.2 years. A total of 334 horses(64.2%) ended their competition career with their initial rider during the 5year study period. Orthopaedic problems accounted for the majorityof the veterinary career-ending decisions (63.7%). A total of 385horses (74.0%) had one or more career breaks; main reasons were rider-related issues (39.2%), others included temporary withdrawal from
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.2042-3306.2010.00251.x/abstracthttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.2042-3306.2010.00251.x/abstracthttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.2042-3306.2010.00251.x/abstracthttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.2042-3306.2010.00251.x/abstract


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competition (21.6%), veterinary problems (21.8%), breeding (9.1%) andmiscellaneous (8.3%).

One vet has spoken out about the consequences of modern competitiontraining methods. In his open letter to the FEI dated December 18th, 2009,

Dr Gerd Heuschmann (GH) differentiates between back movers and legmovers. He accuses the FEI of paying lip service to its stated goal of happyathletes and back movers whilst rewarding those training their horses tobe showy leg movers. GH states that the leg movers working with atensed back will suffer in the long term.In the letter he says I cannot shake the impression that horses havebecome mere extras such as bikes to the Tour de France and that theactual goals are fame and money. Even THE world centre of excellencefor horsemanship, the Spanish Riding School, is now under threat if we areto believe an article published recently in the Horse & Hound.

Vets fees have become accepted as a fact of horsey life. I wonder how

much of what they look at is preventable or treatable at home? No liveryyard owner ever got sued for calling the vet! We have also seen a growthin what I call preventable equine illness, the two most obviousexamples being laminitis and colic. Both are connected to lack ofknowledge and poor care. In the same way that we rely on doctors to lookafter our health are we subcontracting the job of looking after our horseshealth to the vets?

Often the horse tries to tell us how he feels in his language. When wecarry the saddle into his stable he turns away. He swishes his tail (or eventries to bite us) when we do up the girth. He stands in a certain way in thestable. He tries to avoid certain paces or transitions. If we choose to ignorethe signs and carry on pushing forward with our plans for competitivesuccess the problems will generally get worse until we can no longerignore them. Interestingly enough it is the horses who are the mostvaluable who tend to suffer most, often, stallions who have a valuablefuture career in breeding. They cannot be seen to be under-performing oroff the circuit so the owners mask the symptoms with painkillers. Thisis the short term fix which will fail in the long term unless we find andaddress the root cause.

Not so many years ago in the UK horsemen learnt their trade asapprentices to older more experienced horsemen. There was not so much

money about to pay vets, so they were not generally the first port of call.Natural remedies were the norm and avoidance the priority. Horsemenunderstood the role of cereals in the horses diet and how to use them.Horses worked hard, often all day in the fields or on the roads with theirowners. What has happened to the old ways? Why have they disappeared?Even for those actively seeking knowledge it is difficult to know who totrust. There are so many different ways of feeding and training ourhorses. All beautifully packaged and tempting. Which one to choose?

Fascinated I decided to dig a little deeper anddo some research. Whataffects the quality of the horses musculature and how do we diagnoseand treat performance problems?

What affects the quality of the horses musculature?


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In his book, The Way to Perfect Horsemanship, Udo Berger states thehorse is an articulated system that must function as one unit. Our finalaim is to become united with that system. Fluidity is just one element ofthis unity, made up of so many interrelated parts or elements that itrequires deep study to comprehend it perfectly.

Like us the horse is a system of interacting elements. To work to itsfull potential we need to do our best to ensure that each and everyelement has what it needs to perform. To achieve peak performance wehave to get everything right. This is because through the interconnectionsone thing not quite right will ultimately affect the whole system.

By profession I am a business consultant. Essentially I am a doctor forbusinesses. Like us and our horses, businesses get ill or off colour anddont quite achieve their full potential. My job is to help an organisationdiagnose the root cause of the problem and then to develop andimplement ways of fixing the problem in a way that lasts long term. To do

this I use a technique called systems thinking to map the cause andeffect relationships driving the success of the organisation. I createthese maps by encouraging key people in the organisation to share theirknowledge of what affects what in the business. You can find out moreabout these simple techniques in my book and on the internet.

I decided to do the same for the horse: To create a map of the factorsaffecting the quality of the horses movement. To help me with this Idecided to consult vets, physiotherapists, equine osteopaths, equinenutritionists and a number of riders. I received contributions from DrSue Dyson MA VetMB DEO PhD FRCVS of the AHT, Sue Devereux BA

BVSc MRCVS, Mr Johannes Hamminger of the Spanish Riding School,Louise Carson BSc MSc MCSP SRP ACPAT (CAT A), William MicklemFBHS, Jo Bower MSc EqS an equine nutritionist and owner ofHorsesource Ltd and a number of trainers and riders both competitive(in a variety of disciplines) and leisure. You can see some of theirspecific advice in the I asked. They said boxes below.

The map I was able to develop with their input is shown in the appendix.Using computer software it is possible to rearrange the map into a drivertree showing the hierarchy of relationships driving quality ofmovement. Again you can view a copy of the tree in the appendix.

Many businesses make the mistake of focussing on the elements in thetree which are closer to their goal. In actual fact the most important thingsto focus on are those at the base of the tree for if these things arent rightwe have no chance of making the journey up the tree and achieving ourgoal. Like a plant we nourish the tree through the very tips of roots.


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Based on my research these things can be summarised as follows:Conformation, Nutrition; Training; Stable Management; Injury avoidance(risk management); Hoof care and Muscle care.

Lets take a look at each area in turn

Conformation

Conformation, conformation, conformationIf we want a horse to havethe best chance of staying sound we need him to have both goodconformation and a conformation which suits the requirements of hisfuture career. Why? This is because conformation defects will predispose ahorse to muscular problems. Ultimately this is affected by breeding andthe decisions we make as horse breeders.

I spoke to Sam de Wykerslooth of the Gammas Stud. Her objective is toproduce top quality sports horses. She told me that the horse with perfectconformation does not exist. She aims to compensate for a broodmaresweaker points by putting her to a stallion that is strong in those areas. Her

choice will be guided by character, conformation and genetics.

Willy also breeds top class horses. He told me that he allows his mares tochoose their stallion. He believes the mare knows intuitively whichstallions genes will be the best match for her own. For this reason hedoesnt agree with artificial insemination. He also breeds from youngmares and the foals are raised in a herd as they would be naturally. Toavoid the stress of weaning he has a special barn stabling complex hedesigned where the foals can be together in one area and their mothersopposite. Less stressful and better for all involved.

What does this mean for owner/riders? Well we need to be honest aboutour ambitions. We need to buy a horse which suits the job we have in

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mind. What then if we have a horse that is not well suited to ourambitions? A friend of mine was in this position with a young horse shebought as a 2 year old to event. He didnt have the aptitude for the

jumping and so she changed her ambitions to something that the horsecould do. He now represents GB on our TREC team in European

competitions. So to sum up we must eitherfind the horse for the job or

do the job that suits the horse. If we arent prepared to change ourambitions then to avoid a lot of frustration we would be better to seek anew/owner rider for the horse and find another to be our partner. AsLouise Carson told me We wouldnt ask Sir Steve Redgrave to compete inthe 100m or ask Linford Christie to wrestle!

There has been a trend to breed taller sports horses. I personally dontunderstand this. Tall horses will always be more challenged to maintaintheir balance, especially tall horses without the requisite bone. Any loss ofbalance can result in muscle tension and injury.

