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Session Report

Shelley Thomas

Pangloss

01/10/2024

Shelley Thomas

Shelley Thomas Physio

208-761-3111

shelley@intrepidwellness.com

Session Notes

Veterinary History

Movement Assessment completed from videos and photos gathered on 10/1/24.

Sport: Show jumping

Workload: Moderate

Comments from rider: Pan has struggled with symmetry his entire life. Used to be much more crooked. History of really pushing through left shoulder over jumps (it's better but still an issue).

Injury History:

2021 SI injury, presented when trying to move up to Training level eventing, jumping larger fences.

January 2024 left hind adductor muscle tear and left stifle MCL injury (step in sinkhold 1/17/24). Rehabbed well, returned to full work August, 2024. Has not returned to prior level of jumping, primarily due to owner's time restrictions this year. Goal is to return to jumping 3'-3'6" fences and competing in 2025.

Dynamic Assessment

Abbreviations:

LF = left front leg

RF = right front leg

LH = left hind leg

RH = right hind leg

Posture pictures: Pangloss has well balanced muscle develop. He is mildly spinal negative (spine running downhill from back to front). If his thoracic sling muscles were better developed, that would lift his shoulders up and his spine would be more level.

He demonstrates a tendency to shift towards his left shoulder and turn his left hind leg out. This postural preference comes through in his movement.

When horses shift towards one shoulder, it could be due to a weakness in that shoulder, or a weakness in the opposite hind limb. So in his case, we ask “is the left shoulder or right hind the primary issue?”

Movement Photos (screenshots I took from videos): The theme that comes through with these photos is Pangloss is shifted towards his left shoulder and brings his right hind excessively under his body, towards his midline. Overall we see a lot of dynamic rotational movements in his hind limbs and pelvis. This report provides you with a problem list, but you need to work with a vet and physiotherapist to determine the primary issues vs. compensatory issues.

Additional data:

With five repeated walk-halt transitions, Pangloss placed his right hind out behind him 4 out of 5 times. This may indicate he prefers not to load this leg.

Session Notes

Problem List:

Shift body weight towards left shoulder, both statically (when standing still) and dynamically (when in motion).
Rotation issues in the right hind. We see a lot of rotation in Pangloss’ right hind leg during the gait cycle. He demonstrates a lot of rotation of femur, tibia, and tarsus bones that create the hip and hock joints. In the long term, this is setting him up for excessive strain and inflammation in his hock joint.
Loading issues in the left hind. We see some excessive motion in Pan’s hock and fetlock when he loads this limb. This could be a remnant from his stifle injury sustained in January, 2024. If his stifle joint is stiff or hypomobile, other joints will move more to compensate for the lack of motion in the stiff joint. Based on his loading and push off pattern, I suspect his stifle be the issue creating the loading pattern we observe in the photos.
Excessive stress on right elbow. Based on how Pangloss likes to hold his body weight towards his left shoulder, this causes his right front limb to swing towards and away from his body more. This creates increased rotation in his elbow joint, which can cause joint inflammation and breakdown over time.
Hoof angle concerns. Front feet appear to have excessive toe growth. This has a significant impact on breakover and creates a lot of strain on spine, pelvis, and hind limb joints.

Aftercare Notes

Recommendations:

I recommend farrier films to assess hoof angles and balance. The stability and function of a building occurs from the bottom up - we’ve got to get the foundation stable to improve higher parts of the movement chain.
Veterinary evaluation. Ideally after Pan’s hoof angles are improved, have a lameness examination performed to assess his response to flexion tests and identify any pain issues.
Perform the exercise program listed below. This will need to be modified based on veterinary guidance and what plan of care is designed.
Minimize high impact or high power activities (i.e. jumping high, galloping, advanced dressage movements) until Pan is moving better. His hocks and stifles are taking some stress right now due to excessive rotation. This sets the stage for potential injury, so it is best to improve his motion before loading his joints with high impact/high power activities.
Perform another movement analysis in 3 months to evaluate progress.

