A Plus Equine Bodywork

10/06/2025

I used to be of the mindset that everything could be fixed with the right kind of training.

Every postural abnormality, every little bit of tension, every unwanted behaviour -

All of it could be fixed with the right exercises, applied in the right way.

The inverse of that meant that, if people had horses presenting with the above, who weren't getting better with the "right training", then clearly they were doing it wrong.

It wasn't that the exercises weren't appropriate, it was that they had a skill issue.

And it's this sort of belief system that gaslights people into thinking they're inept, that they just need to try harder, they just need to practice it more -

They just need to do MORE.

And if the horse was still having a hard time, in the hands of a really good rider (whatever that means) then it wasn't an issue with the training, it was the horse's flaw:

"Oh, they just find that exercise hard."

"Oh, it's because they have bad conformation."

"Oh, this horse likes to be hollow."

Because obviously, as humans with our superior cognitive ability, we definitely have the right to make assumptions about an animal's lived experience -

How they feel in their body.

What's challenging from a coordination perspective vs what is actually really darn painful(!)

And it's this sort of belief system that really, REALLY hurts horses.

At no point during the application of the "right training" was there ever a pause to think -

If we've been fairly consistent, why isn't the horse putting on muscle mass?

If we've been doing the right combination of stretchy trot and sideways, why does the horse still want to move like an inverted banana?

If we really are so superior with our training skills, why isn't the horse improving?

Because maybe, just maybe, the horse that's hollow and can't put on muscle mass, actually has kissing spines,

Perhaps the horse with the upright hindlegs, that braces and runs everywhere but doesn't have any "push" from behind, actually has suspensory ligament desmitis,

What if the horse that finds shifting weight to their hindquarters really hard, despite all the best classical training, actually has sacroiliac disease?

I'd just like to take a minute to say - trying to shove and kick and pull and to be frank, even gently coerce a horse nicely into a posture that hurts is a massive welfare problem.

Even if you have the best intentions.

So please, I beg you, think. With every exercise you introduce to your horse, THINK.

Is this appropriate?

Could there be more happening under the surface and my horse is just trying to tell me?

https://www.yasminstuartequinephysio.com/the-horse-posture-blueprint

10/03/2025

This is quite interesting. The same thing likely happens in horses. All the more reason to have your horse’s teeth checked and maintained by a professional routinely

Your teeth are mechanically connected to your pituitary gland.

Each tooth sends force directly to the crista galli, a bony ridge 3mm from where your hormones are produced.

When these forces are uneven, they physically distort the area around your master gland.

When your bite is off by even 1mm, those forces don’t cancel out.

They TWIST.

They create a torque pattern that pulls on the crista galli.

That ridge anchors the membrane separating your brain. When it’s pulled, your pituitary gets compressed.

Here’s the breakdown:

Stage 1: Tongue Drops
Tongue loses contact with the palate. The upper jaw narrows and collapses.

Stage 2: Teeth Overload
Without tongue support, teeth absorb all force. They shift, crowd, or grind.

Stage 3: Cranial Twist
Uneven force travels up to the crista galli. Membranes twist. Skull compensates.

Stage 4: Pituitary Stress
Crista galli distortion compresses the pituitary. Hormone signals scramble. Energy crashes.

The mouth is the gateway to the body. When the gateway is misaligned, everything downstream suffers. Fix thongue posture with a Functional Activator, restore the hormones, reclaim your energy.

It starts with where you place your tongue.

Your tongue position matters more than any supplement you’re taking. The question is: are you ready to address the foundation instead of medicating the symptoms?

Link in bio ☝️

09/30/2025

💁‍♀️ Let's Talk.... Secondary Issues vs. Primary Problem
▪️Pt.1

If we think of the body like it's the tree in this picture, I think it gives good imagery to understand the difference in secondary issues and "getting to the root" aka the primary problem. It's easy to realize that something is wrong with a tree if the leaves are discolored or fall off in early summer or if it makes minimal fruit... The problem is that when there is an issue in the root system it may take weeks to years before it is reflected in the part of the tree you can see. So by the time you notice the leaves are discolored, the system has been out of balance for a long time.

