Cath Anthony -Integrated Equine Bodywork

03/02/2025

Treatments available along this route Thursday 23 February

02/02/2025

A fabulous Horse Health Conference - 1-6 February. 22 fabulous speakers to include Dr Renee Tucker. Sign up for a free ticket. Recordings available for a couple of days. Quite a lot of scrolling to do but well worth it. Holistic Horse Care at it's finest!

https://www.tuckerbiokinetic.com/e/BAh7BjoWZW1haWxfZGVsaXZlcnlfaWRsKwh3Yyu2BgA%3D--2fbabfa6de171daa855991bfd61233f058fbab1e?skip_click_tracking=true

17/11/2024

Few slots available running up to Christmas!
Vouchers available for your horse as gifts.

19/08/2024

Fully booked

Couple of slots available for bodywork on Wednesday 21 August between 11.30-3.30 due to cancellation between Lavendon and Longstowe. Let me know

19/08/2024

A short clip out TBT Tucker Biokinetic Therapy from Dr Renee Tucker. Watch the video and see if you can see the changes in the horse's movement!

Horse uneven in hind end? Difficulty bending or cantering? See video on how to evaluate movement before and after a TBT (Tucker BioKinetic Technique) treat...

12/08/2024

Worth a listen too.

Have you seen horses with asthma struggle to breath? It's heartbreaking.

Today on Horse Mysteries Solved, I share why horses get equine asthma, COPD, RAO, heaves, etc.

All those "diagnosis" are really the same condition: A spectrum of breathing difficulties.

The podcast is not about medications, or diagnosis...it's about why the horses have trouble breathing in the first place. And what you can do about it.

It's not about dust, or pollen, or allergens.

The real cause is here: https://wheredoesmyhorsehurt.com/podcast-episode-52-coughing-asthma-copd-heaves-rao-why-horses-get-these-symptoms-and-what-to-do-about-it/

17/01/2024

TREE VS. NO TREE

The debate over treeless saddles continues to stir controversy, sparking passionate discussions among riders. They have their proponents and opponents, but the “pro-tree” facts do speak for themselves.

You can argue till you’re blue in the face, but this doesn’t change the realities of the effects a treeless saddle can have on the horse’s back over time. A treeless saddle may work for a short period of time as an interim solution to a poorly fitting saddle with a tree, but in the long run, it is not going to do your horse any favours. But let’s break it down to understand why a treed saddle is the better long-term option for horses.

The job of a saddle tree to is to optimally place the rider’s weight correctly over the saddle-support area of the horse’s back. A treeless saddle (or ba****ck pad) will not have this support structure that allows proper weight distribution of the rider on the horse’s back. Most of the rider’s weight in these “saddles” (even if they resemble saddles at first glance—they are still more closely related to ba****ck pads) will be under the seat bones or cause individual pressure points on the horse’s back.

The saddle tree, by contrast, distributes the weight evenly over the longissimus assuming, of course, the saddle has been fit correctly. In the middle of the saddle-support area the horse’s transverse spinal processes are completely straight—a treeless saddle means that 100 percent of the rider’s weight is concentrated right here.

We always recommend a well-fitting treed saddle over a treeless one. However, if a well-fitted treed saddle is not available, a treeless saddle is the better interim solution.

Keeping this in mind, we know that pressure points can impede circulation and cause muscle atrophy, along with tendonitis and ligament damage. We want to avoid symptomatic long-term damage and pain, but also incorrect muscle contraction leading to atrophy when the horse reacts parasympathetically to try and avoid pressure.

I’ll give you one thing: A treeless saddle allows the rider to feel the horse’s motion more closely and gets her closer to the horse. It is, however, physiologically difficult—impossible actually—for women to sit properly and correctly and comfortably in a treeless saddle. The necessary support for the gluteus and tailbone is simply missing, and as such, truly harmonious and supple movement can never be achieved.

In addition and to repeat: The biggest disadvantage with a treeless saddle is that it is simply unable to properly distribute the rider’s weight over the saddle-support area, and it will always cause pressure points under the seat bones. The best advantage of a treeless saddle is in its construction; it has no stiff or immoveable parts that could force the horse into an unnatural muscular reaction, and it never has to be refit to the horse as he changes and matures.

But this doesn’t make up for its disadvantages: In addition to causing pressure points, it is difficult for the rider to give the proper aids, and it is almost impossible to prevent the horse from experiencing long-term damage to his muscles, nerves, ligaments, and tendons in his back.A horse with pressure points on his back is unable to bring his back up properly to counteract a rider’s weight and move freely when carrying a rider. The inability to do so because of the impact of a treeless saddle impedes the entire functionality of the biomechanics and load-carrying ability of the horse, which not only can, but will, lead to health issues.

17/01/2024

Those who know me know I have said this many times!!

TREE VS. NO TREE

The debate over treeless saddles continues to stir controversy, sparking passionate discussions among riders. They have their proponents and opponents, but the “pro-tree” facts do speak for themselves.

You can argue till you’re blue in the face, but this doesn’t change the realities of the effects a treeless saddle can have on the horse’s back over time. A treeless saddle may work for a short period of time as an interim solution to a poorly fitting saddle with a tree, but in the long run, it is not going to do your horse any favours. But let’s break it down to understand why a treed saddle is the better long-term option for horses.

The job of a saddle tree to is to optimally place the rider’s weight correctly over the saddle-support area of the horse’s back. A treeless saddle (or ba****ck pad) will not have this support structure that allows proper weight distribution of the rider on the horse’s back. Most of the rider’s weight in these “saddles” (even if they resemble saddles at first glance—they are still more closely related to ba****ck pads) will be under the seat bones or cause individual pressure points on the horse’s back.

The saddle tree, by contrast, distributes the weight evenly over the longissimus assuming, of course, the saddle has been fit correctly. In the middle of the saddle-support area the horse’s transverse spinal processes are completely straight—a treeless saddle means that 100 percent of the rider’s weight is concentrated right here.

We always recommend a well-fitting treed saddle over a treeless one. However, if a well-fitted treed saddle is not available, a treeless saddle is the better interim solution.

Keeping this in mind, we know that pressure points can impede circulation and cause muscle atrophy, along with tendonitis and ligament damage. We want to avoid symptomatic long-term damage and pain, but also incorrect muscle contraction leading to atrophy when the horse reacts parasympathetically to try and avoid pressure.

I’ll give you one thing: A treeless saddle allows the rider to feel the horse’s motion more closely and gets her closer to the horse. It is, however, physiologically difficult—impossible actually—for women to sit properly and correctly and comfortably in a treeless saddle. The necessary support for the gluteus and tailbone is simply missing, and as such, truly harmonious and supple movement can never be achieved.

In addition and to repeat: The biggest disadvantage with a treeless saddle is that it is simply unable to properly distribute the rider’s weight over the saddle-support area, and it will always cause pressure points under the seat bones. The best advantage of a treeless saddle is in its construction; it has no stiff or immoveable parts that could force the horse into an unnatural muscular reaction, and it never has to be refit to the horse as he changes and matures.

But this doesn’t make up for its disadvantages: In addition to causing pressure points, it is difficult for the rider to give the proper aids, and it is almost impossible to prevent the horse from experiencing long-term damage to his muscles, nerves, ligaments, and tendons in his back.A horse with pressure points on his back is unable to bring his back up properly to counteract a rider’s weight and move freely when carrying a rider. The inability to do so because of the impact of a treeless saddle impedes the entire functionality of the biomechanics and load-carrying ability of the horse, which not only can, but will, lead to health issues.