It is also important to consider the conformation matching of horseand rider. A cyclist is well aware that the cycles frame must complementhis own if he wants to be successful at his sport. How many ridersconsider this when they are seeking a new equine partner?

Nutrition

80% of the battle is nutrition according to Samsara. Horses muscles needfuel: energy to work and protein for development and renewal. Poorquality cheap food is false economy. We may save money in the shortterm but in the long term we will more than make up the difference in vets

fees.

The fuel or energy supply for muscles is provided by adenosinetriphospate which is often abbreviated as ATP. ATP is formed by thecooperation and absorption of oxygen (from breathing) and sugar(glucose) from nutrition. Yvonne Sidorak told me that we often overlookthe importance of the horses respiratory system to correct musclefunction.

For our horse to get the most out of top quality feed he needs a fullyfunctioning digestive system to extract the full nutritional content. We canhelp our horses digestive system by looking after his teeth and ensuring

we have a worming routine that works. Why waste money on feedingworms?

I talked to Peter Smith EDT about the impact of the teeth on our horsesmusculature. He said Good dentistry has a part to play in both efficientmastication and bit comfort. He told me that there are really only twomuscle groups that regularly concern me as a dentist: The MasseterMuscles which are the large round cheek muscles that provide the powerfor the grinding molars and the Temporal Muscles that lie on either side ofthe forelock between the eyes and the ears. These position the mandibleprior to the power/grinding stroke of molars. These should be bi-laterallyeven if good mastication is occurring and provide an early symptom ofunilateral problems.


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When there are dental or bit comfort problems I am sure they causetension in the poll and upper spine areas and this is undoubtedlytransferred to other muscle groups causing forelimb Bridle Lameness onoccasions but what the nerve and muscle mechanics of this are is waybeyond my field of expertise.

Equally it is pointless paying good money for food the horse cant utilise.Our horses digestive system is designed to work on fibre so we mustensure that he has plenty of it in his diet. Ad lib high quality organic hayand organic straw bedding address these needs well if our horse isstabled.

Also, we must not forget the micro-nutrients. The quantities required maybe tiny but they are essential to ensuring our horse gets the most out ofhis food. Obtaining these micro-nutrients through natural dietary sourcesis always better than supplementation for us and our horses (seehttp://www.netdoctor.co.uk/dietandnutrition/feature/vitamins.htm).

Insert piece by Ellen Collinson on herbs etc Colic and obesity (laminitas)

Fresh clean water is a high priority. We and our horses can cope withtoxins better if we keep flushing them out! A non-horsey friend of mine,Brazilian swimmer and sports coach, Flavio Lapis, told me that water islike the air of our cells. Everything in our body works a lot slower and notproperly if we are not properly hydrated. If we are injured water helps usto heal much faster than if we are not properly hydrated.

Flavio in his natural element

I asked:What factors affect the quality of a working horses musculature?

They said:Adequate nutrition and balanced feeding Sue Dyson (AHT).

It starts right at the beginning! Feeding the mare correctly duringgestation, supporting the foal whilst it is growing and throughout its earlylife but once fully grown more specifically for the intensity of training andthe type of riding discipline intended Jo Bower (Horsesource)
http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/dietandnutrition/feature/vitamins.htmhttp://www.netdoctor.co.uk/dietandnutrition/feature/vitamins.htm


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As far as the horses feeding is concerned, each horse has its own dietaryplan. In the winter, we add sunflower oil and linseed to their diet. Weespecially recommend to use fodder of really high quality and moreover tofeed enough raw fibre (hay). Besides, regular inspections of the teeth arevery essential. If there are any muscular problems a horse owner should

also fortify the fodder with vitamins in order to encourage the metabolismof the musculature. Mr Johannes Hamminger, Stable manager, TheSpanish Riding School at Vienna

Quality of training:

We can load up with great fuel but if the engine doesnt work we will notget anywhere in either our car or on our horse. The horses engine ishis musculature. Whilst the quality of the musculature depends onbreeding and conformation (and we cant change that in the short term), itcan be improved with correct training. The horses back is not designed tocarry weight. To enable him to do this without injury we must developthe horses musculature before he is ridden.

At Samsara the young horses start their training in the cart to build theirstrength. Out on the by-ways the young horse is exposed to varyingterrain and gradients and various hazards, learning in the process to findhis balance and overcome his fears. Ridden work starts when the horse issufficiently strong physically and mentally. We wouldnt go to the gymand try to lift huge weights on our first visit. Samsara horses firstexperience being ridden with an experienced balanced lightweight rider.Again his first experiences are outdoors along the byways and roads hetraversed in the cart.

A young horse ready to go carting

All work focuses on developing the horses core strength, tone &suppleness.

A strong back is essential for our young horse to cope with greater weightsand more complex movements. Like many riders, I have suffered with myback. I was diagnosed with a sacroiliac joint strain and referred forphysiotherapy and osteopathy both of which gave me some short termrelief. Finally, in 2005 I went to see an orthopaedic consultant and the MRIscan he prescribed revealed a severely degenerate L5S1 disc. The rest of

my discs were pristine. You can see the scan below.


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I was offered surgery but decided to opt for the less invasive option ofintensive physiotherapy and modified pilates exercises. The physiotherapywas painful but it helped to free up my lower back muscles which hadbecome contracted and tight. The Pilates exercises I learned taught mehow to protect and strengthen my back by engaging my core muscles,rotating my pelvis and giving at the knees. It is the same with the horse.We must teach our horse to use his core and push his back up in the sameway to prevent injury.

Andrew Day of the TTTTrust told me that the horses natural way of goingcould be described as falling forward. The horse economises on energyby using gravity to help him to move. However, this is not the best way tocarry the weight of a rider. Working in this way subjects the horsesmuscular-skeletal system to repetitive strain (especially in the forehand)and the poorer the conformation the greater the impact.Andrew told me that understanding this is the key toimproving our horse. The horse isnt born knowing howto carry humans effectively. Our task as a rider is tohelp our horse to learn how to do this.

DamagedL5S1

disc

SideBefore

FrontBefore

SideAfter

FrontAfter


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In addition tothe balance front to back we must also consider balance sideto side. I recently met Monique de Rijk of Atletischerijkunstin theNetherlands. Monique specialises in training horses with physical and/orpsychological problems. Monique pointed out that many horses she sees

have developed their problems as a result of their natural asymmetry. Shetold me The natural asymmetry of a horse really affects the way hemoves and uses his body. Because of this asymmetry the horse has awrong vertical balance which means he cannot relax his back muscles.

This means that to develop a horse properly, the rider must work onstraightening the horse so that he can relax in his body and mind. Anasymmetric horse always has to compensate and that damages themusculature and the skeleton.

Our ability to achieve this can be limited by unsuitable oruncomfortable tackand an unbalanced rider. Equine masseur, YvonneSidorak, told me: The fit of the saddle has far reaching consequences for

the entire musculature of the horse. A good saddle places no pressure onthe spinal column and an equal load on the muscles. The muscles underthe saddle need space to tighten and relax. The saddle must allow thisprocess to happen. If some muscles are less used, or dont have thepossibility to move freely, the muscles will degenerate. The muscle fibresdecrease in size and they lose their power and flexibility. The cumulativeeffect of this is called atrophy. When the horse is ridden in a badly fittingsaddle his back muscles will be damaged.

