Amy Buckland Equinology Equine Body Worker BSc Hons Equine Science, EEBW.

Amy Buckland Equinology Equine Body Worker BSc Hons Equine Science, EEBW. Offering soft tissue massage to horses of all ages and abilities, shapes and sizes, whether they are enjoying hacking out or competing in various disciplines.

This is worth a reshare  especially the paragraph at the bottom. As a bodyworker I can detail any findings I have when s...
25/02/2025

This is worth a reshare especially the paragraph at the bottom. As a bodyworker I can detail any findings I have when seeing your horse on that day in my report but it is not my job to diagnose any conditions or problems, only to recommend the horse sees a vet , or chiropractor or farrier whichever I feel most appropriate, if necessary. What I do won't cure your horse or be a replacement for proper veterinary care. A true professional knows their limitations and works as a team to provide the best care for your horse. I will always check with clients if their horse is currently under a vet for anything as if so, we will need to have the visiting vets permission for me to commence a treatment to make sure it is appropriate for the horse at this time. This means I can always act in the best interests of your horse ๐ŸŽ ๐Ÿ‘Œ ๐Ÿ™‚

Happy New Year, Christmas holidays are now over! Many of us are now starting to plan for the upcoming season so are begi...
06/01/2025

Happy New Year, Christmas holidays are now over! Many of us are now starting to plan for the upcoming season so are beginning to increase our horses workloads again after a little break, the kids ponies are recovering from a busy school holidays or we have hunters that have had a busy time with the festive meets. Which ever of these best descibes your equine friend, massage could help your horse to feel it's best.
I treat all sorts of horses and tailor their treatments accordingly. Don't think massage is just for the competition horse,it can benefit all horses even those not in work! I'm happy to treat all types of horses and ponies from the biggest to the smallest. Get in contact for a no obligation chat

If you have 5 minutes this is an interesting read. We often go to great lengths to ensure the saddle fits but are we wea...
06/01/2025

If you have 5 minutes this is an interesting read. We often go to great lengths to ensure the saddle fits but are we wearing the right type of girth for our horse? There are certain types of girth that seem to be in fashion at various times but do they really do as promised ๐Ÿค”
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1WpWkkMV4K/

**๐Ÿฑ-๐— ๐—ถ๐—ป๐˜‚๐˜๐—ฒ๐˜€ ๐˜„๐—ถ๐˜๐—ต ๐—–๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜๐—ฎ๐˜‚๐—ฟ ๐—•๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—บ๐—ฒ๐—ฐ๐—ต๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ถ๐—ฐ๐˜€**

๐—š๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐˜๐—ต๐˜€

The girth plays a vital role as part of the equipment used when riding, so when we are considering saddle fit, we need to consider girth fit too.

โ€œRiders spend a reasonable amount of money on a saddle and then donโ€™t always consider the girth shape or design,โ€ says Russell MacKechnie-Guire. โ€œYou can reduce the performance of the saddle and the horse by having a poorly-designed girth, so the fit and suitability should be considered similar to the saddle and the bridle.โ€

๐—š๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐˜๐—ต ๐—ฝ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐˜€๐˜€๐˜‚๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐˜€

When we think about where the girth pressures are, previously, we believed it was mostly in the sternum region, but in a study in 2013, it showed that the areas of repeatable high pressure are in the region behind the elbows and not on the sternum.

โ€œWe used an electronic pressure map placed underneath the girth, robustly measuring the pressure of the girth during locomotion,โ€ says Russell. โ€œThe other intriguing thing is that these pressures are related to the movement and timing of the limb, so every time the hoof is loaded, we get pressure behind the elbow which we found in all gaits; walk, trot, canter and gallop, and when jumping. This means that pressure is repeatable every stride. So, if a girth doesnโ€™t fit, or is a poor design in relation to the horseโ€™s conformation, the horse is subject to those areas of high pressure every stride. We found that this can influence joint range of motion, and create asymmetry in the horse and what we know from other research is that horses will develop strategies to alleviate any discomfort caused.โ€

There are various designs of girth on the market which means horse owners have plenty of options.

