Equine Hydrotherapy

So what is Hydrotherapy?, Hydrotherapy uses water for treatment of injuries, it can be as simple as cold hosing an inflamed leg or more technical for instance the use of the aqua trainer to treat an injury. Before all the technical Hydrotherapy equipment was available to horse owners horses would have been taken to cold lakes or seas to stand in to help reduce the inflammatory, sea salts especially have an anti-inflammatory effect which facilitates healing and helps to guard the horse from further injuries (CET equine spa, 2002-2015). Modern hydrotherapy uses chilled saline water applied in water jets to the lower legs. This strengthens the tissues, reduces inflammation, swelling and pain (Equine Natural Health, 2014). Cold therapy also decreases the permeability of the blood vessel walls, limiting the flow of enzymes that sound the alarm and thus reducing the amount of fluid that accumulates in the area (The Horse,1999).

 

The buoyancy of the water is the upward thrust that acts on the horses body. This aids the rehabilitation of the equine because it allows the patient to be exercised in an upright position, where the joints are non weight-bearing. Which means reduced impact on the tissues and, therefore, a reduction in stress and pain to the affected area.( Vet Times, 2009). This encourages an increased range of movement throughout the horses body.

 

In our Hydrotherapy Centre we have many great facilities to offer: aqua trainer, pool, solarium and the equine spa. Each of these facilities can be used on their own or alongside each other. The pool is brilliant for keeping horses fit throughout an injury as it allows them to exercise without exerting weight on to their limbs, therefore this prevents any further damage but maintains their fitness levels.

 

Water treadmills are used widely in rehabilitation centres for horses with poor performance caused by a stiffened back. Water provides buoyancy and assists the horse in lifting the limbs in the vertical plane, it may also create resistance to movement of the limbs in the sagittal plane (King et al., 2013).