The Story Behind a Girthy Horse
I recently listened to a podcast I was turned on to by Linda Hauck, the owner of Tapestry Equine Products Inc., a post she wrote on her LinkedIn profile. Sometimes you just randomly run across information so valuable you want to remember every word and at the same time share it with everyone you possibly can all at the same time. This is one of those times.
I’m going to share the podcast so you can listen to Dr. Audrey DeClue in her own words explain how any negative behavior your horse exhibits when saddled is an attempt at communicating to you that it in pain. Right after the podcast, I’ve included some of the notes I wrote down. For more information about Dr. Audrey DeClue and her practice, you can also visit her website: DeClue Equine LLC.
My Notes
A girthy, or cinchy, horse is experiencing pain. The most common areas of pain are:
- Ulcers (stomach or hind-gut): If your horse has ulcers you must ask why are they there? Usually it is a symptom of pain, stress, or anxiety.
- Saddle Fit
- Girth discomfort
- Ribcage – bruised or broken ribs
- Sternum – This flat, triangular muscle lies against the rib cage behind your horse’s foreleg. It fans away from a point on the back of the humerus (the large arm bone below the shoulder) to points along his rib cage and sternum (breastbone) at the midline of the belly.
- Withers
- The muscles between the ribs
- Thoracic vertebra – A horse has an average total of 18 thoracic vertebrae, with five located in the withers.
- Costochondral junction – The costochondral junctions are located between the distal part of the ribs and the costal cartilages, which are bars of hyaline cartilage that connect the ribs to the sternum.
Clinical signs of pain include:
- Tail swish
- Biting at girth
- Moving back
- Sitting back (dog sit)
- Shaking head
- Walking off
Learned Helplessness: A condition in which a person or animal suffers from a sense of powerlessness, arising from a traumatic event or persistent failure to succeed. It is thought to be one of the underlying causes of depression. The person or animal is subject to an adverse stimulus they cannot escape. Eventually they stop responding to the stimulus even when presented with an opportunity to get away from it.
Padding: Unless you’ve already been enlightened to this, your saddle and girth are not padded enough.
Informal Girth Study
After this podcast, Dr. Audrey DeClue conducted an informal girth study of the Tapestry Comfort Girth. I recommend taking a look at the results as well. For full disclosure, I receive no commission or benefit from any purchases through Tapestry Equine Products.
