Equine Sports Massage Therapy

11/01/2026

The science of pain often misses out on emotional toil of pain for that is measured by the individual who is in pain or discomfort.

As you know i have sciatica at the moment and the response from people who have had it to those who havent is vastly different, people who havent had it often try to imagine it with the description given, yet often they cant imagine a pain that is in an ebb and flow rather than a stop start.

We are programmed to define pain by a scale, usually from a number 1 to 10, yet we know that someones one could be another's 10 yet we often feel more synthetic to the one who is higher on the scale and place our focus on them rather than a recognition that either end of the scale is creating a different thought pattern as to how the brain will try and protect the body.

With horses we often use that scale in their ability to perform, the trooper that soldiers on, the stoic that never tells us anything, and often even if they do alert us to a double figure number on the scale, we often think its a behavioural trait instead of a discomfort within the body.

But we know when we are in pain our world grows smaller as are focus begins to protect that area and our lens cannot think outside of that protection. So why do we not think horses share the same thought pattern.

The biggest thing i see with horses that are in discomfort is control, they are ok while in a routine they recognise but change one thing and its like their world is crashing down, often these are the horses that get labelled, we need to go back to square one, and often its not that they havent learned anything its that the new thing removes a predictable outcome that they recognise

Intermittent pain will have the lable proceed with caution, for a constant pain will make the body adjust to lessen the severity, Intermittent is unpredictable therefore everything could be a trigger.

Hereditary issues can often mean things are ignored as we label young horses quirky and only notice when their quirkiness may affect us when we begin backing , so often the longer term issues get labelled as new, yet our horses have often been given us a nod to discomfort for a long time yet again it is labelled as a behavioural trait rather than a discomfort trait as often that behaviour has been apparent all along.

Science is often needed yet we still need to have the ability to recognise the emotional side of how our horses are coping, we need to be able to not follow a scale of a uniformed chart of what discomfort looks like and simply ask why is the horses behaviour like this.

We often wait along time to ask is it discomfort that may be the cause but what if that was our first question instead of being further down the list.

Pain or discomfort makes the world a little smaller for the body will always be trying to limit further damage by making the world focus entirely on the area it needs to protect.

Ps this is my own opinion of the world I view when working with horses☺️

10/07/2026

Colic isn't a single disease. It's an umbrella term that describes any form of abdominal pain in a horse 🐴

Over 40 different conditions can cause colic, from a simple spasm to a twist that needs surgery.

And from the outside, particularly in the early stages, they can look remarkably similar 🔍

Most horse owners are surprised when I share with them that colic has so many underlying potential causes.

And with well over 1,000,000 horses worldwide affected by colic every year, there’s still so much about colic that I believe owners deserve to know.

So over the next few weeks, I'm going to dive deep on colic, so stay tuned, and in the meantime, I'd love to know - did you already know this about colic, or is this new knowledge for you?

10/05/2026

09/17/2026

YOU CAN LEARN A LOT FROM ONE PHOTO… IF YOU KNOW WHAT YOU’RE LOOKING AT 👀

This is why I take photos from angles that might look a bit random to everyone else.

A top-down view like this gives me a really useful snapshot of the horse’s overall symmetry, muscle development, posture and how the body is sitting around the spine.

In this image I’ve marked out a few of the things I’m visually comparing:

🔴 The midline
Not because I expect a horse to be perfectly straight, but because it gives me a reference point for how the body appears to sit either side of the spine.

🟢 The epaxial musculature
The muscle columns running either side of the thoracic spine. I’m looking at width, development, contour and whether one side appears fuller, flatter or more hollow than the other.

🟡 The shoulder and trunk contours
This can help highlight differences in shape and muscular development through the shoulder girdle and ribcage.

🔵 The overall body outline
Sometimes asymmetry becomes much more obvious when you stop looking at one individual muscle and look at the horse as a whole.

And this is the important bit:

A photo like this does not diagnose anything.

Horses are not perfectly symmetrical. Conformation, stance, camera angle, coat pattern, lighting, workload and even how they’re standing in that exact moment can all change what we see.

But when you combine photographs with:

→ palpation
→ movement assessment
→ posture
→ muscle tone
→ range of motion
→ ridden or performance history
→ owner observations
→ previous veterinary findings

…they become another really useful piece of the puzzle.

I also love using images like this to track horses over time.

Because sometimes the interesting part isn’t what the horse looks like today.

It’s what has changed in 4, 8 or 12 weeks.

Has one side started filling out?
Has the topline changed?
Has a hollow become less obvious?
Has strengthening work actually altered the way the body is developing?

That’s where photographs become incredibly useful.

Assessment isn’t about finding imperfections. It’s about noticing patterns, asking why they might be there, and deciding whether they actually matter.

Sometimes one photograph gives you a very good place to start!

Would you like me to do more of these where I break down exactly what I’m looking at in real assessment photos?

09/06/2026

The Emerging Science of Fascia and Expanding Our Understanding

Modern research has shown that fascia is far more than connective tissue. It forms a continuous body-wide network that senses mechanical forces, communicates with the nervous system, distributes load, stores and returns elastic energy, and adapts to training, injury, and rehabilitation.