In my experience as a therapist, I find that secondary issues and compensatory pain tend to be the factors that bring people into the office to get worked on. When the body has run out of ways to compensate without you realizing, then you come in looking for a solution. The body has to get louder for you to listen.
👉 Same thing with horses. I find that those secondary issues and compensatory pain patterns cause a really LOUD response that will demand attention. Examples: Bucking, Rearing, Refusal, Performance Anxiety, Aggression... The body has to get loud enough that you will listen.

As a rehab therapist, it's part of my job to "pull back the lens" until I can look at the whole horse and start connecting the dots of compensation until it forms a pattern I recognize. Once I have a pattern, then we can start to create solutions.

Solutions might look like:
- Working with your vet, farrier, dentist
- Environmental or social changes
- Diet or exercise changes
- Tack or training aid changes ... Just to name a few things....

At the expense of making this post kind of a long read, I thought it would make a great multi-part series where I break down some common things that I see with some of the issues listed below.

❓ Would you be interested in a look through the lens of a biomechanics, bodywork, and eastern medicine explanation to common issues?
❓ Would it also be helpful if I did a TLDR (too long didn't read) video to accompany each post?

09/30/2025

One of the many reasons I am such a big proponent of building and strengthening the thoracic sling and getting horses off the forehand.

Horses with weak thoracic slings and overloading the forehand are much more prone to navicular issues.

The muscles of the thoracic area, the serratus and pectoralis muscles, and the extrinsic and intrinsic muscles of the forelegs are where the action needs to be. The muscles pull on the tendons, ensuring elastic tension, which helps the structures absorb impact forces, but reducing the intensity, slowing the frequency, and correcting the direction of the forces that stress the navicular apparatus is done by the muscles of the thoracic area, the shoulders, the arms, and the forearms. This education can only be achieved by the rider.
The rider in the picture fails the horse. The horse is heavily loaded on the forehand; the right front limb should be up into the swing phase. The navicular apparatus is overstressed, no matter the hoof work.
https://www.scienceofmotion.com/.../navicular_online...

09/29/2025

Can anyone guess where I’m working today?

09/23/2025

CLAIMED! Thank you! 2 bodywork sessions available Thursday October 2 in the Erin/Hillsburgh or Arthur areas.

Message me to claim your spot!

09/23/2025

If you’re looking for broken, you will find it —

With the rise in awareness of physical problems, everything has a diagnosis and a label. In many ways, this is a huge benefit to the horse: we care how they feel now, we want their health and happiness, and we are much less willing to push them physically into what is not right for them.

But —-

If you want to find something wrong, you will turn up that and plenty more.

There is a big difference between unsound and non functional, and having a thing or two -

And if we put the energy of “broken” into a horse, they don’t seem to recover.

I’ve rehabbed many, many horses - horrible x rays, diagnosis, you name it. I can think of only a few who weren’t going to be ok. One of them was my own beloved horse that I did everything I knew how to do for - that is simply the case for some, no matter how sad that is.

But many are going to be just fine, if you can stop thinking of them as broken, and think instead of them stuck in a dysfunctional trap. You can’t get them out of that by babying every lame or timid step, I’m afraid. My own personal horses save for a few are all examples of sound, very functional horses many who were on death row when I got them.

I remember riding a horse for a client to show they were sound - when she insisted the X rays should prove lameness. The X rays showed arthritis, who doesn’t have that? She said, in the end, “you’re just such a good rider that you can ride him through that” and I thought - what other point of riding is there?

I am by no means the greatest rider,  but horses are important enough to me that I have studied the art long enough to help some horses.

If I had an x-ray of every joint in my body, and could know every genetic condition I may or may not have, I would be laying in a bed- but I am pretty active and work on my own health and so I feel great

Not everything is broken. It is not all doom and gloom out there. Hope lies in better riding, stretching your comfort zone, believing a little in your own ability, and not backing off or panicking and retiring the horse every time they wobble or bobble-

 some are not going to make it, but many more can.

Strength, alignment, mobility exercises - I have come to love ridng imany horses considered too lame to ride thanks to these very simple, very accessible and inexpensive tools.

Don’t panic. Ride in rhythm.

09/21/2025

"Even if your vet and physiotherapist agree your horse is technically “rideable,” there is no harm—and often great benefit—in spending time on groundwork first. Building strength, balance, and topline before fitting a saddle".

