ASKHQ: VACCINATION SITES

Q: Why do some vets vaccinate horses in different parts of the body, such as the chest and hindquarters, rather than just the neck? A: Most equine vaccinations need to be given by injection into the muscle. It doesn’t really matter which muscle it is, but larger muscle groups are commonly used as there’s more space…

BylizzieMay 13, 20250Comments

Horse Health

IN KNOTS – TYING UP

Tying up was once thought of as a racehorse-only muscle disease, but we now know that more equines are at risk of tying up than we originally thought, including those in low levels of work. What is tying up? Tying up is a muscle disease of horses, known in technical terminology as exertional rhabdomyolysis. More colloquially,…

BylizzieMarch 18, 20250Comments

Horse Health

WHAT IS FASCIA? AND HOW DO WE KEEP IT HEALTHY?

Fascia is a thin casing of connective tissue surrounding, supporting, and holding every organ, blood vessel, bone, nerve, and muscle. Yet this tissue does more than just provide structure; it has nerves that make it almost as sensitive as skin, and it is designed to move with the muscles and tissues. Although fascia looks like one…

BylizzieMarch 4, 20250Comments

Ask HQ

ASKHQ: WHEN SHOULD YOU BACK YOUR HORSE?

Q: Why are some people choosing to back their horses later? A: In recent years, many people are choosing to back their horses later than was traditionally done. This shift is largely influenced by growing awareness of the horse’s physical and mental development in these key areas: Joint and skeletal maturity Horses’ bones, joints, and ligaments…

BylizzieOctober 18, 20240Comments

Ask HQ Horse Channel Horse Health

ASKHQ: FEEDING FOR MUSCLE

Q: How do I feed my horse to build muscle for eventing using nutrition? A: It goes without saying that building muscle requires correct work, so nutrition is not going to be the only piece of the puzzle. Eventing is also a ‘multi-discipline’ sport so your horse is going to need to cross-train to really start…

BylizzieFebruary 13, 20210Comments

Ask HQ Horse Channel Horse Health

ASKHQ: WARM-UP

Q: Why is the warm-up important? A: Firstly, a horse’s metabolism levels increase when you warm up. Through this process energy becomes more easily accessible for the muscles, preparing them for the harder work expected of them during a workout. Secondly, the amount of oxygenated blood that goes to the muscles increases. Blood vessels widen and the…

BylizzieMay 3, 20200Comments

Ask HQ Horse Channel Horse Health Horse Training Know How

ASKHQ: HQHACK1000

Q: Why should I do #HQHack1000? Asked by an imaginary friend for the purposes of advocating hacking… A: #HQHack1000 is a country-wide equestrian challenge. The goal is to hack 1,000km in your chosen horse-rider combination. This can be done over any time period. All you need to do is to track your own distance and keep us…

BylizzieSeptember 22, 20190Comments

Horse Channel Horse Training Know How

MUSCLE UP: CONDITIONING YOUR HORSE

Conditioning muscles, as with most other work with horses, therefore, relies on a consistent, progressive programme [dropcap]M[/dropcap]uscle is the most adaptive tissue in the body in that it can grow and develop with training and degenerate and become weaker during periods of inactivity. Trained muscle is more efficient because: It has an increased number in the…

BylizzieMarch 12, 20180Comments

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