Why choose physiotherapy for your horse
Physiotherapy is beneficial for horses of all types and uses. From the happy hacker to the dressage horse.
Physiotherapy can be utilised for maintenance to help keep your horses muscles, joints and tissues strong and healthy, picking up on any changes early on.
Physiotherapy for rehabilitation post injury or surgery is utilised to reduce healing time, improve strength of injured tissues and ensure optimum recover. Patients with ongoing musculoskeletal disease benefit greatly from physiotherapy to reduce pain and improve quality of life.
Common conditions treated with Physiotherapy:
Osteoarthritis
Kissing spines
Sacroiliac conditions
Neurological issues
Soft tissue sprains, strains and tears
Muscular asymmetries
Pain
Fractures
Wounds
Locking stifles
Mud fever
Muscle tightness
What to expect from a Veterinary Physiotherapy appointment
A thorough musculoskeletal assessment will be carried out during the initial appointment. This includes assessing stance, walk and a head to toe hands on assessment. Following the assessment goals will be set and an individualised tailored treatment program formulated.
The initial appointment will take 60-90 minutes, repeat appointments will take up to 60 minutes depending on the treatments required and patient size.
Static Assessment
Confirmation
Posture
Limb placement and weight distribution
Overall condition
Dynamic Assessment
Walk, trot, circles and walking backward as required
Lameness
Gait pattern
Active joint movement
Coordination and balance
Palpation and Joint Assessment
Entire body palpation
Muscle mass and tone
Joint range of motion
Neurological assessment
Identify areas of pain
Treatment
Manual therapies
Electrotherapy's
Remedial Exercise Prescription
Home exercise plan