Helen Jacks-Hewett - McTimoney Animal Chiropractor

15/07/2025

He wasn’t naughty
He wasn’t an a**hole
He wasn’t “just being difficult”

He was however so skeletally compromised that a comfortable ridden life was never going to happen and time was against him. Not every horse is suitable to be ridden just the same as not every human is compatible with being an athlete. We need to normalise that behaviour is communication. We need to accept that there are many things in a horses body that make riding super hard for them.

This horse went through two breakers before his owner very diligently persisted with positive reinforcement training. He did make excellent progress, that is to be commended! But here’s my issue, positive reinforcement sometimes still masks these issues. It became obvious to his owner that he was becoming more internalised and less happy even in the paddock. Horses will try harder if you ask them nicely and there’s rewards for good behaviour. I’m not saying positive reinforcement is bad, it’s a great tool….im just saying it can mask serious issues. The biggest give away was how seriously assymetric he was. This is something I have felt many times while ridng these types. Asymmetry is normal but riding a horse that has wildly different left and right reins is not normal.

This is so complex on so many levels, so many.

Ever met a horse that was odd from birth? I believe inherited trauma is also a real factor, if you haven’t read the study on mice and how it took many generations to stop passing along, I suggest you do. It’s now well documented in humans too. Link below.

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/fearful-memories-passed-down/

This guys story is available on patreon.

https://www.patreon.com/collection/1606429in

09/07/2025

Good horse welfare is not only better for horses but safer for riders!

Recent research published in the journal Animal shows a clear link between horse welfare and rider safety.

Horses in facilities with better welfare—characterised by fewer health problems, higher haemoglobin levels, and more positive behaviour towards humans—were associated with the lowest number of rider falls during lessons.

In contrast, horses showing signs of poor welfare, such as chronic pain, apathy, aggression, or anaemia, were associated with more rider accidents.

The study also found that positive, attentive human-horse interactions during care and riding improved welfare, while rushed or minimal interaction worsened it.

Management practices like the frequency of turnout or the teaching strategies employed by riding instructors—were also found to be highly influential.

For example, the facility with the best welfare outcomes provided more frequent turnout and riding instruction that emphasised horse comfort rather than strict control. This approach not only improved horse welfare but also resulted in safer riding environments and a reduced risk of accidents.

This study, though modest in scale, clearly demonstrates that investing in horse welfare brings tangible benefits beyond simply having healthier, happier animals.

Facilities that make even small improvements in management—such as increasing turnout and providing more attentive care—see direct enhancements in horse welfare, which in turn results in fewer rider accidents during lessons and lowers the risk of costly legal claims for riding centres.

Ultimately, prioritising horse welfare is both an ethical responsibility and a sound, practical strategy for creating safer, more sustainable riding operations.

Full Study: L. Gueguen, R. Palme, P. Jego, S. Henry, M. Hausberger,
Differences between facilities in horse welfare profiles: slight differences in management/working conditions may be enough,
animal, Volume 19, Issue 6, 2025

08/07/2025

08/07/2025

03/07/2025

Great video! I’m always encouraging clients to weigh themselves AND their tack to get an accurate figure of how much weight they are expecting their horse to carry. Saddles can be very heavy! This is something we all should do before getting on our horses 🐎

02/07/2025

A major international research project, published on 2nd July, has explored how riders around the world perceive ‘sidedness’ in their horses, and the findings could reshape how we think about straightness, training, and equine welfare. The study, led by Russell MacKechnie-Guire and supported by ...

29/06/2025

Great opportunity for dog owners from fellow McTimoney animal chiropractor Emmaline Pell 🐕 🐕‍🦺🦮

🐾 NEW Canine Conditioning Courses 🐾

Fully Qualified & Insured Canine McTimoney Chiropractor & Conditioning Coach
12 Years of Practical Experience | Small Group Sizes | Tailored Programmes | Life Enhancing at All Levels

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🗓️ Wednesdays: 15:15–16:30 & 19:15-20.30 (Earlier slot available 13.45-15.00 if enough requests)
📍 Max 4 dogs per session - ensures personal attention & individual guidance
🌍 Pilning Village Hall, BS35 4JB.
💰 £120 per dog – 7-week rolling course
Existing participants can complete 3 consecutive courses to progress from foundation to advanced.

⸻

What’s Included:
✅ 2 Full Assessments (pre and post Programme)
✅ 5 Tailored Practical Sessions
✅ Pre-Reading Pack – Guidance, Tips & Background Info to maximise time in session
✅ Bespoke Conditioning Plan Based on Individual Assessment
✅ Instruction and review of approx. 12-15 Targeted Exercises (Foundation–Advanced)
✅ Use of Conditioning Equipment
✅ Out of session support and guidance to maximise practice at home
✅ Aftercare Plan for continued support
✅ Guaranteed 1.15hrs of fun for you and your dog each week!

