04/10/2025
Just a friendly reminder from your friendly neighborhood animal chiropractor!
Your horse is unsound. What do you do? Let's dissect this!
1) Start with your VETERINARIAN! And I'm not talking about taking your horse to a cow vet. I'm talking performance vet. Get the imaging! Attain the diagnosis! We need to know the big picture for your horse to get better. Does your horse need injections? A change in diet? Your veterinarian will lead you on the right path as they have a multitude of tools at their disposal.
2) Call your FARRIER. Are their angles off? (Your performance vet should help you with this.) That radiograph of their hoof will tell your farrier exactly how they need to be shod. If your farrier isn't willing to shoe to the radiograph, find a new farrier. I'm no expert on the hoof, but I can tell you when the angles are off and that translates all the way up into their spine. No hoof, no horse. Imagine walking around with a high heel on one foot and a flip flop on the other. Don't you think your back would be sore as well?!
3) Get your horses TEETH FLOATED. I don't really care who you use, but make sure they have a good reputation when it comes to dentistry. Some vets love the dentistry aspect and are great at their job, and some would rather pawn it off on someone that just graduated from vet school with no experience. Some equine dentists are stellar at their job. Some have no business doing what they do. Ask around and find the right person. But get your horse's teeth checked at least once a year.
The TMJ (jaw joint) has the highest concentration of proprioceptive neurons (the nerves that tell the body where it is in relation to the world). If that TMJ is out, usually their chewing is off, which most likely means their teeth are worn at the wrong angles.(And sometimes this happens in reverse order where the teeth throw out the TMJ.) Any way you look at it, fix this so your horse figures out where their feet are and move correctly.
4) Call a certified ANIMAL CHIROPRACTOR! I want the above three things checked off your list before you reach out to me. 90% of the time, I ask you to go to your vet, call your farrier, and/or get your horses' teeth floated when I see them. So why not start there? An adjustment won't hold if the feet are unbalanced or the teeth need to be floated. Sometimes the horse is in too much pain and needs an injection from your vet. If there was a trauma, your vet is going to be able to help so much more than I can. My tools include the adjustment, cold laser, and stretching. I can't do any more than that. Your vet can though! If Fluffy is three legged lame, I can't help them!
Now, I'm not saying don't call me. I'm saying owners are sometimes scared to call their vet or find a different farrier. I'm going to pull up to your barn and tell you to do it and not call me back until you do. Because no one wants their time or money wasted. My time is precious and I would rather you spend your money on their feet and teeth. Then call out the chiropractor. Give me the opportunity to succeed. Hell, give your horse the opportunity to succeed! Send me that imaging. Give me the vet report. Get the farrier, dentist, and chiropractor on a tight schedule. Let's set those horses up for success!
