Do you understand 'poor posture' in the horse?

'Poor posture' in the horse is a term that is used quite frequently these days, which is a good thing in my opinion! The more we talk about it, the more horse owners can learn about it, what it means for the horse, how to spot it, and most importantly what to do about it for the horse. 

The horses posture is a part of my work that I'm constantly looking at, assessing, adjusting work plans, rehab plans etc, to get the best results for the horse in terms of postural improvement, comfort levels, injury recovery, body strengthening, movement improvement, and overall wellness. 

In my experience, horses can be suffering with low grade back pain and stiffness through the body, especially after injury, and if they don't go through a more thorough 'full body' rehab which specifically addresses posture and movement, they can remain stuck in low grade lameness/stiffness/'not quite right'. 

So onto POOR POSTURE IN THE HORSE... 

Poor posture in the horse can be subtle or quite obvious, and of course there are various shades of grey too. One of the issues with being able to assess our own horses posture, is that we see them every day! So taking regular photos can be helpful to review body changes from time to time. 

Poor posture in the human is basically a weak core, so a slumping type posture, no core strength to hold the upper body up in a nice upright posture where the spinal vertebrae sit in alignment on top of each other. 

In the horse, poor posture is also related to a weak core/body, the abdominal line (belly) will look sagging, and the back will be dropped and look weak. The horse may be compensating for this by holding the neck high and stiff. 

Poor posture can also develop through low grade lameness and compensation by 'bracing' in the back, directly through back strain, and we also have GRAVITY as a constant downward pull on the horses body!

I talk about poor posture a LOT as it's so significant for our horses...the dipping in the middle part of the back is what creates 'kissing spine' which is a painful condition for the horse. So being able to target this area of the horse within our exercise plans really helps to prevent this happening - it's a no brainer really, strong core, happy horse!  

TAKE A LOOK AT THE PHOTOS ACCOMPANYING THIS BLOG - these are photos of my horse, before and after kissing spine surgery. They should be helpful in 'getting your eye in' on what bad vs good posture looks like. There are photos at different time points, including a current photo where he has just had some time off so not quite as strong in his core as the previous photos. But a good comparison to see through the photos. 

*Side note here* I operate on a 'No judgements' basis in my space online...I am here to educate horse owners looking for help, and support the ones that want to take it a step further and join my training group. I went through a very difficult time with my horse, and it took me quite some time to be able to show these photos. But I want what we went through to be able to help and support other horses and their owners, in getting the guidance and learning they need to navigate this difficult part of horse ownership* 

***Join my FREE 5 Day Online Training Event on Posture, Core Strength & Natural Crookedness in the horse, running 5-9th September at 7pm UK time each evening! I will be talking in more detail about these topics, and giving some tips on assessing your own horse! As well as outlining ways to improve your horses posture, core strength and crookedness patterns! MORE DETAILS AND REGISTRATION: 5 Day Free Training September 2022