You work tirelessly, day after day.
Continued education any chance you get.
You signed up for this for the horses.
To make a difference.
Customizing every piece of equipment so you’re not to blame for the saddle not fitting just right.
Tirelessly working at taking away the tension in the muscles so you’re not to blame when they don’t perform just right.
Taking every last measurement to get the hoof angles as good as you can, so you’re not to blame for soundness problems.
Making every diagnostic effort in your toolbox so you’re not to blame for not catching that tendon injury before it happens.
But who advocates for you?
When does the table get to turn to shed light on the fact that you’re up against impossible odds nearly all of the time?
You’re a professional, not a miracle worker.
You play the endless game of whack a mole and band-aids and then get blamed when it goes to shit.
Asymmetry in the shoulders, dis-integrity in the spine and an under developed thoracic sling is an epidemic in our industry.
Fact.
All of which can be remedied through correct development training.
They cannot be developed, with simply a good saddle, good feet, consistent bodywork and routine Vet care.
It has to be done in the day to day work.
You will never get a saddle just right when the horse is not developed to hold the saddle.
And if you do manage to find a unicorn who can fit the asymmetry, it won’t fit for long because the compensatory patterns will start shifting and changing the fit.
Your bodyworker will never get a body that KEEPS the correct muscles “turned on” and the tension/compensatory patterns cleared if you’re not changing how the horse is using their body.
You will never get hooves perfectly balanced.
Hooves grow from pressure, and your farrier will always be correcting to what is going on in the shoulder.
Heel first/toe first landing comes just as much from the sling as it does from the feet.
Your Veterinarian can do every range of imaging and injections known to man, but they cannot change how your horse is loading its joints out of compensation and lack of development.
This sport is a team effort.
We need to stop the culture of blaming the support team for flaws in the horse.
It’s why I preach correct development so hard and do what I can to educate anyone who’s willing to listen.
We wouldn’t train for any sport without also educating ourselves on how to train our bodies for correct movement.
Why are our horses any different?
Every ride, we have the opportunity to ride our horses a little more into soundness.