Thank you for trusting me to work with you and your horse. I'm excited to watch your progress and be part of your team. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact me. We can set up a video call to review the exercises or to watch videos and discuss what you're seeing. Have a great day!

Shelley Thomas

Images

Pangloss, October 1, 2024

Shelley Thomas

Pangloss

01/12/2024

Shelley Thomas

Shelley Thomas Physio

208-761-3111

shelley@intrepidwellness.com

THORACIC SLING: Core activation on foam

This video demonstrates how to use foam pads and increase core activation. Please see instructions below for using foam pads with Pangloss.

Hold Time/Duration (Seconds): 10 to 15

Times to Repeat: 10

Days per week: 4

For number of weeks: 0

Elbow Mobilisation

Pick up a front leg as if you were going to pick the hoof out with the outside hand on the hoof and pastern. Bring the hoof up to the elbow which will stabilise the knee and place the inside hand around the inside of the forearm. From this position, keeping the hoof with the elbow, move the leg slightly across the front of the body, and then move it to the outside, therefore mobilising the elbow. This can also act as a pectoral stretch. Place the limb gently back on the floor.

Hold Time/Duration (Seconds): 10 to 15

Times to Repeat: 1

Side(s) to be repeated: Right side

Days per week: 3

For number of weeks: 0

Bicep Stretch

Pick up the horse's hind leg and bring it slightly forwards so the leg is underneath the body and lift upwards so the cannon bone is horizontal. You should be facing the horse's body with your hands on top of each other around the fetlock.

Hold Time/Duration (Seconds): 10 to 15

Times to Repeat: 1

Side(s) to be repeated: Right side

Days per week: 3

For number of weeks: 0

Hind Adductor Stretch

Pick up the hind leg you want to stretch, holding the fetlock and the toe and move the whole leg outwards. Place the foot back on the floor.

Hold Time/Duration (Seconds): 10 to 15

Times to Repeat: 1

Side(s) to be repeated: Right side

Days per week: 3

For number of weeks: 0

Abductor Stability

Stand on the opposite hindquarter to the leg you want to stabilise. Hold the tail anywhere below the dock and slowly pull to the side causing the horse to tense the opposite side. When you release, do so slowly.

Hold Time/Duration (Seconds): 10 to 15

Times to Repeat: 3

Side(s) to be repeated: Both sides

Days per week: 3

For number of weeks: 0

Stifle Flexed On Block with Weight Shift

Pick up a hind leg and bring it slightly forward. Hold the fetlock with your outside hand and place the foot gently onto a block. Gently take hold of the tail (anywhere below the dock) out to the same side. Slowly but firmly pull the tail for 8-12 seconds. Release tail gently and place foot on the floor.

Hold Time/Duration (Seconds): 10 to 15

Times to Repeat: 3

Side(s) to be repeated: Left side

Days per week: 3

For number of weeks: 0

Hind Mobilisation

Pick up the hind leg and bring it slightly forward. Holding the fetlock with the inside hand, and the toe with the outside hand, gently rotate the leg in both directions.

Hold Time/Duration (Seconds): 10 to 15

Times to Repeat: 5

Side(s) to be repeated: Left side

Days per week: 3

For number of weeks: 0

Lateral Steps Over Raised Pole

Place three poles end to end to create one long pole. Place blocks between pole 1 and 2, and pole 2 and 3, so the middle pole is completely raised and poles 1 and 3 are raised on one end only. Walk your horse alongside the pole and ask for lateral steps over each pole creating a weave movement across the three poles. Wait for all four feet to be on the other side of the pole before asking for the next lateral steps across to the other side.

Times to Repeat: 8

Side(s) to be repeated: Both sides

In-hand

Days per week: 1

For number of weeks: 0

Straddle pole

Approach a pole from the long end and get your horse to walk so he/she is straddling the pole. Halt once the pole is between all four legs and remain there while your horse processes this body position. If Pangloss is willing, you can walk the length of the pole. Many horses struggle with this, so halting is also effective.

