Dr Sue Dyson 2 - The Horse Physio - Sue Palmer

Category: Dr Sue Dyson

13.1.2022 Gastric Ulceration And Musculoskeletal Pain

By Sue Palmer on January 13, 2022

A Guest Blog By Dr Sue Dyson Since the advent of gastroscopy – passing a long telescope-like instrument into a horse’s stomach in order to assess the stomach lining – we have become aware of the high frequency of occurrence of gastric ulcers in horses from all sorts of work disciplines. These ulcers tend to […]

13.12.2021 The Noseband Controversy

By Sue Palmer on December 13, 2021

A Guest Blog by Sue Dyson There is considerable controversy about the use of different types of nosebands, their tightness and potential to cause harm. Several recent studies explored the use of different noseband types and their fitting with the presence or absence of lesions within the mouth, with rather confusing results. Alongside these have […]

13.11.22021 Does your horse canter normally?

By Sue Palmer on November 13, 2021

A Guest Blog By Sue Dyson A normal pain-free horse should be able to establish and maintain canter on the left and right reins with equal ease. As a rider you should feel that your pelvis is rocked backwards and forwards while the horse is in canter. The horse should feel powerful, pushing well from […]

13.10.2021 Guest Blog from Dr Sue Dyson

By Sue Palmer on October 13, 2021

Indicators from a rider’s perspective that something may be wrong By Dr Sue Dyson Sometimes a horse’s ridden performance changes without there being any obvious signs of what the underlying problem may be. Frequently this is due to low grade lameness which the horse effectively obscures by adapting its movement, most notably by stiffening the […]

13.9.2021 How should a normal horse feel to ride?

By Sue Palmer on September 13, 2021

It may seem a simplistic question to ask how a normal horse should feel to a rider, but I have observed that many riders are unaware how a horse free from musculoskeletal pain should perform. This is either because they have never had the opportunity to ride a pain-free horse, or because they have become accustomed to riding horses that have adapted their movement to minimise discomfort.

25.4.2021 Guest Blog from Dr Sue Dyson

By Sue Palmer on April 25, 2021

An ethogram is a series of behaviours each with strict definitions, for example ears back behind a vertical position for five seconds or more. The Ridden Horse Pain Ethogram (RHpE) was developed to facilitate the recognition of discomfort in ridden horses, which was likely to reflect either primary musculoskeletal pain or discomfort caused by the […]

The Importance of Good Saddle Fit, by Dr Sue Dyson

By Sue Palmer on March 26, 2021

A study of 63 horses, in normal work and presumed by their owners to be working comfortably, was performed and we showed that the average changes in back dimensions were greater in horses working correctly compared with those not working correctly. The changes were also influenced by rider skill. Rider ability was categorised as: good - the rider was consistently in rhythm and balance, was sympathetic and showed correct use of the aids; moderate – the rider had knowledge of the basic principles of riding ‘on the bit’, but lacked core strength and stability, or did not consistently apply the aids correctly; and poor – the rider had poor knowledge or ability to ride a horse ‘on the bit’ and / or was very unbalanced. The changes in back dimensions were greatest for the good riders and smallest for the poorly skilled riders.

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