The Sports Therapist comes...

Nox has been sore and clearly uncomfortable for a few weeks.  I couldn't quite tell what was wrong, but I could see that his back end wasn't looking or moving right.  The muscles just looked... weird.  When I tried to ride, Nox tossed his head and hollowed his back as soon as I settled in the saddle - a clear sign that he was hurting.  I spent a few weeks with him on light duty and only doing ground work, but I still thought his back end was off. 

Finally, I made an appointment with Allison, an equine sports therapist.  She does a combination of massage therapy, chiropractic work, and stretches - and I've been told that she can work miracles.  Allison started out working on the racetracks, so she is very familiar with racehorses, and she was delighted with Nox when she met him last Friday.  He was equally delighted with her, which set me at ease right away.  For two hours, Allison worked on Nox, stretching and massaging spasmed muscles, popping bones and joints back into place, and aligning his spine.  She is my size, but she bent and twisted Nox around like he wasn't a giant 1200 lb Thoroughbred.  At one point, she stood behind him, grabbed his tail, and leaned back with all her weight, and I could hear and feel the pops up his spine.  

After two hours, Allison asked me to free lunge him and trot him in a circle so she could watch him move.  He practically floated around the ring!  The muscles in his back legs looked normal and his joints were moving correctly.  Satisfied, Allison told me that I needed to ride Nox every day for at least half an hour for a week.  She explained that he will still think that he's in pain, and I need to convince him otherwise by riding everyday and pushing him through his hesitation.  Well, you don't have to tell me twice!

I rode that day and he didn't toss his head or hollow his back.  He did hesitate a little as I pushed him into a trot, but we kept at it and his gaits started to smooth out as he relaxed.  He felt like a different horse.  He was clearly feeling better the next day, because he was a bit more frisky - bucking and dancing around the ring.  Today, I rode in the outdoor ring with another boarder and Nox was pretty good.  He still had a little hesitation, but we worked through it.  Best Husband Ever came out to watch and he took a few photos.  I'm so relieved that Nox is feeling better!  We are on our way to the next phase of training and work!



Best Husband Ever calls this photo "Kicking Up Dust".



Note the tongue hanging out his mouth.