Trainer and author, Lynn Henry of Think like a Pony, told me that apoorly fitting saddle is, in her opinion, the biggest cause of muscleproblems in horses. She said Most people do not understand the basicdesign features that are required for a saddle to be comfortable. This isonly hampered by bad advice from saddle fitters. It is the single most


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important factor that I come across whatever the calibre of rider. Horseowners are not aware that the wither pattern in different horses should bemore the same than different. Three out of 4 of my horses are the same,the 4th is only 3 years old!

Lynn recommends Lavinia Mitchell for saddle fitting. I contacted Lavinia tofind out more about what she does. She told me Where muscle wastageand posture problems exist, it is sadly common practise for a new saddleto be fitted to the contours of this incorrect shape. This only compoundsthe problem and will not help the horse in the long term.

What do Master Saddlers say to this? Local master saddler, Glenn Hasker,told me that many saddle fitting problems are the result of unfit horseswith poor conformation or musculature, or both. A saddle for an unfit backwill be more difficult to find and is often more expensive to fit. He said"For a saddle to fit the back, the back must be fit."

Lavinia added The large majority of horses with well developed backmuscles and no atrophy will be a very similar width when measured acrossthe back where the saddle tree points lay. In my experience there is anaverage width that the majority of horses will be. Other than theexception of certain broader breeds of horse, it is unrelated to breed,height, age and discipline. This width is significantly wider than most widesaddles and is often a revelation to the rider/owner.

Is this really the case? I contacted the Society of Master Saddlers to see ifthey collated data on saddle widths. Unfortunately they dont. Localmaster saddler, Glenn Hasker, went back through his records for me.

Since 1986 he has fitted over 1000 new saddles. The breakdown by widthis captured in the pie chart below. As you can clearly see the majority(80%) of new saddles he has fitted have been narrow or medium.

N

M

W

This is in complete contrast to the experience of Lesley Taylor of BalanceInternational. She told me that she and fellow trainer, Carol Brett, becameinterested in the question of why horses moved better at liberty thanwhen tacked up back in 1993. She said that the narrowest horse templatethey measured back then was a Medium Wide.

I looked for information on the internet. I found

http://advancedsaddlefit.com/ and contacted the owner, Colleen Meyer,one of only a few American saddle fitters qualified with the UK Society ofMaster Saddlers. I asked her about average wither patterns and saddle
http://advancedsaddlefit.com/http://advancedsaddlefit.com/


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fitting best practice. She told me I think it is fair to say that no one knowsfor certain what is "best practice" in saddle fitting. My personal mantra isthat there is only one rule that applies to every horse: that horses' backsdid not evolve over 30 million years to bear the weight of a rider inmotion. That is the one and only thing I feel confident that we know for

sure. The corollary to that is that it's not surprising that so many horsesdo poorly in their saddles; it is amazing that any of them do well.

And what about the average wither pattern? She continued I personallythink that average is a marvellous thing in an equine back, but it's not thatcommon. Every horse even an average one is a unique threedimensional puzzle. Movement adds an even more complex fourthdimension.

I am ready to be proven wrong by science-based research, but frompractical experience, I don't think I agree that the shape of most properlytrained and unatrophied horses will necessarily converge on wide and

dome-like. Among elite human athletes, sprinters, middle distancerunners, and marathoners typically have very different body types. Theyhave different mixes of muscle fibres, for one thing. Why would this notbe true of horses? In my experience, lean, high-withered horses are notnecessarily "atrophied" in the physiological sense, just because they arenot covered in bulging muscles (or bulging fat wedges disguised asmuscles in some cases.) My instinct is that there is at least as muchnormal, healthy variation in body type among elite equine athletes asthere is in human athletes probably more, since the overall range ofvariations in phenotype is greater in equines than in humans.

In November last year I visited Your Horse Live. There were so manysaddlers trying to sell their wares. All claiming that their saddling systemwas the best. I saw trees in all shapes, sizes and materials and saddleswithout trees. I saw panels in all shapes, sizes and materials and saddleswithout panels. I saw saddle fitters recommending saddles be fitted verywide with lots of pads, others slightly wider with a uniform pad and othersexactly to the contours of the horses shape.If professionals cant agree where does this leave us and, moreimportantly, our horses? Colleen told me ultimately, the saddle is theinterface between two separate bodies in motion. How can thatinteraction of kinetic mass - facilitated by such a crude piece of technology

as a saddle - be simple? Unfortunately, our understanding ofthe forcesat work between a horse's back and a rider is vast terra incognita,which I find really frustrating in my job. I personally would like to seesome scientific study of this topic.

In the mean time we do have one opinion we can always rely on, that ofour horse. For a number of years I have used a Forestier general purposesaddle with no problems. My dressage trainer recommended that I switchto a dressage saddle for my flatwork. The first lesson I had in my dressagesaddle revealed a very annoyed Eric. Ears flat back on canter transitions.Now this is a horse that loves his work and often doesnt want to leave theschool when finished! The only difference was the saddle. I called localmaster saddler, Glenn Hasker, to check my saddles. The GP was a good


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fitthe dressage saddle was too wide. The morale of the story? Listen toyour horse. Unlike humans, horses dont lie.

I contacted the Society of Master Saddlers to understand their point ofview on this important topic. Stewart Hastie MRCVS contacted me on their

behalf. He explained the complexities of saddle fitting and encouraged meto attend the SMS Introductory Saddle Fitting course to find out more. Heexplained that even with a perfect fitting saddle the secret to avoidingmuscle damage under saddle is a balanced rider. If the rider is unable tomaintain self carriage how can the horse? I would go one step further andencourage riders to seek a horse with conformation and movement thatsuits their conformation and ability to maintain their balance. You can findout more about this in chapter 10 of my book Riding Dynamics.

The British Equestrian Federation and the SMS jointly own a Pliancesystem, which is operated by master saddler and qualified fitter MarkFisher from Woolcroft Equine Services, Cambridgeshire. A mat with more

than 250 sensors is placed under the saddle and transmits pressurepictures to a computer, showing exactly whats happening underneath therider.

It isnt always the saddle thats to blame with problems such asmovement over to one side, says Mark. For instance, even some of ourbest riders can tend to load their weight to one side, which means thesaddle follows.

We can compensate by adjusting the saddle, but it shows the importanceof looking after yourself as well as your horse. If youre asymmetrical

because of injury or wear and tear, get yourself looked at by a good physioor other qualified person and if youre not already doing so, get help froma good trainer.

Lesley Taylor, of Balance International, told medata is all very fine butthe key is in the interpretation. What do the figures mean? We dont knowwhat pressure is ideal. We assume that even pressure is what is required,but is it? Are all horses the same? Lesley believes in letting the horsechoose. However, in all instances, she recommends extra care over thesensitive Junction Box area over the withers and behind the shoulder.Lesley recommends that saddles are fitted slightly wider in this area andthen a shock absorbing JB pad used under the saddle to protect this area.

The logic is that this will allow the muscles to expand and widen below thesaddle.

I asked Sue Norton, a lecturer on the SMS April 2012 Introduction toSaddle Fitting course, about Lesley and Lavinias philosophy of fitting aslightly wider saddle to allow for the dynamic shape of the horse and thisgiving him the freedom to develop his musculature. She told me thesubject of fitting a little wide to allow the horse to come up into his saddleas he works is excellent but we must have seen both horse and rider showtheir skills. Our dressage customers will back this theory up over and over,ridden out for warm up the rider can look out of balance as the saddle, a

little too wide, is low at the front. Within 15 minutes the horse is engagingand balance is restored. Vet required here but I assume that the muscle


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being used has an excellent blood flow and expands. A bad rider in thesame fitting on the same horse would in a matter of weeks create atrophyin the trapezius muscles where their weight has been forwardcontinuously. Note here the whole tree in the rails needs to be this slightlywider profile.

