For some reason, I have had a lot of people mention equine chiropractic to me over the last few days. I also get a lot of hits on my website from people looking for information about equine chiropractic.
One person actually looked up Equine Chiropractic "Quackery" - which I found interesting.
What I would like to discuss today is my view of equine chiropractic.
I feel that many people are using a chiropractor when they don't really understand why they are using one except that it is popular, or someone told them to try it, or they think they are doing the right thing because a friend had good luck with one.
But, do you really understand what chiropractic is doing? Do you really understand why your horse "needs" one?
Have you had the horse examined and know exactly what the problem is, or are you trying chiropractic because you don't know what else to do?
I have found that many times when someone has used a chiropractor for their horse they are only getting temporary results. Sometimes they say they didn't see any changes at all.
When I go to clinics and other "horsey" places, people will ask me what I do. And when I tell them, I get to hear all their stories about how they tried a chiropractor and the results they received. Some good, some bad. But I am interested in the amount of people who are now turned off by equine therapy because their horse was no better after the chiropractor. Or, was only better for a day or two and then went back to how they were before the adjustment.
I have come across a horse or two that had a major problem and benefited from an adjustment. So, I am not trying to say that you should never use chiropractic. What I am saying is that without addressing the soft tissue (which HAS to be affected by the subluxation) you are sure to have continuing problems. And, I will say that I believe most problems are better treated with soft tissue therapies. Quite often, during a session, I will feel and/or hear the bone "correct" itself. The bone is only able to be where the muscle allows it to be, so adjustments are not really dealing with the real problem - the soft tissue.
If you would like to read more about my experiences and thoughts on equine chiropractic and soft tissue therapies, please read the article on my website titled "Equine Chiropractic: Pros, Cons, and Alternatives".
Do you agree or disagree with my opinion? Please feel free to let me know what you think. But, if you would like to comment, I would ask you to read the above article to have a more complete understanding of my view.
Thanks,
Tina
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Me and My Horse Que
- Tina Marie Fiste
- This is a blog to go along with my website which is all about equine massage, alternative therapy, and clicker training. If you would like to go to my website click here.
5 comments:
High Tina,
Dr. Jack here. Human chiro 21 years and certified by the Animal Veterinary Chiropractic Association (AVCA) through the Animal Chiropractic Certification Commission (ACCC) in 1998. That means two things I have many, many hours of professional training and have treated many, many, many humans and horses.
Chiropractic care when applied correctly works ALL the time. Sometimes it works in spite of the rider, the training, the saddle fit. Other times it works temporally because the individual does not follow through with the recommendations given by the practitioner. I routinely recommend appropriate stretches and ground work for my clients to perform on their horses to maximize results and maintain what I may have accomplished chiropractically. I call it their homework assignment. The AVCA certified equine professional also considers saddle fit, social environment, diet, teeth, feet, tack just to name a few. These factors along with the owner’s knowledge and training habits are some of the unforeseen factors that play a significant role in the health and well being of the horse. The technique did not fail. Chiropractic, massage, traditional medicine, acupressure (or what ever) was applied correctly, but may not have corrected the problem because the causative factors involved are something the practitioner cannot control. I have heard a lot of stories about chiropractic working only some of the times. I have heard people say that as long as you keep going to a chiropractor you’re OK, but when you stop “everything comes back.” “Chiropractic doesn’t work.” Of course chiropractic doesn’t work, especially when people take poor care of themselves, find excuses not to stretch and exercise and have poor sleeping habits. The problem is not that chiropractic failed but rather it was never given a chance to work. A few key points: time is so important for the body to heal. The teeth and feet must be addressed. If the saddle does not fit, stop using it.
I agree that the soft tissue element requires attention. In fact, my Equine patients enjoy passive ROM and stretching exercises prior to their adjustments. I don’t agree entirely with your statement: “The bone is only able to be where the muscle allows it to be, so adjustments are not really dealing with the real problem - the soft tissue.” Myopathology is only one of several factors that are directly influenced by the adjustment. The lack of movement in the joint (Kinesiopatholgy) can be the primary reason for the fixation and the soft tissue response (hypertonicity and spasm) is secondary. In other words, you could massage, stretch and do all the soft tissue techniques know to man (or woman) but unless the articular fixation is restored the muscular and soft tissue problems will continue. The other accepted benefit of the chiropractic adjustment is not only to restore normal joint function but also to restore normal nerve communication. The adjustment when done correctly is dealing directly with the skeleton, soft tissue elements and when applied to the spine, nerve roots that travel to every cell in the body. Both my human and equine practices provide both osseous and soft tissue adjustments. If the articulation fixation is not addressed the muscular hypertonicity, spasm and pain will continue to persist.
I appreciate your web site and especially an opportunity to address this topic.
I agree with both of you. Chiropractic adjustment is a serious, serious issue. I had my first experience with it recently and it was very successful. But it was scary for me too. I wouldn't want an unqualified person working on me, or on my horse. I think a qualified professional is going to recogize and state when no adjustment is needed, whereas an unqualified, inexperienced person may not because they might not actually know. I think that is the bridge between your two views, which are not very far apart.
Please keep working on this site Tina - the topics are fascinating! I've taken a 5-day course in equine massage and loved every minute of it. It is one of the best things I've ever learned about. I would love to learn more but probably those proper programs are out of my reach. I am comfortable doing a light, feel-good routine but any larger issues I discover or that someone asks me about, I refer to an excellent nearby professional instead.
What I find interesting is that there seems to be a one track mind that if you are qualified you and you must only know. I all for training but on the other hand I had a vet do chiropractic work on a horse fully accredited - very scary and this vet is a great vet but not as good as a man who is a chiropractor no training has his own method and yes he does a brilliant job, so why do we knock people who have being doing this for years and have a great skill and understanding for the animal,
it his life work and because for some reason people like him get knocked. Its like anything what works for the individual, some vets are great some are not so.
Please give a little respect to the ones who have done this for a long time and do it well.
I am a vet in NZ. You may be unaware that human chiropratic has largely been debunked now as unscientific and potentially very dangerous. See this for a good link: http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/?s=chiropractic
Animal chiropractic is no different in technique. It amazes me how this is somehow seen as a legitimate therapy, and that even many vets choose not to research it properly. Massage therapy, which is effectively what is employed when the horse gets better, is of course, very beneficial.
Dr. Eslin
If you are from the old school (70's to 80's) you would be so influenced by the AMA. The Chiropractic association sued and won against the AMA for trashing the reputation of chiropractic. We have evidence and manipulation is used by the medical profession.
Would you hire a vet to shoe your horse or a farrier who is trained and skilled in the trade? An untrained farrier is as dangerous as an untrained chiropractor. Chiropractic when properly used and applied is very effective in joint mobility. It is not bone out of place-unless you have ancient information. There are colleges for vets and DC's to combine knowledge and these are your real chiropractors. There is now way to understand the function neurology and application of chiropractic in some weekend seminar. That is why you need a primary care vet and a certified chiropractor by the AVCA or IVCA.
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