Is asymmetry always bad?
Asymmetry of the tuber coxae can sometimes be resolved with good bodywork and training.
If you look at a horse for long enough, you will surely notice some ways in which he is asymmetrical. Maybe one of his front hooves is bigger than the other, or one side of his pelvis is higher. One scapula might be more pronounced or one of his nostrils might be set a bit lower than the other. Some of us are guilty of obsessing and worrying over these asymmetries and sometimes this can be a good thing. Being aware of all the ways in which your horse is asymmetric can help you make better training decisions and track your progress. But is asymmetry always a bad thing?
The answer is, as always, it depends. Thinking we can mould the horse into a perfectly symmetrical creature is probably not very realistic, so we will always be dealing with some level of asymmetry. The bigger question is, is the asymmetry we are look at functional of dysfunctional? One of the things we love looking at is the asymmetry in the horse's pelvis. We look at the horse from behind and compare the height of the tuber coxae and the tuber sacrales and then we say something like »His right side of the pelvis is higher than the left. This means that he is not using his hind legs equally«. The discrepancy in the height of the sides of the pelvis can be caused by many things – tight hip flexors, an undiagnosed SI injury, ribcage rotation, distal limb issues, the list goes on. But sometimes, the horse's pelvis is just shaped that way. Sometimes we can »fix it« and make the sides of the pelvis even by releasing restrictions in the soft tissue and reprogramming the horse's movement patterns, but sometimes the asymmetry will stay no matter how hard we try. Does that mean the horse is broken and will never be functional again? Far from it.
An uneven height of the tuber sacrales AND very uneven muscle development is a sign of compensation and dysfunction.
When dealing with asymmetries, instead of searching for perfection, we should be searching for functionality. Dysfunction creates compensation, so when asking ourselves whether or not a certain asymmetry is dysfunctional, we need to look at potential compensation. Let's think back to our horse with the asymmetrical tuber coxae and think of some signs of compensation. Is one side of the horse's hind end more developed than the other? This would indicate one side is working harder than the other. Is cantering on one side much harder than cantering on the other side? This would indicate the horse isn't equally strong in the hind legs. Does the saddle keep slipping to one side? This could indicate mild hindlimb lameness in the leg towards which the saddle slides. Does the horse have trouble bending to one side? This could indicate a lack of mobility through the ribcage stemming from psoas and diaphragm dysfunction. All of these symptoms could be an indication that the asymmetry in the horse's pelvis is dysfunctional.
Sometimes the asymmetry stays, but we can still make the hind end functional. Even muscle development is a good sign.
When we are dealing with asymmetry AND compensation patterns, we need to address the issue. With the support of bodywork and good training, it is usually possible to restore functionality, even if the asymmetry never completely goes away. And this is ok. When dealing with asymmetries, it is always good to note them and address them, but it can sometimes be counterproductive to obsess over them.