Lesley would not compromise on this. She demands that since we wish toride the horse we must learn how to ride him so he can be as comfortableas possible. She despises the practice of fitting a saddle on the horse likea clothes peg to support an unbalanced rider.

To feel the effect of a badly fitting saddle and/or rider for your self tryon different knapsacks. Youll find that some fit and some dont. Noticehow they affect your ability to move. Try packing the sacks in differentways. You will find that the easiest to carry has the weight balancedevenly left to right and has the majority of the weight low-down and still.

When we think of tack we typically consider the saddle first but anuncomfortable bridle can also block the horse. Again there is muchcontroversy as to which is the best bridle and bit to use. The answer is asfor the saddle. Each horses head shape and mouth are unique andcomfort/fit is more important than brand or fashion.

Even if the saddle fits well we riders can cause problems when mounting.Martin Wilkinson Saddlers has also been involved in SMS testing (using thePliance System) and warns its clients that the latest findings show thatmounting from the ground is bad news for the horses back and the saddle some tests registered more than double the peak pressure recorded

when jumping a 1.40m fence. To minimise the risk to our horses musclestry to use a mounting block, get a leg up or learn to vault on. Dont alwaysmount/dismount on the nearside, alternate with the off side to even outwear and tear.

One of the best ways to develop empathy with a horse in training and tobecome aware of the challenges to muscles is to train your self. In thisway we can feel the role of warming up, stretching, work and cooling downin our training regime. Why not take up a physical activity such asgymnastics, martial arts, dancing.and see how far you can go?

Mr Hamminger told me that the equine athletes needs are similar to the

needs of human beings.There is much to be learnt from humanathletes. Recently I spoke to an Olympic trained gymnast about histraining regime.


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Ultimate strength and poise in human form

I learnt that to work well training needs to become a habit. That is tosay we do it regularly. He told me that he has found that the maximumtime he can take off training without significant impact is 1 week. After 2weeks he feels like he is starting from scratch. I learned that we mustwarm-up before stretching and working to avoid muscle strain. He told me

that he drinks lots of water, doesnt smoke (the horsey equivalent wouldbe access to fresh air) and eats quality fresh food, only consuming treats(like beer) in moderation.

In orderto reach full potential he said that training must start early. InRussia the gymnasts begin their training at 6 years old.

I guess some of you will be Strictly Come Dancing fans? I do modern linedancing and I love it. I cant help noticing that despite the fact that wereall doing the same thing we all look completely different. George Archer,our instructor, is truly through his back. He is what GH would call a backmover. In contrast the majority of the other dancers (irrespective of age)are leg movers. They look like the torso of their body is a fixed rigid boxand the only parts that move are their arms and legs. This leads me to askare we naturally back movers? Are horses naturally back movers? Is it alearned/trained activity? Do we all have the capacity to be back movers? Ileave these questions for you to ponder.

What if we dont do any of this? I asked classical dressage trainer, LynneVarley. She saidIf you leave the horse as he accepts you from the moment he is backedhe will continue to develop a way of coping with the interference thatcarrying the rider causes. It may take many forms not all of them

acceptable to the average rider. Hence why so many riders have problemswith their horses, the problems the horse experiences increases with theexpectations of the rider.So if you lived in the plains of the USA and could ride for miles withouthaving to turn quickly or stop for traffic or even keep the horse straight atthe side of the road then schooling could be simplified down to the horseaccepting tack and the rider and going forward on command.But if you lived in Germany where the weather in winter made ridingimpossible except in an indoor school where you may have ten or moreriders working at once schooling becomes a necessity if you are to avoidan accident.

The horse is not designed by nature to be ridden and even the horse withthe most perfect conformation will not know how to carry the rider


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correctly if he is not shown how. So if you left the horse to do his ownthing you may manage depending on what you wanted to do, but thehorse would not develop in a physical way and any difficulties heexperiences with carrying the rider would continue unaddressed and leadto long term problems both physically and mentally.

It is not just a lack of training that can cause problems. Practice makespermanentonly perfect practice makes perfect. Yvonne Sidorak told methat she sees horses with muscular problems who have been over-trainedor who have been made to repeatedly execute training exercisesincorrectly. She emphasised the importance ofwarming up and coolingdown to avoid muscle injury. She told me Proper warm-up increasesbody temperature and smoothes muscles. This promotes flexibility andreduces the chance of injuries. In warm muscle the metabolism worksfaster so its much easier for the horse to get the power which he needs. Agood warm-up not only has a positive influence on the force, but also onthe speed, the agility and the endurance of the horse. Insufficient warm-

up causes poor blood circulation, elasticity decreases increasing thelikelihood of injuries.

We also need to remember thatafter exercise the muscles still needoxygen. Insufficient cool-down leads to a shortage of oxygen. Theshortage creates damage in the muscle fibres. This oxygen shortage iscalled Anoxia.

I asked:What factors affect the quality of a working horses musculature?

They said:The key is how you work your horse. He needs to be in a round outline.Cross training can be used to help build different muscle groups. Itsimportant that rider rides adequately and in balance and that theyunderstand the importance of hindlimb impulsion. Sue Dyson

Of the many factors that govern the development and efficiency of thehorses musculature the engagement of his postural system is the mostinteresting for the rider to consider. Only when the horse is exerting effortin a state of lateral and longitudinal balance will the family of posturalmuscles engage thereby enabling him to work correctly on the bit. If therider is able to achieve this state the horse will be able to use his

locomotor muscles with optimum efficiency and the entire musculaturewill develop in a natural balance and harmony. A beautiful state to see!Andrew Day, Senior Lecturer at the Training the Teachers of Tomorrow

TrustAvoid at all cost quick fixes and unproven ideas. Educating horses toadvanced in a correct way without gadgets or short cuts is timeconsuming and difficult. Many people give up and look for an alternative.Sadly there isnt one and although you may be able to cobble thingstogether for a while eventually the problems re-emerge and the trainingstops. Training correctly has been done for hundreds of years with timeworn systems which work for all horses, the information is there if youwant to find it. Arthur Kottas is a great rider and teacher and his book is a


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must, combined with correct practical teaching. Lynne Varley ClassicalDressage Trainer

The key factors affecting the quality of a working horses musculature areon the one hand the horses feeding and on the other hand its exercise.

Mr Johannes Hamminger, Stable manager, The Spanish Riding School atVienna

When it comes to training you can really prevent a lot of problems if youlearn how to make a horse straight and help him find the right verticalbalance. Monique de Rijk of Atletischerijkunst

Ultimately there are only two factors affecting muscle injury: The strengthand flexibility of the muscle, (affected by the quality of the training), andthe stress that we place on that muscle. Lynne Varley told me Itshould be noted that all disciplines with the exception of (correct*)dressage cause damage to a greater or lesser degree. Training in

dressage or flat work aims to minimise the damage caused by building thehorses musculature and enabling the horse to reach a state of lateral andlongitudinal balance, only then can the horse relax in its work.

The most destructive disciplines are Polo because of the rapid stopsand turns and rider/horse weight ratio: Racing, because of the youth of thehorse and the lack of correct training and unnaturally high grain content oftheir diets: Any jumping disciplines as the horse places incredible strain onthe forelegs on the descent and enormous strain on the hocks on the takeoff coupled with the difficulty of keeping the horse relaxed through itsback: Driving, as the horse has to pull which encourages the horse to use

its shoulders and drag the hind legs and it is very difficult to straighten ahorse when driving and of course straightness is an essential ingredient ofcorrect muscle development.

