|
|
Chiropractic
care both for people and horses has been practiced for over 100 years
and is gaining in popularity rapidly. Currently veterinarians are
beginning to recognize the value of chiropractic care for horses,
especially for stiff horses and subtle lameness’s. This article
is a short introduction to chiropractic. Look for more in depth articles
later in the year.
Around the turn of the century, when chiropractic for humans was getting
started, a clinic for animals was established. The animals were partly
used to help prove that chiropractic care was not a placebo effect
for people, and also to demonstrate that adjustments could be made
on all animals with a spine. Since that time, many chiropractors have
worked on animals, but only as a favor to their clients. Little research
has been done using animals as the model.
Human chiropractic research has been undertaken in several different
areas. It is well understood that when the spine is slightly out of
alignment the nerves that exit between vertebrae and go to the rest
of the body do not function as well as they should. This can be very
painful, but sometimes it just results in a poorer function within
the body. In time, however, most misalignments lead to pain, especially
in horses. Studies have also been done showing that people who are
adjusted regularly have fewer days off work, have less health care
costs, and recover from injuries with less or no hospital time. This
type of information is certainly applicable to horses, since we ask
them to perform for us on a regular basis.
Chiropractic care treats subluxations or misalignments of the spine.
The causes of mis-alignments occur in the traumas that horses experience
daily, both those directly related to being ridden by a person on
their back and those created by the horses out in the pasture or in
the stall. The signs and symptoms we see as horse owners can vary
from mild protest at being ridden, an undetermined lameness, or a
dangerous attitude. Most horses react negatively to pain; we tend
to call most of these problems training difficulties. Most of the
time the horses are reacting to pain and chiropractic care can help.
Specific problems that are treated with chiropractic include back
pain, stiffness of both neck and back, discomfort at being saddled
of cold backed when first ridden, resistance to training, short strided,
refusing jumps, and difficult to get into a frame or head set.
There are several excellent courses given to veterinarains and shiropractors
that teach methods to adjust animals humanely and effectively (see
the links for organizations that certify and list practitioners).
Unfortunately there is a growing number of people calling themselves
chiropractors who have minimal training. This can be extremely dangerous
to the horse as chiropractors are working with the spine, and improper
work can be extremely dangerous.
When good quality chiropractic care is given to horses, there is usually
a quick response, and they may even be better the next day. Many horses,
however, will need to be treated several times in a row before they
have improved as much as they can, have adapted to feeling better
and can hold their adjustments. It needs to be remembered that as
long as we continue to ride them and ask for them to be athletes,
they will have recurrences of old problems and new problems will show
up. This means that chiropractic care can be done regularly to the
benefit of the horse. If horses are consistently sore after treatment,
or they get worse, the care being given is either inappropriate for
that horse's problem or the practitioner is not skilled. Look for
a different practitioner if positive results are not being seen in
2 to 4 treatments.
To evaluate the care your horse is receiving, first find out if the
person is a veterinarian or a chiropractor, and then ask about the
training s/he has received. The techniques used should be done with
the practitioner's hands (best), or in skilled hands, a small instrument
called an activator. Techniques that use mallets, two-by-fours and
rough handling like pulling the leg high above the ground are dangerous
and should not be tolerated. For every horse that is helped by one
of these methods there are many more that are hurt. The pseudo-chiropractors
usual answer when problems occur after and adjustment is usually that
there "was nothing that could be done to fix this one",
a statement demonstrates the person's lack of knowledge. In many cases
the practitioner become unavailable, once a number of horses have
been hurt. With chiropractic care it is imperative that horse owners
protect their horses.
Chiropractic care is an excellent method for helping horses and riders
to get the most out of the performance or pleasure sports they are
pursuing.
This article cannot be reused or redistributed
under the terms of the Harmany Equine fair use policy. If you are
interested in reprinting this article contact us directly at info@harmanyequine.com
|
|