Some researchers have even proposed that the fascial network—and perhaps its water-rich extracellular matrix—functions as a highly responsive biological communication system, or even an “antenna” for mechanical information. While this hypothesis remains under active investigation, it reflects just how rapidly our understanding of fascia is evolving.

As scientists continue to study this remarkable tissue, fascia is emerging as one of the most important integrative systems in the horse’s body, influencing movement, coordination, performance, and recovery in ways that were unimaginable only a few decades ago.

Fascia is a Sensory Hub

Many fascial tissues contain substantially more sensory nerve endings than adjacent muscle, including mechanoreceptors that detect tension, pressure, stretch, vibration, and movement. These receptors continuously send information to the nervous system about body position, loading, and movement, contributing to proprioception and motor control.

Rather than acting as an inert wrapping around muscles, fascia functions as an active sensory interface between the body and the nervous system.

Movement begins before muscles contract.

Emerging research suggests that the fascial network is continually maintained under a degree of resting tension, sometimes referred to as pre-stress. This tension may help pre-position and pre-load the body, allowing movement to begin more efficiently.

Instead of movement being initiated solely by muscle contraction, fascia participates in preparing the body for movement while simultaneously providing continuous sensory feedback to the nervous system.

Fascia, it seems, contributes to movement in ways that extend beyond far beyond simply connecting muscles together.

Fascia Transfers Force Throughout the Body

Fascia forms a continuous three-dimensional connective tissue network that links muscles, tendons, ligaments, bones, and organs.

Through this network, fascial pathways distribute force is across multiple regions of the body.

A well-conditioned fascial network improves the efficiency of force transmission, coordination, and movement while also contributing to elastic energy storage and return during locomotion.

Fascia is Dynamic and Adaptable

Fascial tissues constantly respond to movement and loading.

Their mechanical properties change with exercise, training, injury, hydration, age, and recovery stage. Fascia continually remodels in response to the demands placed upon it.

This adaptability helps explain why movement quality, conditioning, recovery, and bodywork can all influence how the body functions.

Fascia Also Has Unique Electrical Properties

Collagen-rich fascial tissues exhibit piezoelectric properties, meaning that mechanical loading can generate tiny electrical potentials within the tissue.

These signals are thought to contribute to cellular communication, tissue adaptation, and remodeling. The water-rich extracellular matrix surrounding fascial tissues also plays an important role in their mechanical and electrical behavior, making this an active area of research in mechanobiology.

An Expanding Understanding

Modern fascia research increasingly recognizes fascia as one of the body’s primary integrative tissues, linking sensation, movement, force transmission, adaptation, and communication. As our understanding continues to expand, fascia is reshaping how we think about equine movement, performance, rehabilitation, and bodywork.

https://koperequine.com/fascias-signaling-molecules/

08/23/2026

08/16/2026

👀 TRAIN YOUR EYE | Part 4: The Tongue

We’re back with Part 4 of the Looking Beyond the Poll series.

We’ve already explored the poll, the TMJ, and the hyoid apparatus, all structures that work closely together.

Today we’re looking at one that’s often overlooked, despite being one of the busiest muscles in the horse’s body…

The tongue.

Most people think of the tongue as something that simply holds the bit.

In reality, it’s involved in swallowing, chewing, breathing, communication, and maintaining normal function of the hyoid apparatus.

Every movement of the tongue influences the hyoid.

Every movement of the hyoid influences the surrounding muscles and fascia.

And because the hyoid is connected to the poll, jaw and cervical region, changes in one area can influence the others.

That doesn’t mean the tongue is a/the problem, but it does mean it deserves more attention than it often gets.

👀 What might you notice?

Sometimes horses with altered tongue function may show signs such as:

• Playing excessively with the bit
• Tongue over the bit or out of the side of the mouth
• Inconsistent contact
• Difficulty chewing evenly
• Opening the mouth or crossing the jaw
• Difficulty softening through the jaw
• Resistance during flexion
• Increased poll or throatlatch tension

Again… These aren’t diagnoses.

A horse showing these behaviours could be responding to dental discomfort, inappropriate bitting, rider influence, TMJ restriction, hyoid dysfunction, pain elsewhere in the body, or many other factors.

The tongue is simply one part of a much bigger system.

One of the reasons I love studying this area is because it reminds us not to become fixated on symptoms.

If a horse constantly plays with the bit, we shouldn’t immediately ask:

“What bit should I buy?”

Instead, we should be asking:

Why might this horse be using its tongue like this?

Is it trying to avoid pressure?

Is chewing uncomfortable?

Is the hyoid moving freely?

Is the TMJ comfortable?

Is there tension through the cervical muscles?

Is something further back in the body influencing what’s happening at the front?

Those are the questions that move us from simply managing signs to understanding the horse in front of us.

The tongue isn’t just a muscle inside the mouth.

It’s part of a highly coordinated network that links breathing, swallowing, posture and movement.

Understanding those connections helps us become better observers and ultimately better advocates for our horses.

In Part 5, we’ll move into the muscular connections of the neck and explore how the sternocephalicus, brachiocephalicus and surrounding cervical musculature influence everything we’ve discussed so far.

Because the horse doesn’t move in isolated parts.

Everything is connected!

🧠 Has your horse ever played with the bit, put its tongue over the bit, or seemed inconsistent in the contact? What was the underlying cause? I’d love to hear your experiences in the comments.