If you where going to buy a therapy device, what would you buy?

[leighbo009]

If you where going to buy a therapy device, what would you buy? Which brand/model also?

If money was no object?
If you had a budget?
If you where adding a therapy to your business model?
Did having any of these therapies available at your boarding barn sway your decision on where to board?

Examples:

• Higher power PEMF (Margnawave or Pulse or similar)
• Low power PEMF (Beamer or similar)
• Cold Laser
• Redlight
• Cyrotherapy
• Acupressure or taping?
• Vibrating Floor
• Something like a treadmill or water treadmill?

[B-burg_Dressage]

Magnawave or water treadmill

My horses are at home and I have none of these things. I don’t think they would sway where I wanted to board. More of a “nice to have access to if needed, but don’t want to be charged for if not needed.”

Exception would be if I sent a horse to a rehab barn, then I’d want access to many of these things because I’d be paying for rehab.

[BroncoMo]

-Money being no object: Pulse PEMF, a treadmill, and a water treadmill (no idea on treadmill brands).

-On a “budget” (term used loosely since $30k is still a sh!t ton of money): Pulse PEMF.

-If adding to a business model: both of the above and perhaps a higher end cold laser (I have a cheap 100X Equine model).

-I have had horses at home for… pretty much forever, so I don’t have a good answer for that. Quality of care, turnout/living outside options, and footing quality would be my highest priority for a decision on a boarding barn. Therapy models would only be a tie breaker, all other priorities being equal.

I have used Pulse practitioners for several years for various ailments, and just general maintenance with good results; on both horses and humans. One day, I will have my own machine for private use, and likely start a small side gig business.

I have used my cold laser very inconsistently. I think it helped some in healing a very wide, gappy wound on the side of a weanling’s knee. It still has a massive scar but the size of the wound, there was no way it was going to heal with zero evidence that it had happened. I think the laser helped expedite healing. I also use it on my boyfriend’s chronic back injury. It’s not magic by any means, but he gets some instant relief from muscle tension. He also gets a lot of relief from being pulsed on occasion.

I would LOVE to have a treadmill or water treadmill simply for conditioning. I would throw old fat retired broodmares on it, yearlings and two year olds, middle age broke horses for cross training, you name it, I would use it. Though I’ve seen a few used ones for sale on FB and o m g the monies. I’ll be putting that in to a new house, barn, and arena before buying a treadmill.

[Demerara_Stables]

Water treadmill that can be used as a dry treadmill or salt water spa, followed by a class IV laser.

Treadmill for fitness and “icing” legs and laser for muscle soreness, tendon/ligament healing and wound healing.

[anonevent]

For my personal use, a red light blanket is the only one I’ve personally purchased. I’m considering a PEMF hoof platform.

A water treadmill is the only item on that list that could influence my choice of where to board.

Having practitioners service the barn with PEMF, laser, red light, accupressure on a regular schedule would be nice. I’m used to booking my own. A lot of barns around me have theraplate, which is nice, but it wouldn’t sway my choice, all else being equal.

Something that feels like a big upgrade for a boarding facility (at least in places with cold seasons) is a washstall with a nice solarium and fans. That equipment might be your biggest bang for the buck in terms of attracting boarders. I might drive further or it might be the deciding factor over an identical facility without it.

Far above any of those treatments, great arena footing and an outdoor with sufficient lighting would 100% eclipse all or any of those things. Upgraded footing can be life changing for a horse.

[Texarkana]

Definitely PEMF (Pulse, Magnawave) for my own use.

If you are running a boarding facility with therapy in mind, having something like a water treadmill could be a real asset.

I feel like the other stuff waxes and wanes in popularity, plus it’s easy enough to find someone to bring it to the farm.

[kaya842]

Mark me down for Magnawave and a water treadmill too.

