Helping horses with injury, post-surgical rehabilitation and ongoing musculoskeletal conditions.
Please remember – Only Vets can legally diagnose conditions. My job is to feel what is going on in the tissues and assess the movement and then build a plan from there.
Veterinary Consent
Please note, if a horse currently has a condition that it is receiving treatment for by a vet OR is in pain, veterinary consent will be required for me to treat them. If the horse has no issues, then veterinary consent is not required.
I will not able to treat if consent has not been sought.
Horses can either be referred from your vet or I can ask for the referral for you. I am happy to share my findings with your vet so we can work as a team to help your horse.
Insurance
If you have cover for physiotherapy on your policy, you should be able to reclaim the cost of treatment if your vet has advised for physiotherapy to take place. Please double check your policy to make sure.
In most cases you will need to pay for the treatment and then claim back from the insurers.
“Is he moving poorly because he is in pain, or is he in pain because he is moving poorly?”
Conditions Equine Physiotherapy can help with...
- Post Operative Rehabilitation
- Muscle Imbalances/Compensation Issues
- Performance Enhancement
- Kissing Spine Rehabilitation
- Wounds
- Sprains/Strains
- Sore Backs/Muscles
- General Maintenance Sessions
- Exercise Prescription
- Pre-event tune up and post-event recovery sessions
Area Covered
I cover the Exmoor and surrounding areas but I am happy to travel further afield if required. Please get in touch if you are outside my area.
Travel charges apply for over a 10mile radius of TA246UA.
“A horse that isn’t straight can not maintain rhythm, cannot be collected and will probably not stay sound.”
What Happens at an Appointment?
Firstly veterinary permission is sought either by the owner or myself (if required). I also like to obtain any relevant medical history to help plan the session.
On arrival, I will double check details and ask some more questions about the issue. I will also explain what physio will consist of for the particular condition.
I will then assess the horse moving and statically, palpating different muscles and looking at how the joints move. Sometimes I like to assess and treat as I go. It can handy to see them ridden or on the lunge but I appreciate this isn’t always possible. Also please have tack to hand so I can see the fit.
After treatment, I will suggest some exercises, modifications and the plan for the future.
Special rates for multi-animal bookings, yard visits and combined Horse and Owner treatments.
“Lateral movements are the ‘elixir of life’ for horse trainers!”
Techniques used...
Massage, mobilisations, releases and stretches can help increase circulation and lymphatic drainage, improve mobility and reduce spasms, adhesions and ease tension.
My go to for wounds, swellings and to help with inflammation. Cold laser also warms the muscles up well before treatment. It uses infrared and red light to provide the cells with energy, boosting their metabolism enabling areas to heal naturally. You can really see it in action when treating wounds… Please see Cold Laser for more information.
H-Wave is a type of electrotherapy which uses electrical stimulation to relieve pain and restore function. It has very limited side effects and is well tolerated by animals.
The H-wave machine emulates the H-waveform found in nerve signals (Hoffman Reflex) which allows a deeper effect on the tissues at a much lower power than other muscle stimulation or TENs machines would use. It uses a bipolar exponential decaying waveform which allows this deep penetration while other muscle stims tend to use a square or diamond waveform which even at moderate levels can be painful to animals. The H-Wave also uses an intermittent wave which makes it much more comfortable, with little dermal resistance and no muscular fatiguing. Treatments can be highly relaxing and non-invasive for the animal. H-Wave also targets slow twitch muscle fibres which tend to be used for posture and core strength. Read more here
PEMF uses electromagnetic fields to influence the body on a cellular level. Different pulse rates can affect different tissues. It can be used on fractures and will work through a cast.
It can also help heal ligament, muscle and tendon injuries and be used to reduce inflammation and for temporary pain relief. These machines can also be hired for home use if long term use is required.
Ultrasound uses sound waves to cause vibrations in the tissues. It is great at breaking down scar tissue and adhesions. It enhances the efficiency of the inflammation process and during the healing stages of injuries it makes sure the collagen fibres are laid down correctly. It can also help reduce muscle spasms and healing tendon injuries. It can also be beneficial with wound healing.
I use longwave ultrasound which penetrates deeply but it is not harmful to bone like shortwave ultrasound can be.
I am happy to give direction or give groundwork sessions to horses. These exercises can include in-hand work, lunging/long reining, polework and ridden work.
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