I've been working Taran a lot on coming properly over his topline, and that's been going pretty well. As you could see in his confo shots earlier this month, the under neck muscle is going away and being replaced by muscles on top of his neck - where they should be!
However, in the last week or so he has developed this weird muscle on either side of his neck, just in front of the shoulder. See the lump?
Lumpy left side.
Really lumpy right.
I've managed to create this muscle by using my hands incorrectly for bend. He tends to cock his head one way or the other (more to the right) instead of actually bending, and initially I was using my hand about a foot away from his neck to ask him to follow the rein. In a lesson about a week and a half ago, I was told that was too far - so when riding on my own I over-compensated and started using my inside hand toward my opposite hip. That motion has created this muscle in such a short time!
The answer (as discovered at my last lesson on Sunday) is to ask with my hand slightly away from his neck, so that I don't close the angle too much - but also don't drag his nose around with my hand over in space! Somewhere in the middle, lol. That muscle is already disappearing, and I'm doing stretches and a little massage to help it on its way.
Anyone else ever seen a horse with a muscle like this one?
crazy that it can develop so fast like that! i've only ever seen super abnormal neck muscling in horses that weave or have other nervous tic type behaviors that lead them to some sort of repetitive movement...
ReplyDeleteYeah, he doesn't do any of those things - it's all the way I'm riding. :(
DeleteWow! That is crazy how it developed so fast
ReplyDeleteLiterally a week and a half. Sigh.
DeleteHaha he's telling on you in really non-subtle ways.
ReplyDeleteSubtle like giant lump.
DeleteI've never seen a muscle do that but I have seen it caused by a vertebrae being out. Interesting that this happened so quickly!
ReplyDeleteNope, it's all squishy muscle - all the vertebrae are where they're supposed to be. So weird!
DeleteMikey had an actual divet in his neck along his crest from where he wasn't using his topline along the entire length. I also knew a horse whose rider rode him so tight in the hand and broken at the whatever-vertebrate-they-always-say,-I-should-know-this that he had a physical lump on his crest from over building one topline muscle instead of all of them.
ReplyDeleteThey definitely muscle up (or not) in strange ways if they're not using themselves correctly.
DeleteThat is a crazy lump. I'm really surprised they came on that quickly.
ReplyDeleteMe too... hopefully it will go away just as quickly!
DeleteAll I've got running through my head is Arnold Schwarzenegger saying "It is NOT a TUMOR"
ReplyDeleteBWAHAHAHAHA!
DeleteAw crap this makes the slightly uneven musculature Tristan is starting to develop on his neck make a lot more sense now. Tris isn't nearly that prominent but I was just eyeing his neck thinking it ought to be a smoother line than that. I'll keep an eye on my hands now, thank you for posting this!
ReplyDeleteIt's rather disturbing how quickly I managed to make that happen. Hopefully it will go away just as fast!
DeleteInteresting how that happens!
ReplyDeleteYeah, always the rider's doing. As usual!
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