First of all, let's begin by discussing the difference between Active and Passive Stretching Exercises.

Active Stretching is when the horse stretches by the guidance of a person. It can be while riding, or by getting the horse to move in a certain way on it's own (such as getting the horse to stretch his neck by holding out a carrot).

Passive Stretching is when the person physically moves the horse's body for him - usually done with the legs and tail.





The purpose of this lesson is to discuss and demonstrate the proper way to perform equine stretching exercises on the ground.

Riding exercises are too involved to describe on this website and are better to be understood from a good book such as:


"Stretch Exercises for your Horse"
- by Karin Blignault.




Most of the exercises that I will be presenting are in the Passive Stretching category. Only a few will be in the Active Stretching category.

Proper care needs to be taken when applying passive stretching to a horse. In fact, Karin Blignault says on page 40 of her book that "Passive stretching can be dangerous and can cause injury if performed incorrectly. It is very much preferable that anyone seeking to carry out passive stretching should first gain experience by observing and being guided by a qualified therapist".

I tend to agree with Karin. As I stated earlier, I see more people "stretch" their horse incorrectly than I see doing it correctly. I think many people think that horses are big and it is hard to hurt them, but that is not true. Improper stretching can cause muscle damage. Overstretching a muscle can cause it to go into a spasm. If you continue to pull on a spasm, you will most likely tear some of the muscle tissue or possibly cause a pulled muscle injury.


For more information about equine stretching exercises, please read the next page - Equine Stretching Tips and Techniques

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