As to those being a deciding factor in where I board. It depends. Most places that have large therapy equipment like a treadmill or solarium or PEMF charge additional fees on top of board for use. So the boarding amenities (excluding the therapy) and care would really need to stand on their own and be comparable to what I would normally look at and pay for (free choice hay, lots of group turnout ideally on grass, etc). If the board was substantially higher than its competitors and I had to pay extra for the therapy things I would not board there. Another thing to keep in mind is the barns with water treadmills often allow trailer in use of the treadmill for a fee. That could mean a busier barn than I would like.

[RedHorses]

I bought a Bemer.

For the most part barns that offer therapeutic options like this are competition barns that are targeting a clientele that doesn’t include me.

[Hawks_Nest]

If money were no object:

• Treadmill - must be able to do water and dry
• FES Device - since we started having a physio come do FES (functional electric stimulation) on our horses we have seen HUGE improvements, this is a specific device designed for horses, NOT a tens unit adjusted for use in horses (since reading the website, I guess I’d just be spending more money on the physio since it is sold only to licensed people which is fair)
• IV laser

For now we are settling on red light wearables and I think a bunch of us are going to go in on a Rapid Release Massage Gun for use on us and the horses

[outerbanks77]

Well I’ve accumulated some things over the years on a modest owner’s budget. I have:

Equilibrium back massager pad
100X equine red light laser
Red light mat from Amazon (I use on myself a lot too)
Arc Equine microcurrent device (I use on myself more than the horse, I swear I feel less creaky when I use it consistently)
Surefoot pads (used to use a lot; horse is less interested in them these days)
Equi-Tape, which I use pretty frequently
Posture Prep and some myofascial scraping tools
Plus I have some knowledge of Masterson Method and a bit of accupressure

If and when funds allow, I plan to buy a Bemer or similar PEMF blanket, and hope to offset the cost a little by treating fellow boarders’ horses. I do love having my little “tool kit” to help my horse feel good

If money was no object, then a higher end cold laser would be cool to have. I don’t have any background with treadmills or some of the other $$$ things mentioned.

[fordtraktor]

I would love a treadmill just for basic fitness. Not sure I believe in any of the rest.

[jvanrens]

@outerbanks77

If and when funds allow, I plan to buy a Bemer or similar PEMF blanket, and hope to offset the cost a little by treating fellow boarders’ horses.

I gave my daughter some money to put in on a draw for a ticket with one of the Standardbred FB groups for a Bemer, she put up the money so she had two tickets and one of us won. She’s pretty popular at the training center she’s at now. She gets some free shoeing out of it. There’s one horse in her section of the barn that starts banging on his door when she gets there wanting his session right now he loves it so much. Her horses seem to look forward too it as well. Pretty much fall asleep in the cross ties when they have it on.

[outerbanks77]

Yeah, I rented one for a week and my mare would practically shove her neck into it when I walked in the stall.

[FjordBCRF]

@RedHorses

I bought a Bemer.

For the most part barns that offer therapeutic options like this are competition barns that are targeting a clientele that doesn’t include me.

Same. Just coming up on a year of having it and using it regularly.

[Moss]

Second this. I think high pulse magnawave done by a vet might be worth it, too, but I would need to ask my academic vet friends about their thoughts.

I wouldn’t waste my money on the placebo effect ones.

[tabula_rashah]

My friend and I split a BEMER. I like the magna-wave therapy that I do for myself but it’s so intense I’d be worried about doing that myself. I have a small red-light system I’ve used on myself and my dogs.
I’d love to have a track system- I consider that like a type of therapy

[fordtraktor]

One of my boarders had a BEMER and my horse didn’t care for it either way. Lucky me because now I don’t have to buy one!

[FjordBCRF]

@tabula_rashah

I’d love to have a track system- I consider that like a type of therapy

Yes!!!

I follow several account on Instagram with the tracks systems, and man what I’d do if money weren’t a consideration.

[NaturallyHappy]

My horse never really reacted/responded to the Bemer do I sold mine. What he does respond to is red light therapy.

[BroncoMo]

What kind of red light do you use? I went down a rabbit hole of research on red light products and that could become a money pit. They’re either tiny devices (like a laser) or massively expensive devices to treat individual areas (neck, back, leg joint, etc.)