Question and Interview
The first step in equine evaluation is the Question and Interview. This is when you ask the owner of the horse why they think their horse needs therapy.
If you are working on your own horse, you will already know why you are applying therapy, but going over some questions in your head will help you possibly come up with some possible causes and solutions. So, don't completely skip this step.
Some questions would be:
* When did the problem start?
Is this a new problem, or an ongoing condition? If new, you may want to seek veterinarian advice first.
* Do you have any idea what could be causing the problem?
Sometimes owners have a gut intuition, or they may know exactly what caused it. Sometimes they don't have a clue, or maybe they just got the horse and know nothing of it's background.
* Does the horse's saddle and tack fit properly?
You may even want to look for yourself, some people don't know how to fit a saddle. Saddle fit problems account for a lot of horses with back problems and horses who ride with a high head.
* What is the horse used for?
(competition, trail riding, dressage, hunter, western pleasure, reining, etc.) This will give you an idea of how hard the horse works, how often, etc.
* What is the experience level of the person who rides the horse most often?
A lot of the problems horses have can be from the way they are ridden. For instance, a horse ridden by a very inexperienced or poor rider could have a sore back due to the rider having a bouncy, unbalanced seat.
* Has the horse recently been seen by a veterinarian?This is important if the horse has suffered an injury or has recently been ill. As mentioned before, horses should not be worked on if they are presenting a
contraindication for equine massage therapy without first receiving the approval of a qualified veterinarian.
Other things you might want to check for would be when the last time the horse had his teeth checked and his feet trimmed. Or, does he wear shoes. If so, are they used to them, have they recently been put on or taken off?
There are multiple different questions you can ask based on the complaint provided. This is just an example of some common questions to ask. Use your intuition and common sense to ask whatever question might give you more information.
Once your question and interview is finished, you can then go onto the next step of an equine evaluation:
