“Wobblers” Horse successfully treated with Chiropractic and Reiki - Bush Dr. Blog
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Bush Dr. Blog

“Wobblers” Horse successfully treated with Chiropractic and Reiki

"Wobblers" is one of those diseases where the clue really is in the name, as the syndrome is characterised by an ataxic or "wobbly" gait (usually worse behind).

The wobbliness is caused by spinal cord compression in the neck. The compression can be the result of cervical vertebra (i.e. neck bone) abnormalities or abnormal motion between the bones (or both).

I treated a horse with "wobbler type" symptoms chiropractically. Obviously I called her vet to discuss the case and get his consent before I even went to the yard! The vet confirmed that the neck x-rays showed no instability and he was happy from me to treat her chiropractically.

She was pretty sensitive in the neck and head area, and showed some unsteadiness and gait abnormalities (worse behind). She also had a history of suddenly rearing up for no apparent reason both when ridden and when being lead.

I treated her with chiropractic and soft tissue work. I also worked alongside an excellent Reiki practitioner.

After treatment and a spell in the paddock, she was far less sensitive around the head and neck, her gait had improved and the rearing had stopped. She is now back playing polo and doing very well.

This patient had a very successful outcome from chiropractic and reiki treatment BUT... I cannot stress strongly enough how important it is to get veterinary consent & clearance in all cases, but especially if there is any possibility of Wobblers – you really don't want anyone manipulating your animal's neck if there is the slightest risk of instability.

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About Bush Dr.

A Dr. of Chiropractic, Gina McCulloch trained for 4 years at Oxford Brookes university in England, to qualify as a chiropractor. She graduated with a First Class Honours Degree in 2001. She completed a specialist Diploma in Animal Chiropractic in the UK and then travelled to the United States and Germany to further her animal chiropractic education. Here she took Postgraduate and Advanced courses in Animal Chiropractic. She graduated and was one of the first British chiropractors to successfully pass the independent American Veterinary Chiropractic Association (AVCA) board certification exams. She is a certified member of the International Veterinary Chiropractic Association (IVCA) and American Veterinary Chiropractic Association (AVCA) and the International Equine Body Workers Association (IEBWA). She was a regular examiner for the IVCA board certification examinations in Europe until she and her family moved to Australia in 2006. She has also undertaken extensive (1600+ hours) massage, muscle therapy & energy technique courses (including Acupressure, CranioSacral Therapy (CST), MyoFascial Release (MFR), Healing, Reiki, Stretching & Rehabilitation, Sports Massage (Basic & Advanced), Equine; Nervous System Function, Exercise Physiology, Biomechanics, Gait Abnormalities and Applied Anatomy, Principles of; Saddle fitting, Farriery science, Dentistry, Nutrition, and Behaviour.) She is a member of the International Equine Body Workers Association (IEBWA) Gina is currently loving living “down under” and writes a regular blog for the naturallycomplementary.com community as the Bush Dr. She shares her Aussie home with; 2 horses, 1 dog, 1 cat, numerous wild kangaroos, birds and snakes, a long suffering husband, and an animal loving son and daughter.
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