"The horse's muscles provide the earliest indications of anxiety. Muscular tonus is closely involved with variations in its psychological state. It is important to recognise that emotional equilibrium is as vital to optimum sporting performance as the physiological readiness of [...]
Workshop review by Georgia Lillie: ‘The Colourful Trial of Form vs Function’
Meeting someone you hold in high esteem always comes with excitement, anxiousness and expectations. I had read her reports, googled her for months and listened to amazing stories from Cat on her knowledge, skill and empathy. What I had expected [...]
The horse’s back as an emotional filter
"In the horse, as with human beings, where the process is well understood and plays a large part in everyday medical general practice, emotional and psychomotor problems reveal themselves in the back. When we are under constant tension, and stressed [...]
Riding Past Anxiety: A guest post by Georgia Lillie
Riding out with my husband, James, on a beautiful Sunday, his horse, Cagie, starts playing up - nothing out of the ordinary, a bit of head tossing, chomping on the bit, ‘come on, let’s go, I’m feeling fresh’. James rides [...]
Bad behaviour, or back pain?
Too often I see horses being punished for being naughty, resistant, or just not good enough. Nothing really seems to be wrong, but the horse is acting up or failing to perform for no apparent reason…or is it? Back and [...]