โ€œHowever, what we must be mindful of is designs that claim to alleviate force or pressure on the sternum when they havenโ€™t looked elsewhere on the girth, for example behind the elbows,โ€ says Russell. โ€œIf we cut away something, the force has to go somewhere else โ€“ you canโ€™t get rid of the forces. Thatโ€™s something horse owners should consider when interpreting such claims โ€“ specifically the social media โ€œliteratureโ€, not the scientific literature - because there are a few companies that have cut away parts of the girth which at first glance appears to have โ€œremovedโ€ any pressure, which is great, but you still have the total force that has to be distributed somewhere. By removing parts, you are in effect distributing the same โ€œtotal forceโ€ over a smaller area.โ€

๐—”๐˜€๐˜€๐—ฒ๐˜€๐˜€๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐—ฐ๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ณ๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—บ๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—ป

Every horse has a different conformation when it comes to the girth area, and assessing it isnโ€™t always easy.

Russell suggests: โ€œStand in front of the horse if safe to do so, with the horse standing square, and look at how the legs come out of the chest. Look at the distance between the two forelimbs, and if at the top it looks narrow (like a โ€œVโ€) this would indicate that the base of support is narrow, in which case the horse may need a girth that is of an appropriate design to suit that conformation.

โ€œYou then need to stand on the side of the horse (standing square) and visualise the girth groove. Influenced by anatomy (sternum length), some horses have a forward girth groove which creates quite an angle for the girth to be positioned, and some horses can have a rear girth groove.โ€

In these cases, girth fit and design in important, but it is essential that riders speak with their saddle fitter, as a girth alone is unlikely to prevent the saddle from travelling forwards or backwards.

Always have that discussion with your horseโ€™s saddle fitter to see what is most appropriate for that horse.

๐—˜๐—น๐—ฎ๐˜€๐˜๐—ถ๐—ฐ๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ฑ ๐—ผ๐—ฟ ๐—ป๐—ผ๐—ป-๐—ฒ๐—น๐—ฎ๐˜€๐˜๐—ถ๐—ฐ๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ฑ

โ€œWe found no biomechanical differences when using elasticated girths, and found, in some situations, some riders could over-tighten the girth because of the quality of the elastic, so our general comment is that, if you donโ€™t need elastic, donโ€™t use it,โ€ explains Russell. โ€œHowever, there are a group of horses that do appear to prefer (defined as go better by their owners) in a girth that has short (1/2 โ€“ 2cm) strips of elastic on each side. We donโ€™t know the reason for that โ€“ work is on-going โ€“ but if you need/prefer elastic, have short elastic of good quality strength.โ€

If you have a saddle that slips to one side, you could try a non-elasticated girth to see if that adds stability, or if you have a girth with elastic on one side and the girth allows, change the side that the elastic is on, and see if the saddle still slips. In the majority of cases, saddle slip is induced by the horse, but a girth that has an elastic component may contribute, but it is unlikely to be the cause.

๐—š๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐˜๐—ต ๐—ฐ๐—ผ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐˜€

If using girth covers, Russell suggests using those made from natural fibres/materials where possible.

โ€œWhat we have to remember with a girth sleeve, is that, while they can add an element of comfort (or satisfy the riderโ€™s fashion), they can also add a lot of extra bulk, so as the limb is coming backwards, you need to check that you arenโ€™t creating pressure due to the increased bulk of the girth cover,โ€ says Russell.

๐—ฆ๐—ถ๐—ด๐—ป๐˜€ ๐—ผ๐—ณ ๐—ฎ ๐—ฝ๐—ผ๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—น๐˜† ๐—ณ๐—ถ๐˜๐˜๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐—ด๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐˜๐—ต

A poorly-fitted or inappropriate girth can cause sores, discomfort, reduce the horseโ€™s performance, and compromise welfare.

โ€œObserve the horseโ€™s behaviour when tacking up, look for reactivity when girthing up such as nipping, ears back, tail swishing and pawing, and any sensitivity after exercise as well as sweat patches under the girth,โ€ Russell advises. โ€œThis behaviour is likely indicative of clinical issues that need to be investigated โ€“ these subtle indicators when girthing up could be an early indicator that needs looking into, and must not be over looked as โ€œnormal.โ€


๐—š๐—ฟ๐—ผ๐˜‚๐—ป๐—ฑ ๐—ฟ๐˜‚๐—น๐—ฒ๐˜€ ๐—ณ๐—ผ๐—ฟ ๐—ฏ๐˜‚๐˜†๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐—ฎ ๐—ด๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐˜๐—ต

๐—”๐—ป๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ผ๐—บ๐—ถ๐—ฐ๐—ฎ๐—น๐—น๐˜† ๐˜€๐—ต๐—ฎ๐—ฝ๐—ฒ๐—ฑ

The girth shape and design need to be appropriate for the horse, particularly cut away behind the elbows to allow freedom of movement. We also need to consider the conformation of the horse. Some horses are quite narrow in front and we have to be careful of the degree of the anatomical shaping of the girth that it doesnโ€™t actually cause pressure on the pectoral muscles. That is why itโ€™s important to have a girth fit discussion with your saddle fitter.