———

🐕 Ideal for ALL dogs: From companions to competitors, conditioning optimises physical condition and therefore, lifestyle of all age ranges and capabilities.
🥇Optimises performance
💪🏻Maximises general physical capabilities
🧠 Offers mental stimulation
🫀Improves overall fitness and well-being
🫶🏻 Relationship building- important to highlight only positive reinforcement methods of teaching will be utilised
👌🏻Fine tuning for those already completing conditioning work-improves form
🙌🏻 Injury or ailment prevention and management
👩🏼‍⚕️Supports weight loss
✨ Improves strength, balance, coordination, posture, proprioception, speed, agility, mobility, encourages correct way of going and promotes optimum physical condition for your dog. All incredibly important for basic life skills to competition level.

⸻

7 week rolling courses;
Upcoming Start Dates:
📅 Aug 20 • Oct 08 (skipping Nov 5 for fireworks) • Dec 03

📩 Message via here now to reserve your spot!
📱 Call/Text: 07765 914564
💳 Payment required at booking. No refunds unless space is filled.

🩺 To get the best results, I advise your dog be treated by a Musculoskeletal Therapist within 6 weeks of starting.
💬 If your dog isn’t deemed physically able at the initial assessment, a treatment plan will be provided instead.
⸻

❗️1-1 sessions available upon request. £50 per hour session.

❗️Additional 2 hour workshops to be held on ad hoc Sundays, dates and details to be confirmed.
- Puppies (6 months and under)
- Seniors (9 years and over)
- Warm up, keep warm, cool down and stretch it out
- Fine tuning and form focus

- Unwind from your sport (sport specific)
~Flyball
~Agility and Hoopers
~Obedience
~Running and Canicross

💪 Let’s ensure our dog’s are the best that they can be and most importantly, let’s have fun while we do it!

Always grateful for a share or recommendation 🙌🏻

28/06/2025

Critical Thinking in Horse Equipment Use: A Non-Negotiable Skill 🐴🧠

In the world of horse riding, equipment is often seen as a solution—but rarely is it questioned deeply enough.

This is where critical thinking becomes essential.

We must ask: Why are we using this bit, this noseband, this flash? What does the horse actually feel?

Take nosebands and flashes, for example.

Often marketed as tools to "gain control" or "improve communication," they are sometimes used to mask symptoms of discomfort or confusion, rather than address the root cause.

Horses have incredibly delicate facial structures, full of sensitive nerves and fragile bones.

Over-tightened straps can inflict pain, restrict natural movement, and cause both mental and emotional stress—yet they’re widely accepted as standard.

What’s even more troubling is that many pieces of tack are designed in ways that prioritize compliance over comfort.

How can manufacturers promote equipment that causes harm, thinking it’s solving a “training problem”?

The truth is, there are no shortcuts to understanding horses—only the illusion of control at the expense of welfare.

It’s time we align our practices with the horse’s physical, mental, and emotional needs.

True horsemanship requires curiosity, compassion, and a willingness to question the norm.

That’s why Equitopia exists.

✅ Join Equitopia’s membership program today—a hub for evidence-based education where we investigate, curate, and deliver content that empowers equestrians to make informed, ethical choices.

Help us reshape the future of horse care and riding by putting welfare first and developing real skills that honor our horses—not override them

🌐 www.equitopiacenter.com

Slides from our webinar on nosebands presented by internationally respected Veterinarian, Equine Behaviorist and researcher on this topic, Dr. Orla Doherty.

27/06/2025

These are worrying statistics… a study in 2024 found that 50% of horse owners cannot recognise forelimb lameness and 66% cannot recognise hindlimb lameness.

🤔 More than half of you reading this cannot recognise if your horse is lame. True or false?

🤔 Most of you believe you can recognise lameness but actually cannot, therefore have an inflated sense of knowledge (unconsciously incompetent). True or false?

It was suggested in a 2024 study that there is a “gap in awareness” where more than 50% of owners could not recognise lameness in horses, leading to delayed veterinary investigation, diagnosis and treatment of sore and vulnerable horses.

In another study by Sue Dyson in 2014, 73% of leisure and riding school horses presumed sound and in work were found to be lame, and 60% of sport horses in full work considered sound were found to be lame. Owners and professionals also had an inflated sense of knowledge and presumed they could recognise lameness, when in fact, most could not. Another example of gap in awareness.

There are many reasons for the lameness, but the most likely candidates are poor hoof care and trimming, where horses are consistently left with poor bony column alignment and depth, via hoof care approaches which ignore welfare parameters, poor posture and development, exceeding horses capabilities for whatever reason, and the presence of underlying diseases/pathology.

The inability to recognise lameness isn’t confined to lay people but professionals also.

All this has huge consequences on equine welfare.

So this begs the question, should you be riding your horse if there is such a high probability it is lame, or vulnerable?

To help horse owners and professionals from all corners of the industry recognise vulnerable horses, and therefore help fill the gap in knowledge and promote positive welfare states in horses, Yasmin Stuart Equine Physio and I have created an incredible resource, which for the price of £25 is an incredibly modest investment in helping prevent lameness and pathology in the horse or horses you love.

This resource will help you answer this question yourself. Now that’s empowering.

https://www.yasminstuartequinephysio.com/webinar-should-i-be-riding-my-horse-right-now

Picture from the webinar, JUNE 30th at 7pm BST. Link above to purchase your ticket and attend live. Recording available to anyone who cannot attend live.

Www.holisticequine.co.uk - supporting and promoting compassionate equestrianism for the benefit of all 💚🙏🐴

26/06/2025