Hels_Bells
Well-Known Member
Update from my post a few days ago about can back problems cause a horse to lean on the bit.
http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=363062
Equine Physio/McTimoney came out to look at Remy this morning. I had to tell her as much as I could about his health history then trot him up etc so she could assess him and she said he was verging on lameness on his back right. At this point she said I could either leave it at that and get the vet out to investigate further or she could give him a treatment in which case after a few days he would get much better if it was purely a muscular problem or he would get stiffer/lamer and it would probably uncover the actual root of the problem i.e. if it was a joint problem etc.
So I asked her to treat him. Luckily she doesn't charge by the hour because she worked on him for just under 2 hours - and have to say the little guy was a saint. When she looked at his back legs, his right back leg (sorry my anatomy knowledge is hopeless so I can't tell you exactly which muscle without referring to my manual of horsemanship or something!!) was way more muscly than his left so she said he was probably trying to work around some problem/discomfort, just like we do if we have a joint or muscle problem. Also his pelvis was very unlevel, much lower on the right hand side. She said this can often be caused by some sort of fall either in the field or out jumping etc. Also he was very stiff at the top of his neck and also in his back esp rump area (as we thought).
Anyway she spent a lot of time working (a bit like a human physio or massage therapist undoing all the knots in your back etc) on the top area of his neck and also bending his neck right around her so it was almost touching his shoulder and massaging his rump and also working on straightening his vertebrae right along his back. She said that what she does is basically undo all the muscle tenseness caused by a horse trying to right itself around a problem or some sort of discomfort which either straightens them out or reveals what they were trying to overcompensate for or hide.
He was very good and did lots of sighing, licking, chewing, stretching, shaking etc at the right time which apparently means it's working. Anyway when she finished she checked his pelvis again and it was completely level. I have to spend the next two weeks hacking him out and bending him to the right as much as I can as he's apparently become a bit like a banana that is curved one way (towards the left) so we have to try and straighten him out. Anyway now he's got to have 2-3 days off and then I can start riding him gently.
It's difficult to convey exactly what she did (maybe I should have reflected longer on it before writing this) but I'm really hopeful it has helped him. If it hasn't solved the problem I think it has certainly done some good. He was standing nice and square when she'd finished and also seems to be walking with a bit more of a spring in his step. If nothing else it seems the poor boy has been very wonky for a long time and we have straightened him out and established that there is or was certainly something wrong.
So fingers crossed this may have worked. I can't wait to take him out on Sunday or Monday to see how he goes and will probably give an update once I have. Right now I'm really glad I had her out and am just going to keep my fingers crossed this line of treatment will fix the poor boy, I think he's been in discomfort for many years!
http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=363062
Equine Physio/McTimoney came out to look at Remy this morning. I had to tell her as much as I could about his health history then trot him up etc so she could assess him and she said he was verging on lameness on his back right. At this point she said I could either leave it at that and get the vet out to investigate further or she could give him a treatment in which case after a few days he would get much better if it was purely a muscular problem or he would get stiffer/lamer and it would probably uncover the actual root of the problem i.e. if it was a joint problem etc.
So I asked her to treat him. Luckily she doesn't charge by the hour because she worked on him for just under 2 hours - and have to say the little guy was a saint. When she looked at his back legs, his right back leg (sorry my anatomy knowledge is hopeless so I can't tell you exactly which muscle without referring to my manual of horsemanship or something!!) was way more muscly than his left so she said he was probably trying to work around some problem/discomfort, just like we do if we have a joint or muscle problem. Also his pelvis was very unlevel, much lower on the right hand side. She said this can often be caused by some sort of fall either in the field or out jumping etc. Also he was very stiff at the top of his neck and also in his back esp rump area (as we thought).
Anyway she spent a lot of time working (a bit like a human physio or massage therapist undoing all the knots in your back etc) on the top area of his neck and also bending his neck right around her so it was almost touching his shoulder and massaging his rump and also working on straightening his vertebrae right along his back. She said that what she does is basically undo all the muscle tenseness caused by a horse trying to right itself around a problem or some sort of discomfort which either straightens them out or reveals what they were trying to overcompensate for or hide.
He was very good and did lots of sighing, licking, chewing, stretching, shaking etc at the right time which apparently means it's working. Anyway when she finished she checked his pelvis again and it was completely level. I have to spend the next two weeks hacking him out and bending him to the right as much as I can as he's apparently become a bit like a banana that is curved one way (towards the left) so we have to try and straighten him out. Anyway now he's got to have 2-3 days off and then I can start riding him gently.
It's difficult to convey exactly what she did (maybe I should have reflected longer on it before writing this) but I'm really hopeful it has helped him. If it hasn't solved the problem I think it has certainly done some good. He was standing nice and square when she'd finished and also seems to be walking with a bit more of a spring in his step. If nothing else it seems the poor boy has been very wonky for a long time and we have straightened him out and established that there is or was certainly something wrong.
So fingers crossed this may have worked. I can't wait to take him out on Sunday or Monday to see how he goes and will probably give an update once I have. Right now I'm really glad I had her out and am just going to keep my fingers crossed this line of treatment will fix the poor boy, I think he's been in discomfort for many years!
)
