Frances Stokesberry BHS Accredited Professional Coach Stage 3

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URGENT APPEAL TO HELP AVOID LAMINITIS !

The grass has gone mad lately here in the UK, with the moisture in the ground and now the sun and temperatures warming up.

Sadly the same old dangerous nutribaloney has been circulating....

PLEASE do not believe that sprinkling a bit of this or that (e.g. salt, magnesium oxide, green clay, pre/probiotics, metabolic-supporting herbs) will stop your horse or pony getting laminitis.

Care for your horse or pony and reduce laminitis risk by what you REMOVE from their diet, NOT what you ADD.

Keep your horse healthy and help avoid laminitis by:
1. keeping them slim with low body fat covering (can you feel their ribs easily?)
2. taking action NOW if they're too fat, by reducing calorie intake (grass restriction, soaking hay/adding straw weighing forage etc)
3. RESTRICT their grass intake by area, strip grazing, grazing muzzle or any other strategy

And feed them a well-balanced diet with appropriate salt, minerals and herbs of your choice if you wish.

You will NOT make lush (or long) free choice grass safe by adding minerals or anything else to their diet.

Please help me share the word. Thank you
🐴🍏

𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝐔𝐩𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞: 𝐀𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐣𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐞𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐬? 🦴🐴

Equine osteoarthritis is one of the most common chronic conditions affecting horses (Baccarin et al., 2022). So naturally, we’re always looking for ways to manage it, especially in our equine athletes and aging horses who experience higher joint strain.

One of the most common questions I get during consults is about oral joint supplements. They’re appealing for good reason: non-invasive, easy to feed, and widely available. But they’re also expensive and the science behind them has been mixed.

In fact, one study found 48% of horse owners felt there wasn’t enough research to support joint supplement efficacy, yet 90% were still willing to use them for prevention or treatment (Swirsley et al., 2017). That gap likely comes from the mindset “They might not help, but they won’t hurt.”

And that’s understandable when you’re dealing with a condition as common and impactful as osteoarthritis, doing something feels better than doing nothing.

But here’s the good news 👇
Researchers at Michigan State University have been working to give us clearer answers, and a newly published study is helping move the conversation forward (Harbowy et al., 2026). Article linked in comments!

➡️ Let’s break down what this new research actually tells us…

🔬 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐌𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐝𝐬 (𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐲 𝐢𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬!)
Researchers at Michigan State University evaluated 40 horses with chronic lameness (AAEP 2–4) associated with osteoarthritis.

Horses were carefully balanced by age, body condition, weight, and anticipated workload, then assigned to:
• A joint supplement group (Cosequin ASU)
• A control group (placebo; all-purpose flour)

To strengthen the study, each of these groups were further divided into two sub-groups and assigned different colors and scented additives to keep the treatments blinded and also create the perception there were four treatments to rule out any bias.

This is a strong experimental design addressing common issues seen in supplement research such as small sample sizes, lack of controls, and bias. This is important because the quality of the design determines how well we can interpret and ultimately trust the results.

𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐬
Horses were evaluated every other week over 6 weeks and numerous variables were considered at each timepoint:

Lameness Grade: Treatment did not impact lameness grade (P>0.05) but all horses showed improvements between day 0 and 28 (P=0.045).

Forelimb Vector Sum: Horses on the oral joint supplement had greater forelimb asymmetry than those in the control group (P=0.042).

Pelvic Height: Treatment did not impact minimum or maximum pelvic height.

Stride Length: The stride length at the walk and trot did not differ between treatments.

𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐮𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧
𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒎𝒆𝒂𝒏?
Overall, the oral joint supplement did not contribute to any positive changes in horses with osteoarthritis. These findings are not surprising and do align with previous research. While in vitro (cell culture) studies showed promise, studies completed in vivo (in the horse) had unclear clinical implications.

𝑾𝒉𝒚 𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓?
Joint supplements are a huge supplement category and historically have contributed to 34% of supplement sales (Oke et al., 2010). This is likely because equine osteoarthritis is the leading cause of lameness in horses (McIlwraith et al. 2012). This degenerative joint disease has been shown to affect an estimated 50% of horses over the age of 15 and up to 90% of horses 30 years and older (van Weeren et al., 2016).

𝐌𝐲 𝐓𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬
Overall, the evidence suggests that joint supplements may not be a worthwhile investment. Instead, focus on:

🥗 Balancing the diet to ensure nutrient requirements are met and the horse maintains a healthy weight.

🏡 Ensuring housing emphasizes adequate turnout time instead of prolonged stall confinement

🐎 Building exercise programs that include warm-up and cool down-periods and focus on consistent low impact movement, strengthening exercises, cross training, and proper conditioning

𝐁𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐨𝐦 𝐋𝐢𝐧𝐞: While feeding a joint supplement may be easy, a well-rounded and holistic management approach is more likely to support your horse’s joint health in the long run.

* I’ll add that, yes, this study evaluated a single supplement. However, many joint supplements on the market contain similar ingredients, often at even lower inclusion rates. While I’ll continue digging into the literature, there currently isn’t strong, consistent evidence identifying a specific ingredient or combination that reliably improves osteoarthritis outcomes in horses. And realistically, if a clearly effective option existed, it would be widely recognized and supported by the research at this point.

