08/13/2025
"This is not about guilt or shame, this is a wake up call..."
If a horse’s basic needs aren’t met, my job becomes nearly impossible.
I am beyond tired of seeing horses who, yes, have multiple orthopedic issues — but whose primary problem is that their foundational needs as a species are being ignored.
They live in box stalls.
They have little to no turnout.
They’re worked 6–7 days a week with no variation in training.
They’re on timed feedings instead of having forage available.
They’re trained in restrictive devices that limit normal joint motion..
They wear shoes 24/7.
Their hooves are imbalanced (and yes, hoof imbalance can create or perpetuate spinal issues I cannot "fix" until it’s addressed).
They have no social contact. They’re stressed. They’re flat. They’re unhappy.
And yet… I get called out to “fix” them.
We lose a lot of clients because many people are simply not ready to learn — or accept — the biology of what a horse actually is.
Here’s some physiology:
* Ulcers will lock the back in extension. No amount of mobilizing will help until you address the root cause — not just medicate, but fix the underlying lack of forage and acid accumulation in the stomach.
* Worms can create the same postural restrictions.
* Kissing spine does not appear overnight. It’s a slow-developing, progressive pathology caused by something. If you keep doing the same thing that caused it, it will keep progressing. For many horses, that means riding has to stop — at least for a time.
* Hoof imbalance changes limb loading and spinal alignment. No spinal rehab will hold if the horse is standing on distorted feet. This is a trimmer-and-owner responsibility.
* Heavy on the forehand, “giraffe neck” posture is not a personality quirk. It’s a compensatory strategy due to pain, fear, or poor training. In short bursts, fine. But if you want to ride and ask for athletic work in that frame, the spine will break down — slowly but surely.
And the list goes on…..
Therapists all over the world are exhausted.
My international students send me assessments from every corner of the globe, and the results are the same: chronic compensation patterns from unmet needs.
This is not about shame or guilt. This is a wake-up call.
If a horse’s needs are not met, my work will only go so far.
If you are willing to learn and put in the work to meet those needs, I can help you. If you aren’t, we are at an impasse — because I will not waste your money (or my energy) putting a band-aid on a problem that is being perpetuated by factors outside the body.
