Veterinary Spinal Manipulation

Reasons To Consider Chiropractic Care for Your Horse

Spinal issues and musculoskeletal disorders can cause the health of your horse to deteriorate quickly as they exacerbate a misalignment in one area of the body by overcompensating in other areas.

Signs that your horse could benefit from a chiropractic evaluation include:

• Poor performance or discomfort when saddled
• Lameness, stiffness, back, neck, or tail pain
• Abnormal posture or changes in posture or topline
• Difficulty bending to one side or a "hollow topline"
• Reluctance to pick up or maintain a lead
• Difficulty engaging the hind end or traveling long & low
• Head tilt, difficulty chewing
• Uneven muscle development or atrophy
• Difficulty flexing at the poll, pulling on one rein
• Difficulty getting up & down
• Changes in behavior or attitude

What to Expect from Your Horse's Chiropractic Treatment

Chiropractic care is most commonly administered in addition to conventional treatment options for horses experiencing spinal problems or biomechanical-related musculoskeletal disorders. Most adjustments in horses take 15 - 30 minutes.

During the appointment, your vet will carefully perform motion palpation to check your horse’s range of motion. When restricted joint motion is identified, it is corrected through careful adjustment.

After the adjustment, the joint is palpated again to ensure it is moving more freely. The chiropractic adjustments look like quick little pushes on the animal. Most horses remain calm and relaxed during their appointment.

Sedation is not required for equine chiropractic care and is not recommended since it interferes with the ability of the nervous system to respond to the treatment.

Chiropractic adjustments can help to relieve pain and promote natural healing throughout the body. Preventive chiropractic treatment can also be part of routine care and maintenance for performance horses, helping to improve performance and reduce the risk of injury.