Step by Step Veterinary Physiotherapy: For Sport, For Work, For Life.

14/03/2026

Herbies turn - he lives to jump (big) but had a fright on the lorry a week earlier earning a few scratches and a bruise so a gentle session for him too.. movement for improvement, make it easy for the horse and then move on up.
We were very pleased with them both today - the height of a jump means nothing, the challenges they have overcome mean everything.

14/03/2026

A long and very wet winter but the Step By Step horses are now out and about increasing their work intensity and variety. Bertie needs to build confidence with his jumping after years of sore feet. We ask how he is feeling by starting everything “small” whether on the flat or over poles. Today I had a lot of horse underneath me and he towed me to the poles, which told me a lot. If Bertie is sore he stops and Herbie pops his back and his butt up!!
It’s just their way of communicating and our job to listen and work or not work accordingly.
-motivation

02/03/2026

A quick word from RAMP..

If you’re a proud RAMP registrant, you’re…

✅ Committed to animal welfare
✅ Follow our code of conduct
✅ Work to our gold standard
✅ Continue to expand and deepen your knowledge

Share this post if you’re proud of the standard that you work to.

28/02/2026

A brighter sunnier day to day at Cold Overton -On -Sea 😎😬
But delighted to have my Category 1 Membership of The National Association of Veterinary Physiotherapists confirmed for 2026 2027.
✅ CPD - 70 hours completed this year.
✅ Professional Indemnity Insurance checked and verified.
✅ All standards of practice adhered too.
Category 2 members are newly qualified and working towards cat 1.
Please check that your body worker is properly trained and regulated.

24/02/2026

HIO Conference take away…
Is your body worker properly trained to a high level?
Yesterday my brain was working hard even if my hands were not. Here I was privileged to watch the same advanced medium dressage horse (now semi retired) be evaluated by two different professionals a vet/chiro and a physio. Another horse was assessed statically and dynamically under the watchful and hugely knowledgeable eye of Dr Dyson. Whilst individuals assess slightly differently and through the lens of their different professions.
These were exactly the same…
✅ Evaluation of history age stage and current work
✅ Palpation
✅ Evidential recording and re testing
✅ Problem list
✅ Treatment options - support and improve through exercises and manual techniques. Consider electro therapies / acupuncture.
✅ Monitor and communicate with the multi disciplinary team ( vet farrier etc) where necessary.
Properly trained registered and insured professionals whether osteopaths physiotherapists or chiropractors will ALL EQUALLY be able to support your horse.
It was lovely to speak to speak to so many different practitioners over the weekend!

23/02/2026

HIO Conference: The overall topic was Soundness and Symmetry.

We had wonderful lectures and demos over the three days from Dr Kevin Haussler, a veterinarian, chiropractor and renowned researcher who carefully set these concepts out in detail and how they are or may become clinically significant in our horses.

The following are my take home points from listening and talking to him.

🐴 Laterality is cortical (brain) dominance producing preference of use of one homologous part over another. Right handedness in humans for example being at around 90% of the population. It exists in horses too but in studies is closer too 40/40 left/right and 20% ambidexterity.

Laterality may impact performance and injury risk could be higher if preferential use of one limb causes excess loading / strain. However it might represent beneficial functional adaptation and therefore be subject to natural selection in the population.

🐴 Symmetry/asymmetry denotes changes in size, shape, or relative position and differs from functional laterality.

Causes included genetic/embryologic asymmetry (organ placement - hearts are on the left for example), conformation (bone lengths - unequal metacarpal bones have been described in the horse), training/handling (left-side mounting, asymmetric saddles), and pain-driven compensation due to disease.

As your physio I will
🔶look for and support functional asymmetry, treating any compensatory pain which might result (alongside your vet practice).
🔶 help build a strong and symmetrical musculature with exercise prescription within the horse’s capacity.
🔶 encourage equal proprioceptive response with targeted exercises.
🔶 refer for veterinary diagnosis in observed limb or axial skeleton pathology/ pain.
🔶 liaise with saddle fitters farriers and vets working to minimise asymmetry.

Update the tool box and take reproducible objective traces of the horses wither and back.
Thank you Gillian Tabor

Consider updating your gait asymmetry scale from 5 to 8 following advice from Sue Dyson.
Thank you Dr Dyson

Honour the horse as an individual with his or her own adaptations to the questions we ask.

23/02/2026

Lecture demos today from Ros Canter and her team, Jeanette Brakewell with Dr Sue Dyson , Dr Kevin Haussler, Gillian Tabor and Mark Fisher. Goodness I am in the company of giants. Thank you HIO, all the speakers and horses.

22/02/2026

Take Home Points from the HIO Conference : The horse welfare discussion

These resonate with my letter published recently in Horse and Hound which in turn was inspired by Richard Davison’s column.

✅There is no absolute conflict between welfare and high performance sport but ONLY IF future performance definitions include listening to the horse’s experience and reward gold standard (learning theory based) training.
❌A recent study identified an education gap: only 16% of surveyed horse-owners correctly identified the operant conditioning quadrants; poor knowledge links to more punitive training and low standards of welfare.
❌ Positive punishment in horse training is always ethically questionable, often ineffective and best avoided.
✅ The correct term for a "happy" horse is positive affective state; body language and facial expressions are the best starting points for assessment; AI is likely to assist us with this in the future.

A good practical example of the learning quadrant; its use and misuse in training is in the use of the whip.

I highly recommend the World Horse Welfare document shared below and available as a download from their website as a way of reflecting on or learning about the operant conditioning quadrant in an accessible way.

And yes, I do carry one. The horses enjoy the removal of horse flies, I can signal to traffic 😅, and a quiet laying of the whip against the neck/light tap on my boot or behind my leg is useful but my forever vow is to lighten and nuance aids and keep tack to a minimum.

22/02/2026

New knowledge and questions; confirmation and validation for my exercise programmes and action points for specific clients all rattling around my head 🤯🤣

“If you have the privilege of knowing something, you have the duty to share it.”

What a privilege to spend the weekend in the company of great minds like these 🤩

22/02/2026

3 days - yes 3 full days of learning under the Soundness and Symmetry banner at Horses Inside Out. So forgive me if phone off on Monday! Amazing first day of speakers from around the world talking about the latest in tech, research and treatment for our horses.

08/11/2025

 Screen day today, the Vet Rehab Summit is a rich menu of learning and discussion and in the breaks I am writing a blog for the website!
The link is here

https://www.stepbystepvetphysiotherapy.co.uk/post/understanding-equine-normal-behaviour-during-initial-interactions-and-strategies-for-successful-intr

08/11/2025

Are you welcoming a new horse to your yard? It's a moment filled with anticipation! Understanding normal equine behavior during these initial interactions is crucial for fostering lasting relationships. Discover valuable strategies to ensure successful introductions. Read more here: https://wix.to/CQkLGdU

Introducing a new horse to your yard or home can be an exciting yet anxious moment for horse owners and yard managers. Horses are social animals with complex herd behaviour, and their first interactions often set the tone for future relationships. Understanding what normal horse behaviour looks like...