Times to Repeat: 2

In-hand

Days per week: 1

For number of weeks: 0

Turn On Haunches

The goal here is to focus on getting the front legs wider (don't focus on getting legs to cross). Stand at one shoulder and encourage the horse to move its head, neck and shoulders away from you, stepping sideways with its front legs whilst discouraging forward steps. This can be tricky for some horses to learn, be patient. Start with a few steps, build up to a 180 degree turn, and then a full 360 degree turn.

Times to Repeat: 5

Side(s) to be repeated: Both sides

Ridden

In-hand

Days per week: 2

For number of weeks: 0

Turn On The Forehand

Focus on getting the hind legs wider (don't focus on crossing them). Stand facing the horse’s shoulder and ask them to move their hindquarters away from you by gently pressing their ribcage. You can do a half 180 turn or a full 360 turn. This can be adapted for ridden.

Times to Repeat: 5

Side(s) to be repeated: Both sides

Ridden

In-hand

Days per week: 2

For number of weeks: 0

Zig Zag Exercise

Ride a zig zag at the walk with three goals: 1. Your horse travels with their neck long and out, with poll about at wither height. 2. They are very even in both reins. Focus on keeping the same connection and weight in your right and left hands/reins during this exercise. 3. Set targets to walk towards, so you focus on being very straight. Cones work nicely.

Times to Repeat: 10

Side(s) to be repeated: Both sides

Days per week: 1

For number of weeks: 0

Walk Diagonally on Hills

Ride at the walk up and down hills on the diagonal. This orientation to the hill is good for SI and stifle joint mobilization. Use your judgement for how long to work this exercise. Walking diagonally is hard work, so 3-5 minutes is sufficient.

Times to Repeat: 8

Side(s) to be repeated: Both sides

Days per week: 1

For number of weeks: 0

Notes

The goal of working on foam pads is faciliate deep postural muscles and proprioceptive systems to fire.

1. Stand Pangloss on the pads with both front feet. The goal is to get him to drop his head so his poll is at wither height (give or take). Stay there for 1-2 minutes and extend his head forward. I sometimes bait horses with hay snacks to keep their interest.

2. Repeat, standing with left front/right hind on pads.

3. Repeat, standing with right front/left hind on pads.

Recommended pads:

These pads work well. You need a pair of the large size: https://a.co/d/fxpMxkh

Equine

How to Stretch Guidelines

Never stretch a cold horse, i.e. one that has been stood in the stable for a number of hours. Perform them either after work, after they’ve been in the field or after massage.
Never force, pull or bounce a stretch.
If specific hold times are not given, average is to hold initially for 15 seconds then gently ask for a little more stretch and hold for a further 15-20 seconds before placing the limb back on the floor. Don’t drop the limb.
If the horse retracts the leg during the stretch, don’t resist, go with it and gently ask for a lesser stretch and increase from there. Work within the horse’s comfort.
Always make sure you are stretching straight.
Try to have your horse standing as square as possible.
Take care of your own posture.
Ideally stretch on a soft surface.

Carrot stretches

Use a carrot, a treat or a lick, whatever will keep their interest.

You are looking for a controlled movement, not a reaching and grabbing movement. The horse should be able to hold the stretch. If they can’t hold the stretch, shorten the range of the stretch to a place where they can hold it comfortably.
Keep the carrot/treat/lick in constant contact with the horse’s lips to keep their attention and encourage a smooth movement.
Try to have your horse standing as square as possible.
If the horse tries to move their body to avoid the stretch, line them up against a wall to discourage them from moving.
If these stretches seem to be encouraging your horse to bite, stop, and speak to your therapist about alternatives.

Disclaimer

"This specific exercise plan has been created by your chosen animal practitioner for a specific animal. These exercises should not be performed on another animal without your practitioner's guidance. Any questions about this exercise plan should be directed to your practitioner. Equicantis does not accept any liability for damage or injury whilst performing these exercises on your animal."