Hoof care

It is impossible to train the horse and develop his musculature withoutgood feet. The starting point for good feet is of course nutrition which wehave already discussed above. Unbalanced feet will lead to compensationand ultimately muscular problems. Samsara shoe all their own horsesbecausedepending on work load shoes wear out at differing rates andthey believe in shoeing when the horse is ready rather than when the

farrier is able to come. One of my horses is retired and barefoot and I trimhis feet myself. Im not advocating that all riders shoe or trim their ownhorses feet, just that a rider needs to know how to care for the feet andensure her farrier is doing a good job.

I searched the net for answers to the question how do I tell if my farrier isdoing a good job. Top of the search list was Matt Taimuty ofhttp://www.fairhillforge.com: The most basic answer to the questioncomes in the form of another question. Is your horse sound, comfortableand happy with his work? If the answer is yes, then you can bet that yourfarrier is doing at least a fair job. The flip side of that answer is the lamehorse. The problem here is that many farriers get blamed for lamenessthat has nothing to do with their work. Others get blamed for not fixing
http://www.fairhillforge.com/http://www.fairhillforge.com/


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something that isnt a farrier problem. He goes on to list a detailed set ofinspections the owner can do to work out an answer for herself.

In the UK my horses were shod by Jay Tovey (seehttp://www.jaytoveyfarriers.com/ ). With his help I managed to keep my

part-bred arab gelding, Shantie, sound. This was no mean feat as Shantiehas many conformational defects including a club foot, a foot prone tocollapsed heels and shoulders of differing heights!

Shanties shod feet

I asked Jay for his thoughts on how the horses feet impact the

musculature of the horse. He told me Incorrect foot balance has an

impact on bones, joints, tendons, ligaments, nerves, blood vessels and of

course the musculature of the horse. The subject is vast and difficult to

summarise in a couple of paragraphs.

Recognising the basics of static conformation to the more advance

understanding of dynamic conformation and there after the subtle

changes of foot balance comes with experience and is a good skill to learn

with the assistance of a reputable farrier/hoof care specialist. They will

help you recognise both good foot balance; immediately after shoeing or

trimming and bad foot balance which may result from growth and general

working of the horse or caused by a conformational defect or specific

ailment. This enables the responsible horse owner to recognise when their

horse is ready for re-shoeing or trimming, before the horse becomes

unbalanced, rather than leaning towards the irresistible urge to eek outweeks between visits and feel confident in requesting that the feet are

attended to before the next scheduled visit.

As we know, one horse differs from another, one breed from another and

the four feet on one solitary horse often all differ. It would therefore, be

impossible to categorise, as few horses are perfectly straight and fit into

the guidelines of basic foot balance, this is where the skill of the job lies,

striving to obtain correct foot balance for each individual foot and horse.

A further responsibility of the horse owner is to appreciate the complexity

of the numerous different foot types and conformation defects a farrier ispresented with daily. When trimming a horses foot you are trying to
http://www.jaytoveyfarriers.com/http://www.jaytoveyfarriers.com/


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achieve overall balance, within the whole horse as well as the feet. With

feet that are chronically out of balance, this may take a considerable

amount of time to achieve. Bearing in mind the growth rate of a hoof, and

work undertaken on the bottom portion of the foot ultimately influencing

the growth at the top of the foot, from the coronary band down, this could

possibly take anywhere from nine to twelve months to correct.

Most horses do not need special trimming or shoeing, just a good

professional adhering to basic foot balance, ensuring a healthy strong

balanced foot, which results in a well balanced horse. Individual foot

balance is SO IMPORTANT and whether to shoe, or not, or use hoof boots

is really secondary to good foot balance. The unshod foot is the ideal, but

many horses need protection when working in unnatural environments

that horse owners frequently present them with, such as concrete or deep

abrasive sand. Performing unnatural movements such as dressage or

even consequence of mans intervention of cross-breeding, taking horsesaway from their natural make-up. Sometimes these feet, although

balanced correctly may need some protection to compensate for the

demands of wear on the foot, which is quicker in these instances, than the

natural growth rate of the foot.

Below are some pictures of Boomerang. I've known Boomerang for 19

years and he was without shoes until he was 6/7 years old. He has a

naturally occurring broken back hoof pastern axis (HPA). When his trainer

and rider started to work him more intensely at dressage he started to go

lame and trip. Once shod he then became sound as it was found he had

been suffering from bruised soles but the occasional tripping still occurred.

His HPA was corrected using a graduated frog support shoe, after which

his tripping stopped.

Boomerang moved away for a time, again became lame and started

tripping and reluctant to move forward, due to being shod differently.

When he returned, I corrected his HPA, which made him more balanced

and was sound again.

His heels finish far too far forward for him to generate enough heel growth

himself, as they collapse under his weight.


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In contrast below are pictures of endurance horses that have been without

shoes and competing successfully for a number of years.

They have no problems at all hacking over 20 miles on any terrain. If they

become sore on particularly hard ground, or the feet become short due to

a lot of work, then their owner manages this by using a horse boot for

protection when needed. Basic foot balance at regular intervals and common

sense is all that is required to keep these

horses sound.

Where I struggle as a farrier is understanding the ethos of barefoottrimming when their sole belief is to only bare foot trim, which I believe

in some instances can result in problems and long term lameness issues.

There are many horses that I only trim because I believe this is best for

the horse and I take pride in not just knocking on a pair of shoes for

financial gains. Ultimately it is the welfare of the horse and taking into

consideration its individual requirements at that stage in the horses

working life.

As you can see its no coincidence that Jay is an official farrier for the 2012

London Olympics.


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Once we have correct foot balance we must consider the surfaces we askour horse to work on. If the horse becomes unsure of his feet he will ceaseto move freely forwards and tense muscles in an attempt to protecthimself from slipping. I am sure that you will all have felt this yourselfwhen walking on ice or descending a mountain trail of loose shale.

Avoiding Injury

Even with the best nutrition, training and foot care there will always beaccidents. The trick is not to go looking for them. To do this we mustassess risks and make a balanced choice. This involves understanding theeffect of the things we cant control and taking action to mitigate futureproblems. Lets look at a few examples. If its cold and frosty outside thepaddocks could be slippery early on. Maybe it would be better to delayturning out until later. Cold muscles are tense and therefore more subjectto strain. This means that I will need to use rugs and warm up gently introt if it is cold and ensure that the horse is truly warmed up before

starting work in earnest. Prevention is always better than cure andprevention means understanding the potential causes of injury.

Yvonne Sidorak told me that all accidents result in muscle trauma. If ourhorse has been cast in his box, had an accident in the trailer, pulled backand broken his head collar, taken a tumble in the field, got caught up infencing etc we see the blood and the broken bones but we dont see themuscle damage. Understanding that there will have been damage andmanaging the horse accordingly can save a lot of problems later.

To avoid injury we need to understand the vulnerable parts of thesystem ie the areas of weakness on a horse where muscles are moststressed. For jumpers this is what Stephen calls the arm-pits.


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The Pectorals *Diagram reproduced courtesy of Pauli Groenberg from his ABC of the Horse Atlas

This is a vulnerable area for all horses as this is where the horse carriesthe majority of his (and our) weight, on his forehand. We have pectoralmuscles too but unlike the horse they dont carry our weight. What can wedo to help our horse? As we have already seen, correct training can helpto transfer a little of the weight back. Massage of these muscles can alsohelp and yet is often ignored as we focus on more obvious larger musclegroups in the shoulder and quarters.