But now I am curious - Do you currently feed a joint supplement and will this impact your decision to use one in the future?

Cheers,
Dr. DeBoer

Baccarin, RYA, Seidel SRT, Michelacci YM, Tokawa PKA, Oliveira TM. Osteoarthritis: A common disease that should be avoided in the athletic horse’s life. Anim. Front. 2022;12:25–36.

Swirsley N, Spooner HS, Hoffman RM. Supplement use and perceptions: a study of US horse owners. Journal of equine veterinary science. 2017 Dec 1;59:34-39.

Harbowy RM, Robison CI, Tillman I, Manfredi JM, Nielsen BD. Efficacy of an oral chondroprotective joint supplement on stride length and gait symmetry in aged geldings with chronic lameness. Animals. 2026;6(8):1230.

Oke S, McIlwraith CW. Review of the economic impact of osteoarthritis and oral joint supplement use in horses. AAEP Proc. 2010;56:12-16.

McIlwraith CW, Frisbie DD, Kawcak CE. The horse as a model of naturally occurring osteoarthritis. Bone Joint Res. 2012;1(11):297–309.

van Weeren PR, Back W. Musculoskeletal disease in aged horses and its management. Vet. Clin. N. Am. Equine Pract. 2016;32:229-247.

🐴 Small Change, Big Impact: What’s Under Your Roller Matters!

🔬New research led by Animalweb expert Prof. Roberta Blake has revealed that something as simple as the pad under your training roller can have a huge impact on your horse’s comfort.

🔍 Researchers found:
Purpose-made roller pads reduced pressure by up to 75–82%
Even a folded saddle cloth made a difference
Pad choice also affected how pressure is distributed across the back

💡 This could have important implications for comfort, movement, and long-term back health especially when using systems like the Pessoa.

👉 A small change in tack could make a big difference to your horse’s welfare.

Click the link below to explore the full findings and what they mean for your horse
🔗https://askanimalweb.com/new-study-highlights-impact-of-roller-pads-on-pressure-and-horse-comfort-during-lunging/

Pole Work: Why It’s So Powerful (and Why Less Is More)

Pole work is far more valuable than perhaps is realised. Involving the central nervous system and requiring precise limb coordination, pole work is a highly demanding neuromuscular task that challenges the horse’s body and brain at the same time.

Pole work is excellent for:
• Proprioception
• Rehab & Pre-hab
• Strengthening propulsive muscles
• Improving joint range of motion (ROM)
• Postural and spinal stability

Horses cannot see their feet near the pole, so they rely on visual proprioception as they approach- meaning accuracy comes from neurological control, not eyesight.

And don’t just watch the swinging limb — the stance limb is doing the real work. The limb in stance provides trunk stability while the opposite limb clears the pole.

I.e- If you want to strengthen the right hind, you can raise the pole on the left side, increasing weight-bearing time on the right.

Ground poles
• Greatest flexion occurs at the fetlock
• Improves ROM at fetlock, carpus/hock, elbow/stifle
• Effective in walk and trot

Raised poles
• Increase flexion further
• Increase body sway as the trunk stabilises mediolaterally
• Significantly more demanding — use sparingly

If in doubt: start with poles placed on the ground. The spacing for walk poles should be slightly shorter than the horse’s usual walk stride. No need to rush the horse, there is greater benefit from going slow.

Research shows pole work:
• Improves joint ROM without significantly increasing ground reaction forces
• Encourages spinal stabilisation, not excessive movement
• Activates the multifidus (a key deep stabiliser that anticipates movement before it happens)

Studies by Dr Russell McKechnie-Guire and Dr Narelle Stubbs show that:

• Pole work and dynamic stability (baited stretches) exercises both increase multifidus cross-sectional area
• Longissimus activity does not significantly change
• A combined approach is highly effective for posture and spinal support

Pole work is hard work. Signs of fatigue:

• Knocking poles
• Loss of rhythm
• Reduced accuracy

If you hear poles being hit, stop — that’s a strong fatigue marker. Always monitor the horse’s capacity.

In-Hand vs Ridden

• In-hand pole work is invaluable — so much so that Dr Russell McKechnie-Guire states he would often choose it over a ridden session
• With a rider, biomechanical demands increase significantly
• Rider weight is magnified through the spine (≈2× in walk, 2.5× in canter)
• Rising trot introduces asymmetry; light seat is more symmetrical and lower pressure

Long ridden pole clinics correlate with increasing fatigue and pole taps — something to be very mindful of.

🟢 Practical Take-Home

• Present straight to the poles
• Use shorter distances (~85% of step length) for better spinal stability
• Walk slowly for best results
• Start with ground poles before raised poles
• Progress by:
– Increasing number of poles
– Raising poles
– Altering spacing (irregular patterns)
🟩 Slow. Low. Short.

Pole work is incredibly valuable — when used thoughtfully.

🐥HAPPY EASTER
Wishing everyone (horses and humans) a lovely Easter