Dressage - The Horse Physio - Sue Palmer

Tag: Dressage

Brain, Pain or Training?’ Practical Exercises: Introduction

By Sue Palmer on May 11, 2023

This may be the most important chapter of this book.Here you’ll find a set of ten practical exercises that you can do with your horse to help assess whether he could be suffering some discomfort that might affect his behaviour or performance. The aim of these exercises is to assess balance, comfort, ease and freedom of movement, muscle tone, reaction to touch, soundness, symmetry of the musculoskeletal system, and symmetry of movement. Unexpected responses could flag up weakness, discomfort, stiffness, restriction in range of movement, muscle spasm, unsoundness, and asymmetry in either the horse’s musculoskeletal system or his movement.

Core stability and strength exercises for the non-ridden horse: Chapters 2-4

By Sue Palmer on April 27, 2023

A lot of core stability exercises are about moving the horse slightly off balance so that he needs to engage his muscles to maintain that balance. The tail pull works by using the tail as a lever to create the imbalance. As with the other exercises, it is subtle, using gentle pressure. There should be no discomfort involved, and you should find that your horse relaxes into the exercise after a minute or two. If he doesn't, perhaps this isn't the right exercise for him. A horse who is uptight will not be engaging his muscles effectively. He will be tensing those movement muscles getting ready to run, rather than using the stability muscles.

The rider size debate and the welfare of ridden horses

By Sue Palmer on February 16, 2023

All riders must take ownership of their responsibilities for their horse’s welfare. None of us wants to do a horse harm, but through lack of awareness, we sometimes do so. Food for thought.

Award winning film on equine behaviour

By Sue Palmer on January 1, 2023

The 35 minute documentary _[The 24 Behaviors of the Ridden Horse in Pain: Shifting the Paradigm of How We See Lameness]_ captured a Winnie Award

Understanding and Using the Ridden Horse Pain Ethogram

By Sue Palmer on May 9, 2022

The Ridden Horse Pain Ethogram (RHpE) is a list of 24 behaviours, the majority of which are ten or more times likely to be seen in a horse with musculoskeletal pain. Studies have shown that a horse who shows 8 or more of the 24 behaviours listed in the ridden horse pain ethogram is likely to have musculoskeletal pain.

‘Horse Massage For Horse Owners’ - Compression

By Sue Palmer on January 7, 2022

You can buy 'Horse Massage for Horse Owners' on Amazon (affiliate link), or from The Horse Physio. Join my mailing list today for FREE bonus content at www.thehorsephysio.co.uk. Compression Practising on yourself Rest your hand lightly on your forearm, just above your wrist, and slowly slide it towards your elbow. As you reach the end […]

23.12.2021 Max and Zen: November

By Sue Palmer on December 23, 2021

A Guest Blog by Hilary Moses We kicked off November with a trip to our physio, the lovely Sue Palmer no less! Zen naturally holds himself in an outline which, although it looks nice, isn't necessarily good for him. Sue thought that it was possible he'd been broken in side reins and possibly left in them for long periods, […]

23.11.2021 Hilary, Max and ?!

By Sue Palmer on November 23, 2021

A Guest Blog by Hilary Moses Max and ?! October Last month I made the decision to buy a new horse. Very exciting and not something I thought I'd be doing at my age. The thinking was that Max maybe needed to just rest and see if things improved. However, I'd also agreed with my […]

8.11.2021 Sam and Rabbit

By Sue Palmer on November 8, 2021

A Guest Blog by Sam Ireson So what can I say, since the last time we spoke I have had a fantastic month! My Rui lessons went really well, working on the half passes and ensuring I’m riding correct lines for them. Halfway through one of my lessons Rui said to Leonie “Put her in […]

23.9.2021 Hilary and Max

By Sue Palmer on September 23, 2021

June was another busy month. We completed the treasure hunt competitions (see Mays blog) and finished with a fantastic second place in one class and a respectable fifth in the other. This month saw the introduction of trotting on the lunge and including some poles to work over. ...

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