Another issue is ensuring that we work our horse within hiscapabilities. This means that if we have a particular discipline in mind wemust seek a horse with that in mind. Alternatively if we already have ahorse we must assess his capabilities dispassionately and either train himto his strengths or seek another horse for the purpose we have in mind.Louise Carson told me another cause of problems is Horses being ask to

do a job that they arent conformationally or mentally capable of. Anotherinteresting point Louise raised is that ofmuscle memory. She told methat left to its own devices, (a horse that has been laid off and lostmuscle bulk due to injury), will use its muscles and its body in the way itwas first trained as a result of muscle memory. This has majorimplications for the rehabilitation of a horse who has changed career egthe racehorse turned showjumper or eventer. It also re-emphasises thepoint already made about the importance of early training being correct.

Even within capability we must develop our awareness and understandingoffatigue to avoid injury. As swimmer, Flavio Lapis, told me don't forcea hard training if you are tired and try not to be tired for a competition or

competitive activity.


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I asked:What are the muscular problems you see most in working horses?

They said:Sore neck, shoulder, back, gluteal, hamstring and abdominal muscles.

They all occur but are not always recognised. Occur as a result ofoveruse, improper training, accidents, nutritional issues leading to tyingup, not cooling down properly, hereditary muscle issues, badly fittingsaddles and just general wear and tear on an animal that was notdesigned to perform in the ways we ask of them. Sue Devereux

Muscular problems can vary significantly and not often disciplinerelated. Louise Carson

Blocked muscles. Mainly the armpits, shoulders, hamstrings and aroundthe hips. The problems are remarkably consistent across all horsesirrespective of the work they do. They just tend to be more severe in sport

horses Stephen Goodridge

We also need to be able to identify injury in the early stages. We cansee lameness but we cant see pain. Just like us a horse can be carryingpain and not be lame. Equally a horse can appear lame and not be in pain,so-called mechanical lameness. My mother is a very good example of this.She has arthritis in her right knee. She is lame but she feels no pain (andis not taking pain killers.)

I asked:What are the warning signs?

They said:Mental stress or distress, way of going, paces William Micklem

Change of temperament, increased irritability, loss of enthusiasm forwork. Sore to touch, abnormal tension, heat, swelling, stiffness, change ofposture, shortening of stride or reduced range of movement may occurbefore the horse is obviously lame. Sue Devereux

Do not like to be brushed. Do not want to be saddled. Will not flex theneck. Do not have fun while training. Nodding in the knees. The front legsare not positioned right. Irregular steps. While transitioning to canter,

dont want to deconstruct. Headshaking. Overturning head and neck. Donot want to collect. Having difficulty with length flexion. Crookedness.Resistance to straightening. While jumping lifting one leg higher than theother. Refusing in front of an obstacle (if it doesnt fit with the character ofthe horse). Teeth grinding. Tail swishing while driving. After a long time ofriding, still functioning with problems. Underdevelopment of certainmuscle groups. Yvonne Sidorak

A masseur friend of mine touched me in the pecs recently. I flinched. Shesaid she had watched me emptying barrows on the muckheap and that

she knew I would have minor strain there. Minor strain is not a problem.We just need to be aware of it. Training relies on us creating a minor


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strain. We can treat minor soreness at home with ice, massage, hot andcold (water, infra-red) and nutrition. Finally we need to know who canadvise us. The first port of call may not always be your vet! For moreinformation see the appendix.

Injuries can also be caused by the tack we use to train our horses. Comfytack that fits horse and rider is the key not colour, quality of materials orbrand!

I asked:How can we avoid muscular injuries?

They said:Get the right horse for the purpose you have in mind. Choose a horsewith good conformation. Maintain a regular routine of work. Rememberthat regular movement is essential for muscle fitness. Do turn-out butensure good ground and fencing Sue Dyson

Respect your horse that is totally dependent on you for its well being.Learn to trust your gut instinct, and do not be afraid to question others. Donot always accept what you are told if it does not sit well with yourconscience. Give your horse the benefit of the doubt until you can proveotherwise. Lavinia Mitchell

Stable management:

Most of what we have examined so far is physical. Muscle problems can

be caused by mental, as well as physical, stress.

F. M. Alexander, founder of the Alexander Technique, said that wetranslate everything whether physical or mental or spiritual into musculartension. The physical element is obvious but how to avoid mental tension(stress) in our horses? Essentially, we need to respect his basic needsas a horse: friends of his own kind that he can touch, fresh air and water,freedom to move, roll and express himself and forage to chew. Touch is soimportant to horses. Yet many competition horses, especially stallions, aredenied this need. Is it any wonder that locked up in solitary confinement23 hours out of 24 our horse turns to a life of crime? The equine athleteneeds rest and relaxation. Encourage your horse to lay down by giving him

a good bed and helping him to feel safe. Massage with hands, water or amachine designed for the purpose can all be therapeutic.

Mr Hamminger told me we make sure that our Lipizzaners have enoughexercise (in the fresh air) and nutritional additives. In July, all of ourstallions have a break of at least five weeks at Heldenberg, but also duringthe year each stallion is taken there to enjoy the advantages. During thetime at Heldenberg the stallions are trained and enjoy paddock boxes,pastures and are ridden in the woods.

I asked:How can we avoid muscle tension in our horses?

They said:


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Treat the horse as a horse....treat the horse as one whole.....work thehorse towards a quality way of going with impulsion and straightness....ifnecessary without a rider. William Micklem

As we use Solarium and Magnetic Field Therapy we can avoid most of the

muscular problems. The Magnetic Field Therapy can be used for differentpurposes: the activation of the organism, in order to encourage themetabolism of the musculature as well as for regeneration. Mr JohannesHamminger, Stable manager, The Spanish Riding School at Vienna

Muscle care

Caring for muscles is a process of doing the best we can with each of theelements above then monitoring (through observation and touch),diagnosing (where there is a problem) and developing a treatment plan ordeveloping the next stage of the training programme, then putting theplan into action. Above all we need to be vigilant. We must know ourhorse and how he is normally so that we can spot quickly when he is alittle off colour and change his regime accordingly. Samsara have taughtme that by touching each of my horse's muscle groups I can detectproblems early and take appropriate action. Getting the right help earlycan make a huge difference in the long run.

Yvonne Sidorak is an equine masseur. She told me that it is important fortrainers to understand what muscles are and how they work. She told meA muscle is a tissue structure of cells which has the property to tightenmaking movement possible. Skeletal muscle (attached to the body)

provides motion in the skeleton by contraction and relaxation. Musclesare always connected by tendons to the skeleton because the tendons canabsorb a much larger force than the muscles can. The tendons absorb theblows but the muscles provide the movement of the skeleton andare also the protector of the joints.

Did you know that 60% of your horses mass is muscle? The muscles ofa horse need to relax after contraction. The relaxation should besynchronized with the contraction. The contraction process always works,but the relaxation process can fail. When this happens the horse is limitedin his freedom of movement. The relaxation process depends on themuscles being well supplied with energy. The power or energy supply isprovided by adenosine triphosphate which is often abbreviated as ATP.ATP is formed by the cooperation and absorption of oxygen (frombreathing) and sugar (glucose) from nutrition.

