I have asked the same questions myself! I ended up going with a certified Equine Massage Therapist. Simply because they can usually feel if the horse neck, or back is out while performing their massage, and the horse will show them the signs, and tightness, or heat, and for two years now almost all the horses in our barn have had at least one massage for one reason or another, from just keeping the horse supple, to me having problems with leads, and even a halter horse who was not tracking up from behind.
She is able to work the muscles, loosen them up, find heat or swelling in the muscles, esp the back and hip area, or in the deeper areas that normally wouldn't show up until the horse became sore, or grouchy a few days later. It has helped our program so much, and only one time this year did she say that a horse needed to see a Chiropractor, and yes, she wanted x rays done first. After that work, then the massage lady came back and massaged the horse again to keep those muscles loosen and supple to help not pull the area out of place again. Because, as she mentioned, if the area is pushed back into place, if the muscles are stiff or sore from being in the 'hurt' position, they will just go back to where they were. Our massage therapist gives us pictures/diagrams of each horse done, where there problem areas are, and where potential problems could come up depending on what they are being used for, how to work them through their training once they are massaged, and how to keep it up to keep them in top performance.
So, in short, I use a massage therapist first, and then on her recomendation, I use a chiropractor, but in the last two years, I have actually only needed the chiropractor once.
Hope this helps!
Jacque in Ohio
www.hfbhaflingers.com
> Say, I'd like all your thoughts on horse chiropractics.
>
> I'm skeptical of it for the same reason my husband (he teaches nursing) and I are -- it won't treat and may worsen an underlying or completely different issue.
>
> AND, since the horse's spine has developed differently from a humans it may be unaffected by manipulation.
>
> Also, without X-rays, how does the chiropractor know what he's treating? Maybe the Chiro. thinks he's helping but isn't accomplishing anything.
>
> Do horse chiropractors work only on the necks? I've looked at diagrams of horse spines and they're way, way under what we see from the outside. I don't see how anyone could work on their backs.
>
> Please, your thoughts.
>
> Marilyn
>
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> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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