Have you ever had that feeling that even though your horse does not look obviously lame, there is something you are seeing or feeling when you are handling or riding them that just doesn’t seem quite right?
I think lots of us have been there, we know the horse isn’t performing as they used to, maybe they are feeling a little lazy or even more spooky? Perhaps they seem just a bit more ‘grumpy’ when you put your leg on? Or have they been tripping on the arena surface recently? Are these really issues to be ignored? Or could they be early warning signs of musculoskeletal discomfort?
Performance Specialist Sue Dyson has recently been holding a series of webinars, hosted by Horses Inside Out, and this was the topic of discussion for Part 3 of the series. ‘Not Quite Right - Preventing Poor Performance’
You can learn more about Part 1 & 2 of the series in my previous blog posts. Sue started this webinar by talking about her objective in promoting ethical & harmonious horsemanship.
She believes we as horse owner, handlers & professionals need to be educated in recognising poor performance in horses and if things are not going well, we should be asking WHY?
Have we as an industry lost sight of what normal looks like?
Research shows that horse behaviour is not calculated. If their behaviour is not as expected, is this due to a training miscommunication? Or is it pain? We need to learn to differentiate between the results of poor training and pain. Recognising good training whilst also knowing the consequences to our horses of inappropriate training methods.
She also shares that just because a more experienced rider can ‘make’ your horse go better than you can, that does not mean the horse does not have an underlying issue.
Some of the common misconceptions that we can often hear banded around in the horse world include:
My horse……….
is lazy
is spooky
is stressy
has one lazy hind limb
always bucks into canter, they are excited
is ‘marish’
is quirky because she is a chestnut mare
wants me to hold them up (leans on the bit)
hangs on one rein
is grumpy
hates jumping downhill
doesn’t pick up their feet properly (trips/stumbles)
is clumsy
doesn’t stand still at the mounting block
jumps okay but doesn’t like dressage
This list is not exhaustive, but Sue shares that none of these behaviours or characteristics are normal or good excuses to ignore what is happening. If you can say any of these about your horse there is a good chance they may have some underlying musculoskeletal pain.
Sue shared some case studies and examples of some horses with these behaviours, and what the underlying causes were or could be.
For example, a horse that leans on the bit or a horse that trips/stumbles usually has inadequate hind limb engagement. This could be caused by underlying musculoskeletal pain.
The behaviours in the list above could all be early warning signs to look out for, so you can get your horse the assessment and treatment they need in order to be able to keep them in the job they are doing, or in order to adjust their workload to something that is more suited to what they can manage.
At this point Sue brings our attention to the RHPE (Ridden Horse Pain Ethogram) You can learn more about this in my previous blog. A checklist of 24 behaviours that can be referred to when assessing a ridden horse, research has shown if 8 or more behaviours are present during the assessment that the horse has underlying musculoskeletal pain. I believe all horse professionals should be familiar with the RHPE and how to use it. And horse owners should be aware of it.
If you feel the horse is not quite right you are usually correct!
Look at your horse objectively, do they have the correct muscle tone & development for the work you have been doing?
Are they different on the ground compared with ridden?
Ask a manual therapist to help you assess your horse with the RHPE.
And then find yourself a vet that understands poor performance and will watch the horse ridden. Sue stresses how important this is, as often horses will only display the behaviours when ridden, they may look sound when assessed in hand.
Don’t be satisfied with your vet telling you your horse ‘is not lame enough to nerve block’
Sue has shown time and time again that by using analgesic blocks to assess horses that don’t look obviously lame, the ridden behaviours they are displaying resolve when the painful area has been blocked.
The cause of pain needs to be established and then a management plan can be developed.
Many horses can be managed to do a job, but sometimes the expectations of them must be lowered.
Sue strongly believes that there are many comfortable horses in work, doing their job and that these horses live much more enriched lives that others that are living in a field without a job. But that there are also many horses with unrecognised pain that need us as their carers and custodians to educate ourselves in being able to recognise this and give them the support that they need. Resulting in ethical, harmonious horsemanship.
I would highly recommend checking out this webinar, and if you can, watching the whole 3 part series.
Please share this with everyone you know in the horse world, let’s get educating the industry and creating happy athletes.
Thanks for visiting my blog
Jess
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