If the energy supply to the muscles is not sufficient for the movementdemanded the fibres become increasingly contracted. Working themuscles in this state can result in a blockage in the muscle caused by theadhesion of damaged muscle fibres. As a result oxygen and glucose cantfind their way through the entire muscle and waste can not be properlyexpelled. The muscle loses its function as a protector and loses itsflexibility. Muscle tensions are not confined to one area because the

adjacent muscle group has to take over the function, so the stress is alsodistributed to the acquiring muscle group.


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Each movement of the horse creates an enormous amount of tension atone point. A muscle contains about a quarter of a million fibres. A minormuscle injury might damage only about ten thousand of these fibres andbecause of this the problem can go unnoticed. The horse has enough

power to function normally but when these muscles are further stressedtension, discomfort and pain will be the result.

The sports massage that I use is the Jack Meagher therapy, also calledstress point massage. Jack Meagher developed the concept of sportsmassage in the fifties. Jack developed this therapy after he had got injuredand came in contact with a masseur who changed his life. Jack massagedthousands of people and horses. He always says: A problem in aparticular muscle is always the same problem. This is the origin of histherapy. For many years he has been the mentor of the U.S. Equestrian

Team, he also worked for the NFL Athletes. His therapy is characterized bythe accuracy of the massage. Its hard to localize the specific point

because the muscle one inch beside the specific point will probably be inan excellent condition. Each of these specific points when overstressedwill produce a specific problem. The stress points will be found in the sameplaces on every horse. The Jack Meagher approach goes far beyond anyother massage therapy. The accurate therapy is locating and releasing theexact stress point which is in spasm. Of the influence create a directrelaxation of the muscle.

The Meagher treatment involves- A Hyperaemia (increase of blood circulation / Direct Pressure)- Therapeutic motion to the spastic fibres to restore normal motion ofshortening and lengthening. (Cross Fibre Friction)- Treatment of the entire muscle (Compressions) *Compressions: Pushingin to the muscle so that it will touch the bone.

Yvonne at work

Is there anything we can do at home to help our horse? Peter Gray MVBMRCVS, a UK vet specialising in chronic lameness and performanceproblems, says on his website that We need to understand that routinemuscle care is vital for all athletic animals. In the past, this was achievedby daily strapping of all major muscle groups. It helped to dispersewaste products of normal contraction as well as effusions from damagedareas.

For those of us who treated muscular problems in the Sixties and

Seventies, there seemed to be a lower incidence to contend with. Now,perhaps because we are not encouraged to strap, or to recogniseproblems in the muscular system, the incidence is far greater. This, too,


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may reflect more intensive training regimes, the use of all-weathersurfaces, the tendency to use steep gradients as a means of extra work-loading.

Ideally, strapping will take five to ten minutes per day on each limb. The

quarters and shoulders are massaged, using a wisp or other suitableimplement, like a pad. The movement can be an extension of normalgrooming, as when using a brush firmly; or firmer, bringing pressure downon deeper areas by gentle pounding; or manual, using fingers and palmsto encourage suppleness.

Many won't have time to strap, this being the reason the exercise becameobsolete in the first place. However, any effort to soften the heaviermuscles of the shoulder and pelvic roof have to be an advantage to thehorse and reduce the incidence of lameness coming from this source.

Samsara have taught me a simple thing we can all do. After weve tacked

up, (for riding, lunging or driving) and before we start work, we can stretchour horses shoulders. Many years ago I was taught to pull the horsesforelegs forward from the knee to smooth the skin and hair beneath thegirth. This is a development on this but instead we take the horses forelegforwards supporting the hoof and fetlock. To ensure we dont strain ourown muscles as we do this we must engage our core, rotate our pelvis andflex our knees as shown in the previous photographs.

In Iberian equitation the horses are taught the Spanish walk. This is anexpressive variant of the walk where the horse really extends his forelegsforward. Again this form of walk will be a good way of getting our horse to

really work through and stretch the muscles in his shoulders.

Observe

Diagnose

Treat

MuscleManagement

Cycle

I asked:How do you know that a horse has good musculature? What things do youlook at?

They said:


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The horse looks in proportion. He has a balanced physique. Depends ontype a lean event horse will look different to a showjumper. Depends ondiscipline. Sue Dyson.

Size and shape of muscle groups. Whole horse conformation. Cannot

always tell by just looking. Sue Devereux

Everything fits, balanced and natural....William Micklem

Generally speaking, the Lipizzaners have a very athletic muscularity, astrongly built back and well trained joints. These physical conditions makeit possible for our horses to easily perform the classical School jumps.Inorder to correct any weaknesses we recommend specific training,especially the work in hand. Mr Johannes Hamminger, Stable manager,

The Spanish Riding School at Vienna

I asked:How do you diagnose muscle problems in horses?

They said:

Palpation (feeling the muscles) and gently testing the range of motion ,

looking for symmetry on both sides of the horse, watching the horse work,

blood tests for CK and AST, less commonly muscle biopsy. Taking an

accurate history is important Sue Devereux

By eye and touch Lynn Henry

I asked:What treatments do you recommend for muscular problems?

They said:It depends what the diagnosis is. It may include non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medication, chiropractic, osteopathy, acupuncture,physiotherapy, rest, change of diet, controlled exercise, Sue Devereux

First diagnose the root cause of the problem. Is the muscle painfulbecause of a blockage in the skeleton or in the muscle? If it's in themuscle then early intervention is essential. Massage and rest can

sometimes help for small initial problems. Otherwise for bigger problemsour Samsara Massage oil can work. For problems that have not beenrecognised early our strong massage oil is the only solution we know.Massage can help, stretching can certainly help but if the muscle is notfixed and comes under load again it will fail. Stephen Goodridge

It depends on how recent or longstanding the problem is. Acute-anti-inflammatory treatments such as cold therapies & rest. Sub-acute tochronic: electrical stimulation & exercises to encourage the correctpattern of muscle firing, this can be from as basic as the horse standingstill and being requested to shift its balance to more in depth pole workexercises in hand to specific lateral work exercises under saddle. Manualtechniques to release muscle spasm, increase range of movement, reducepain and return normal biomechanics. Muscle strengthening exercises.


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Electrical stimulation to encourage chronic wasted muscle to start toreceive an impulse and start firing. Electrical & manual therapies todampen down the effect of over active/tight muscle. Stretching. LouiseCarson

I asked sports coach, FL, about how he deals with muscle injuries. He toldme First of all ice! Second, lots of water and some extra protein. After 2weeks some stretching. In the 3rd week back to the normal bodybuildingtraining (the stretch is very, very light). After a month increase the stretch,and after 5 weeks some balistic stretch to test in a "controlled" situation ifthe muscles are really healed. If the injury is really bad some antiinflammatory is taken on the first 2 weeks beside the ice. I try to focus mymind on now and the next steps only.

These days we are always in a rush. We want everything and we want itnow. But there are no quick fixes with living systems. The trick is notabout being able to do something nowit is whether we are still able to do

it 5 or 10 years hence. We are impressed by speed but at what sacrifice tosustainability? It is no coincidence that the SRS takes 7-8 years to train ahorse and that those horses will still be performing well into their twenties.

In conclusion

Our horses musculature is our responsibility as horse owners. Notthe trainers. Not the dressage judges. Not the vets. Not the physios. Notthe farriers. Ours.