When Your Saddle Fitter Declines to Fit a Saddle

It goes without saying that a saddle fitter’s job is to fit saddles. However, there are times when your fitter may decline to do so.

This can come as a surprise and feel frustrating, but it is always done in the horse’s best interest. Reasons may include lameness, poor back health, horse–rider weight/size ratios being mismatched, or simply that your requirements cannot be met with the fitter’s current stock or specialisms.

One common example is poor back health.

If your horse shows muscle atrophy, weakness, or a poor topline, a responsible saddle fitter may decline to fit at that moment. Instead, they may suggest groundwork or a conditioning programme to improve your horse’s musculoskeletal health, with the aim of reassessing and providing a saddle at a later date.

Why This Happens

Of course, as owners, we want to ride and enjoy our horses. It can feel like a setback to be told we must wait. Yet there are times when riding is not in the horse’s best interest.

A widespread mindset exists—among owners and even some professionals—that horses “should” be ridden, even when their musculoskeletal system clearly needs improvement. Some argue that riding can itself be a form of rehabilitation, providing exercise and strengthening under saddle.

However, the scientific literature does not show that riding a horse with a poor topline is superior to groundwork. In fact, studies on back pain and saddle fit highlight that ridden exercise with an atrophied back can worsen pain, restrict movement, and delay topline development.

Why Fitting a Saddle Too Early Is Problematic

Even if a saddle fitter could find a saddle that “technically” fits a weak-backed horse, that fit is unlikely to last. With the right conditioning, the horse’s back should change shape significantly—muscles will strengthen, the topline will fill out, and posture will improve.

This means that:

A new saddle will soon become unsuitable as the horse’s back develops.

Even adjustable saddles have limits; they can only accommodate so much change before the overall shape, panel contact, and balance are compromised.

Frequent refits or saddle changes become costly and potentially uncomfortable for the horse.

In other words, waiting until the horse has a more stable, healthy back before investing in a saddle is not only kinder to the horse, but also more practical and economical for the owner.

The Evidence for Groundwork

By contrast, there is evidence supporting groundwork and in-hand therapeutic exercise as part of successful rehabilitation programmes. Controlled lunging, pole work, hill work, and stretching exercises have been shown to:

Improve posture and epaxial muscle development

Reduce signs of back pain

Encourage relaxation and reduce stress responses

Provide a safe foundation before adding the extra challenge of a rider and saddle

Reviews of therapeutic strategies for topline dysfunction consistently emphasise starting with diagnosis, pain management, and progressive in-hand work, then reintroducing ridden exercise once the horse has rebuilt sufficient strength.

So, What Does This Mean for You?

Even if your vet and physiotherapist agree your horse is technically “rideable,” there is no harm—and often great benefit—in spending time on groundwork first. Building strength, balance, and topline before fitting a saddle:

Protects your horse from discomfort and injury

Increases the chance of a successful, longer-term saddle fit

Avoids the expense and frustration of buying or adjusting saddles repeatedly during rapid physical changes

Creates a stronger, more capable partner once ridden work resumes

Final Thought

A saddle fitter declining to fit is not a setback—it is an opportunity. It is a chance to address your horse’s health proactively, so that when you do return to ridden work, you do so with a sounder, stronger, and happier partner.

Groundwork is not a “lesser” option. It is often the most compassionate and effective first step.

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Find other articles here: https://www.saddle-academy.com/blog

09/19/2025

✨ Does your horse struggle to stand still for the farrier? ✨

Pulling legs away, leaning, or refusing to pick up their feet isn’t always “bad behavior.” More often than not, it’s your horse telling you they’re uncomfortable. Tight, sore, or weak muscles can make it difficult to hold their limbs in the positions the farrier needs.

In my latest blog, I break down:
👉 The key muscles involved in bringing the front and hind legs forward and back
👉 Why some horses resist having their feet held
👉 How bodywork can release restrictions and make farrier visits calmer and easier

A comfortable horse = a cooperative horse. 💜
Read the full blog here: https://www.aplusequinebodywork.com/post/how-bodywork-can-help-horses-that-struggle-to-stand-for-the-farrier

09/17/2025

Today’s office views 😎

09/12/2025

Red Horse delivery day! Quality control says it’s good to go 😸