Assessing the thoracic sling.

Raise your hand if you're like me and you spend A LOT of time observing your horse's muscles, his hooves, his stance, and wonder, is this right? Should this muscle look and feel like this? Are we going in the right direction with our training? Figuring out if you and your horse are on the right track can be challenging, especially because we can't simply ask our horse's if they're happy with our work. One of the tell-tale signs of correct training is the development of the horse's thoracic sling. If we manage to make this area strong and supple, everything else will follow suit. Here are some signs of correct vs incorrect development of the horse's thoracic sling to watch out for:

1.

The withers-neck transition. How does the neck blend in with the withers? Is there an obvious dip just in front of the withers or does the transition seem smooth, almost seamless? A dip in front of the withers can indicate an underdeveloped and strained thoracic sling. It often appears when the horses' bodies are pushed downwards between their front legs. When the thoracic sling is working as it should, the body is lifted up between the front legs and the neck muscles are free to do their job. The neck will develop a nice, smooth arch and the transition between the neck and withers will become seamless.

A dip in front of the withers indicates thoracic sling dysfunction.

2.

Front leg stance. How does your horse position his front legs? Do they come straight down, perpendicular to the ground or are they pushed farther behind, under the horse's body? Legs pushed far under the horse's body can indicate tightness in the thoracic sling muscles. In this posture, the horse isn't balanced which will create tension in the rest of the body. When the thoracic sling is active and doing its job, the legs should come down perpendicularly to the ground, providing a stable base for the horse.

Standing too far under with the front legs is often connected to poor hoof balance.

3.

Development of the chest. What do you see when you look at your horse's chest? Are the pectoral muscles nicely developed, giving the chest a broad feel, or are they weak, making the chest narrow? Horses with weak pectorals will often display a base narrow posture. Again, that makes the horse unbalanced, taking its toll on the rest of the body. This will go away as the pectorals develop and the chest becomes wider.

As the thoracic sling develops, the chest becomes wider and the stance less base narrow.

So, the next time you're out assessing your horse, look at these three areas and make a note of what you see. If you spot issues with the thoracic sling, despite the fact that you've been training a lot lately, it might be time to take a step back and focus more on the basics. Make sure to take photographs, so you can track your progress over time!