Chiropractic | God's Window Senior Horse Rehab

What Maya’s Rehab Looked Like

March 27, 2019 by Mary Walby

10/5/18

Of all the senior horses I’ve rehabbed, Maya is the first one who had significant internal issues involving the organs, namely the kidney. As I look back, it was a race against time. The good news is that with chiropractic care alone, we did see a change in urination. Before she spiked her first fever 2 months in, she was having what I call “medium urinations” with some regularity a few weeks before, whereas when she first came it had been a dribble. And we later found out that her uterus was no longer full of urine. That was cause for celebration.

Meanwhile, about one month in I found a homeopathic/Chinese medicine vet who gave me the most hope in perhaps solving the urinary incontinence/kidney issue. She said there were numerous remedies in homeopathy, and six different Chinese herbs for treating the urinary incontinence. I was thrilled, to say the least, that there were at least options available to help Maya, when western medicine had none.

Unfortunately, we were only able to scratch the surface on the available treatments before Maya was on and off antibiotics trying to treat the recurring infections to keep her stable enough to even try the homeopathy and Chinese herbs.

In addition, in holistic rehab, knowing the patient is paramount to selecting the appropriate treatment. When Maya came, I did not know her at all. There was a moment early on when I realized, I need to really know you, so I can help you, and ultimately, you will die in my care, and that may be sooner than later.

I wanted to know her for who she was at her core, not for what she could do for me, and with no expectations from me. I let her make most of the decisions, even when it contradicted my training. Without a doubt, I listened to her voice in ways I’ve never done with any other horse. Letting her tell me what she needed was the best way to navigate the tight rope we were walking.

Horses are also masters at hiding their pain, so just figuring out there is a problem and how significant it is, can be challenging. Hindsight is often 20/20 vision.

In the end, I would do it again, simply because Maya had several weeks of freedom to just be a horse with horse friends and no human expectations. I know she was very happy having met her new best friend, my other horse, Chaco. And she died in the most natural of environments I could give her: outside with her herd.

Why Chiropractic for Horses?

July 14, 2015May 31, 2015 by Mary Walby

Here at God’s Window, everything is about creating optimal health in horses on all levels: mentally, emotionally and physically. Chiropractic can affect all three of these areas. When you feel well physically, your mental and emotional states improve. The same is true of horses, and that is why chiropractic is a regular part of our horses’ maintenance care.

When you were first conceived and your cells divided, one of the earliest systems to start developing was the nervous system. Nerves go to every part of the body, and chiropractic addresses the proper function of the nervous system by ensuring that the spine is aligned. When the spine is aligned, then the nervous system can operate at full capacity, and the body’s natural healing capability will be at its best.

Some horses receive chiropractic care because of an acute situation or trauma. Chiropractic can be very helpful in those situations. However, chiropractic is even more powerful when maintained on a regular basis because often times those acute situations don’t even arise because the body is already functioning optimally.

This is what makes God’s Window different. We want horses to function optimally on all levels, and be fully alive the way God created them to be. Therefore, regular chiropractic maintenance is part of their care. If an acute situation comes up we address it, and the chiropractor will make an extra visit. However, we don’t save chiropractic for only an emergency or acute problem. We use it as a preventative measure.

When you keep the spine and nervous system tuned up, you optimize the natural healing capability of the body. This promotes optimal health and wellness, and there’s nothing more beautiful to see than a fully alive horse who wants to engage with you. Now that is heaven on earth.

To see a horse received a chiropractic adjustment, click here.

Introduction to Chiropractic

December 21, 2014December 21, 2014 by Mary Walby

My first year of horse ownership was a straight-up learning curve about how to care for horses. However, it was not just any horse, but this bay gelding named Chaco. He came to me at 26 years-old, in chronic pain and cribbing constantly. He had difficulty maintaining weight, and his top line had some protruding vertebrae in his lumbar area. I turned him out 24/7 on acreage with another horse and a shelter. I fed him the highest quality hay I could find and took him off grain. In the back of my mind was chiropractic.

Chiropractic has been part of my life since I was young, so it wasn’t a big stretch for me to consider chiropractic to help Chaco feel good again. The first equine chiropractor that adjusted him used just their hands. Chaco was still in too much pain, and he tried to bite her. As much as I believed in chiropractic I couldn’t put him through the pain. So I temporarily put chiropractic on the shelf.

A year or more went by when Chaco slipped and fell. I noticed that his right hind was not tracking straight with his right front leg. I knew a chiropractor could fix it. I found a chiropractor who adjusted people and animals, using an activator. The advantage to an activator is that it is so quick when adjusting that it is ahead of the person’s or animal’s pain response. I thought this just might work for Chaco.

Within two adjustments Chaco’s right hind was tracking straight again with his right front leg. There was also a new relaxation and roundness in his hip muscles that had never been there before. Even the raised vertebrae in his low back that disrupted his top line were visibly more relaxed. In addition, he never tried to bite this chiropractor. Instead he closed his eyes, relaxed, and licked and chewed. I knew I had found the chiropractor for Chaco.

With Chaco’s warm response to the chiropractor, and the positive changes in his back and right hind leg, the chiropractor has become a regular part of Chaco’s care team.

Consider chiropractic for your horse. Not only can it can help with acute situations where there has been a trauma to the body, but it also keeps the nervous system functioning properly, which in turn supports overall health.

To see a video of a chiropractor adjusting a horse using an activator, click here.