Equine veterinary chiropractic care is the fundamental core of Pacific Northwest Equine’s approach to holistic horse health care.  Dr. DePaolo has developed a very comprehensive approach to his veterinary chiropractic treatments. His chiropractic care is more than “fixing” a sore back, it is a detailed approach to each horse as an individual. The entire spine, muscle structure and extremities are addressed. Your horse will NOT be tranquilized or restrained and all adjustments are performed by hand. NO mallets, implements, devices or standing platforms are used.

To begin, Dr. DePaolo performs a thorough physical exam of your horse to find the areas causing pain. He then works from head to tail, including picking up all four legs, to restore balance and motion to the musculoskeletal  system.  Dr. DePaolo will then ask your horse to bend using 4 different carrot stretches. He will then go through a final exam to find out if your horse needs acupuncture to treat any trigger points or health concerns. Horses demonstrating issues which need further evaluation with x-rays, ultrasounds, etc., will be referred to the appropriate veterinary clinic for treatment. The average appointment takes 30-45 minutes per horse.

     Equine Veterinary Chiropractic Treatments Address:

1. •  Decreased performance   
   

2. •  Shoulder, back and hip pain
   

3. •  Difficulty standing for the farrier             
   

4. •  Overall stiffness or stiffness to one side
   

5. •  Gait abnormalities or short striding   
   

6. •  Horses that seem “off”
   

7. •  Hollowing back or loss of collection   
   

8. •  Head tossing and/or tail wringing
   

9. •  Resentment during grooming/saddling   
   

10. •  Pinched nerves
    

11. •  Arthritic symptoms               
    

12. •  Recovery from post-surgery                   
    

13. •  Muscle spasms
    

14. •  Jaw, TMJ or chewing problems
    

15. •  Behavioral changes (cinchy, bucking, kicking out)
    

16. •  Inability to pick up leads or cross cantering
    

Getting The Best Treatment Response

Know what good chiropractic is! There are a growing number of people calling themselves chiropractors who have minimal training. Since chiropractors are working with the musculoskeletal system, this can be extremely dangerous to your horse. The practitioner should be a veterinarian or human chiropractor who has studied equine chiropractic, knows equine anatomy, and considers equine chiropractic to be their career. Your horse will enjoy proper treatments. Horses should lick and chew after every adjustment, their eyes will soften, and they will become relaxed.

Dr. DePaolo asks that you give your horse 24-48 hours off after a treatment. He recommends turnout during the time off, as movement will help keep residual soreness at a minimum. Another key ingredient to assist with muscle soreness is baking soda. Adding a tablespoon to your horses’ grain for 10 days after the treatment is the best way to pull lactic acid out of the muscle. Do not use phenylbutazone (Bute) as it is very hard on the digestive system. Continue with carrot stretches before riding to help your horse stay limber.

Equine Veterinary Chiropractic Philosophy

For over 100 years, chiropractic care has been used to treat vetebral subluxations (misalignment of the spine) in both humans and animals. Subluxations affect the nervous system, local muscles, joints and even distant organs, glands, and body functions. Horses go out of alignment regularly due to riding, training, hauling, falling, inflammation, as well as many other reasons. Equine veterinary chiropractic care promotes proper function of the musculoskeletal system which allows the rest of the body, particularly the nervous system, to function properly. Since the nerves that exit the spinal cord contain the nerve supply to the internal organs, freeing up the joints with chiropractic adjustments makes these nerves healthier. When this happens, the body is able to heal itself, fight disease and maintain optimal health. The goal of each treatment is to restore normal mobility to the joint, thereby stimulating normal neurological reflexes and reducing pain and muscle spasm. Therefore, in addition to removing pain and improving performance, veterinary chiropractic assists in maintaining overall equine health.