Equine Alternative Therapy

Massage Therapy

• Some owners with older horses choose equine sports massage therapy to alleviate sore and tight muscles. Practitioners of massage therapy say that it relieves muscle spasms and improves the circulation needed to rapidly heal injuries. Equine massage therapists manipulate the horse's muscles much as a human massage therapist does, finding pressure points and working their fingers and hands deep into muscle tissue.

  According to the therapists at Equine Massage Therapy of Northwestern Connecticut, horses with sore backs or difficulty performing lateral movements benefit from massage therapy because when strained "muscle fibers are held together, it causes a spasm which decreases motion and causes discomfort." In their article "Equine Massage Therapy for Horses of All Disciplines," they say that this kind of treatment creates a physically and emotionally better balanced horse.

Chiropractic Therapy

• Horse owners will often follow massage therapy with treatment by an equine chiropractor. In his article "What is Chiropractic Care for Horses?" Dr. Jim Ennis of the American Veterinary Chiropractic Association says that, while chiropractic treatment does not take the place of regular veterinary care, "chiropractic adjustments have proven to be invaluable in detecting and treating gait abnormalities and other performance-robbing problems in the athletic horse."

  Typically, equine chiropractors work to adjust a particular joint in the horse's spine, depending on the complaints and symptoms described by horse owners. The chiropractor uses his hands to perform a fast, controlled thrust in a specific direction to a specific joint. Reverting the spine to normality, states Dr. Ennis, treats symptoms including lameness, muscle atrophy, stiffness and even poor attitude.

Acupuncture

• Acupuncture therapy works by mapping abnormal body situations such as pain or inflammation throughout the horse's central nervous system by way of body meridians or points. By palpating the points, a certified equine acupuncturist is able to note differences in tissue quality and increased or decreased reflexes. When the traditional long, thin needle is introduced into these points, the horse's body changes its biochemistries to physiologically return to normal.

  According to Dr. Cletus M. Vonderwell, the president of the International Veterinary Acupuncture Society, veterinarians are currently also using lasers, injections of vitamin B12 and electrical stimulation to treat horses with back soreness, laminitis (a potentially fatal hoof disease), navicular disease and various forms of lameness.

Hydrotherapy

• For many years veterinarians and horse owners have used hydrotherapy for hoof and leg injuries and illnesses. Cold-water hydrotherapy works on a cellular level to reduce pain, heat and swelling when the horse is injured. This therapy slows the metabolic response of the damaged cells so less oxygen and less fluid accumulate in the area, thus allowing the cells to begin healing faster without further harm.

  Currently, many equine practices recommend enclosed hydrotherapy baths for horses with tendon and ligament injuries. The patient is led down onto a treadmill that is then immersed in cold salt water up to the horse's shoulders. Once enough water is in the tank, the treadmill starts moving and the horse is able to exercise the damaged leg without inducing any accompanying inflammation. The Center of Equine Therapy says that "equine therapeutic spas have spread to Europe and North America with...results being experienced across a range of leg injuries which cause lameness in horses."