Feeding Positioning

🐴🥕Feed Positioning🥕🐴

Now we are immersed within one of the toughest times of the year for our horses, and obviously not forgetting us -the housekeeping staff that most of us are for our horses! Turnout is limited for most and for some, they do not get to go out at all.

Over the past few weeks one of things that I’ve seen a drastic increase in (along with some serious stiffness and reduced flexibility issues), is with horses suffering from increased tension within their TMJ, necks and backs.  The only factor that has changed for most of these horses is that, as just mentioned, turnout has ceased or is extremely limited, meaning the natural grazing posture for which they would spend around 15 hours a day in, is no longer and is replaced by hours of constant tugging hay/haylage. For some horses this is through some of the smallest holed hay-nets I have ever come across. With some haylage options being coarse and wet this makes the tugging forces drastically increase.  The nets are then usually placed within the same location within the stable, this then means constant tugging to one side, for many hours at a time, creating extreme tension within the neck and back, uneven wear patterns in the teeth, tension within the TMJ, hollowing of the back -by which the dorsal spinal processes can be pushed closer together which may place increased pressure on the spinal cord and associated nerves, possibly then increasing risk of back disorders such as kissing spines. It goes without saying that then these can create discomfort and pain for the horse leading then to pain associated behaviour and reduced performance. 

🙏 If possible, by far the best way to feed is from the floor- this is the natural grazing position that allows for lengthening, stretching and free movement of most of the muscles within the extensor chain along the topline of the horses the neck and back -allowing then for correct alignment of the vertebral column, reducing pressure on the musculature system, creating a nice contraction of the abdominal muscles and resulting in a natural lifting of the back and abdomen. I have also found that horses with respiratory problems have also massively benefitted from floor feeding as this position also maintains clearer sinuses -through promoting natural gravitational drainage.

Credit source of spinal vertebrae image to Tuskey Dressage 

You can see here clear hollowing of the back 🥺, this picture was taken briefly for demonstrative purposes only!