Lookin into getting chiro work done on my horse. We have increased his work load and seems like chiro work would do him some good! How often do your horses get chiro work? For what reasons, specific/general? Positive experiences, testimonies, horse reactions… Anything!
I have a bodyworkers who doest call herself a chiropractor exactly. I have had her in to fix problems with pelvic alignment. I can’t 100 % see the problems she does but horse goes better after. I see it as focused on problems and if everything is good I don’t bother.
Love it
In NY vets do our chiro work so my guy got checked and adjusted at vaccination time, at the minimum.
Which was perfect timing for my fair weather show schedule
I’ve had very mixed results with chiropractic. Some of my horses have responded fantastically while I did not notice a difference in other cases. A lot of it depends on the chiropractor too. I had one case last spring; horse had been NQR in hind end for a long time and 3 chiropractors had not made any difference. I brought a new one in (recommended by a friend) and he found something new. Made an adjustment and my horse tried to double barrel him in the chest! Luckily he jumped out of the way. Horse was so much improved after that. Another one of mine did not respond to several chiro treatments but did respond beautifully to acupuncture. Overall I definitely think it is worth a shot but I don’t think it is the cure-all that some people make it out to be.
I love it. My vet does the chiro. My mare had some stifle/hind end issues when we upped her workload during show season. I had my vet come out about every 3-4 weeks and adjust her. Watching it seems makes me totally doubt it–it doesn’t look like much. But then riding her, that’s when I really notice it. I think it makes a difference and it’s not too expensive (compared to all the other joint stuff–injections etc!)
I am sure i can look online and get an idea of the exercises/movements and do them myself…
Hmmm. There are lots of stretches and massage you can do yourself.
I would not recommend trying to adjust the spine from the internet.
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Love my human chiro (for myself) and my equine chiro (for my horses)!
I think there is something to be said about finding a chiro that matches you. Not to get into the human side of things too much, but I had seen chiros off and on and never had much success (and often felt worse afterward). UNTIL I found the gal I currently see. I don’t know how she is different from the others but her adjustments work for me. She is keeping me mobile while going through my second pregnancy. I’d be in the hurtbag without her.
For my horses, they’ve never had major issues, but there are certain things that I have seen for myself on how chiro adjustments can help. I only have experience with one person, but he does very well for us so there’s no sense in switching (and he comes to me – soo nice I don’t have to haul anywhere). I usually plan for him to check my horses about every 2 months during the competition season. If they have something that needs more frequent attention, then we do.
With Red, once I have to start asking him twice to correctly pick up his right lead, I know he needs an adjustment (for him, around the withers). For Shotgun, he’ll get really stiff in the neck to the right and also can sometimes get a little “hump” at the end of his back - both of which are remedied by an adjustment.
As far as the horses go, I would encourage you to make sure you see someone who knows what they are doing. There are lots of quick courses out there where just about anyone can be an equine chiro, so do your homework and ask around. Best if the chiro is also a vet, but certainly not required. For example, the guy that I use is NOT a vet, but he is also a human chiropractor who has taken the proper training to work on horses, and has done it for many years. It is also useful that we both rodeo as a primary event, so he is very familiar with what my horses are having to do (barrel race).
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LOVE IT.
I also use a “body worker” lady who does massage, chiro and CST (cranialsacral therapy) and uses what is needed per horse as everyone is a bit different in their needs.
The CST has helped my mare big time with her head issues, and other issues in her body and get a booty massage for her SI’s when they start acting up, and small chiro adjustments for when she just needs to be put back into line.
This lady really is a gift to us and I think her biggest asset is her CST experience, I didn’t understand how it worked or why, all I knew was that I started seeing my mare improve and that was enough for me. I also started seeing her for myself and for the first while all she was able to do was work on my head because of how damaged it was (lots of concussions and had some frontal lobe damage), very quickly I noticed my speech getting better, something I didn’t realize had been an issue until someone had pointed it out, and my balance started improving, the list could really keep going but this isn’t about me.
For Mare’s treatment days, I try to get her done once a month during the show season to help keep her game strong and be on top of anything that could pop up. During the winter we go to every other month or so. Most of the horses in my barn all get treated by her and some need a little more chiro than others, and all have seen improvements.
First and most important — please know not all equine chiro’s are created equal, I don’t care if they are a vet that doesn’t make them good:)
that said, my equine chiro is a holistic DVM who stopped doing horses to focus on agility dogs. I begged her to take my two remaining horses back because she is literally the Best of the Best.
My insulin resistant horse is a train wreck, dealing with an old fractured sacrum, torn front tendons from a stupid farrier, and founder.
My horses are now 22 & 23. I now have her visit them on a monthly basis. Most of the time the 23 yr old is fine but he gets to enjoy a nice massage that my arthritic hands can’t deliver. The 22 year old is the accident waiting to happen and generally needs something worked on; if not he also enjoys a massage.
In General, an “as-needed” basis is good, as long as you can recognize when your horse is off:)
i also love love my human chiro. He keeps me walking and he keeps my vertigo almost completely under control:)
I’ve used a couple chiropractors over the years, all were human before adding horses to their repertoire. One was a joke, it was obvious that she didn’t know anything about horses, luckily it was the part boarder paying for it instead of me.
The other two were knowledgeable, and I appreciated their feedback as far as where they believed the horse was sore and why, if the horse was straight or crooked, if they were sore on one side or bilaterally. However, I’ve never noticed a change in their way of going, and thus don’t believe it’s worth the prices that they charge.
Perhaps if I had a horse with a multitude of injuries, or who was naturally very crooked I would have a different opinion.
