Blog Post Two: What might be the causes of your horse’s pain?

Ok, so now you recognize that your horse might be in pain. How did this happen?

• Trauma

  Your horse could have been having the zoomies out in pasture one day, slipped, fell and strained something

• Overuse

  Number 1 cause of horse muscle pain is overtraining/overuse

• Tack

  This cannot be emphasized enough, you should check your tack and the fit to your horse often. Have a saddle fitter out every 6 to 12 months to make sure your saddle still fits, especially if there have been changes in your training intensity, moving up or down a level, illness/injury, extended time off, or is your horse still growing/filling out. Consider having a bit/bridle fitter check over your bridle. There are many sensitive areas on your horse’s face that the bridle could be negatively impacting. Check out the next blog post for more in-depth detail.

• Nutrition

  Has your horse been getting some scrumptious spring grass, a couple extra handfuls of grain, are they getting a cresty neck? Or has this winter been cold and your horse lost some weight?

• Feet

  Stone bruises on the soles of your horse’s feet, standing in mud so the feet are a bit mushier, is the ground hard and making your horse’s feet hurt?

  Farriery: High/Low syndrome, are your horse’s feet getting trimmed often enough?

  Laminitis

  Navicular

• Stall bound

  Horses that spend most of their time in a stall don’t move around as much as their bodies are genetically conditioned to and therefore can develop lymphangitis, or stocking up. Blood and lymph flow in a horse’s legs are dependent on horses moving. the number one way of preventing or eliminating stocking up is getting your horse outside and moving.

• Age

  Arthritis - 60% of lameness can be attributed to osteoarthritis. This may lead to pain, stiffness, tenderness, loss of flexibility, or swelling

* this is not a substitution for veterinary care and does not constitute a diagnosis