I asked each of my correspondents what single thing a horse owner could

do to prevent muscular problems in her horse. Sue Devereux said Thereis no single thing. Everything matters. Stable management, amountof turnout, feeding, worming, foot balance, shoeing, saddle fit, trainingregime, skill of rider and trainer, the surface it trains on, to mention but afew. Regular checks by a good chiropractor/osteopath, acupuncturist,massage therapist, physiotherapist are invaluable in the performancehorse or indeed any horse. These practitioners will detect and treatproblems before they become apparent to the owner in many cases ieprevent them from developing into more serious injuries limiting theperformance of the horse. Some horses and some conditions respondbetter to one type of therapy compared to another. It is really importantto know your horse and take action at the first sign of anything being

wrong. It is also important to make sure the practitioner is properlyqualified and to have confidence in them. Everyone involved in caring forthe horse should work as a team

I will leave the last word to Lavina Mitchell who pointed out that the key iseducation. We riders owe it to our horses to learn to recognise what ahealthy horse looks like, feels like and behaves like..and to know whatwe can do to help him stay that way. I hope reading this article hasinspired you to do just that.

About the author:Kerry Turner is a management consultant, author,

freelance journalist and dedicated lover of horses. In 2011 she metStephen Goodridge of Samsara Equitation which engaged her interest in


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researching this important topic. To find out more about Samsara seehttp://www.samsara-equitation.com/. To find out more about Kerry and herbook see http://www.kerrylturner.blogspot.com/ andhttp://www.ridingdynamics.blogspot.com/.

Kerry is planning to organise Horse Muscle Management seminars inFrance and the UK. To register an interest and to find out more send Kerryan email at [email protected].

About Stephen Goodridge: Stephen is in the process of planning hisreturn to the UK from an intensive 3 year, 7 day-a-week, 12 hours-a-daytraining with one of the worlds top horsemen, Willy Sidorak. Willy cuts acontroversial figure in the horse world with his uncompromising approachto sport horse development but no-one can question his knowledge ofhorses or the quality of the horses he produces both physically andmentally. Stephen is the first person to have completed the course andnow wants to bring the message he learned with Willy back to the UK, thatwe who love horses must all unite for the good of the horse. Our horsesare constantly talking to us and it is up to us to learn to understand theirlanguage.

The author would like to thank:

Dr Sue Dyson MA VetMB DEO PhD FRCVS (http://www.aht.org.uk/cms-display/equine_staffsd.html); Sue Devereux BA BVSc MRCVS(http://www.equineacupuncture.co.uk/); William Micklem FBHS(http://www.williammicklem.com/); Jo Bower MSc Eq S(http://www.horsesourceltd.co.uk/); Yvonne Sidorak ofhttp://www.multisouplesse.com; Monique de Rijk of Atletischerijkunstinthe Netherlands; Peter Smith EDT; Mr. Johannes Hamminger(http://www.srs.at/en/); Lynne Varley; Lavinia Mitchell(http://www.laviniamitchell.com/); Lesley Taylor(http://www.balanceinternational.com/); Sue Norton; Louise Carson(http://www.animalrehabcentre.org/index.php/the-team/louise-carson);Glenn Hasker; Colleen Meyer (http://advancedsaddlefit.com/); Andrew Day(http://www.ttttrust.com/instructors.asp); Lynn Henry(http://www.thinklikeapony.co.uk/); George Archer(http://inevitabledancetroop.com/default.aspx); Jay Tovey DWCF(http://www.jaytoveyfarriers.com/ ); Stewart Hastie MRCVS

(http://vetsblog.nixonequinevets.com/vets/stewart-hastie/); Peter GrayMVB MRCVS (http://www.petergray.org.uk/) and, of course, Willy Sidorakand Stephen Goodridge, without whose inspiration this article would neverhave been written.
http://www.samsara-equitation.com/http://www.kerrylturner.blogspot.com/http://www.ridingdynamics.blogspot.com/mailto:[email protected]://www.aht.org.uk/cms-display/equine_staffsd.htmlhttp://www.aht.org.uk/cms-display/equine_staffsd.htmlhttp://www.equineacupuncture.co.uk/http://www.williammicklem.com/http://www.horsesourceltd.co.uk/http://www.multisouplesse.com/http://www.srs.at/en/http://www.laviniamitchell.com/http://www.balanceinternational.com/http://www.animalrehabcentre.org/index.php/the-team/louise-carsonhttp://advancedsaddlefit.com/http://www.ttttrust.com/instructors.asphttp://www.thinklikeapony.co.uk/http://inevitabledancetroop.com/default.aspxhttp://www.jaytoveyfarriers.com/http://vetsblog.nixonequinevets.com/vets/stewart-hastie/http://www.petergray.org.uk/http://www.samsara-equitation.com/http://www.kerrylturner.blogspot.com/http://www.ridingdynamics.blogspot.com/mailto:[email protected]://www.aht.org.uk/cms-display/equine_staffsd.htmlhttp://www.aht.org.uk/cms-display/equine_staffsd.htmlhttp://www.equineacupuncture.co.uk/http://www.williammicklem.com/http://www.horsesourceltd.co.uk/http://www.multisouplesse.com/http://www.srs.at/en/http://www.laviniamitchell.com/http://www.balanceinternational.com/http://www.animalrehabcentre.org/index.php/the-team/louise-carsonhttp://advancedsaddlefit.com/http://www.ttttrust.com/instructors.asphttp://www.thinklikeapony.co.uk/http://inevitabledancetroop.com/default.aspxhttp://www.jaytoveyfarriers.com/http://vetsblog.nixonequinevets.com/vets/stewart-hastie/http://www.petergray.org.uk/


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Appendix

q of movement

compensating

muscle injuries

demands e xc c apabilityfighting(companionship)

(muscle tone)

play(companionship)

(freedom)O

(q of surface)

pain/inflamm ation

(muscle injuries)

q of massagehand massage

oils/rubs/linimentswater massage O

use of painkillers

O

q of c onformationq f bree ding

confidence in feetq of feet

(# movement)

ODirty stable

effec tive e xcretion(# movement)

fibre in diet(ad lib forage)(hydration)

Oq of stable hygiene

urination(bedding)

(hydration)

q of foodfreshness of food

q of paddock careq of shoeing/trimming

q of surface

O

fat

O

# movementamt of trainingO(muscle injuries)

freedomstable designtime in stable(muscle injuries)

muscle fuel

available ca rbs

q of digestion

Obolting fee dO(ad lib forage) O(calm confident mind)

Omeal size

q of teeth

(chewing)eating at ground level

q of dental careq of mouth conformation

(q of food)

worm burden(q of paddock care )

q of worming programm e

effec tive respirationq of airO

(Dirty stable)(stable design)

(q of breathing)

hydrationq of water

thirst(# movement)

q of circulation(# movement)Cardio fitness(# movement)

muscle tone

(# movement)(muscle injuries)

muscle r elaxation

(calm confident mind)

lying down

bedding

feeling safe(calm confident mind)(companionship)

(pain/inflammation)(q of massage)

muscle renewalavailable protein

(q of digestion)(q of food)

(worm burden)(muscle relaxation)

(q of movement)q of wa rm-up/cool down

q of breathingcalm confident mind

(# movement)

chewing

ad lib forage

appetite

(# movement)

appeal of food

smell of food(freshness of f ood)taste of food(freshness of food)

texture of foodvariety of food

(waste disposal)clarity consistency of training/comm unication

companionship(stable design)confronting fear s

(dema nds exc capability)(freedom)(muscle relaxation)

(q f bree ding)trust(clarity consistency of training/communication)

waste disposal(effe ctive e xcretion)

Documents

Horse Muscle Management v50 1