10/07/2026
Thanks Amy Skinner for such good words!! It’s time we focus on physical therapy for horses.
Lameness vs compensation or stiffness - pain vs avoidance of new patterns?
Firstly before reading on, I am not a vet. I do not have a vet’s education and you should in no way replace veterinary investigation and support or advice with any thing i say.
But - a lot of times when people find their horse has some hitch in their get along, something has happened to their horse’s gait or normal responses to riding have changed, they fear pain and back off.
While we can never definitively say a horse is not in pain, there is a difference between pain and stiffness, uncertainty, or fear of changing a pattern.
And- even if there WAS pain and it is now treated, those patterns can still exist - leaving with us with a pain response and (assuming) no pain.
Quite often I help people and their horses through these spots, revealing a magically sound horse who was limping, balking, sucking back or unsteady in their gait just a few minutes or days ago-
It’s not magic, it’s mobility and movement patterns.
If the horse is actually lame - say a bone fracture - it will worsen with movement.
If the horse is STIFF or reserved in movement patterns, it should improve pretty soon with GOOD movement, not just moving around.
Where things get tricky is people often say the horse takes 15-20 mins to warm up and move out of it, and often these are sloppy or incorrect warm up patterns. We need to address range of motion, joint flexion, alignment, breathing, and of course most importantly help the horse feel safe in being in these.
To tie it together with a personal example: I found my knees and joints to be very sore and painful suddenly. I started a mobility training program and really disliked the first week of the work - but I was reminded if I feel stiff that is not the same as pain. I worked through it preserving correct range of motion over depth of squat or intensity and so on - two weeks later I already feel “sound” again.
Joints need to work through their correct range of motion, and when a horse hurts, they often protect themselves, often to their own detriment.
Don’t panic. Ride in rhythm - see what you get on the other end and re evaluate