๐—Ÿ๐—ฒ๐—ป๐—ด๐˜๐—ต ๐—ผ๐—ณ ๐—ด๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐˜๐—ต

The position of the buckles and length of girth is another consideration โ€“ have the buckles up as high as possible. The buckles should be up as high as possible to remove them away from the high-pressure area behind the elbows.

๐— ๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐—ถ๐—ฎ๐—น๐˜€

Girths that have a pressure-reducing/distributing material lining are more advantageous than a girth that doesnโ€™t because that can help distribute and dampen some of the forces. We canโ€™t remove the force but we can distribute it more evenly across the girth and reducing the high areas of pressure.

๐—”๐˜๐˜๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐—ต๐—บ๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜๐˜€

Also be mindful that training aids or martingale straps wrapped around the girth will add pressure to the sternum area of the girth, so itโ€™s always better to attach them to a ring on the outside of the girth.

๐—š๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐˜๐—ต ๐—ต๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—น๐˜๐—ต

Check the condition of your girth. Itโ€™s not acceptable to be riding horses in a girth that has girth cracks on the inside โ€“ that is going to cause discomfort.

Have thoughts, questions or comments, share them in the comments and they will be discussed in next weeks ๐Ÿฑ-๐— ๐—œ๐—ก๐—จ๐—ง๐—˜๐—ฆ ๐—ช๐—œ๐—ง๐—› ๐—–๐—˜๐—ก๐—ง๐—”๐—จ๐—ฅ ๐—•๐—œ๐—ข๐— ๐—˜๐—–๐—›๐—”๐—ก๐—œ๐—–๐—ฆ - ๐—ฉ๐—Ÿ๐—ข๐—š

๐Ÿ”ญ๐Ÿ”ญ๐—˜๐˜…๐—ฝ๐—น๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ ๐—–๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜๐—ฎ๐˜‚๐—ฟ๐Ÿ”ญ๐Ÿ”ญ

๐—–๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜๐—ฎ๐˜‚๐—ฟ ๐—•๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—บ๐—ฒ๐—ฐ๐—ต๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ถ๐—ฐ๐˜€: https://www.centaurbiomechanics.co.uk

๐—–๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜๐—ฎ๐˜‚๐—ฟ ๐—•๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—บ๐—ฒ๐—ฐ๐—ต๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ถ๐—ฐ๐˜€ ๐—ฉ๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐˜๐˜‚๐—ฎ๐—น ๐—ญ๐—ผ๐—ป๐—ฒ: https://www.centaurbiomechanics.co.uk/centaur-online/

๐—–๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜๐—ฎ๐˜‚๐—ฟ ๐—•๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—บ๐—ฒ๐—ฐ๐—ต๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ถ๐—ฐ๐˜€ ๐—›๐—ถ๐—ด๐—ต ๐—ค๐˜‚๐—ฎ๐—น๐—ถ๐˜๐˜† ๐—ข๐—ป๐—น๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ฒ ๐—˜๐—ฑ๐˜‚๐—ฐ๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—ป ๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ฑ ๐—–๐—ฃ๐——: https://www.centaurbiomechanics.co.uk/webinars-online-cpd-and-education-/

๐—–๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜๐—ฎ๐˜‚๐—ฟ ๐—•๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—บ๐—ฒ๐—ฐ๐—ต๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ถ๐—ฐ๐˜€ ๐—ฅ๐—ฒ๐˜€๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—ฟ๐—ฐ๐—ต: https://www.centaurbiomechanics.co.uk/scientific-research-publications/

30/09/2024
Even Nell was super chilled out watching me do a couple of Sunday morning massages!Relaxed vibes!
21/07/2024

Even Nell was super chilled out watching me do a couple of Sunday morning massages!Relaxed vibes!

Pro pics from Stithians thanks  And pic of my little grooms helping on Sunday. Oleg u are a legend
16/07/2024

Pro pics from Stithians thanks
And pic of my little grooms helping on Sunday. Oleg u are a legend

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