Bar got his bodywork tonight and aside from his existing confirmation issues--upright front foot on one side, bowed tendon and lower foot on the other--he is sound enough to go back to regular work. He'd appreciate it if I were sound enough to give him regular massage along with that, but we'll get there. Yes, this means I was possibly babying him a little too much. Shocking.
Like most of us, Bar is not 100% perfect or 100% symmetrical. His right shoulder is more heavily muscled, but more flexible; his left shoulder is less muscled and less flexible. None of this makes him un-ridable, and regular work will actually improve his mobility and stability. Getting him in balance really means taking all of this into consideration, helping him feel strong and confident in his own body, and getting him to pay a little more attention to the way his big brown self moves. Karen did say his musculature looks even better than the last time she saw him, so the base we're starting from is a good one.
She dug right into his shoulders and showed me some techniques, pressure points, and stretches to do with him that will help him loosen up. He has a bit of a twist forward on the right (bowed tendon) side, and a hitch up on the left (puffy knee) side. Interestingly enough, that's nearly the opposite of my own back/pelvis twist. Yoga, stretching, and chiropractic work have really helped me gain a lot of strength, mobility and flexibility, so it makes sense that balanced work, stretching, and massage would help him, too.
Bar is not an easy patient, plus it was dinner time, so there was some dancing and pawing. So hard for this horse to relax! (Yes, just like his mom, hush.) But when it came to the magic electrical paddles, he settled right down. Knowing him as well as I do, that means it was doing something he thought felt good--otherwise, there would have been much more objection.
Yes, those are my sunglasses on his nose. Silly Thoroughbred. His future's so bright, he's gotta.. well, you know the rest.
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