Stay Sound Veterinary Chiropractic

05/21/2026

Let’s discuss Lasix in the summer heat.

04/20/2026

Great anatomy lesson for saddle fit considerations!

04/09/2026

Be ready for non-sweating horses this summer!
Acupuncture and herbal medicine can be miraculous for these horses.

Be sure to watch for heavy breathing, decreased performance, and a horse that just isn’t sweating as much as all the other horses.

04/05/2026

04/05/2026

Happy Easter everyone!!

03/29/2026

Some of my favorite pups!!
Happy Easter week everyone!
🌸🩵🥚💛🐣💜🌷

02/20/2026

Love my patients so much!! 😍🥰

01/29/2026

Cats do enjoy chiropractic and acupuncture!!

12/23/2025

A great mind in the world of equine sports medicine 💙

Our next question on the Equine Cervical Neck -
How does arthritis in the neck affect hoof handling of both front and hind feet? Thank You, Monique L

If your horse struggles with their farrier work or afterward, there could be a reason unrelated to the trim/shoeing.
• Pain with sustained positioning.
Farrier work requires the horse to hold a limb up and often slightly flexed for several minutes at a time. For a horse with lower cervical (neck) arthritis, this prolonged positioning acts like a long flexion test, stressing painful joints and surrounding soft tissues.

• Nerve involvement (especially in the front limbs).
The nerves that supply the front legs originate in the lower neck and brachial plexus. Arthritis can irritate or compress these nerves. Vibrations from rasping and hammering travel up the limb and can amplify nerve pain, making hoof work very uncomfortable.

• Shoulder girdle strain.
Lifting and holding a front leg requires stabilization through the neck and shoulder girdle. If the neck is arthritic, this effort can trigger pain that persists for days after farrier work, sometimes mimicking lameness caused by the trim or shoeing.

• Hind feet are affected too.
Although the hind limbs are not directly innervated by the brachial plexus, holding a hind leg up requires the horse to brace through the neck and back to maintain balance. Neck pain makes this difficult, so the horse may resist, fidget, or become sore afterward.

• Delayed soreness after farrier work.
Horses with cervical arthritis may appear fine during trimming but become lame or stiff for 2–4 days afterward, leading to farriers being blamed for issues like “taking too much off” or nail pain, when the real source is cervical discomfort.

Bottom line:
If a horse consistently struggles with farrier work—front or hind—especially with signs of soreness afterward, resistance to holding legs up, or sensitivity to vibration, the neck is an important place to investigate, particularly for arthritis or nerve-related pain.

12/18/2025