26 August 2008 11:46
I bought my 16.3hh Trakehner mare from a dealer when she was very underweight. Once she had put on weight, she started to be badly behaved. I had her checked by an osteopath who said she was sore in front of her pelvis. Three weeks later the problem returned. This time the osteopath said it might be a deeper muscle problem from a fall, and treated her again. However, the problem seems to come back every three weeks. What can I do to help my horse?
Answer
By Your Horse
TTeam Practioner Claire Marr replies:
When a horse has come back from being in a sorry state, it can take time to make things better. She will have developed to compensate for her problems, so when the osteopath put her right, her body wouldn’t have enough muscle to hold the new position in place. You might like to try TTeam techniques to help rebalance your horse, including using a body wrap. Here’s how to do it:
1, Take some elastic bandage (tail bandages are fine) and, starting at the base of her neck, bring the bandage down and around her neck and cross over, in front of her saddle.
2, Then take the bandage under the saddle flaps, back around her quarters and attach to the other end of the bandage.
3, Viewed from above, it would be a figure-of-eight. The bandage should be secure but still allow your horse a full range of movement.
4, Use the body wrap when you ride and lunge, but start off just leading your horse in it. The purpose of the wrap is to help your horse connect her front and back end and engage her hindquarters. It’s a non-forceful and non-threatening technique.
5, For more information on TTeam techniques, go to www.ttouchtteam.co.uk.