The Biomechanic Vet Physio

 Why did I become a vet physio?   Money.   The end.   I joke of course!   … You can’t make money working with animals :’) Becoming a vet physio wasn’t a long-term game plan of mine.   To be honest, I’ve never had a long-term game plan, I still don’t!   I remember the idea first came to my head when I was working as a groom.   I was working on a private, high-end eventing yard in the Cotswolds.   I was well paid, had accommodation included, and the workload was perfectly manageable (most of the time).   Then, one day I had a sudden realisation that my grooming career had potentially peaked.   I wouldn’t have minded, but I was 24, I couldn’t be at the height yet?   Plus, I had been a groom for over 5 years at this point, and although I loved it, I didn’t love the idea of doing it forever.   I’ll write a blog in due course about why that is … it’ll be a long one!   I’...

I imagine this is something we’ve all heard when we were taught to ride and handle horses …   ‘Don’t let him do that, he’s just being naughty!’ Nowadays almost everyone will say ‘there’s no such thing as a naughty horse, only a horse who’s in pain’   Which I don’t entirely agree with …   The new thinking now seems to be that every horse is in some degree of pain or has some kind of trauma which is causing them to act a certain way.   Obviously, this is the case with some horses & absolutely must be addressed and treated with care and consideration.   But I honestly believe that there are plenty of horses who are not in pain, but are potentially confused, unfit, scared, or simply not in the mood! I tend to find that the concept of a horse ‘not wanting’ to do something seems to unsettle some   There seems to be the thought that horses are always willing & eager to please   Yet, there is also the well-known fact tha...

The miracle cure   It seems to come around every few months – the new miracle solution that’ll fix all your problems! And it’ll change form depending on which discipline, profession, or individual it is aimed at.   The horse industry seems to have a new trend or gadget every few months, claiming to solve every problem; it’ll cure all behavioural elements, prevent any future injuries and in general just make everything perfect!   Sometimes it’s an innocent well-wisher, who has developed a product that worked for their situation and wanted to help others, and it became more popular than anticipated.   But, a lot of the time, it’s a new business venture, looking to make a big sale.   Usually, it won’t cause any harm. And the new fad will replace it in a few months.     However, sometimes the use of a gadget, aid or tool without the proper knowledge or application of its use, can be the beginning of a snowball effect.   T...

It has to be one of the best feelings in the world! Its finally time, you’re bring home your new puppy!   But what have you done to prepare?   I imagine you’ve done the usual: -         New bed -         Matching bowls -         Cute collar and lead -         Toys -         Treats -         Food -         Poo bags (So, so many poo bags!) But have you thought of these in depth?   The size, thickness, and material of bed?   The height and depth of the bowls?   The thickness & material of the collar? The length of the lead?   The type and variety of toys?   The type of treats & the calorie count?   The brand of food?   … The poo bags are probably...

Before I get into it, I just want to note that these are my thoughts, feelings, and opinions based on experiences from being a groom for over 10 years and my vet physio degree. Each person will have their own experiences and opinions, and there will be many other professionals who are much more practised is kissing spines (KS) anatomy, symptoms, and treatment than me.   Basically – don’t take my word as gospel!   KS seems to be something that’s become very prevalent in the horse industry over the last few years.   I remember when I first became a groom, that it wasn’t thought of as being that common, and it was a very extreme thing when diagnosed.   Now, for the question of, has it always been fairly common? Or are we just finding a new thing to hyper-focus on?   I’d suggest that KS has always been fairly prevalent, (especially in competition horses), but would be under a different name or condition.   I remember in the riding school...